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I got a test coming Jan and I kept procrastinating by playing dota 2, so I deleted it but now my head feels like it can't function, like I can't unwind/make myself unstressed. Like I read the words but I can't comprehend or process them or I do but I feel really hot(not physically/literally), it feels like I've been looking at the sun for too long and I have a headache. I think about studying and my whole body feels tired and very stuffy(what I was trying to describe in beginning when talking about being hot). Another thing is I don't have friends (I like and want to be alone but like multiplayer/co op games) or other hobbies so It feels like there is literally no down time and my body refuses to move forward unless it gets that video game feeling of winning or playing with others, as this was my only form of hanging out with people.

Hello all; apologies if this isn’t allowed. I wanted to type this out for myself, to help acknowledge my addiction is real.

I’m a 33yo male, who previously had a gaming addiction. Over the last month, I’ve had a bad relapse. A few days ago, when some friends were making fun of gamblers who sit in front of slot machines, I realized I was exhibiting near identical behavior with gaming.

The game I’ve been playing is Darktide. Every night, I’ve been playing until 2-3am. I’m a high functioning autistic, and hyperfocus badly. At work, I decompile the code to study hidden mechanics. When I talk to people, I get the Tetris effect, and only see Darktide patterns in their face while they speak. On the train, I create permutations of builds, which I then rush home to test.

I’ve stopped cooking. No more gym. I’ve stopped showing up to my second job. My first job performance is suffering badly, and I’m operating on past good will from my managers. Luckily I have laundry service, and a dedicated morning and cleaning routine, so my hygiene hasn’t suffered… yet. My life hasn’t been impacted yet, but if this carries on for any amount of time it will be.

In my early 20s, I was an addict for a few years. I played StarCraft, and exhibited the same behavioural patterns I am now.

Not to make excuses, but I think my responsibilities overwhelmed me, and I just shut down and went back to what I was really good at: gaming. I have a busy tech job as a 9-5, and do 40-60 hours of side work contracting. I just purchased a house in a new city, which required a lot of leg work. While I have a loving wife, I’ve taken on most of the domestic responsibilities (attempts to negotiate workloads failed), and do all the cleaning, unpacking, renovations, fiscal responsibilities, and previously cooking. And while it benefits me, I did gym every weekday. Sorry if this is too ranty, but it all just kinda collapsed in on itself last month as my mental state failed

So…. I’m making this post as a way to take ownership of my very real situation. I will change. I’ve destroyed all power cords to any Xbox or gaming capable pc in the house. I’m not allowing my thoughts to stray to anything Darktide related. I’m trying to implement some Pavlov behaviours when I do to prevent it (whenever I think of Darktide I look directly into a light source and force myself to stop). I’m keeping my phone in my bag at work, and not allowing myself to open any non work related websites. At all feasible times, I make sure I’m listening to a fictional audiobook (fantasy helps me replace the void of gaming). I’m acknowledging I have a problem. Whenever I think of playing, I try to remember people in a fugue state in front of a slot machine, and realize I’m doing the same.

Sorry for ranting, but thank you for your time

You shouldn't have so much free time in order to play everyday, that's just not normal, if you are doing everything you should done your time is very limited.

TL;DR: I need a few 5-10 minute fun ideas that I can use during my free time. Mainly sitting down, because it's during my study breaks. And preferably not video game related things on YouTube

So I'm 1 month videogame free. I've found hobbies to take up my huge amounts of free time. So far I've started the flute, taking lessons as well and plan on joining the school band (I'm 17, and in grade 12). I dedicate most of my day towards studying, around 3-4 hours. I have a camera, and took some lessons on that as well.

So that's enough to take out the giant chunks of my day, but I have a few tiny spaces in the day. And the other problem is during meals. For the tiny spaces, I have 1 in the morning. Around 8:20 AM, normally 10-20 minutes long. When I still played games, I would just sit on the couch until it was time to go.

Then I have my school classes, and a lunch from 11:40 to 12:30 which I normally spend in my next black class. I then walk home, with school being out at 3:15 and reach home at around 4:00 PM. When I get home, I have a small meal like a sandwich with some vegetable, or something similar.

Then I go to study in my room, and I take brakes every 30 minutes, each one being 5 minutes long. After the study session, it's dinner with my family around 6:15 to 6:45 and sometimes 7:00. We wash out dishes and stuff, and I can return to studying around 7:20.

So most of the day is taken by school, and the hobbies above. But the breaks I mentioned, the meals, and some other open times, I watch YouTube about TCG (a card game from genshin impact [a video game]). But I know I need to do something else.

