AlexTheGrape

90 Day Detox Attempt III Day 11 Challenge Day 11 Today the difficulty was ramped back down to start on the new topic of discipline. I needed to take a cold shower to improve my discipline. I had tried this about a month earlier, but I didn't have the right attitude. The attitude I've picked up on of "if I can't be uncomfortable for 5 minutes in a shower with nobody impacted by my decision other than me, how the hell am I supposed to make important decisions in real life?". Personally I love this attitude because I am a believer in discipline as an integral part of making good decisions, not just the rewards side of things. The shower was very refreshing, and I was surprisingly motivated to other dull activities. Not only will it solve this problem, but if I will continue having cold showers, I will never have a shower longer than 5 minutes again! (I will lose track of time if I don't use a timer, and even if I do I will want to stay in for longer). I accept the 30 day shower challenge, so I'll be adding 'cold shower' to my daily list of habits and in my journal. Today has been wonderful! I enjoyed playing a full length song on my guitar and found it easy to play. I tried using different tones and more staccato with my voice, which made for a much more interesting performance. I have made good progress in programming today (for the first time in a while!) and generally got done what I wanted to, especially in terms of habits. Meditation I got my meditation in today, and I identified my current emotions, which I wouldn't normally do. Visualisation I got in some visualisation, but I will need to 'schedule' in a task for myself tomorrow to define a desired moment to visualise. I have forgotten to use music, as this has helped me in the past; I will use it tomorrow. Running I did well to run today, I didn't push myself too hard but I got out in the morning which is the main thing. I still used the 30-20-10 method which makes for a great workout. Cold shower I had a cold shower, and it was amazingly refreshing afterwards! Braving it out for the 5 minutes was worth it. Guitar I played at least 30 minutes of guitar, and I loved it! I think it may become a habitual fun activity I do when I'm bored, which would be hugely beneficial for my guitar playing skills! Programming I got some good programming done, but I could have done a lot better if I had a better focus environment. i.e. not listening to music, not texting other people. Thank you letter I haven't written one yet, but I will write one on paper. I will post about it tomorrow. Reflection: I reckon I have done well within my waking hours today, but I got up late due to staying up late again. Thankfully I have started writing this post early and can get to bed on time. What I could have done to improve my day: I could have not listened to music whilst programming today. I could have gotten up earlier. What I will do differently tomorrow: I will listen to music whilst visualising. I will make sure to be more efficient with my programming by removing distractions. I will get up much earlier. 3 Things I'm grateful for: I am grateful for the guide provided of why a cold shower would be beneficial to me. I am grateful for the opportunity to have a yummy lunch today. I am grateful for the opportunity to meet new people tomorrow! One amazing thing that happened today: Today I played guitar with a lot of energy, and tried out using my voice differently. I enjoyed playing immensely today, I also started on a full length song which showed me I am making real progress (being a milestone).

