The missing youth of Japan: One million lock themselves in their bedroom for years and risk health problems due to 'Hikikomori'
- One million Japanese people are thought to suffer from Hikikiomori
- Sufferers lock themselves in their bedroom, surf the internet, read and watch television, often cutting off all social contact with the outside world
- Condition is painful for families and is affecting the Japanese economy
- Expert says condition might occur because in Japan there is a strong sense of shame felt when people do not live up to social norms
For nearly three years, Yuto Onishi cut off all contact with his family and friends.
He barely ever left his Tokyo bedroom, sleeping during the day and staying up all night, surfing the web and reading Japanese comics.
The only time he ever went outside was to eat, something he would do in the middle of the night to avoid any contact with other people.
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Around one million Japanese, mostly men between the ages of 15 and 20, are locking themselves in their rooms and refusing to leave, in a condition called Hikikomori (file photo)
Mr Onishi, now 18, was suffering from Hikikomori, one of the biggest health and social conditions facing Japan, ABC news reports.
It causes young people to stay indoors, sometimes for decades, to watch TV, surf the internet and read, avoiding all social contact and often cutting off ties with family and friends.
Around one million people Japan, mostly men between the ages of 15 and 20, are said to suffer from the condition, which means 'pulling inward' or 'being confined'.
It can be painful for families, but is also affecting the Japanese economy, with those suffering Hikikiomori often referred to as the 'missing million'.
Dr Takahiro Kato, of Kuushu University, is an expert trying to prevent another generation of Japanese youth going 'missing'.
'In Western societies, if one stays indoors, they're told to go outside. In Japan they're not,' Dr Kato told ABC news.
And much of work and social life is now carried out remotely, using technology, he said.
'There are cultural reasons also, a strong sense of embarrassment and an emotional dependence on the mother,' Dr Kato added.
Japanese people tend to be introverted and modest, with a keen sense of shame if they do not live up to social pressures.
Aspects of Japanese culture have led to the rise of Hikikomori, including a strong sense of embarrassment and an emotional dependence on the mother, says Dr Takahiro Kato, of Kuushu University (file photo)
And Japan experienced an economic depression in the 1990s in which good grades at school did not necessarily lead to good university places and good jobs, Professor Andy Furlong, of the University of Glasgow, told the BBC.
Therefore a generation of Japanese people faced short-term work, which came with stigma.
Others argue that Hikikomori occurs as a result of the Americanisation of an introverted culture, where extroversion is forced on those of a more modest temperatment.
Dr Kato said the causes and treatment of the condition are largely unknown, but he is trying to prevent another generation going 'missing'.
He said people can recover if communication among families improves, and so he asks the whole family to take part in counselling.
The longer people stay in their rooms, the harder it is to get them out, he says.
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