All the breaks are too short to do something reasonable, I have tried reading, but I can only get through half a chapter.

Any thoughts?

Just sold my Xbox, monitors and headset. Ready to accomplish more, make more use of my time and be free of gaming!

People here often quit gaming in favor of gym and exercise. And then they boast about it like it's somehow very hard to do. I can chug 10 pull-ups easily, but I can't reliably "quick scope" people in CS or speed run any game. Being a pro gamer is significantly more impressive than exercising. It is even more physically demanding on the body. Sitting for 12 hours non-stop is harder than cycling for 2h.

I think that most people just can't "git gud" and they quit because of that. It's a weakness of character and lack of skill, aka "skill issue". Anybody can get fit, muscular or jacked if they just eat somewhat well and train hard. Video games require talent, and not even 1% of people can get to the top.

For context I haven't played any of my old vices in upwards of 4 years now but I still feel addicted... Subliminally I find myself framing reality in context of games mechanics, characters, etc. I also "check in" for the latest news and updates regarding these games pretty regularly. Worst of all I'm finding that my default thought patterns are thinking of gaming instead of more productive things. Anyone else have this experience after quitting? Any tips to essentially forget all this useless information?

Am I the only one whos actually feeling 10x better in his own skin and with himself after focusing on the things I actually enjoy instead of gaming my years away? It feels like I'm 10x more in control 10x more comfortable and 10x more happier doing what I want to actually do while focusing on myself than when I was playing 8 hrs a day league of cancer.

I am 14 as of now, I am going to change schools next year as i have begged my parents from it to "escape from the environment" or get "more subjects" in new school. But i feel that i am blaming it on my environment and in actuality I am the problem. I want to acknowledge it but I just cant help but feel like maybe switching schools is better. As i want to start fresh, make new friends, and less friends that play games all day which in a way kind of influence me in a bad way (not to say they are at fault as it is due to my lack of self-discipline) but im hoping that i can start new in this new school. Not only that but I am also unable to stand a single second without any digital devices always feeling bored, empty and dead inside (even thought i have many things i need to do) but I want to start facing my responsibilities as a student and take back control of my life from this addiction of mine. So for all of you, please if you could send me some advice give me some tips on how i can get rid of this addiction of mine and fix it please I am desperate.

Im having a dificult time stoping playing, cause i feel is to much of a lost. I have so many games pending, like ff6 and 8, persona saga, finishing cyberpunk, etc.

Games that are good in soo many ways, is hard to drop them

I was thinking about it when i found out that my problem wasnt games, but some kind of games, specifically online games, pretty much of any kind (shooter, mmorpg, etc)

Single player doesnt give me any trouble cause i know i can stop game and return wherever i want. But the feeling of pressure that comes from online competitive, is what gives me anxiety.

Right now im trying to moderate de amount of time i play, and not dropping it completely. Also i only play at a certain time, cause i notice that everytime i feel borred during the day, i end up gaming instead of finding out something else to do. (Sometimes i had responsabilities that i completely forgot because my mind drive me straight to gaming)

Stopping gaming left a huge void inside me . The tediousness of raw life is unbearable. I am panicking every now and then . Low life skills making me more depressed. How did you guys beat this stage ?

i played brawl stars in 2021, but in this year i decided to continue the progress (i had 4 trophs in this account). now i have 25k+ trophies, amber main (rank 47, 850 cups i think)

this, by far, was the game that made me mad more than ANY OTHER GAME (like rocket league, clash royale), mainly because of the matchmaking system: it puts you in matches with players that shoot while staying still, or just with bad randoms. i completely lost my mind and started swearing at myself, sometimes even hiding my screams (i want to but what if the others will hear me)

i really just can't get away from this game, the graphics are just wonderful, lots of mechanics, but what really makes me addicted to this game are the characters (80+). i just want to like, stay away from this game a little bit (like a day or so), but i just can't resist the feeling of playing it..

anyhow, please let me know about this, i really just want to distance myself from this game