Attempt III Day 10 GQ Challenge Day 9: So I planned on getting days 9 and 10 of the challenge finished to fully catch up. For day 9 I needed to record a video of myself dancing and upload it onto YouTube. I fussed around for what music to pick, so I just went with one that I liked the sound of in the end. Here is the link and I hope you enjoy my not-so-professional dancing! I was also reminded of how to do video editing through adjusting and editing the video to take out my most boring dancing and reducing its length to around 30 seconds. Here is the link to the video if you'd like to watch it: https://youtu.be/x1maw-IOvLc please let me know if there are any issues with watching it, and I hope you enjoy the video. For day 10 I need to sing karaoke... I am up for the challenge, but there aren't any local karaoke places I can see with google maps, so I will need to travel to Auckland city to complete this task. I'm not too keen on doing this all by myself, so perhaps I could bring a friend with me. In any case I'll plan it out tomorrow. Today has been an uneventful one, but I am pleased because that means that everything has been good. I got up late last night and as a result got up late. I stayed in bed for longer than I should have, and because I skipped my morning run I was slow at getting ready for the day in general. As a result I wasted a lot of time that could have been used for other things. I will write my post in the new format I was planning: Meditation Tick. I managed to do my daily meditation this morning. Visualisation Half tick. I tried to visualise a few different favourable scenarios but didn't feel them in my body very well. I will need to decide on a few set scenarios to visualise to make the feelings stronger. I give this a half tick because I forgot to visualise my business statement. Running Tick? I weasled out of my morning run, but made up for it with two afternoon runs. I noticed a lack of energy today because I skipped this run, so it is important that I do it tomorrow. Guitar Tick. I have now finished the guitar learning book I have been using and had a good time practicing the other songs I have gotten familiar with. Programming Big fat cross. I started out by loading up the web pages I would practice on, but I found other distractions, went for an afternoon run, and so on. I did not end up doing any programming today. Thank you letter Big fat cross. I 'didn't have time' to do it today, which really means that I didn't make time for it. Reflection: I did better than yesterday in terms of habits, and I should be able to complete all of them tomorrow. I am on the path to success, but I haven't taken many steps today in a metaphorical sense. I will make sure to use a timer for myself for many tasks that I do during the day to keep me on my toes, as 'work expands to fill the time available for its completion'. I will have a morning run whether I am tired or not. I didn't end up going to sleep earlier, so I need to do that tomorrow. I will add 'one amazing thing that happened today' and '3 things i'm grateful for' in the morning. Thanks for reading so far down my post!

Enjoying the little things in life that we can have every day make for the most fun. Good on you for taking the time to appreciate the little things like reading a story, I have yet to change my thinking patterns/ way of thinking to appreciate the little things more and 'celebrate the small wins'.

Thanks everyone for the support! I am very grateful for all the encouraging responses to my last challenge post. Here is what I should have posted to finish off yesterday: Attempt III Day 9 - Part 2 So for day 8 of the challenge, I needed to pay somebody I liked the look of a compliment. This was rated at 4/5 difficulty, but I thought 'I just need to pay somebody a single compliment. How hard can it be?' I was sorely mistaken. So to start off I had to be a bit of a creep and look around for people that I liked the look of. The first person I found I followed into a store and started a conversation with them, but she must have picked up on the fact that I was following her and she avoided me outright. It took a minute for me to gather what factors at play influenced the outcome, but I needed to be 'open to any outcome and not attached to any'. Next I was a bit more wary and unconfident so didn't make another attempt for another few minutes. When I did, the response I received was mumbled, either out of shyness or being weirded out. I continued on my way and had a think about why what I was doing had the previous outcomes. I came to the conclusion that it IS weird for somebody to randomly comment on another's looks out of the blue, as I had never seen it happen before and it has never happened to me. Like earlier in the day, I wasn't satisfied with the outcome so I tried again, but I thought I'd try my own methods rather than the reccommended one that I tried earlier.. I saw a girl around my age working at an ice cream shop nearby, and so I bought an ice cream and asked about how many customers she had during the rainy day. That way it was not 'out of the blue' to give her a compliment on how she looked. The response I got was much better than before, she genuinely appreciated the compliment and went on to tell me about how she got her hair cut yesterday (I complimented about her hair). On that good note, I found that showing my appreciation was great for both my own happiness and the happiness of others. A close friend that I haven't seen in a while came over in the afternoon, which was why I didn't post. It was relaxing catching up with him and playing a board game. I didn't get any of my daily habits done other than my morning ones (running, meditation, visualisation). I will now change the layout of my journal for greater accountability to do all my daily habits, with a heading for each one. I will start this tomorrow, so please prod me over the forum if I forget! 3 Things I'm grateful for: I am grateful for the challenge's tasks that push me outside my comfort zone. I am grateful for the people that were willing to take a selfie with me. I am grateful for the time to catch up with my friend after his holiday in the South Island. One amazing thing that happened today: One of the people that I took a selfie with today was hesitant to take a photo because they were "sorta busy". Regardless of the indecisive reply, I gave a short explanation of what I was doing, and he was then happy to take the photo with me. Afterwards he asked more about what the 'mission' was that I said I was doing and I told him about Game Quitters. He was glad to hear about GQ and that I was making the effort to get out of the house. I also had a very similar experience with another person I asked, and they were even more enthusiastic. These experiences make for the best experiences I had today because of the credibility that complete strangers encourage and were enthusiastic about what I'm doing, and they're not gamers! What I did well today: I did a great job of summing up the courage to talk to many complete strangers, including those that looked hostile or generally grumpy. It became easier the longer I was at it for, hopefully this ease I will retain if I continue pushing my comfort zone. What I could have done to make my day better: I could have tried even harder to connect with those who were hesitant, but I reckon I did a great job today. What I will do differently tomorrow: I will make sure to write my journal with the new layout I have been thinking of. I will complete all daily habits I have planned.

