Not really a relapse, but a question!

[dannylee3782]

I wasn't sure where this question/discussion would belong, so I am just posting it here. 

I haven't played any games for 15 days, but I have a habit of watching streams, tournaments or its highlights. 

I am trying to stay away from streams and actual tournaments, cause they can take a lot of time away. However, highlights are relatively short (15-30 min) and I thought about watching these small clips as a tapering method to slowly push me away from gaming, instead of quitting cold turkey. But at the same time, I feel like watching those videos will maintain my interest in the game and make me more susceptible to relapses if the opportunity is presented. 

So I just wanted to see if anyone had any similar experience and their opinion! 

[Cam Adair]

I would avoid them tbh. It's just holding on to an old chapter of your life that you may feel ready to fully let go of. 15-30 mins one time is not a lot of time, but add a few of those together and now it's an hour or two, and if you do that nightly/weekly, it adds up to far more time than you think.

The only question is, is it really serving you and the life you are creating, now? If not, let it go with love. If it is, that's fine. 

[karabas]

I agree with Cam. It's just so tempting to try playing the game yourself after watching others do it. I remember a specific thing that once got me back into hard-core gaming was when I watched a Let's Play on YouTube and the strategies the person used in the video could've helped me with a particular game challenge I couldn't overcome. 

You might not feel that at the moment and it might feel like it's OK and not a problem - but maybe 30, 40 days into your habit it WILL become a problem.

Also, I feel that if we can't game, watching others play is like vicarious gaming. You're not really giving up the habit, you're just changing it to something else.

 

[dannylee3782]

@Cam Adair + @karabas 

Thank you for your input! I definitely agree with both of you and I realized that this is in fact, an old chapter of my life that I need to let go of. 

So, I'm going to stay away from it as much as possible AND I will consider it a relapse if I watch more than 15 mins.