From the beginning of my relationship, I noticed my significant other had a strong addiction to video games. Early on, it got in the way of us spending time together, and it seemed as if that was ALL he did with his time when he wasn’t with me. It created a huge gap in our relationship and he never acknowledged it or quit, but it got better for a while. About a year ago, he lost both of his parents within <6 months of each other. We moved in together and ever since, he’s been spiraling and is fully addiction to video games. On weekdays, he gets home from work and is on the game by 5:45pm and won’t go to sleep until 12:45-1:30am. On weekends, he will stay up until 6-7am and sleep until noon, only to repeat the cycle the next day. He doesn’t shower regularly, neglects his personal hygiene, and skips work multiple times per week to stay home and play video games. He will miss out on my family events to stay home and play games. When asked to come hangout with me, he cannot sit still for more than 5 minutes without getting agitated and claiming he has to go play his game to relax. I (and the dog) have gotten used to being alone and we don’t expect much from him. He does a few loads of laundry on the weekends, but that is pretty much all we see/hear from him. He doesn’t sleep in the same bed as me anymore and spends quite literally every single second at his desk playing. He even eats his meals while playing (have I mentioned he doesn’t eat anything besides steak strips and only consumes 2-3 GFuels per day?). We are not intimate, barely speak, and have not done anything remotely fun in over a year (we’re literally 23). While I am used to it, it also saddens me that he has built this wall and refuses to come to terms with his addiction. It is pointless to bring it up because he always argues that I am too busy with school and he deserves to relax after work. If I counter that with “why can’t you relax with us”, he argues that he wants to play with his friends. It’s a never ending battle that I have just learned to accept. My life is about to change in major ways (graduating college, starting a new grad role) and I feel really strongly about moving into my own apartment because at the end of the day, we are just roommates.

Any questions, comments, advice, or concerns are welcome. I’m not sure if I am here to rant or take advice, as I’m afraid he is too far gone.

Got out of winter med school exams where I had to study 93 days straight and memorize 1600 slides, fuck me. Immediately had to enter surgery to cut out a weird mole on my foot so had to spend a week at home, immobile.

Of course, I turned to playing Total War games. Y'know, the ones with no defined beginning or end or story, that you can burn hundreds of hours in? Pressing the "End Turn" button always felt like a slot machine button, as you never know what other kingdoms are going to do, their behaviour being randomized, so the whole game design is addictive. Surprisingly similar to Skinner box mechanics.

I ended up playing 84 hours the last 2 weeks. Sleep was fucked. I started sleeping at 3.45 am and getting 5 hours a day.

My foot is now healed. I can walk again. I immediately deleted the game. The Romans couldn't save their goddamn Empire IRL in 400ish BC so it was way too much for me to do it for them. It was feeling more like a job round the end, just sitting doing the same motions time after time.

Time to get my life back now. Looking at playing guitar, joining a drama group, exercising, reading financial education books. It's so strange being free now.

It has been a month since I have quit gaming (big part of ml) and I've pushed through the "I can't take this depression" phase, but now it has become "I am used to/I deserve being miserable". Following your advice (thank you all) I tried new things, exercising/baking... which made my life better and distracted me from negativity, but they aren't working anymore as everything, myself, feels pointless and it feels like I am drifting through time without any purpose. I absolutely don't want to do anything, including solving this issue (I honestly have no idea why I am here, drowning in sadness feels more enticing). What am I missing? Goals? Self-belief? Something like that?

I'm a 42F who was introduced (heavily) into gaming back when WOW was first released.

I managed to pull away a few times, then for good probably 7-8 years ago. However, I will still game a bit every day (when my pain allows) with things like Minecraft or Return to Moria (another survival game).

I don't think I'm looking to quit, but I am wondering how you all fill your time outside of games.

My condition limits what I can do as I don't have my energy most of the time. I used to write when I was well, but I realize that was as much of a coping mechanism as my gaming used to be.

I picked up drawing again back in Aug and have done a bit every single day. However, because of my illness, that's pretty much all I do.

I'll walk my dog in the morning, draw a bit, then... *shrugs* I usually watch true crime stuff on Youtube,

I'm home alone all day until around 5 or 5:30 when my partner gets off work as I'm unable to work myself (writing was my career until I got too sick earlier this year).

I have no social life because of my disabilities and lost friends 20+ years ago.

I can barely read as doing so causes the pain behind my one eye to flare (but we're trying to figure this all out).

I used to crochet (terribly) so that is an option so long as my hands don't hurt.

What else do you all do?

I realize not everyone will have the same limitations as me, but maybe you might give me an idea of something I can do that won't hurt so much (even coloring in a coloring book hurts because of the repetitive motions).

Thanks in advance.

