A schoolboy today told of his torment after becoming dangerously-addicted to computer games. The Evening Post has discovered that a growing number of young people in the county are seeking professional help after becoming hooked on the fantasy world of console games. Young addicts are skipping meals, playing truant from school and are even stealing money from their parents to buy the latest games.

And one expert today warned two hours of playing games produces the same high as taking a line of cocaine. Alarming figures reveal three out of five under 16-years-old plays video games to such an extent that it is a cause for concern for health care professionals. And in the under 10 age group, a staggering four out of five children play computer games at levels showing signs of addiction, figures obtained by addiction experts revealed. One 15-year-old Lancashire boy today admitted that computer addiction took over his life and told how he discarded his friends, neglected his school studies and survived on junk food as he embarked on marathon gaming sessions of up to 48 hours.

Jack, who lives in Garstang, said: “Playing on my games console was all I wanted to do and it was the first thing I thought of as soon as I woke up. I would play for hours on end without even realising. “It was like it was a demon that had got inside my brain and I just couldn’t stop. If my parents tried to stop me playing, I would just flip. “I lost touch with my mates, started doing badly at school and became an angry and aggressive person that wasn’t the real me.” Steve Pope, a counsellor and therapist who lives in Garstang, says he is seeing increasing numbers of youngsters suffering from game addiction. He said: “A lot of young people get themselves into a situation where they use video games as an escape from the world and they get hooked on the release of adrenaline it gives.

“Spending two hours on a game station is equivalent to taking a line of cocaine in the high it produces. “It is the fastest growing addiction in the country and this is affecting young people mentally, as well as leading to physical problems such as obesity.
“It gives parents peace and quiet, but it becomes a concern when it is all the child wants to do. “I saw one 14-year-old Preston boy who played on games for 24 hours non stop and had not eaten and was showing signs of dehydration. “When his parents tried to take his console away, he became aggressive and threatened to jump out of a window.