PFMA

Entry #11 Thanks for the support Deku and Cam! It involves a 3 hour long case test that I have to prepare for, I'm trying to ask for a week's time to prepare since it is technical and something I have some foundation on but have not really used or completed in the past 2 years. Again, I appreciate you guys' support. Will be working hard for this. Challenges like this really help me focus on the more important things in life and reduce/eliminate urges to turn to video games or porn. Will stay disciplined and keep the momentum going. Today I am grateful for: 1) A great catch up in the morning with friends who can just be genuine and vulnerable. Thankful for quality relationships. 2) Adding good habits to my habitica dailies list ! And actually building good habits. Journaling is definitely on there and positive self talk/being kind to myself is also up there. It's helped to build a positive less stressed/anxious attitude towards life. 3) Helping younger cousins out with some life advice, might need one on one time with another younger cousin who is seemingly spending an unhealthy amount of time playing video games. And also of course I'm grateful for this forum and for the program to help me cold turkey quit gaming. It was 10 days since I quit and I received an invite to test with a pretty good company! I'm overjoyed! I could be otherwise spending a few hours a day addicted on some mobile game or whatnot falling for tricks that games have to hook me on. Have a blessed day, reader! I hope your day today will be more pleasant than your previous day! :)

Hope you're able to stay committed and find it very rewarding !

Entry #10 Stayed up late last night to prepare for a job interview. Felt a strong sense of focus and motivation. Going to bed early today and start off tomorrow with some more of that. Glad that the urges also weren't apparent today. Grateful for: 1) Finally meeting a good insurance person, not a sleazy salesman 2) Being able to play a few good rounds of basketball with a few friends - old and new 3) Just having a positive mood lately and building mental resilience against negative self talk - higher self esteem just from doing more productive things instead of video games. Have a great day to whoever is reading!

Entry #9 Made a mistake sending a resume drop email. Felt pretty anxious in the moment but there are a few places to drop my resume at and looking back in a few months time, this should not be a big blunder :) Overall still glad that I'm able to confidently send out job applications again Grateful for: 1) Being able to go through finances/accounting for my small business 2) Meeting new people from different countries tonight and it was a pleasant experience 3) Sparing time for me to invest in educating myself and being able to keep up with a good habit streak! No game nor porn urges today.. YES!

Entry #8 Great day today. No game urges today. Added to my list on habitica. Had a lot of time to go over reading on finance and self improvement, that felt rewarding. Grateful for: 1) Being able to read up a lot on finances and self improvement 2) Spending time with a really good friend of mine and make exciting plans for the future 3) Making it through a week without gaming !!!!!!!!!! :)

Entry # 7 Got curious about habitica and made a second account to "cheat" haha, wasted some time there but at least I stopped it shortly after. After that, I felt so guilty didn't have the desire to get into porn today. No gaming urges today. Grateful for: 1) A crash course into laundry detergent formulation at work today - was interested in chemistry when I was younger, interesting way it played out this way 2) Finally finished my resume/cover letter - its been hard to explain some jumps and short tenures at some jobs 3) Being able to assist a cousin who's feeling lost Also attending a talk focusing on strengths. That's positively shaped my mindset. Signed up for a swing trading course, gonna invest in a little education on that. That's all for now folks!

Entry #6 Dangerously slumping on a 3 day streak w porn. I've been able to stay off gaming without significant struggling but have shifted some time wasting to porn. Any advice anyone? Anything at all will help. Bright side 1) Having a dinner with a few friends tonight - some are new 2) Still managed to power through some work and kept up with daily responsibilities 3) Eating healthy today I've also been procrastinating on job apps. I've been filling up my time with other forms of reading and also signing up for short online courses. I really just need to dive in and finalize my resume and send it out. Will do that after dinner tonight.

Hi Brent, I appreciate you reading and responding to my post. I would personally recommend not watching e sports as that might trigger you. What are some other activities you've listed down that you could do aside from these? I'm rooting for you to pursue you aspirations to be a world class software developer and fly a plane. Are you currently spending a lot of time focusing on that?

Entry #5 Gaming has not been a struggle today. Habitica was interesting, debating whether or not to use it though because of its very similar to game like features. Struggled with porn and masturbation again this morning but I'm glad I can be open about that struggle here and that helps me move away from it and break the cycle vs letting it continue for a few days. Today I'm grateful for: 1) Being able to study for the CFA 2) Looking forward to hit the gym later 3) Having a friend who'll proofread my resume/cover letter for job apps. Wish me luck guys. Thank you!

Goodluck Matt! Stay committed! Enjoy your trip in Amsterdam!

Keep it up man !

Props to going to the toast masters meeting man! Would a card game community be too similar to video gaming? I'm for you exploring a sports club first! Or hit up some old friends and try an activity you've been curious about. I feel like it might require some "activation energy" to step out of the house, but once you're out there (with a friend or so) it gets easier to immerse and enjoy the benefits of a game detox. I personally am interested in trying out a rock climbing gym or just running on a treadmill while listening to a podcast on a skill im interested in learning or an audiobook. Goodluck in finding your next activity. Looking forward to an update!

Hello! I'd really like to wish you the best of luck for your law school applications. Keep up with the daily journals, they don't have to be long or perfect, but I do feel that being able to express yourself / track your daily progress and take part in this community is encouraging! They also keep a momentum going.. :) Looking forward to your future journals! ? Cheers!

Hey Deku, Great to hear some of your story. I really hope you're able to stay committed and focused on your pursuit for medical school. It is encouraging to see how much you can get done after giving up gaming. Congrats on doing very well in your classes. Props to asking Rachael out, you might be insecure today but in time and through being productive and not gaming I trust you'll build confidence and enjoy doing this sort of thing. Even if it might not be the greatest coffee you have, you're moving in the right direction. For someone to say that they are insecure but is able to ask someone they feel is 'out of their league' out is commendable. Be in your own corner and cheer yourself on. Cheers to more good stories and daily wins !