1. Yes, video gaming did impact my grades negatively. Although I was one of the top students in each of my classes (I am still in High School), having video games on hand encouraged me to stop growing any talents or knowledge I wanted or had. The negative impact has varied. When I was in year 9 & 10 (13-15 years old), I was in public school and my group of friends completely consisted of gamers, many of which were not high achievers (to put it politely). The encouragement to play video games through my experience with this group and little encouragement to perform well academically meant that I performed sub-optimally as I still played video games throughout the year. As I moved to a private school in year 11 & 12 (15-17 years old), the pressure to perform well academically and my new group of friends being non-gamers resulted in me setting video gaming aside for just the holidays with a few exceptions. My grades drastically improved. The idea behind this is that there was a direct correlation between academic performance and time spend playing video games, where video games impacted on my grades and general performance negatively. Additionally, the more video games I played, the less involvement I had in extra-curricular activities (in year 10 when I played the most, I wasn't involved in any of these, not even a sport). 2. Teachers were aware that many students played video games, but I believe they either didn't have the means or knowledge to address it properly or didn't know its impact on the grades of students.

Thank you very much for the shout out! I hope the visualisation technique works for you. Also could you please tell me how to tag people without quoting? Good luck for your date

Thanks for keeping up with my journal! I will keep up with more of others once I reduce the time I spend writing my own posts (I probably have the longest average post of the whole community I put mine on the back of my computer. It was the best place I could think of that it fits nicely, and others may ask about GQ this way.

Attempt II Day 9 - Part 1 It is very rainy today, but I'm out of the house anyway to complete the Game Quitters challenges that I missed doing whilst out camping. GQ challenge day 6 I needed to try and get a discount for a coffee to experience rejection in a safe environment. I asked for a discount for a mochaccino not long ago for the day 6 challenge. It didn't feel too out of character for me since I'm a cheapskate, but I never ask for discounts, so it was a new experience nonetheless. It went something like this: "That'll be $4.50" "Do you think you could get me a discount?" "Maybe. What for?" "For being cool..." "I'd love to but the manager is here. I can't do that today sorry." "Ok thanks anyway." The guy at the counter was very polite about it so I didn't get hit very hard with the feeling of rejection, but it was a good experience to get out of my comfort zone anyways. I realise I had many fears about bringing up such a topic, but this was a good experience to get me out there and know that rejection is not about me, just the action I take. GQ challenge day 7 I needed to ask around for somebody to take a selfie with me holding up the sign shown in the photos below. I didn't like the exposure to the potential to fail at first, but once I got in a failure in the task and then succeeded, I had a think about why the different outcomes occurred. I had a think about the point of the exercise, and concluded that the main reason the results were different was the urgency of each person's current task. Experiencing failure and the dread afterwards only lasted a few seconds this way. I finished the task in a couple of minutes, but I wasn't satisfied with the exposure to failure I had experienced (being just once), so I decided to get photos with 5 people! The ratio of failure to success was about 3:1 which was rather good as I experienced a good deal of both 'sides of the coin', and even after rejection convinced some to take the photo with me. After failing some and succeeding some, it became a lot easier to just get on with the task quickly after rejection. The responses to my questions were very varied, but I found that if I explain what I'm trying to do after somebody says 'no' or something else similar, they'll be much more likely to comply (this got me 3 out of 5 of these selfies!). That's enough from me, here are the photos of me taking these selfies less than an hour ago in the rain!

