About Us
The Computer Addiction Treatment Program was founded as a behavioral and cognitive behavioral outpatient treatment program for computer and video gaming addiction.
This problem, considered by some to be a growing epidemic, affects as many as 9% of online computer gamers.
While treating this problem for nearly two decades, Dr. Woog found early on that simply borrowing methods from substance addiction treatment programs did not work well in treating computer/video addiction, which is a behavioral addiction. Abstinence was not a typical goal, and twelve-step meetings were not (and still are not) widely available. In most cases, individual or family talk therapy was not sufficient for treatment. To make matters worse, few gaming addicts believe they have a problem and are only willing to attend therapy to appease their distressed family members. This was often true despite significant evidence to the contrary, such as failure in college or repeated job firings.
For those truly addicted, self-limiting is not possible.
Efforts by parents or significant others to control or limit an addict’s gaming generally results in strained relationships, anger and in some cases violence. In 2005, Dr. Woog developed a sophisticated device called the PC Moderator which could both monitor and limit computer use without requiring that parents or loved ones maintain the computer or have to serve as system administrators. The PC Moderator received the PC Magazine Editor’s Choice Award in 2006.
The Computer Addiction Treatment Program is now introducing a truly next generation tool for treating and preventing gaming addiction — the Sentinel Gaming PC. This high performance gaming computer provides remotely controlled, hardware enforced usage limits that cannot be defeated by determined, tech-savvy individuals. This patent pending product is the only one of its kind in the world.
Dr. Woog also provides clinical consultation for therapists working with computer addicted clients and accepts referrals for collaborative care.
