`Internetaddicted' woman loses custody of kids

UMATILLA, Fla. (AP) Spending too much time on the Internet has cost a
woman custody of her children.

Pam Albridge lost custody of her children, ages 7 and 8, earlier this month
after a judge decided she was addicted to the Internet.

Lake County Circuit Judge Jerry Lockett awarded primary custody to Kevin
Albridge after he petitioned for them, The Orlando Sentinel reported
Wednesday.

``The wife is, for want of a better term, `addicted' to the Internet and
ignores the needs of the children,'' Albridge, 35, said in court records.

Internet Addiction Syndrome was first identified by psychologists about two
years ago. Computer users with the syndrome will sneak online in the middle
of the night, call in sick or ignore their families to spend time on the
computer, said Kimberly Young, a professor of psychology at the University
of Pittsburgh and founder of the Center for Online Addiction.

Witnesses testified that after the couple separated, Mrs. Albridge moved
the computer into her bedroom, put a lock on the door and began spending
most of her time online.