Online Gaming Help for Teens From Pennsylvania

Residential Treatment Centers for Pennsylvania Teens with Video Game Addictions

Our Pennsylvania based summer camp for video game addictions specializes in getting teens off their screens and back in life.  Gaming or video game addiction is very hard to treat. In one surprising study, In one study 84% of addicted gamers were still addicted two years later, demonstrating how difficult gaming addiction is to treat.  In the same study, 7% of online gamers were classified as psychologically or behaviorally dependent on online gaming. 

This begs the question, “why is gaming so addictive?”  According to research in the Journal of Mental Health and Addiction 41% of people who play online video games do so as an, “escape from the real world.”  While a temporary escape can be healthy (like watching a movie or going on vacation) escaping when there is schoolwork or chores to be done can be damaging.  If your child is choosing video games over interacting with others face to face, a summer camp for video game addiction may be the answer.

There is much debate currently about the effect of video game violence on the real world.  According to a study in Pediatrics, as much as 20% of real-life violence may be attributable to media violence.  Why is this? Researchers speculate that there is a two-fold issue here. First, constant exposure to video game violence decreases our sensitivity to real-world violence.  Seeing a fight at school might seem more normal to a child that has been exposed to ongoing video game violence, making them less likely to intervene or even more likely to instigate violence themselves.

Online Gaming Help: Therapy for Pennsylvania Teens

Based in Pennsylvania, Camp Pocono Trails is a summer camp for video game addiction that offers individual and group therapy.  We can work in tandem with therapists back home in Pennsylvania to ensure a smooth continuity of care. We also recommend our families engage in family therapy sessions while your child is in attendance.  This is done during workshop weekends. 

Our summer camp for video game addiction is based on a harm reduction model of help.  We don’t believe it’s realistic to just write off screens totally, nor is that a practical solution for anyone in today’s environment. Military boarding schools or short-term options like camps for video game addiction help should be avoided.  Change takes time, and a punitive approach can result in a child pushing back against authority.

Using Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, we first focus on esteem needs.  This has to do with developing a concern with getting recognition, status, importance, and respect from others. All humans have a need to feel respected; this includes the need to have self-esteem and self-respect. Esteem presents the typical human desire to be accepted and valued by others.

People often engage in a profession or hobby to gain recognition. But with the online world, recognition for being the best at a video game can interfere with other areas of life like schoolwork or socialization.  Our summer camp for video game addiction introduces activities give the student a sense of contribution or value. Low self-esteem or an inferiority complex may result from imbalances during this level in the hierarchy.

People with low self-esteem often need respect from others; they may feel the need to seek fame or glory. However, fame or glory will not help the person to build their self-esteem until they accept who they are internally. Psychological imbalances such as depression can hinder the person from obtaining a higher level of self-esteem or self-respect.

 

Who does Camp Pocono Trails help?

Camp Pocono Trails helps teens struggling with issues similar to those below:
– Social Issues
– Social Anxiety Disorder
– Family Conflict
– Video game addiction
– Poor Communication Skills
– Low Self Esteem
– Impulse Control
– Addictive Behaviors
– Technology Addiction
– ADHD
– Depression
– Social isolation
– Anxiety
– Trauma
– School Refusal
– Autism Spectrum

Resources

Online Gaming Help: Online Resources

TechAddiction.com

TechAddiction is committed to providing helpful, informative, and high quality links to services and individuals who provide help for or information on internet and video game addiction.

Reaching out to your local therapy network may also provide the solution you seek.  However, if you™ve already tried therapy and you didn™t get the results you wanted, or if your child refuses to go to therapy, Camp Pocono Trails may be exactly what you are looking for.

You can also reach out to your insurance company and see if they cover group or individual therapy, or if they cover summer camps like Camp Pocono Trails.

Online Gaming Help: The Basics of Safety


One important tip for video games or online digital media is to watch it or play together with your child.  Do not let your child keep their game system in their bedroom. Instead, keep your video game system in shared family spaces to stay familiar with how your children are using it. You can assist your student to make smart entertainment choices by discussing the game or media together.  One good way to start is to watch a Youtube œplaythrough video before you purchase a game.

Communicate. Make online activity a daily topic of conversation.  Ask your children questions about playing new games, meeting new people online, favorite websites and other interests. Encourage your child to ask questions, too.

Set guidelines. Determine what video gaming and online rules work best for your family, and work with your children to establish technology rules.  Examine if violence is part of the game your child wants to play. How often does violence appear? Is it rewarded in some way? It™s up to individual families to make the right choices for their child in regards to what they want their student exposed to.

Camp Pocono Trails helps families from Pennsylvania

Camp Pocono Trails helps Pennsylvania families from cities and towns like Easttown Township Fox Chapel Haverford Edgeworth Upper Makefield Lower Merion Township Willistown Township Solebury Tredyffrin Wrightstown