Hearing a friend made W200m on SK Hynix hurts like a stab wound, psychiatrist says

As sharp swings in South Korea's stock market leave more investors worn out, a psychiatrist specializing in stock addiction is urging people to delete their trading apps, step away from their smartphones and refocus on their health and their main careers.

Park Jong-seok, a psychiatrist and clinic director, appeared on YTN Radio's "Vivid Economy with Jo Tae-hyeon" on Tuesday to describe a surge in patients seeking help. "Starting Thursday, so many new patients were coming in over stock-related problems that I thought something must be wrong, so I checked the market and saw it had fallen sharply," he said. "Particularly on Tuesday — Black Monday — an overwhelming number of new patients came in talking about stock addiction, stock losses and stock-related depression."

Asked about why Koreans are especially vulnerable to FOMO — Fear of Missing Out — Park pointed to a specific brain region. "There is a separate part of the brain that registers pain when someone else does well," he said, citing the dorsal anterior cingulate cortex. "When you see a message in a group chat saying someone cashed out SK Hynix shares and made 200 million won ($134,000), the shock is identical to being stabbed with a knife or burned — it produces four weeks' worth of pain."

"This has been neurologically proven and appears in academic papers," he added.

Park said the reaction has nothing to do with low self-esteem or jealousy. "The brain experiences a jolt identical to real physical pain. It is called social pain, and it is a human instinct," he said. He added that South Korea's heavy concentration of population in Greater Seoul and its highly developed Wi-Fi infrastructure appear to amplify that social pain.

He cited psychologist Abraham Tesser's theory that FOMO stems from psychological closeness to another person and how connected their success feels to one's own identity. "We do not agonize when Warren Buffett or Elon Musk makes trillions of won," Park explained, "but if a close friend makes 200 million won on SK Hynix and moves to a better apartment in a more desirable neighborhood, it can feel maddening." He urged listeners not to be swayed by such comparisons and not to tie their self-worth to others' financial gains. "When you get swept up in inferiority, desire and anxiety, the amygdala is stimulated and the stress hormone cortisol is released, leading to insomnia and indigestion," he said.

On the psychology of novice investors who score big gains in semiconductor stocks, Park said beginner's luck triggers a dopamine rush comparable to hitting a jackpot on a casino slot machine — powerful enough to paralyze everyday life. "You keep thinking about it, you chase repeated pleasure, you neglect your daily routine, you cannot focus on your main job, and you become driven by a compulsive need to invest and make money," he said.

He advised investors to resist the pull of dopamine, addiction, tolerance and withdrawal before they ever enter the market. "Focus on your main career, or channel your energy into exercise and hobbies to pursue healthy dopamine," he said. "You need to return to an attitude where you can find happiness in everyday life."

On the frenzy surrounding leveraged products tied to single stocks, Park warned against treating leverage as a fast lane to quick riches. "Leverage itself is not inherently bad, but public education on it has been insufficient," he said. "We need to reflect on whether novice investors are financially prepared to withstand that kind of volatility."

Park said the first step toward breaking free from excessive investment addiction is to stop looking at stock charts and delete trading apps to create distance from the smartphone. "Ultimately, the best blue-chip stock is yourself," he said. "You should put far more effort into your own growth and expanding your own horizons."