A psychological ailment called ‘hikikomori’ is imprisoning 500,000 Japanese people in their homes — and it’s more of a threat than ever

pjanvandaele/Flickr Hikikomori is a psychological condition which makes people shut themselves off from society, often staying in their houses for months on end. There are at least half a million of them in Japan. It was once thought of as a young person’s condition, but sufferers are getting older and staying locked away for longer. […]