Children as young as 12 are getting treatment for gaming addiction and even steroid use.
In addition young people are accessing psychotherapy for issues like porn addiction.
Richard Hogan is clinical director of the Therapy Institute - he says people can't bury their head in the sand:
"Parents can no longer deceive themselves that their children are engaged in a benign activity."
"I don't want to sensationalize technology, it's here to stay and there are obviously some great educational aspects to it."
"The reality is that there are a lot of negatives."
Parents are becoming more concerned about their children online...https://t.co/rW2FIpKAss
— CyberSafeKids (@CyberSafeKidsIE) February 12, 2020
Digital Safety
CyberSafe Ireland's survey earlier this week showed that one in three young people see material online that is upsetting for them.
Therefore a Digital Safety Commissioner could oversee and advise on how young people can be protected online, as a potential solution.
Richard Hogan says there are ways to get around built-in protections on apps:
"Teenagers are accessing the [clinical] service due to issues with pornography, issues with bullying online."
"The growing trend in modern young relationships is that you might send a picture of yourself."
"They might send it on a platform like Snapchat so it may disappear after about five seconds."
"But if someone screenshots that, which actually happened in one case, they took a picture of the image with a different phone."
"The girl didn't know a screenshot was taken, so she didn't know the image would save."
At press conference by @ISPCCChildline, @ChildRightsIRL, @Barnardos_IRL, @SpunOut and @CyberSafeIE - all keen to maintain pressure on new govt to progress Digital Safety Commissioner #100DaysForChildSafety
— Ciarán Mac Mathghamhna (@CJAMcMahon) February 11, 2020
Steroid Use Among Children
Richard says he has also seen a trend with young people and Steroids.
Therefore he explains children are taking the man-made hormones to tone their bodies.
"There's a new demographic of needle users developing maybe around 18, maybe a little bit younger, 17 to 22."
"Around this idea of going on holidays, that they might take steroids just to maybe get rid of water from their body or get more defined for their holiday."
"They believe that they are involved in a very safe activity - Taking steroids."
"As we saw two years ago a young boy died from his use of steroids."
"The reality is, these things are very dangerous."
