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NEW VIDEO: The EASIEST Way to Stop Gaming

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Hello, my name's Gavin and I'm a university student in Canada. 

I don't think I've ever posted on a forum looking for help before (other than homework), but as the title says, I'm more committed to change than I've ever been.

My history with video games starts back in elementary school, playing with a neighbourhood friend. It didn't become a noticeable issue until high school when I noticed that I had abandoned most of my childhood hobbies (badminton, trombone, soccer). While I still had a core of friends at school, most of my free time was being spent on video games (WoW and some PS3 games). One night, I remember getting drunk, walking into the middle of a field near my house and vowing to stop wasting my life playing video games. 

Fast forward a few years, and I've made it through first year of university, but am struggling in second year due to a combination of factors, but mainly depression. Through my engineering program, I got an internship in my hometown (a job I left prematurely). While there, I actually purchased a gaming pc specifically to play World of Warcraft (which I had renounced back in high school). I just wanted so badly to feel good again, and I thought WoW could do that for me. Temporarily it did, but I made an uncharacteristically wise decision and sold my pc, and stopped playing video games again. However, throughout all this I would spend long hours clicking through YouTube videos of gameplay (Hearthstone, Minecraft, WoW).  A year later, I found myself renting a house with a guy who played League of Legends. I was excited to have someone to play with in person, and the social connection was a great boost. Sadly, the guy ended up being an asshole, and I continued to play LoL by myself.

LoL has pretty much become the ultimate crutch for me now. It gives me escapism, challenge, rewards; all those things Cam says video games provide. Perhaps differently than most users of this site, I spend more time watching gameplay videos on YouTube than actually playing, because I can watch videos anywhere, anytime. Instant escapism. Its like watching satisfies the same urges as playing the game. My addiction has got to the point that I'm in danger of failing 3 of my 4 classes this term, I'm spending student loan money like I won the lottery, and my social life is nearing the state it was in the depths of my depression. I'm missing multiple classes each week due to poor sleep habits, or just skipping to play games. I'm skipping my yoga classes (my only source of exercise). As I'm expecting to graduate in May 2019, I'm realizing that I won't make it out there the way things are going. 

I've always told myself, "Once you get over this, you'll be able to be fit, sociable, eat healthy and have a rewarding career", but "getting over it" was always something future me would take care of. It's time present me takes charge. 

Sorry if that seemed over dramatic, but I honestly do want to change, and I hope joining this community can help me. It seems like an active community with friendly and helpful advice. Cam's videos resonated strongly with me, and I like the attitude he brings to the forums here. I'll be starting my daily journal tomorrow for the 90 day detox. 

tl;dr: Played video games as a kid, wanted to quit and get more out of life. Still feel that way today, except its become an addiction. 

Gavin

Edited by marcopolobus
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Welcome Gavin. I love the part about vowing on this field, completely wasted and walking in darkness. I often believe that we already know and already knew for a long time what is good for us and what is not. But the daily distractions tend to disconnect us from ourselves and in states like being drunk, the voice inside has a lot more volume and other stuff fades into the background. I am glad you are here to keep on going this path. (Not hanging around fields at night with bottles of booze in your mind, but adding real value to your life)

There are quite some people in here that were mainly on LoL, so do not feel forsaken. A good start would be to create some barriers between you and the distractions that are gameplay vids and such. Some people suggest to set your smartphone to colorblind/greyscale mode. On your PC, you can simply block YouTube for a while. Most modems/routers should have a feature to create a blacklist.

Anyway, good luck on your journey!

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