We’ve all been guilty of it at one point or another. The Netflix binge. You’d be lying if you said you haven’t spent more than a few Saturdays vegging on the couch watching six straight hours of your new favorite series. But can this innocent-seeming indulgence turn into a problem?
Many of us have probably joked that we’re addicted to Netflix. For one man, however, this joke became a dangerous reality. The man, whose name is still unknown, recently checked into a digital rehab facility in India.
His story began at age 26. After losing his job, the man turned to Netflix to fill the hours of the day. The streaming service became a means of escapism from unemployment, poverty, and unfulfillment. For six months, the man watched an unbelievable seven hours of TV every single day. Totaled up, the guy spent 1,260 hours sitting in front of a screen. That is time he will never get back.
The frequency of his Netflix binges even caused this man physical ailments. He suffered from fatigue, disturbed sleep patterns, and eye strain. Since realizing his major problem, the man has checked himself into the Service for Healthy Use of Technology (SHUT) clinic at the National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences (NIMHANS).
Clinic doctor Manoj Kumar Sharma had the following to say about the man:
“The man watched Netflix when his family pressured him to earn a living or when he saw his friends doing well.
It was a method of escapism. He could forget about his problems, and he derived immense pleasure from it.”
While this addiction may sound fictionalized (and while we’d all love to spend hours on our parents’ couches), this is a very real disease that can manifest itself in many forms. Hopefully, the man makes a full recovery and is back to work soon! Who even knew Netflix had that many hours of shows stored in its library?
Check out what your favorite streaming service has recently added to its queue.