Attempt III Day 8 No Complaining Attempt V Day 1 Today I have arrived back from camping for a few days. It has been a great experience in Matarangi in a very friendly community. Whilst camping I practiced being grateful, got some great exercise, and had good fun in general. I met some new people, but I didn't go out of my way to get to know them. In that department I could have done better. Otherwise I made good use of my time practicing playing the guitar, re-reading the Slight Edge, and having fun. I didn't bring my computer or record days 6 to 8 from the GQ challenge, so I didn't have access to them whilst camping. I will make sure to complete days 6-8 tomorrow though, each activity doesn't look like it'll take much time at all. I haven't read day 9 yet as I'm not supposed to, but perhaps I could complete it as well tomorrow if I get the other 3 done. I will make sure to make a separate short post for each part of the challenge throughout the day, so that I can record and reflect on my progress at the end of the day without forgetting some of it. I have forgotten to continue the 'no complaining' attempts, but I have unconsciously and consciously been reducing the amount I complain anyhow. I'll restart the counter. A Game Quitters sticker and a special note from Cam was waiting for me at home after I got home from camping, and I was delighted! The sticker is now proudly presented on my computer, and I have attached an image of the sticker so others can see what they look like. It was larger than I expected, so I am extra grateful to have this, especially since it came all the way from Canada!. It was a wonderful feeling to have a physical attachment to the community and 'brand', as it is widely internet based. I hope everybody has had a great start to their year and is sticking to their new years resolutions! 4 Things I'm grateful for: I am grateful for the cool sticker given to me from Cam. I am grateful for the mean knee-boarding experience I had yesterday. I am grateful for the option to eat healthy food whenever I wish. I am grateful for the opportunity to read the Slight Edge again to fully implement its principles. One amazing thing that happened today: After I finished my run this afternoon, I felt accomplished, but I should have savoured the moment longer, as my memory of the moment is pretty poor. What I have learned from self development material today: I have been reminded that happiness comes before success, not after. By being happy in what I'm doing, I will generate greater success. My plan for tomorrow: When visualising in the morning, I will define moments to look forward to so that I can more vividly feel the experience. I will get up at around 7 (depending on how quickly I can finish this post) to have a run. I will get out of the house to complete my daily challenges. As soon as I complete each one, I will write an entry online according to the challenge 'criteria' and focus. As soon as I get back, I will complete my daily habits. What I could have done to make my day better: I could have spend my travel time a bit wiser; I did use some of it to plan the afternoon but spend a lot of time looking out the window. I also could have stuck to a morning run, even though I needed to pack up the tent and such. What I will do differently tomorrow: Run in the morning. Make the most of all the time I have during the day. Spend time getting to know people. Not write such long posts.

