You find yourself chatting more in detail with your chat friends about your life, than you do with people IN your life. (Church family, family, etc.)
You feel that your friends on the computer understand you more than your friends and family OFF the computer. Remember, the Internet has its limitations and no matter how long you chat with a person, you never truly get to know everything about them, that you would in an everyday life face to face relationship.
You begin to have “romantic” fantasies about people in your chat room.
You feel anxious when you have not been in your favourite chat room for a couple of days.
You are giving up hobbies and other creative interests for the Internet.
You are increasingly finding fault with your local church and family and feel that the only true christian love you have ever experienced is on the internet.
You have missed appointments, or spending quality time with your family or friends to spend time on the Internet.
Your friends and family members begin to complain to you that you are spending too much time on the Internet. Your phone is tied up for hours.
You are not getting enough sleep because of late nights on the Internet, or you have let your housework, family responsibilities or work responsibilities slide to spend time on the ‘net.
You become defensive when your internet usage is discussed by family members, church family, or your chat room friends.
When you are stressed or burdened you automatically turn to the chat room, rather than to the Lord in personal prayer time, or to your family or local body of Christ.
Your devotions and ministry to the local body of Christ are slipping.
You find your thoughts are drawn to the Internet while you are doing other activities during the day.
You find it increasingly easier to talk with your “chat friends” and feel more and more distant from your friends and family off the ‘net. You find you can relate easier to your on line friends than your own family and church body.
You have a sense of “euphoria” or anticipatory “high” when you log onto your computer.