Self-help Strategies

Make yourself a positive reminder card

1. Write out a list of the five major problems caused by your addiction to the internet.
2. On a separate list, write out the five major benefits of reducing your internet use.
3. Then transfer the two lists onto a small card and keep it in your pocket, wallet or directly in front of the computer.
4. You would come to a point and make choices where you would be tempted to use the Internet. Instead of doing something more productive or healthy, take out your card as a reminder and ask yourself what you want to do for yourself and what you want to avoid in order to enter the correct path.

For example like the following sample.
My name is Henry, and here is the list of my problems of having addicted to Internet:
• I can’t sleep during bedtime
• I have to lie to my family
• I can’t finish my homework on time
• I don’t have friends to play with like soccer…etc
• Whenever I go out, I can’t enjoy myself as I feel like rushing home.

If I reduced my on-line time, these are my major benefits I could get:
• I could have better rest
• Improve relationship with my friends
• Improve in my academic results so that I could have a reward from my parents.
• Have a proper shopping which is normal for teens like me.
• More time to spend with my family members.

This simple reminder will help you subconsciously. Even though you may struggle to actively pursue some of the benefits on the list, you still could able to cut down internet session as a result. Thus to many Internet addicts, it is helpful in mapping out a clear but practical steps to follow and deal with the problems that make you rush towards the Internet in the first place.

Take concrete steps to address the problems

Such solution requires a third party to help you. Ii may be a therapist or one of your family members. The following example is an illustration of the method. Peter needs a job, but due to internet addiction, he is not willing to find. Thus, a third party steps in to make sure she would take one concrete step to find work everyday. It could be making one phone call of request of job, writing a letter for interview. After he took that concrete step, he could allow himself to use the Internet for a fixed period of time, as a reward for his effort.

Such concrete job-looking steps may not be studying job advertisement, pursuing interviews at different companies, or meeting with career counselor. He could also consider using this time at home to search the possibility of a totally new career goal. As long as he got a job and did well in the field, he had almost kicked the addiction. However, stress from work may start to build on. You could not totally prevent him from use computers, but turn to this technique for that specific time period, allow him on-line as a way to ease his stress from the real world.

Assess Your On-line Time

To get a clear idea of how much time you (or the Internet addict in your life) spend on this habit, start off by charting the number of hours involved. For starters, categorize your online activities and decide which you favor and to what degree. Use the following checklist to decide where your Internet time goes:

1. Chat rooms – How many hours spent per week? List all the different chat rooms you visit.
2. Interactive games – How many hours? List the different games you play.
3. E-mail – How many hours? Track the number of mails you send and receive daily.
4. Newsgroups – How many hours? List the various groups you participate in.
5. World Wide Web – How many hours? Identify your favorite sites.
6. Other usages – Are there additional applications you’ve discovered on the Net? Name them and total hours spent weekly on each one.

Compare the amount of time spent on each category and rank them in order of your favorite usages. Now add the hours you spend in each category to determine the total number of hours you devote to the Internet. Do not be surprised by the total number of hours you tabulated. You’re not alone. Most users were amazed to realize the full scope of their online devotion and the hours consumed. But how much time makes an addiction?

How much is Too Much?

There is no definitive border defining the amount of hours spent on the Net that separates normal and addictive Internet usage. An addiction cannot be defined by quantity alone. One cannot arbitrarily say that 10 beers is okay but 11 or more is addiction. Similarly, one cannot claim that 10 hours per week is fine, but once you reached the 11th hour you’re definitely an Internet addict. Instead, gauge the problems the habit caused in your life rate as a more accurate addiction barometer.

Moderation of Internet usage is possible. Unlike other addictions which require total abstinence from the substance, you do not have to give up Internet usage completely. While attempting to regain control over the time you devote to the Net, it helps to employ certain techniques and follow specific guidelines, which brings us to the next strategy.

1. Identify your usage pattern and practice the opposite – Ruminate for a few moments and identify your current habits of using the Net. What days of the week do you typically log on? What time of the day do you usually start? How long do you spend on each typical session? To begin shaking off the habit, practice the opposite. If your habit involves you checking your e-mail or the Net first thing in the morning, try taking a shower and breakfast first instead. If your internet usage is nocturnal, pushing you well beyond bedtime, use it only in the daytime instead. If you logon before dinner, wait until you finished your dinner before going online. If you use it every weeknight, wait until weekends, or if you’re an all-weekend user, shift to just week-nights instead. It may be hard at first, but soon you will manage to get the hang of it and reduce the impact the usage has on your life instead.

2. Find external stoppers – Use the necessary things and commitments in life you have to do and places you need to go as prompters and markers to remind yourself when to log off the Net, and schedule your online time just before them. If you have to leave for work or school at 7.30 A.M, go online at 6.30 A.M to give yourself exactly one hour before it’s time to quit, or decide that you will have dinner at 6.30P.M, so sit down for an hour of usage at 5.30P.M. There is always the danger of you ignoring the natural alarms though, so a real alarm clock may be used too. Keep it some distance away from the computer so that you have to get up to shut it off.

3. Insert planned Internet time into your weekly schedule.
Usually, many attempts to cut down Internet usage fail as result of user not determine enough to limit the time. This is because those remaining slots keeping coming. Thus it is suggested to set a reasonable goal. Around 20 hours a week on-line. Design a schedule and put these 20 hours in specific time slots. Keep these sessions brief but often enough. This will help you avoid craving and withdrawal. For example plan on using the Internet from 7-9pm every night, 1-3pm and take a break, then 7-10pm on Saturday and Sunday. This is effective as you have restricted your amount of time online within these 20 hours instead of unlimited uses. Incorporating a tangible schedule of Internet use will give you a sense of being in control, instead of having the Internet control you.
Take note though, however, that these time-management techniques may not necessarily work on the first or second attempt. It’s not an instant and miracle cure for what is potentially a major problem. One must be motivated in the first place if he is trying to regain control, and stick with the determination until the problem is curbed.