Hi everyone!

[super_seabass]

Hi everyone, I'm super_seabass. I primarily used games for the escapist quality and for the (false) sense of personal growth.

I grew up with gaming and pursued it with varying degrees of intensity throughout my life (I'm now in my mid-30s). I've never really hit a negative extreme with it, and I've actually got things pretty good: I'm married, I own a home and I have a good job. However, I still managed to "backslide" on life goals & habits by going on gaming binges, and I'm sure I missed out on better life opportunities and experiences by settling for the comfort of gaming. Therefore I've decided to cut it out of my life entirely. My reasons are the following:

1. Gaming disrupts my healthy habits. I have a good fitness routine and sleep schedule, but on weekends I frequently binged on gaming. That left me tired and disappointed with myself, leaving me in a fog that tends to hang around for several days.
2. I can't enjoy anything else. With the exception of getting into a flow-state at work, I find nothing else enjoyable. I still do other activities, but I mostly give them the bare-minimum effort that satisfies my sense of personal responsibility. I'm hopeful that quitting gaming will increase my sense of satisfaction from these activities, since they obviously provide better real-world rewards.
3. It blunts my ambitions. I have lots of interests and projects I want to tackle, but when the time to start on one appears I end up gaming instead. It's just easier and more immediately satisfying to start gaming than it is to try something new or to keep an active project going. I need to make it the opposite way around. I also think this point relates to point #2.
4. I'm sick of being "programmed to consume:" So much of the gaming industry is exploitative of its workers AND its customer base, and always has been. I believe the gaming industry and the media surrounding it would gladly take 100% of my time and mental energy if they could (and not care about the consequences to me), so I no longer want to give them that opportunity. This isn't unique to gaming, so I'll be wary of other time sinks with the same goals (TV, social media, etc). My position on this topic is a lot more nuanced--for example, I don't think most companies are evil, just short-sighted--but I don't think it's worth typing out at this time. 

I have gone on unguided, unofficial detoxes in the past that have lasted 3-6 months, but I relapse when the activities I take up start to become less interesting. Respawn looks like it will help me do a better job of addressing my needs and the activities that will fulfill them. That being said, I think I am particularly drawn to the "rapid-learning" phase that happens when trying something new, but as the learning curve and implicit rewards start to level off I find my interest waning and my mind returning to games. Perhaps I should embrace this tendency and simply make sure that I've got lots of activity ideas with easy first steps, thereby making it easier to jump into a new activity than it is to boot up a game.

Thanks for reading! I look forward to talking with you all.

 

Edited October 23, 2017 by super_seabass
typo correction

[Hitaru]

Welcome to the forum, @super_seabass!

True, we usually talk about videogame addiction and extreme situations, but that doesn't mean it has to be every case. Whatever are your reasons to quit (and for what you wrote they seem really thought-out ones), you must know they are ok. If you have good foundations in your current life and want to take it a step beyond, that's awesome! As you probably found out in your previous detoxes, it's not just "quitting games" but also finding something new and fulfilling to do instead with your time.

If you're looking for new hobby ideas, you can check this list.

If you want to learn more about instant gratification, procrastination or why games feel like the only and most entertaining activity you could ever do, you can find videos covering those topics in the YT channel.

Looking forward to read you!

[super_seabass]

Thanks Hitaru! The links are very helpful.

[Cam Adair]

Welcome!