ure: Gudrun Wamser, the head of the addiction department at the Stadtmission Kiel. She gets many calls every day – from young, mostly male help-seekers. That’s because the number of so-called media addicts has increased dramatically since Corona. In Schleswig-Holstein, there are only three contact points for this area. As with the other two facilities, the Kiel center is project-financed. And this project is due to end at the end of the year.

But those affected need help

Gudrun Wamser, head of the addiction department at the Kiel City Mission, is fighting to keep the counseling center open.

Niklas (name changed by the editors) is ashamed and worried about being recognized. He was in the middle of media addiction. Training, exam stress – that had probably triggered it. Corona had encouraged all this, but he believes he was simply looking for something he could influence himself. Most recently, he spent an average of 13 hours a day playing on his cell phone. That’s where the 23-year-old ended up with a very costly game: Might and Magic – Era of Chaos. A game that, according to psychologists, many young people play when external demands suddenly become too strong in their self-perception. There are games that can be assigned: Exam stress? World of Warcraft. A fight with your girlfriend? Dungeons and Dragons. Frustration or boredom? The Witcher. And demands from the outside? Might and Magic, Starcraft, or even Diabolo.

Media addiction is increasingly taking over everyday life

Consultant Anna Schwitzer from the “Stadtmission Mensch” is Niklas’ caregiver. She tells us that addiction develops in many young men after they leave their parents’ home. This was also the case with Niklas. He was simply no longer really fit for everyday life. And yet counselor Schwitzer describes him as a normal and average case. Both a curse and a blessing in his case: The app Era of Chaos subtly prompts young – primarily male – players to make purchases for the game. Niklas suddenly found himself in debt, spending more and more money on so-called in-app purchases. Suddenly, his reserves were gone. That’s when he knew he couldn’t get out of it without help. He himself had gone to the city mission. “Not unusual,” says Anna Schwitzer.

Sufferers help each other in media reduction group

In addition to the counseling sessions, Niklas came here with three other addicts to a so-called “media reduction group.” This was the last one that could still be financed by the facility. Anna Schwitzer explains: “The addicts are no longer allowed to play games, their accounts are completely blocked. Cell phones are allowed, but only for making calls. And that is also controlled. The way out of there is hard.” The young people who come here or are brought here are all classic cases, he said: young, between 20 and 30, intelligent, male. Niklas has been helped a lot by the group, he says. “I’ve seen where I stand. Above all, the group helped me to self-reflect on my consumption.” This is exactly what Anna Schwitzer also works with in her individual counseling sessions: She helps those affected to recognize what are the advantages and disadvantages of my current gambling behavior, what consequences may have already arisen. She agrees on two-week steps in which those affected determine what they want to accomplish during this time. A media diary is kept for this purpose.

Pandemic has increased numbers

Initial scientific studies show that media use among children and young people in the lockdown has increased by 75%. Gudrun Wamser tells us that inquiries at the only counseling center for Kiel and the surrounding area have increased dramatically during the pandemic: They have even doubled (2018: 67, 2020: 134 cases). At the moment, she is trying to get the Ministry of Social Affairs to change the drop-in center from project funding to regular funding. So that the counseling can continue. Since the director now also receives inquiries from kindergartens and entire school classes, she would like not only to maintain the counseling center, but to expand it.

Niklas has meanwhile completed his journeyman’s work, finished his apprenticeship and has been taken on. He is still not completely “clean,” however, but he has been able to greatly reduce his gambling behavior and, above all, control it well himself.

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