THANE: Aditya Panchal , a standard 9th student used to be hooked on to his phone the whole day and even skipped school. He barely used to eat, not leave the room and get aggrieve when someone forced him to. After missing school for almost three months when his parents took him to a mental health expert they realised that he was addicted to a multiplayer game - PUBG (PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds).Panchal's case is not unique, the mental health experts stated that they have been getting many such cases wherein children are seen lost in this trending virtual game and losing track of time in it. The doctors stated that they are seeing addicts in the age group of 12 to 21 years. PUBG is an online battle game, which can be played alone or with multiple players.It is seen that some group of children are even keeping trophies as rewards, depending on the battles won and the levels one achieve. As per the observations of the experts, some of the reason that one is hooked on to the game is because of the different challenges and the urge to win. The experts have asked parents to look out for the signs of addiction as they have even come across cases wherein the game was just an escape from the patient's problems or worries."There have been cases where children have got more inclined towards the game to escape from a personal problem or it has been an outlet for their emotions. Parents hence have to see for signs of addiction, which are - more priority given to game over anything else, child getting restless or violent if not allowed to play, keeps thinking about the game even while doing other work or studies, daily routine is affected," said Dr. Shailesh Umate, consultant psychiatrist and secretary of Thane psychiatric society.

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