Hikikomori - Social withdrawal in Japan

Government or local governments took measures to save Hikikomori people on the assumption that they were young.

But it has been said that Hikikomori people are aging.

For example, according to a survey in 2008 by Motohiro Sakai, Kazusa Kawahara, and Hikikomori KHJ Parents Association, the average age of Hikikomori people is 30.3 years old. KHJ has conducted the survey since 2002. The average age first exceeds 30 years old in 2007 survey (30.12) and it reaches the highest level in 2008 survey.

And According to Saknei News, 17 percent people who used Hikikomori telephone consultation service between July 2007 and March 2008 were aged 40 or over. The consultation service has been provided by Tokyo Metropolitan Office for Youth Affairs and Public Safety.

So, as far as I know, government and local governments begin to include older Hikikomori people.

Youth Support Station, established by Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare to encourage NEET (including Hikikomori people) to integrate in society, is extended from 34 years old or under to 39 years old or under since fiscal 2009.

There are many institutions for Hikikomori or NEET people in the region I live. They also include older Hikikomori or NEET people these days.

If Hikikomori people are truly aging, I don't know why. I guess one possible reason is that they've continued to be Hikikomori for many years, and as a result, they get old. Another possible reason is that more and more working young adult have become Hikikomori.

There are many kinds of Hikikomori people. Some don't go outside at all, others sometimes go outside. Some people may not regard the latter as Hikikomori.

I'm the latter type of Hikikomori. When I go outside, my destinations are facilities for Hikikomori people, bookstores, barbershop, etc.

*　Making mistakes when I go outside

It may be trivial, but after I became Hikikomori, I've made some mistakes more frequently than before when I go outside.

First, I forget something more frequently than before when I go outside. I carry many things, e.g. wallet, handkerchief, key, etc. But I sometimes forget to carry these things.

Second, I dress too heavily or too lightly more frequently than before without grasping outdoor temperature.

I've made such mistakes probably because I've been insufficiently-prepared to go outside. For instance, checking whether I forget something to carry, checking weather forecast, etc. I guess this is because I'm not used to going outside.

* Noticing change in the appearance of city streets, my skin color

Besides that, when I go outside after a long interval, I'm sometimes surprised to notice change in the appearance of city streets.

Last but not least, when I go outside, people occasionally say to me, "You have fair skin." or "Your skin isn't tanned very much." I guess this is because I don't go outside and expose myself to the sun very much. Although I don't think my skin isn't so tanned, it seems to be from other people's point of view.

As I'm a Hikikomori, I have a sedentary lifestyle. So, I'm worried about losing my strength and muscle mass. If I continue not to move, at worst, I may suffer from disuse syndrome. In addition, the more my strength and muscle mass decrease, the more difficult it becomes to work to overcome Hikikomori.

So, I try to maintain my strength and muscle mass on a day-to-day basis.

* Light muscle training

I make it a rule to do light muscle training, such as push-ups and sit-ups. Even in my house, I can do such light exercises. I don't do the training too hard but put emphasis on continuing to exercise every day. My body is not so strong, so I try to do light exercise at first.

One Hikikomori man I got to know also did training in his house. After that, he started working as a part-timer. But he said it was physically tough for him to work although he did training.

* Walking

In addition to light muscle training, I make it a rule to walk as much as I can when I need to go outside. I hear that some support groups for Hikikmori and NEET people hold walking events to increase their physical strength. But I can do walking at any time quite easily without relying on such support groups. Severe Hikikomori people can't go outside to walk, but my condition is not so bad.

When I go to facilities for Hikikomori or NEET people, I make it a rule to insert walking time into my commuting time as much as I can even if my destination is far away from my house.

And even if I have no plan to go somewhere, I intentionally go outside to walk. But I do so only on holiday because people will find out I'm unemployed if I walk outside on weekday (young male in general don't do working but work on weekday).

It is said that at least 320 - 400 thousands households have Hikikomori people or there are 1.6 million Hikikomori people in Japan.

But at least as far as I know, few Hikikomori people and their parents use public services for them.

Suppose there are 1 million Hikikomori people in Japan. The population of Japan is about 130 million. By simple arithmetic, there are about 100 thousands Hikikomori people in Tokyo prefecture which has the largest population of all prefectures in Japan (about 13 million). Similarly, there are about 5 thousands Hikikomori people in Tottori prefecture which has the lowest population of all prefectures in Japan (about 600 thousands) So, it is estimated that there are 5 - 100 thousands Hikikomori people in every prefecture.

But I don't feel such a large number of people live in my prefecture. As I wrote earlier, I go to Hikikomori day care. But only a small number of Hikikomori people visit the day care. Although there are a few Hikikomori day care in my prefecture, I can't find thousands of Hikikomori people at the day care.

Data supports my view. According to a report by Mental Health and Welfare Center in my region, MHWC provided less than 30 cases of Hikikomori consultation in fiscal 2008 (in actual number). This suggests that small number of Hikikomori people and their parents consulted MHWC.

* MHWC is a public institution for people with mental problems, including Hikikomori. MHWCs are located in every prefecture.

I don't know whether estimate of Hikikomori people is wrong or very small proportion of Hikikomori people and their parents use public services for them.

NEET is regarded as a serious social problem in Japan as well as Hikikomori. NEET is an abbreviation for young people Not in Education, Employment or Training, but excludes people who look for jobs. NEET includes Hikikomori people.

Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, a cabinet level ministry of the Japanese government, took measures to encourage NEET to integrate in society. It established Youth Support Station and Youth Independence Camp and entrust the general management of the facilities to Japan Productivity Center, a NPO.

Youth Support Station provides various programs for NEET and their parents to support for the vocational independence of NEET, such as consulting, career experience program, etc. In addition to Japan Productivity Center, Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare entrust local management of the facilities to various kinds of organizations, especially NPO. There were 25 Youth Support Stations in Japan in fiscal 2006. The number of the Stations increased, and there were 92 Stations in fiscal 2009.

Youth Independent Camp provides three-month training camp to NEET. The aim of the camp is to develop the basic abilities to be independent and restore their confidence that they can work. Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare also entrust local management of the facilities to various kinds of organizations, especially NPO. There are 27 Youth Independent Camps in Japan in fiscal 2009.

As NEET includes Hikikomori people, these facilities are also aimed at Hikikomori people.