Events Calendar
In This Section
People Helping People - Nov. 23
After 30 years at the helm of Akron Children's, Considine still looks to future
Matsos bottling a dressing that’s selling in 25 states
Home Run for Homeless is Thursday
People Helping People - Nov. 22
People Helping People - Nov. 21
Most Read Stories
Police accuse bank robbery suspect of gobbling up note (with dashcam video)
Victim of beating in Kent last week is declared dead at Akron hospital
Can DNA tests free ex-Akron captain?
Dad accused of forcing son into field, killing him
Man found dead in North Akron home is identified
Browns find another way to lose
Blogs:
Pets:
Cat-loving chihuahua suckles seven abandoned kittens
The Heldenfiles:
Sunday Notebook
Patrick McManamon:
Browns sick after sick loss in Detroit
Akron Zips:
Zips advance to Sweet Sixteen
Tribe Matters:
Seven players added to Tribe’s 40-man roster
Cleveland Browns:
Post-game defensive quotes
Kent State Sports:
Kent State defeats Rochester College, 63-44
Cleveland Cavaliers:
Gameblog: Cavs vs. Philadelphia 76ers
Buckeye Blogging:
OSU – Michigan college football rivals meet in Baghdad
Varsity Letters:
Four area football teams play tonight
All Da King's Men:
The Sunday Sanity Challenge
Blog of Mass Destruction:
Will Health Care Reform Pass?
Akron Law Café:
Health Care Financing Reform: (69) The Brookings Institute Study on "Bending the Curve" – Four General Strategies
See Jane Style:
Vintage Chic
Car Chase:
TIME TO GET YOUR COLLECTOR CARS WINTERIZED
Let's Talk Real Estate:
Faye Dunaway to be Evicted?
Ohio Travels with Betty:
Monique asks how to get tickets for the Polar Express.
Sound Check:
Steely Dan Plays "The Royal Scam" at E.J. Thomas Hall
HRLite House:
Personal Rant – You are All Wrong About Jobs, or the Lack of Jobs, Being the Reason People Do Not Live in NEO
Akron Gamer:
Nintendo's Mario endures even as games come and go
Hundreds of exchanges in month can add up to a serious problem
Published on Tuesday, Jul 08, 2008
Bill: When you told me your 13-year-old daughter text messages her friends even when they are sitting in the car next to her, I took that as just another fad for kids. I certainly did not think of it as maybe evidence of a new addiction.
Dr. Dave: But now comes this news story about Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick sending 14,000 text messages of love and lust to his chief of staff, Christine Beatty — the kind of compulsive behavior that may well bring down his administration. That beginning to change your mind?
Bill: What changed it was another news item, this time about Nevada Gov. Jim Gibbons' ongoing divorce — 860 texts to his mistress in one month. Doesn't he know he's creating a paper trail for his wife's divorce lawyer?
Dr. Dave: Maybe that's why Gibbons gave her the 23-room governor's mansion and went back to their Reno home to live. Text messaging is certainly falling into the addiction category for more and more young people . . .
Bill: . . . who society needs worry about more than people like Mayor Kilpatrick and Gov. Gibbons. For instance, take this e-mail from ''Stanley.'' He says that his three teenagers seem to ''think texting is the same as face-to-face conversation. They type intimate messages that are shown to others, or just make stupid comments they would never say to a person's face. When I tell them to use the phone for that kind of personal, potentially explosive stuff, they thank me for my wisdom, swear never to make the same mistake again, and then two hours later, they're texting their girlfriend from the same cell phone they could be using to call her!''
So, Dave, let's talk to parents for a moment. What are the signs that your kid might becoming addicted to text messaging?
Dr. Dave: Pick up any medical textbook and turn to the definition of obsessive-compulsive disorder. You won't need a Ph.D. to see it describes the teenage cell-phone texting we've been talking about.
Bill: That's fine, Dave, but what are we going to tell Stanley about his kids? In fact, what do you tell your own daughter about her text messages? That if they text for over an hour a day, their thumb will fall off?
Dr. Dave: First off, text messaging and Internet addiction are both well on their way to being included in the next official listing of psychiatric disorders by the American Psychiatric Association. A major problem in helping our children is that the shame, denial and secrecy surrounding the compulsive behavior can be very strong.
Bill: And since I bet most parents are like me — ignorant about the world of texting — they are faced by a baffling, underground problem.
Dr. Dave: The place to begin is find a good teen counselor who understands not just how to get behind the kids' denial, but also how to teach them communication skills that are more effective than the shorthand of text messages.
Bill: Your idea is not to punish kids by withholding their cell phone but rather to teach them that direct communication can be more fun?
Dr. Dave: Bill, maybe you never had kids of your own, but we will make a child therapist of you yet. Reinforcing behavior you want is easier than punishing the behavior you don't. However, the parent and child do need to monitor their text messaging and reward the child for reduction in number of texts used. So you always need a text messaging account that will monitor how many messages are sent.
Dave Moore is a licensed psychologist and chemical dependency professional. Author Bill Manville hosts an addictions radio show. Addictions & Answers will appear occasionally in the Tuesday Health section and every week on Ohio.com.
Bill: When you told me your 13-year-old daughter text messages her friends even when they are sitting in the car next to her, I took that as just another fad for kids. I certainly did not think of it as maybe evidence of a new addiction.
Get the full article here.
Comments
Click here to post your comments
