According to the headlines these days, kids are losing sleep and failing at school because they would be addicted to Fornite, the trending online video game. Even some experts can make hilarious comments about Fortnite, like Lorrine Marer, a British behavioral specialist in game addiction. "This game is like heroin. Once you are hooked, it's hard to get unhooked," she said. The big question is rather to know how parents can allow their kids to play 12 hours of video games a day (or night!). How can they tolerate such a poor behavior in the first place? Why parents don't simply take away those video games when it's necessary?
No, video games are not like heroin, they are only electronic systems that you can turn on and off at any time. Of course, video games can be abused, but they won't kill you if you overdose. And it's not so difficult to get "unhooked" if you have parents that are smart and strong enough to set the appropriate limits. In fact, video games are not the problem, unless parents let them be. Parents are the gatekeepers of their kids' time and how they spend it, even if this is not always an easy job.
Essential activities like homework are under parent's care. If the kids are not achieving well in school, they need to spend less time playing. They need to be studying more, with dad and mom actively encouraging and helping them, next and close to them. Parents should even spend time playing video games WITH their kids. It's by far the best way to understand why they enjoy this so much. Who knows, parents may become addicted themselves?
Picture: Epic Games' Fortnite