I guess, I’m quitting pub quizzes for good now. That means even quitting Harry Potter quizzes. I don’t know what to do. I have social anxiety, probably xenophobic. I probably also have OCD. Quizzes were the only place for me to be social. But I can’t anymore. Due to my nature, personality, compulsions (meaning I couldn’t moderate the amount of quizzes I took) I’ve started to panic and feel anxious even more during quizzes. I feel terrible when I come out the pub and walk home. It’s like I’m abusing myself. But I just don’t know what to do then. I don’t want to feel lonely or depressed again. I don’t want to spend days only communicating with my mother, or walk alone in the streets. Therapy is not an option because finding a proper therapist is like a lottery. I’ve had a few and they were all incompetent. I don’t want to pay another therapist big money and feel frustrated again after long work and wasted money. I’ve already paid lots of money to urologists and to buy drugs only to find out that I don’t even need antibiotics. I don’t know. Maybe my option is to not worry so much about loneliness, that I will be left alone again, and be content with it. It’s not like anything bad happened or will happen after I quit quizzes. I just can’t attend them anymore even though I want to (or maybe my want is compulsive). Because it really affects my health that I’m trying very hard to recover especially after unsuccessful love relationship. I don’t want to start over. Maybe I’m so used to seeing groups of people several times a week that I forgot how lonely it was to be alone. So now I’m afraid to be or feel alone again.

I need to quit quizzes so I could focus on other stuff. Stuff that is actually productive and matters.

I’m trying to find new hobbies and the only reason I really play video games nowadays is because my siblings who are states away play with me.

I want to get back into going to the gun range and powerlifting because I realized my habits are unhealthy and I spend to much time on the game . It’s on my mind almost 24/7 even during work and school and I think it’s about time to give it up because it’s just a waste of money and time like I stated .

Hello. I am a hobbyist game developer and player with ADHD and Autism. Recently, my life has gone to hell due to the sheer amount of time I spend on my "hobby". I develop games because development was how I got away from life and expressed my creativity. It was always so "fun" to type gibberish into an interface and watch the computer do what I told it to. However. I am spending too much time doing these things and am falling behind physically and academically as a result. I need to stop, or at least reduce this activity. My life is really bland and I have been a loner my whole life, so there is nobody to talk to. Stopping gaming and game development is like deleting half my identity and isolating myself from a community and I really don't want to do it but I MUST. So, how do I quit the addiction, or at least reduce how long I spend gaming and programming games, and start focusing on the important aspects of life like studying? Should I use my skill for good and code something to stop me from gaming too often? (If it helps, I play Geometry Dash, the games I make, Fortnite, Minecraft, and Roblox).

Hey there!

I'm not necessarily looking to stop, but I might need to, at least for a while.

The first game I remember playing as a kid was Megaman 2. I found it quite challenging but very rewarding when I managed to complete it. Then there was Pokemon Gen 1 and 2, which gave me immense joy. I got sucked into an MMORPG for a while, and completed a few games here and there... but I seem to lose interest faster and faster these days.

I finished a run in Baldur's Gate 3, which reminded me of how good games can be. And recently I've found some joy in deck building roguelites. But often I'll get a new game, play a little bit and then get very bored and stop playing. It's actually happening with such frequency now that I sought this sub.

However, it happens with books, shows and movies, exercise, sometimes even conversation. I'm currently seeking help with these issues, but I do feel my gaming habit may not be healthy.

I guess I'm just wondering what I should do. I'm planning on getting back into study as that's always gripped me, but I fear I'll lose interest in that too.

Thoughts?

I used to play games for fun but never as a distraction to my real life or to ignore my problems. I noticed I started playing games constantly 2 years ago to ignore how miserable I was. I noticed the problem after having no interest in any of the games I owned anymore. I took a break from playing video games until earlier this year and even then they wouldn't take much of my time. During the summer I played Elden ring for the first time and I believe it's the perfect game. I got a bunch of games off the summer sale but now I have no desire to play them. Here and there I'll play a good and memorable game (examples being silent hill 1, castlevania symphony of the night, xenoblade,killer7) but then I'll move on to the next game in my backlog. I just feel like gaming as a whole is just a big waste of time but I don't understand why. I love reading, listening to music, and watching movies but I don't feel that way towards those forms of media. I also do genuinely enjoy games but recently I can't get into any of them and yet I keep playing them. I feel like I shouldn't have bought so many games despite the good deals

Like other here, my earliest childhood memory is me still wearing diapers crawling into the living room to watch my older cousins play on their Super Nintendo. Since then I spent most of my life in front of a screen playing or watching something.

I’m turning 34 in a couple of weeks and although I have a better grip on my gaming addiction, I can’t help but resent the amount of time I spent gaming. Lots of it were absolutely worth it, but specially nowadays it feels like a total waste of life.

I wonder how others feel about it and how to cope with this feeling of wasted time.

The game is trash - horrible hit reg, no AC, developers don't make any meaningful changes etc. Who the hell wants to play that

This is how I feel right now. If I don’t stop giving in to temptation, fake excitement, keep on hooking up, tricking myself, abusing my health by putting things to the test - one day I feel I’ll relapse because of how shitty I would feel. This is like going down the spiral. I take my health for granted. I don’t value my health enough.