Attempt III Day 4 Today I got a lot done, although not optimal. Much better than yesterday though, which is great! Challenge entry: I already have an ideal morning success routine in my head, but when I took the time to put it into practice, it worked wonderfully. This meant that I did both visualisation and reading my business statement after meditation. Bring on the next challenge! To do some more reflection, I'll pluck out a post I've written months ago to compare to how I'm doing now: Attempt II Day 5 I not only met my running goal today, I smashed it! Although it wasn't in the morning, I made up for it by doing a 35 minute run delivering fliers. I have been of clearer mind today, the support to quit I have received has almost been overwhelming, I thank you all for your generous time. I have been listening to Waking Up with Sam Harris and Art of Charm this morning and this afternoon on the bus. It has actually been the most productive reflective thinking I have had in a while, I will make sure to listen to more from them! One thing I'd like to get into the habit of is working out. I started this in about April or May and continued for about a month, but I dropped off after a month because I didn't work out much at all during the school holidays. I will make sure to do a full 30 or so minutes tomorrow at the gym, I know I really felt on top of things after working out. I have done a good deal of reflection, and have decided that there is much more reason to quit gaming than to play again. There is an incredible amount of potential that I can achieve with the time that I would spend gaming, and gaming is detrimental to my self improvement anyhow. My reflection: I hadn't realised since I have gotten so used to it, but running does actually clear my head and make me feel a lot better. Now I continuously use the 30-20-10 technique to have a difficult work out whilst I run, which I hadn't done earlier. I am not listening to podcasts anymore because I don't have bus trips, but I reckon I should pick it up again so that I gain a wealth of knowledge in general travelling time. I just downloaded some new ones now. It appears that working out at the gym would be the next step I need to take in terms of habit building. Once I get a car to call my own, or once school starts (there is a small gym at my school) I will make sure to pursue this. I believe I am realising my potential a lot clearer now that I have had a taste of a better social life, business opportunity, and the results of good habits. So today I had a peaceful meditation and tried adding the sounds of a forest and fountain to add some more calmness. It drowned out the Headspace guy so I ended up being rather distracted. At least I tried something new though! I finished off with a couple of minutes visualising, and I have tried thinking of vivid moments to help with it. I then read out my business statement for faith development. I had a great morning run with the 30-20-10 technique to get the most out of my running time. I played nearly an hour's worth of guitar, and enjoyed finger picking more than I normally would (which isn't very much). I got a tiny bit of programming done, I find the JQuery tutorials difficult but I will need to persevere to make progress here. I was required to spend quite a bit of time with the family which was good, but cut into the time I planned for python programming and business planning. I also did at least 20 minutes of reading last night, but I really shouldn't have because it was late. Otherwise I have done well today. I may disappear from the forum for a couple of days because I will be going camping, I don't know if I will have internet or cellphone connection or not so I'm just letting you all know. 3 Things I'm grateful for: I am grateful for the running track near my house. It makes running easier, safer, and more enjoyable. I am grateful for the opportunity to see my grandparents today. I am grateful for an abundance of writing materials to use for anything I wish. One amazing thing that happened today: When finger picking my guitar, I got into a natural rhythm a lot better than I thought I would because I had designated strings to fingers like I was instructed to, so I didn't have to think very much like how I touch type. What could have done to make my day better (exactly what I will do differently tomorrow): I will make sure to make the most of my 'idle time' sitting around waiting inside transport or anything else. Brainstorming more business ideas would be a great way to do this.

Good on you for taking the initiative to clean the place out! I have gotten most of the way through cleaning my room out fully, its not that it is messy, but I have really old things and decorations collecting dust that I don't have any connections to. It was hard for me to resist temptations of the sunk cost fallacy when deleting my games, but I'm sure that you have similar problems with the comic books. If you feel pressured to read your unread comic books, perhaps you could unsubscribe but get the occasional comic book when you've read all the ones you have? It's nice to hear about how committed you are to your girlfriend. It reminds me of a relevant school experience. I was once asked a question in school about difficult life situations, and it went like this: "You have been called to help provide for and support your family in a far away country, but you may have to stay there for a few years. You have a girlfriend where you live and think she's 'the one', but if you leave her to help your family you may never see her again. What do you do?" My classmates were conflicted about which option would be best, but I came up with different reasoning that was widely accepted: 'Go help your family. If she's really 'the one', she will be there for you when you get back. Otherwise if she does not wait for you and enters other relationships willy nilly, she obviously doesn't have the commitment to stay with you anyway. ' Likewise, if you both stay committed to each other, you are surely made for each other. Good on you for your commitment, it's wonderful to see such dedicated people in this world. Now all that fluffy stuff is out of the way, how are your daily habits and such going? I didn't hear about any ways you're investing in yourself with new habits... Let us know if you are or aren't doing this so that we can encourage you and support you either way!

Thanks for the input! Out here in New Zealand, the interest rate has been falling a lot recently by about 1% per year, but it is not as bad yours. Out of all the money I have in my bank accounts I have full control over, I have over 80% of my money in a 'fast saver' savings account that earns 3.10% interest per year as long as I make no more than 1 withdrawal per month and the total money in it at the end of the month is larger than the last month. Otherwise my cash reserves account has about 13% of my total money in it and has an interest rate of 1.50% per year. Are you sure that is the greatest rate available from your bank? Perhaps look into term deposits if you'd like to save more but other savings options aren't available. I have a few ideas, but haven't confirmed which path I am going to take. Currently I am thinking of a consumer electronics business or an information selling business. That reminds me that I haven't been reading as much as I should have recently, yesterday was the first time I read before bed in about a week. I am aiming to be getting up consistently at 7am so yes those would be great habits to get back into!

