‘Destined’ to be an internet addict

The Stammering Dunce
3 min readDec 18, 2024

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Also published on Wordpress.

On my part of the internet, I occasionally encounter people claiming “boredom is good” because it compels us to be more creative, take more heed of our surroundings, be more physically active, bond with other people, do any so-called “character-building” activities. Basically, they believe boredom is good for personal growth.

But, that didn’t happen to me.

I was bored a lot as a kid and teen (especially as a kid) and I was never compelled to do any of those beneficial things. When boredom hit, I resorted to watching TV even when there was nothing good on it, re-reading the same comics and children’s illustrated encyclopedia over and over again, re-listening the same songs over and over again, re-watching the same VCDs over and over again, and eating snacks or any available leftovers in the kitchen.

As one expects from a child, my young self had a very active imagination. If I was bored and there were no TV, snacks or my personal collection of books and VCDs at my disposal, I would retreat to my inner world.

Unfortunately, not in a good way.

I was already an inattentive, asocial and obsessively escapist kid. Playing with my imagination only exacerbate those traits. I didn’t simply living inside my head, I let myself drowned in it. Instead of using my imagination to fuel a hobby, I became even more withdrawn from society.

I was marginally better as a teen because I started reading NEW and mostly unillustrated books. While they were mostly escapist novels, I had a more productive way to alleviate my boredom; at least, I could improve my media literacy (and, depending on the novels’ themes, expand my horizon). Not to mention high school is the most social period of my life, defying the (probably westernised) belief about how hostile high schools are for awkward and introverted teens like me.

I started to read less as an adult because I started having an unlimited internet access; if it wasn’t for university, I would have stopped reading books altogether by the time I graduated high school.

I don’t know if the statement about boredom is being oversimplified and omitting the ifs and buts, OR I am simply an anomaly. But, if I already had internet access as a kid, I am confident I would become an addict early on and the addiction would probably be worse and more consequential than the one I have now.

It is also a reminder that technologies do not cause problems, they simply exacerbate them or bring them to the surface. Instead of blaming the technologies, we should never be complacent about the fragile state of mankind, pretending life is innately hunky dory.

I do wonder: if I grew up attending schools where every student was encouraged/forced to be VERY active in extracurricular activities and read lots of new books, if I grew up in cities with vibrant cultural amenities and young children could safely walk/or use mass transit to go there (or everywhere) by themselves, what would the outcome be?

Would I be a significantly psychologically healthier person? Or would I still be at high risk of internet addiction?

In my case, which is the bigger factor: nature or nurture?

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The Stammering Dunce
The Stammering Dunce

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