I was playing for the sake of playing it was no longer fun, getting home and playing for habit. I had the terrible idea of building a game set-up where it was my study desk, don't need to tell what happened, after work instead of study I was just turning on my Xbox and killing time, and as predicted I screwed up but that was a good thing as now I decided to give up gaming and even tho I will need to pay more taxes to my university at least I woke up. Just now at 29 yr I realized that I have no time to waste and no time for me gaming, imagine working all day and when getting home playing video games instead of minding real life issues, sure I was not playing so much on workdays but at weekends I was playing the whole day. BTW what should I do now? Is selling the Xbox the best option? Also I got a switch recently but I was barely playing almost only in the train and not always, is the switch troublesome too?

To be honest, as long as I can remember, all I’ve known that’s “fun” to do after school and in my free time etc is some form of “grinding” in games. What I found was fun for me were sandbox games throughout the years. This is obviously referring to things like Minecraft, Terraria, No Man’s Sky, etc.

Although I don’t feel like there’s necessarily much wrong with learning different building styles in something like Minecraft and making a big survival world, I feel like the grind I put into a game like this can be hours put into becoming an actual expert in a real art form, like something I can carry with me when I’m older. But I’m having trouble figuring out what that art form is.

I feel like I want to get into something that scratches my engineering part of my brain. I’ve asked around and most of what I hear is just “use Revit and design something”. Maybe this is what I’m looking for, but I feel like I’m looking for something more “artsy” but I can’t exactly pinpoint what I’m trying to say by that.

Just something I can come home from a day of college and try and think of something creative.

I don't know who needs to hear this message, but it might help. I played a game called Second Life for 2 years. What I liked most was the social contact but also being able to take screenshots and roleplay on my social media accounts even though I forbade myself to have a single social media IRL ... but I created some for a game Smh 🫣.... It was my first mistake because I started spending long hours on the game and social networks perfecting my avatars and chatting with my new friends, but I always had the feeling that I was just filling a void: the lack of RL connection because following a betrayal, I had taken refuge in solitude and then I discovered this Virtual Reality... I knew it was temporary because in my mind, I had to heal from past traumas and I was making efforts to do so. Only, I realized that to get there, I'd have to give up this game because the people I'd met had the same wounds as me, except that they were spending their time on this game like me, whereas I didn't want this lifestyle anymore. So I explained to them and closed all my accounts. Of course, at the beginning, the FOMO is very strong and you want to connect, you suddenly get bored as soon as you get back several hours of your life to spend, but I've learned to be bored again because it was essential for me to understand what I needed and that my time is precious.

I'm even more focused on the Present and i cherish the fact i'm alive and healthy .

Ok I never knew this sub existed until today. And I haven't stopped playing games completely but I don't play as much as I did when I was in HS and before. I would constantly play PC games during my grade years. But after entering college and actually finding a work I love I played less games. To the point I would only play 5-7 hours per week.

So what happened? My life improved, I have became more productive, and I can focus on other things. You don't need to stop playing games all together but having discipline and motivation is more important. Or something you are passionate about. Games won't make money for us (unless u are part of the few who streams and make 5 figs monthly) or help our life.

Semi rant/question:

My life is a complete mess (in my late 20s+ADHD). I am working getting things together. I realized my time wasted online and in gaming has done a lot to ruin my focus over the years.

I fully intend to stop completely. I have played so many games since 2020 and am at a point where I am mostly content with my gaming experience that I could probably stop. My Only issue is that I have a steam account with atleast 100 different games I havent touched yet. I planned on playing through most of them (not necessarily completing them) just so I can feel like I didnt waste money and delete the account once and for all.

Once I delete steam, I also consider capitulating with maintaining some small mindless gaming that might not be addicting for me. Mostly games I have already beaten and loved, as well as arcade like games. I was going to buy a PS4 cheap used for my blu rays and some games (Last of us part 1 and 2, Uncharted games, Resident evil 1,2,3 remake, Sonic Mania, Burnout and maybe a souls game).

I also got into the thought of getting a handheld (with or without the ps4). I thought about a 3ds, vita, DS lite and switch but also realized that regardless of game selection, it might not be a good idea to carry a small handheld with me outside place when I just need to focus on getting things in order and working hard as much as I can. I only intend most of this to be like meditative relief for me as I don't alot else going on for me, so I feel like I still need gaming in some way.

I am just looking for general feedback. Is buying a handheld a bad idea in my case? Should I not buy any console at all and go full cold turkey?