Attempt III Day 3 Today's challenge: I thought I may as well keep my detox day the same as my challenge day to make it easier, and I've done the first 5 free days earlier anyways. So that means I've done both day 2 and 3 today. The project I've decided to work on is to start my own business, now I just need to work forwards with the plan I've set out and stay committed. My mentally engaging activity is programming, my go-to activity when I'm bored at home will be reading, and I have yet to pinpoint a social activity as I don't have my own car yet so I won't be able to go to a weekly club with membership and so on. I will work on this once school starts though; in the meantime I will just try to make friends whenever I can. As part of the day 3 challenge, I have already read the Slight Edge but it wouldn't hurt to read it again and take notes on how I can apply its principles to everyday living. Today has been another rainy day, but I have better things on my mind. I braved it out for a 30 minute run in the rain! I was drenched when I got home, but luckily we have a pool so I essentially just flopped into the pool when I was finished. Unfortunately today was a 'swap day' where I need to pack heaps of my stuff and go to my other set of parents for the next week or so. This meant that I spend a lot of time travelling and I tend to feel exhausted after travelling, even if I am a passenger. I sorted out my bank account finances (creating savings accounts etc.) because I would rather start earning interest sooner than later. I just stopped to think about what I'm writing, and it looks like I am starting to write excuses for why I didn't meet my daily goals. It is embarrassing to admit that I didn't complete my commitments of programming and playing the guitar even though I said I would do them in my last journal entry. I planned out the rest of my day once I got home, but I had an unusual wave of procrastination and ended up sorting out my bank details and such because I didn't want to do another run in the rain. I ended up fluffing around and doing other one-off tasks rather than what I scheduled, I just don't know why. Anyhow I know I won't have much going on tomorrow at all, so I will have to stick to my daily commitments. 3 Things I'm grateful for: I'm grateful for having a pool to cool myself off in. I am grateful for having all my family alive. I am grateful for my mentality to improve myself. One amazing thing that happened today: Running in the rain for a longer period than I normally would wasn't easy, but it felt great afterwards. After coming home when I finally stop and have a drink, I can appreciate the distance I have run (just about 4km in that run!) and the effort I had put into the job. Jumping into the pool was also a great feeling, but I think I should have celebrated my small win more as I only briefly appreciated my efforts. What I could have done to make my day better: I could have made the most of the time in general; I made good use of my time in the car by posting on game quitters but I didn't do the same when waiting to be picked up later in the day. I could have stuck to the schedule I made for myself to make sure I got everything done and not be guilty as I am now! What I will do differently tomorrow: I will start getting ready for bed earlier because the times I have been going to bed have been staying at around 10:50 since I make such long GQ posts and leave posting till the very end of my day. I will plan my day according to the time it will take to complete each activity and setting phone alarms according to this time. This will make sure I don't put off my entire schedule if I fall behind because of an activity I didn't expect to have to do.

Count me in, I'm attempting to nail the detox for good this time around anyways. My commitment is to not play video games again, online, offline, or otherwise. I may make the exception that Travis made that allowed tiny amounts of arcade games only if pressured to do so. I am also not going to watch any streams, videos, or any other content directly related to games. My commitment is for the 90 day detox, and then I might (but probably won't) make minor changes after the 90 day detox. I have yet to decide on some concrete goals, currently I'm just working towards being the person I'd like to be. I am doing this to develop a better lifestyle and become a more energetic, ambitious, outgoing person.

I'll be adding these to my journal

Sounds like you've really come a long way, Joe! I'm doing better than I used to in terms of ignoring the influence of video games in the house, but to see how far you have come without them is amazing. 6 months is a long time without video games, and to see such personal development in that time must something to celebrate. Have a Happy New Year Joe!

