Children and Addictions

Recently a young lad from the Barrie area ran away from home because of a dispute with his parents over a video game. On the face of it you would think this was a normal sort of event and the kid would come home when he got hungry as happens in families many times a year I’m sure. However when you hear more of the story it starts to become a tale of addiction that is not much different than gambling, alcohol, drugs and a host of other nasty habits. I listened to the father who was being interviewed on a talk radio show and he stated that his son had spent the entire summer in his bedroom playing this one particular game. In fact he rarely came out for meals if you can believe that. Now I may be naive but wouldn’t a normal parent figure out that they may have a problem after the first week of the summer much less after two or three months. I don’t like to be judgemental but after hearing this guy state that he believes his son may have been kidnapped by a gang of these video game players I think he needs some counselling and quickly. For his sake I hope that is all that has happened to his son and he returns home unharmed but for others it surely sends a loud warning about bad addictions that kids can develop without strong parental guidance. I say “bad” addictions because there are some that we call “good” like various types of sports for instance. Let’s say that a kid spends every day playing hockey either on the ice for games and practices, on the street playing stick ball or in the basement banging soft rubber pucks off the wall. When he’s not doing these things he is watching hockey on TV or playing hockey on the Xbox etc. I would consider this an addiction as well, but this is an addiction that most parents support and in fact promote. While there may be many reasons for the parent to do this, one of the main drivers is surely their hope that the pros are waiting for their son or daughter. To allow kids to focus solely on either of these two examples is not a good thing in my opinion because it restricts them from exploring so many other activities that may tap their interest and latent talents. Kids pass through the “5 to 15” age span very quickly and if they are exposed to only one or two hobbies, skills or games it is likely they will miss experiencing so many other wonderful things. How many of us have said in our later years “boy I wish I had tried that when I was younger”? Addictions are not good at any time of life but during childhood they can be devastating because a child’s decision making process has not fully developed and the choices they make could be those that affect a lifetime. Don’t be a parent like the one above and let a video game become a babysitter or a frustrated jock or jockette who lets a sport consume their child’s life. Let them see, touch, feel and experience as much as they can so the choices they make are theirs and not yours.