Behavioral Addictions: First Steps When the Game Pulls You In

Games and the gambling environment are built so that a person gradually "switches" into another platform of life. Dr. Andris Saulitis describes this environment bluntly: it is predatory, it pulls out of a person everything they have, and in return offers surrogates — clan "friends," emotions, support. On one side there are genuine, pure feelings; on the other, those very emotions are used to "rob the person and suck out their last money," especially once fast-credit mechanisms kick in. The longer someone stays in this environment, the harder the way out.

Why bans and pills aren't enough

The doctor's core point: "you won't get out of this with pills alone." A flat ban doesn't solve it either — you can't simply take the platform away and give nothing back. If a person has lived in this environment for years, the emptiness after a ban only deepens the craving. So the first step is not fighting the symptom but replacing it: building a life that competes, in emotional intensity, with the artificial traps.

Offer something better than the artificial traps

The doctor frames the task this way: "we have to give something better than these artificial computer traps." This means an alternative rich in real emotions, where a person can realize themselves, where there is genuine friendship, emotion, support, joy and love. It's not "entertainment instead of the game" — it's a full environment in which living relationships and meaning become stronger than the surrogate.

The earlier, the better

The key emphasis of this angle is time. "If children start getting drawn in, try — while it's not too late — to give them a psycho-emotionally rich alternative." The doctor warns: if a person is already 30 or older and lives only in this environment, rehabilitation becomes extremely hard — they cling to it "like to heroin." The earlier you start building a living alternative, the better neuroplasticity works and the easier it is to "straighten things out" later.

What this means for parents

The doctor's advice is honest and two-sided: a flat ban isn't allowed, but neither is letting it drift — that simply lets the environment "pull your child in." The energy teenagers pour into clans and games could go into real creation — to make, build, help, rejoice. The adult's task is to redirect that energy into real life while it's still pliable.

Practice: first steps

1. Don't pull the platform away empty-handed. Before limiting access, prepare what will fill the freed-up time and emotions.
2. Build an alternative rich in real emotions. Genuine friendship, support, shared activities, joy — things that match the surrogate in emotional power.
3. Redirect the creative energy. Energy from clans and games into real "creating, doing, helping, rejoicing."
4. Act as early as possible. The younger the person, the easier to rebuild — don't wait until the environment becomes their only life.
5. Watch the money trap. Be especially alert where fast credits and spending appear — that's where the "last money is sucked out."