Attempt III Day 3 Today has been super rainy and so I skipped my morning run. I think I should have continued anyway though, running in the rain would keep me cool and be a nice change. I have been doing a lot of driving for my parents, getting payment accounts sorted (I have the 30 day challenge now!), and doing a catch up on other people's journals that I have neglected for a while. Although I hardly got anything productive done today, I can only do this type of thing once in a while as now I have caught up with everybody's journals and have gotten a bunch of 'one-off' jobs finished. I did my meditation in the morning as well as the daily gratitude letter done, but that was just about it. Sorta dissapointing but I'll just pick up from where I left off and not beat myself up about it. I ended up doing some 'mindless' internet browsing today which was not good, but thankfully I have been doing so far less often than I used to. I have gotten a close friend on board to help me brainstorm all business ideas and decide which path to take in terms of starting a business, so I'll be seeing him in about 5 days or so. In the meantime, I need to push myself to contact certain people that I have been procrastinating making contact with for months. 3 Things I'm grateful for: I am grateful that I have the skills to drive safely and provide transport for others. I am grateful for the thoughtful gifts I have received this Christmas. I am grateful for the generous dinner I had tonight at a restaurant. One amazing thing that happened today: I purchased the 30 day challenge today and it so far has been inspiring to read. Also messaging Cam and being thankful made both him and myself happier, making somebody else's day seems to almost always improve your own! I have had an abundance of smiles recently which has made me enjoy the past few days a lot. What I could have done to make my day better: I could have had a run in the morning, despite all the rain. I have enjoyed being in the rain in the past, I'm sure I could enjoy it again, especially when I need cooling down whilst running. I could have spent my free time at home practicing to program websites as I need to do that to finish the website building job. What I will do differently tomorrow: I will make sure to do my morning run no matter what, rain or shine! I will need to do 3 things before that though: Meditate, visualise, and read out my business statement (for inspiration and to develop faith in the project). I will make sure to get my daily habits done as soon as possible as I will not have time to do them later otherwise.

It's okay to have an unproductive day, as long as you learn from it and pick up from where you've left off. Keep on keeping on I say! I'm half-assing a diet at the moment (excuse my language) because I don't have all the facts straight. I think I can get this all sorted once I have my own car, then go see a nutritionist and get a work out schedule for a gym. Perhaps the same method might work for you? I'm starting to love acoustic guitar songs the longer I play the guitar for! Nice music taste you have there.

Hi Laney, Your finished products look great! I could do with some artwork in my room I hope you have a Happy New Year and are having a much better day than on the 30th!

Congratulations on your 90 days Tom! Sorry for being late to the party. You've been successful this whole time and it shows in how you have had no relapses through the whole detox. Props to you for making it through!

Have a Happy New Year Travis! Good on you for making the effort to reflect on your past year. I'm out of likes today, but thumbs up to you!

Nice to see you back! I know that receiving video games as gifts are hard to give away, but perhaps you could sell the video game related gifts from Christmas to get some cash whilst keeping yourself away from potential triggers.

Hi Ed, I hop you have a Happy New Year! Sounds like things are going well for you, but having trouble with keeping up habits on a shifty schedule, which is fine. Keep it up!

I'm glad you've recognised that you use internet browsing and gaming to 'numb' shame and guilt, as it is a key part to recovery. It may be worthwhile to look deeper into how you can attack your source of fears and guilt by improving the situation that is producing those feelings, rather than 'hiding behind the screen'. Good on you for making the effort to understand yourself!

I reckon this would relate to pre-defined gender roles that are prevalent in most societies, such as that women would be more inclined to care for others as historically women were the parents that looked after children the most. This relates to the 'responsibility' of looking after characters and making sure not to 'abandon' them, as a mother would never abandon their child unless there is great need to do so. For males competition for dominance and success over peers is somewhat ingrained into our thought patterns, so the four needs that Cam mentions in his TedX talk would relate better to men. That's my idea on the topic, I wonder if we could build the recovery process better with this info? Perhaps a section could be added to Respawn that details how to break emotional attachment to characters to lower investment in games emotionally.