"There's no comparison between heroin withdrawal and internet withdrawal." No argument. But bear in mind that withdrawal and recovery are two different things.

"Withdrawal" is marked by physical agony resulting from the depletion of opiods from the blood stream. In the heroin addict, the body stops producing natural opiates, and when the man-made chemistry is gone, the resulting pain is horrible. Natural relief won't come until the body resumes production of natural opiods; a process that won't even BEGIN for several day and will require up to a year to really solidify. Meanwhile, the poor sod experiences skin-clawing agony. No wonder so many just give up and stay on the junk.

Behavior addicts are in a different stew. They've manipulated their own endorphin system to flood their bloodstream with natural opiods. The day a behavior addict "quits" doesn't trigger immediate sweats, convulsions, etc. Their blood is so rich with the goods, they feel no pain until a day or two later when their enzymes reuptake the last of the previous endorphin dose. Then the hooey hits the fan.

A withdrawing behavior addicts get the whole parade of sweat, nerve and joint pain, restlessness, and night tremors. While the heroin junky is at least getting some decent hospital care, the behavior addict is sweating out their "imaginary" withdrawal alone. It may take several days longer to hit, but they go through the same meat-grinder as heroin addicts. It's more slow-motion but the result is the same: tough it out or go back into the behavior.

Regardless of the addiction, "withdrawal" can be finished in perhaps two weeks. "Drying out" (the longer period when the addict's nervous system begins returning to homeostasis) takes months or a year. Sobriety (where the person canfully realize that life without numbness and a dopey high is actually not so bad) takes years to decades.

If you're not a boozer, don't blame yourself for doubting alcohol is really "addictive". Same with drug use. And if you're not a behavior addict, don't blame yourself for being highly skeptical. Frankly, I thank God you're not one, my friend.

The word "addiction" is not mysterious. In Roman court, if you couldn't pay your debts, the judge would declare you "addicted to your creditor". That meant you had to satisfy the debt by surrendering your status as freeman and become the creditor's slave. It could happen to pauper or nobleman.

It's an easy leap from that meaning to the current one. Someone "borrows" as little fun from a bottle or other source, but ends up turning their life over to the stuff.

If you're not an addict, just remember this. Addicts act like a corny mime bound by chains that no one else can see. Chuckle if you like, but help the sonofagun to a recovery meeting. Emancipation, even from behavioral addictions like gambling, food and sex, is a blessing.

Internet addiction isn't possible? Do you believe that when addictive crap like opium goes into the body, that it magically CREATES the neuroreceptors they must attach themselves to? Nope. Those receptors (the source of nearly every addiction) are already there and quite capable of receiving megadoses of body's internal opiates (endorphins).
Substance addiction is a weak substitute for the intense dosages possible from endorphin addiction. And I say that with sadness, not gladness. Lotta poor suckers are addicted to gambling, sex, food, and work but since they know it's not substance abuse, they're figure they're imagining their addiction.
Wondering which specific behaviors trigger endorphin release? Open your local phone book to "anonymous" groups. Those ones that previously seemed kinda bogus like workaholics, overeaters, gamblers, sexaholics.... those people don't go to meeting for the fun of it. They've triggered a NON-stubstance activity that releases endorphins in sufficient quantities to create a bona fide physical addiction. Lucky them, hmm?
I'd opine that the internet's problem is it's a perfect carrier of these addictions. Check out the most popular commercial web sites. Sex, gambling, food, work. Hmm. Do I see a pattern? Do you? Behavior addiction recovery is just like substance addiction recovery. Either drop a few grand on rehab or trudge down to a group meeting. It's safe to say that boot camp is a temporary answer, at best.