Gone are the days when carpal tunnel syndrome was the only negative effect of too much time on the computer.

“Computer Compulsion,” a presentation offered by the Wellness Center, offers students advice for dealing with a newer problem: a compulsive need to be on the Internet.

Chris Julian-Fralish, coordinator of the alcohol and other drug program, said there are many aspects of the Internet on which people could grow dependent.

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“It can be online gaming, it can be social networking sites like Facebook and the like, it can be online pornography,” he said.

He said the program is to help people find other things to do with their time than be on the Internet.

Vincent Hardy said the first thing he does in the morning is check his e-mail on his BlackBerry. But Hardy, vice-president of the Undergraduate Student Government, said he does not think that means he is addicted to the Internet.

Hardy said he thought the difference between him checking his e-mail every morning and someone being addicted to the Internet is a compulsion to be on the Internet.

“You feel as though you can’t function, I’m guessing; like for me, I don’t freak out if I can’t check my e-mail or get to my computer,” he said.

However, Julian-Fralish said he would not necessarily call the compulsion an addiction. He said while there is evidence of similarities between Internet obsession and addictions to drugs and alcohol, there is no concrete evidence of actual physical addiction.

“What problems is it causing? If it’s not causing problems, it’s probably not a compulsion,” he said. “But if you can’t escape it or you have to do it, then we look at, ‘Well, maybe it’s an issue and we need to address it.'”

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Julian-Fralish said while the presentation is scheduled to happen later in the school year, people or groups can request the presentation.

“People can request that for classrooms, RSOs, Greek groups … athletics,” he said.

Some students said they are unsure of the legitimacy of the diagnosis.

Colton Scott, a senior from Lisle studying marketing, said he could see where being addicted to the Internet would affect people’s lives in the same way as drug and alcohol addiction. But Scott said he didn’t think the culprit was the Internet as a whole.

“I think that some people get addicted to Internet games more than the Internet,” he said. “But I wouldn’t say the physical aspects of being actually addicted to a drug compared to the mental aspects of being addicted to the Internet.”

He said it was more of a mental state that he thought people should be able to overcome.

Christian Holt can be reached at 536-3311 ext. 259 or [email protected].