Hello, I my name is xxxx and I am an addict. With the stakes rising in the NBA playoffs I figured it was time to reveal this little bit in hopes that it could help somebody else. I have been clean for about 6 years now, but every day is a struggle. Even when you're clean, you know that you will be an addict for the rest of your life. Addiction runs in my family, especially for the males, and I was exposed to sports abuse early and often. "I was a fiend / before I became a teen". I must have been in my pre-teens when I started using, but before I was using I was playing. In fact playing may have been the start of my addiction. For me it started out as some little league here and some Junior Varsity there. It seemed like casual use, since I wasn't just a spectator. Then in high school things changed, and it became clear that for me, playing sports wasn't going to be anything other than recreation. That's when I started using heavy. I suppose there was some peer pressure. I mean all the guys were doing it and who wants to be left out of all the good sports related arguments.

I wasn't too big on experimentation. I mainly used football, basketball, and a little baseball. The other stuff like hockey, boxing, and tennis I mostly passed on. My family thought it was just a part of growing up and it wasn't really a problem at first. I don't even think anyone else even realized my addiction but that was probably because I hung out with a bunch of other addicts. For years I tried to deny it, but deep down I knew I was addicted. And I had it bad!

Addiction rates run high, especially among males. Chances are, you or a loved one, is addicted and doesn't even know it. As a recovering addict, here are some of the warning signs of addiction that you should look out for in yourself and the people you care about.

UPR (Uncontrolled Physiological Reactions): I know that if you're rooting for a team, in the closing minutes or late innings of a close game, things can get a little tense. Dry mouth, sweaty palms, and lots of anxiety may be understandable and may not be signs of a serious sports abuse problem - but let's not forget, it's not like you're playing. When I was a fiend a loss by one of my teams would lead to severe reactions and even depression. The more important the loss, the worse the reaction, and anybody who has tried rooting for the New York Knicks in the last 30 years knows a lot about disappointment. An early playoff exit or a Championship series loss would seriously ruin my day, and probably the next few days too. Another sign of addiction is expressing extreme anger, when the game you really want to see is not being shown in your area and you are forced to watch your lame local team. These reactions take place despite you trying to convince yourself that you don't care and you're yearly oaths that you "are going to stop taking this stuff so seriously".

Temporary Memory Enhancement or Singular Genius: Sports addiction often leads to you being able to remember obscure facts and figures about the statistics of your favorite players or teams, but leaves you unable to remember the names of distant relatives or find places like Wyoming on a map. This symptom is sometimes referred to as "Statman-itis".

Identity Shifts: Unless you speak French, speaking in WE's is yet another sign of addiction. Are you receiving a check from the L.A. Lakers, Dallas Cowboys, or N.Y. Yankees? What is this "we", "us", and "our" business about? I know sometimes it's just easier to talk that way but addicts mean it when they say it. No "we" didn't beat the N.Y. Giants, but Emmitt Smith and the Cowboys might have. Kobe Bryant didn't dunk on "us" he dunked on that 7-foot millionaire who tried to block his shot. And No, management is not messing up "our" salary cap he is messing up the money the organization extorted from the fans when they threatened to move the team.

Screen Paralysis: Sports addiction also manifest itself in an inability to remove oneself from in front of the television screen, which can lead to another symptom known as "Useless Sundays", that is known to afflict heavy users of football. When I was a fiend I used to watch reruns of sports highlights like something different was going to happen the next time I watched them. I don't know how many times I watched Sportscenter reruns, especially at those times in the morning, when Sportscenter came on back-to-back. No matter how many times I watched those highlights though, my teams still lost and those big plays "we" (see there it goes again) needed, didn't happen. It got so bad I found myself channel surfing for sports highlights. I was even starting to watch Hockey highlights! I try to avoid stereotypes, but brothers' don't watch hockey, especially if you're from the city.

Choice of Friends: Sports addicts usually hang around other sports addicts, and when they are not around other addicts, they have other ways of "getting high" with other addicts. When I was a fiend, I used to call other addicts while using sports, and say things like, "did you just see that?" or "turn to channel 4 they're, about to show the replay!"

Fantasy Psychosis, Type 1: Fiends who aren't watching find other ways to get their fix. Fiends like to show off their infinite sports wisdom by regular betting or competing, in office pools and online fantasy sports leagues. They often find they don't know as much as they think they do, but they rarely find that they are addicts (heavy betting on sports could also be the sign of another more serious addiction - see compulsive gambling).

Fantasy Psychosis, Type 2: This symptom is often confused with a symptom of another serious addiction - video games - but it could be a combination of the two. Like the addiction itself, this symptom is especially prevalent in males, where it sometimes leads to the neglect of other responsibilities and duties, such as the cleaning of one's living space, delayed showers, and neglect of women. If you have been accused of the last of these symptoms, especially by the object of such neglect, stop reading this now and seek professional help or just handle your business like Jaheim told you to do ("Betta put that woman 1st"). Fiends will NEVER admit to this symptom but If you have ever finished a full, 162-game season in a baseball game in a couple of weeks, or "broke day" (from night until sunrise) playing "John Madden Football", "NBA Live", or some version of "NBA 2K", then you are probably an addict. And the fact that you created yourself on the game and gave yourself all types of skills is not an excuse either. Put the controller down and hit the showers it's 4am! This symptom can also be made more severe by using Marijuana while suffering from it. Marijuana use while showing symptoms of Type 2 Fantasy Psychosis, is known to lead to days, even weeks or procrastination and non-productivity (No you won't "do it tomorrow", tomorrow you will get high and play PS2 all day again - trust me on this one).

Miscellaneous Symptoms: Calling in to a sports talk show, competing on a sports trivia show, breaking anything, including people, over the outcome of a game, fighting with fans of opposing teams, and pre-game rituals are among other signs of addiction. In fact if you do any of these, then your are not just an addict, but an official junkie.

I don't even know how I broke my sports addiction. I guess as I got older other things became more important and pushed field goal percentages, TD passes, and batting averages to the back of my brain. Or maybe it was dealing with the constant disappointment resulting from rooting for New York sports teams other than the Yankees (The Giants have represented a couple times too, I didn't forget ya'll). Regardless of what was responsible for me breaking my chains, knowing the signs of addiction can help you diagnose yourself or your loved ones early, so you (or they) can seek treatment. Fortunately, unlike some more serious addictions, sports addicts are usually able to lead somewhat normal lives. Sports after all, is an institution in American society, and it also is in many other societies. To some degree the people may even need it, the state certainly does. Ancient Rome provides a perfect example of the important roll sports and games play in turning the people's attention away from an empire in crisis and decline. Many people badly want to live vicariously through the accomplishments and failures of multi-million dollar athletes and entertainers. In a nation gone mad with endless war, "preemptive" strikes, terror alerts that terrorize, overblown SARS plagues, and financial insecurity people need something to take their mind off the madness. Everyone could use a little reprieve from the nightly news and it's "Weapons of Mass Distraction". As long as you don't let sports rule or dominate your life you might not even need treatment. 

I say all this to say ….. Nets in 6!

[P.S. - and yes this was posted before the series started!] 

Released: June 4^th, 2004

The views and opinions expressed herein by the author do not necessarily represent the opinions or position of Playahata.com.