Kotaku
Gamespot reports that the Smith & Jones Addiction Consultancy has opened an eight-bed gaming addiction treatment ward:
"We knew about drugs like crack, but we couldn't find a program anywhere for kids like this, and we saw enormous parallels between problems with gaming and alcohol and gambling," said Bakker. Though the clinic already treats game addicts on an outpatient basis, the new Smith & Jones program will consist of an in-patient stay of four to eight weeks to help patients cope with game withdrawal. "There can be anxiety, panic attacks, sleep problems, dreaming about games, nightmares, shaking," said Bakker.
Ain't that the truth... I still wake up in cold sweats sometimes, screaming Governer Marley's name into my darkened bedroom. I dearly wish they had had this program when I needed it. Remember how you used to have to blow out the vents on those NES carts when they got buggy? I once huffed into Duck Hunt for fifteen solid minutes before passing out in a puddle of my own sprayed saliva.
The intervention happened not long after they found and revived me, but I had to bust my habit the hard way. None of this sissy rehab. I'll never forget Jebediah's kindness, or all the valuable lessons I learned from him and the rest of the Amish.
Game-addict clinic opening in Amsterdam [Gamespot]
