Internet phobia

Internet phobia is an anxiety disorder characterised by symptoms of anxiousness where the person perceives the Internet environment to be unsafe with no easy way to hide from it.[1] Specific anxiety-raising situations can include using a computer or mobile phone, reading email, accessing the web, Facebook or other social media, but also being in open spaces, public transit, shopping malls, or simply being outside the home due to the risk of being photographed or otherwise Internet-logged in these situations.[1] Being in any of these situations may result in a panic attack.[2] The symptoms occur nearly every time the situation is encountered and repeat themselves for a period of more than six months. Those affected will go to great lengths to avoid these situations.[1] In severe cases people become severely handicapped through their inability to carry out Internet-related activity.[2]

The cause of internet phobia is likely to be a combination of environmental factors. The condition can run in families and stressful events may be a trigger.[1] Internet phobia has yet to be classified in the DSM-5 alongside specific phobias and social phobia.[1][3] Other conditions that can produce similar symptoms include separation anxiety, agoraphobia , posttraumatic stress disorder, and major depressive disorder. Those affected are at higher risk of depression and substance use disorder.[1]

Without treatment it is uncommon for internet phobia to resolve.[1] Treatment begins with diagnosis. Possible treatment is a type of counselling called cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT).[3][4] CBT results in phobia resolution for about half of people.[5] It is suggested that Internet phobia may affect about 1.7% of adults.[citation needed] Women are affected about twice as often as men. Unlike other phobias the condition is more prevalent in later adulthood and is also common in old age. It is rare in children.[1] The term “internet phobia" is derived from the combination of Internet meaning internetwork and the Greek -φοβία, -phobia, meaning "fear".[6]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 American Psychiatric Association (2013), Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (5th ed.), Arlington: American Psychiatric Publishing, pp. 217–221, 938, ISBN 0890425558
  2. 1 2 "Agoraphobia". PubMed Health. Retrieved 11 August 2016.
  3. 1 2 Wyatt, Richard Jed; Chew, Robert H. (2008). Wyatt's Practical Psychiatric Practice: Forms and Protocols for Clinical Use. American Psychiatric Pub. pp. 90–91. ISBN 9781585626878.
  4. ↑ Pompoli, A; Furukawa, TA; Imai, H; Tajika, A; Efthimiou, O; Salanti, G (13 April 2016). "Psychological therapies for panic disorder with or without agoraphobia in adults: a network meta-analysis.". The Cochrane database of systematic reviews.
  5. ↑ Craske, MG; Stein, MB (24 June 2016). "Anxiety.". Lancet (London, England). doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(16)30381-6. PMID 27349358.
  6. ↑ Elster, Charles Harrington (2009). Verbal Advantage: Ten Easy Steps to a Powerful Vocabulary. Diversified Publishing. p. PT717. ISBN 9780307560971
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