Entry #4 In conjunction with the game detox I'm also trying to go for no fap/no porn as suggested by Cam and also because I feel like getting into the habit of that I feel like it wires my brain unhealthily in a similar way that gaming does. It wastes time, takes away productivity, messes up my view on women. Anyways, would like to share that I fell into masturbation today, no porn however; felt some guilt and discouragement doing so, but I'm not going to dwell too much on that, I'm going to have a quick moment of remorse for it, pray about it, then pick myself up and move on. Today is a good day. God is good. Gaming wise, its not been too much of a struggle today. Its also been just the start of the day, I've made plans for the rest of day and plan to follow it (did the calendar portion of respawn) - I've to brush up my cover letter and resume later this evening. I'll edit this post as soon as I get it done. No more procrastinating - time to really get some order back into my life. Read a portion of the "Rules of Life" book by Richard Templar and a key takeaway I'd like to note down and share is to really reflect on who you are, to be the best version of yourself no matter the situation, and to know what counts and what doesn't. Today I'm grateful for: 1) Being able to blog here and be open about my struggles, keep tabs on my journey and progress 2) A good night's sleep and a Sunday filled with a good mixture of productive/mentally engaging activities, social ones, and even resting ones 3) Good appetite for today's breakfast. Have not been having the best appetite this past few days. Seems like it has all turned around today and I'm glad for that. I don't tend to eat unhealthy foods when I game - I tend to skip meals and not even feel hungry. So this appetite and good breakfast this morning is really something I'm grateful about. Time is still passing by relatively quickly, but a little slower since adding events to my calendar. Still struggling a little to stick to it but it has helped me be more productive. Also, I've noticed that I'm a lot more present and empathetic, I feel like I can connect with people emotionally much better. Sidenote: I'm needing advice on seeking a health insurance policy, anyone can share advice on what a health insurance policy should look like? And whether or not someone in their 20s should consider starting a life insurance policy early on? Thank you for taking your time to read and go through this journey with me. I wish you a very pleasant day (or night) ahead.

Entry #3 First Saturday. I did end up having times where I feel I was bored - immediately thought of that list I came up with from the respawn program and thought of diving into one of my mentally engaging activities to keep me away from gaming. I am looking forward to: 1) Doing a module from the respawn program 2) Music practice 3) Reunion dinner with some old friends (sometimes I feel crappy and unconfident if I've not been productive for the day or even for the week. I hope not to feel this way tonight - have been making some good decisions this week and have been more productive) Happy/proud that I'm able to move on to one of the mentally engaging activities instead of giving in to gaming Edit: Did Module 6 today and I'm going to list 10 simple things I'm grateful for. I'm grateful for being able to sit in a comfortable chair right now, I'm grateful I've gone through education and am able to understand a program like respawn, I'm grateful for having friends who invite me to dinners, I'm grateful for a new pair of pants I get to wear, I'm grateful I am able to surf the internet and plan parts of my week ahead, I'm grateful for the nice temperature in this room right now, I'm grateful I can look up how to meditate on youtube, I'm grateful for having a water dispenser in my room, I'm grateful for a loving family, and I'm grateful I am able to sleep well.

Entry #2 Today was another good day. It was not a big struggle to stay away from the games. I am grateful for: 1) Making a good impression during a business meeting. 2) Being able to spend some time with my brother and teach him how to fly a drone. 3) About to step out tonight for a concert. I wish whoever reading a pleasant day. Will check back in tomorrow.

Entry #1 I'm going to start journaling daily, just simple journals to keep track of some positive things I've done and how I feel. Today I'm grateful for: 1) Starting the respawn program - got to module 4 and will try to finish the rest tomorrow 2) Got to spend time with a friend and offered him help 3) Having the courage to meet a much older guy for advice on work I'm feeling good about myself today, I did engage in a mentally engaing actvitity as well as a social one. Looking forward for the next days to come. Over and out

Hi I'm Pete and I'm deciding to quit gaming cold turkey for 100 days (it'll be my birthday by then - a nice gift). Throughout my childhood I've had numerous 8-14 hour days of playing MMO RPGs (mainly). They were fun at first - I used to spend the most time playing amongst my friends and naturally allowed me to progress the quickest - with any game, that is. Initially, doing so made me feel good about myself, but after some time - I felt embarrassed to be able to claim that I have progressed so far as to rank top 100 across multiple games. I was wasting a lot of time moving on from one game to the next. I did not know how to direct all this energy that craves constant measurable growth into a productive path. This habit did not seem like too big a problem during elementary school through high school - I still enjoyed studying and learning and was able to pull through with pretty good grades. But around college life however, I realized that this habit of mine has occupied my mind so much and shaped me into being an irresponsible person. Still I could get some good grades but I spent so much of my time wasted on gaming, even in class I would game. I did not think much about my future and constantly thought of when I could next play some more. Fast forward to graduation day - I didn't have a job, I was still gaming a lot and could not effectively bring myself to think about other more productive things in life. Within 3 months time I finally landed a job and worked quite responsibly without gaming for about 3 months. Things happened and I had to leave my job; it was then when I completely lost it. Over the next 3 years I have worked jobs and have even started a business but I would have bad relapses that would absolutely kill my productivity and restart my momentum. I feel like I've wasted so much time and opportunities and I really need to turn my life around so here is my commitment. It's been nice reading some of your stories. I hope you all are able to stay committed and that we can all turn over a new leaf and respawn. I'd also like to thank you Cam for wanting to help others that are struggling.