As he quotes, this is how gaming disorder defined:
>For gaming disorder to be diagnosed, the behaviour pattern must be of sufficient severity to result in significant impairment in personal, family, social, educational, occupational or other important areas of functioning and would normally have been evident for at least 12 months.
The important parts are significant impairment, and continuing even though you know it's doing harm.
But this is how he describes his life at the time:
> I spent hours nearly every single afternoon hovering around the game machines at a local strip mall arcade within walking distance of my home down in Sanford, Florida. If I had nothing else to do, that's where I spent my time. If I had things to do, well, sometimes I played video games instead of doing those things. Virtually all my free time was absorbed in video games (oh, and Dungeons & Dragons as well).
> I was also a deeply depressed, closeted gay teen at the darkest, cruelest point of the AIDS crisis, terrified that if anybody found out I'd get the crap beaten out of me, and if I ever acted on my urges I'd get sick and die.
This isn't gaming disorder. This is the equivalent of someone reading a medical dictionary and thinking they have Dengue Fever (even though they've had no contact with mosquitos).
Psychologists wouldn't diagnose gaming disorder. They'd create a formulation that includes all the other things that the author thinks are important.
I think that's the author's point; the assertion here is that most people with "gaming disorder" probably "have" it as a symptom of one or more underlying disorders. Most people would - by a reasonable psychologist, at least - be diagnosed with those underlying conditions; the folks pushing for an official recognition of "gaming disorder" are not reasonable psychologists.
>For gaming disorder to be diagnosed, the behaviour pattern must be of sufficient severity to result in significant impairment in personal, family, social, educational, occupational or other important areas of functioning and would normally have been evident for at least 12 months.
The important parts are significant impairment, and continuing even though you know it's doing harm.
But this is how he describes his life at the time:
> I spent hours nearly every single afternoon hovering around the game machines at a local strip mall arcade within walking distance of my home down in Sanford, Florida. If I had nothing else to do, that's where I spent my time. If I had things to do, well, sometimes I played video games instead of doing those things. Virtually all my free time was absorbed in video games (oh, and Dungeons & Dragons as well).
> I was also a deeply depressed, closeted gay teen at the darkest, cruelest point of the AIDS crisis, terrified that if anybody found out I'd get the crap beaten out of me, and if I ever acted on my urges I'd get sick and die.
This isn't gaming disorder. This is the equivalent of someone reading a medical dictionary and thinking they have Dengue Fever (even though they've had no contact with mosquitos).
Psychologists wouldn't diagnose gaming disorder. They'd create a formulation that includes all the other things that the author thinks are important.