June 13, 20187 yr I started to quit gaming forever. I did it before, but I never managed to keep it up. It usually lasts for few days and then, I get back to my gaming habits. I hope this website and all the instructions help me to get over. I will post my daily progress, and will share it here if I play again!
June 14, 20187 yr Hey/Salaam Mohammed Happy to have you here! Will follow along. I've tried quitting games for 10 years straight. Aside from a good stint of a year or so, this forum and posting regular updates has been the best abstinence I've done from games. So it's really worth your time to invest in posting here.
June 15, 20187 yr Author 2nd day: I resisted the urge to play games because I knew I am going to post my journal here and I didn't want to give up this early! so, yes, writing journal does its job! I feel some people are watching my progress, so I don't want to disappoint them! Today, I had more time to spend with my son, and focus a little bit more on my study. I forgot to mention that I am doing a Ph.D. in Geotechnical Engineering. I used a software to block games that I play so there is no way I can play on my laptop unless I force my wife to give me the password! The software is "instal-block" from bash software. I found this method more effective than removing game accounts. Removing game accounts will force me to start new games which will worsen the condition I believe!
June 15, 20187 yr Author Tonight, I felt a very strong urge to play few games. I even turned on my laptop and tried to bypass the install-block software, but I couldn't. Yea, definitely, that software is a must! And guess what? Instead of playing, I spent about an hour or two on my thesis unless otherwise I would playing games until the morning as always! Edited June 15, 20187 yr by Mohammad
June 16, 20187 yr I'm glad the blocker is helping. It's a good crutch to use at the beginning. It's also a good opportunity to practice mindfulness and let the feeling pass instead of letting it over-power you. I've found with myself that if I use an external preventor, I don't actually change in my dependence on games and will just channel that dependence onto something else. But external tools can be a great tool to get you out of the woods and started on your detox. So good luck!
June 16, 20187 yr Author 3rd day: I had again a lot of craving for playing, but I couldn't play as games are blocked by a software! I wasted alot of my time procrastinating while studying. For that reason, I got an app called "Productivity challenge Timer" which forces me to work for 25 mins straight. There are some ranks in the app as you continue being productive, the app rewards you by unlocking new ranks for you. My goal is to reach the maximum rank during the 90-day detox. Today, I spent two hours biking and taking photos with my DSLR. I am learning photography using lynda.com. The lessons are great, and I think photography might be a replacement for gaming. I will try to go out for an hour every day to take some photos. It is also a good exercise. Due to gaming, my sleeping habit is changed. I have to fix this too. I am sleeping usually at 2 a.m. and woke up very late in the morning! I will try to fix this problem probably later as it is frustrating to deal with all the problems simultaneously.
June 17, 20187 yr I love that app, used it before too. I could never stay consistent with the pomodorro timer, unfortunately. But it's a great tool and if you're using it, great! Outdoor activities are the best. I do gardening on the roof and it helps me a lot to be out in the sun and enjoying the fresh air instead of being cooped up inside next to a computer screen.
June 17, 20187 yr Author 4TH DAY: I still experience craving and a little bit of boredom! Thanks to the software blocker, I cannot play! The craving stays for a couple of hours and then disappears. I went outside for a half hour to take some photos. I spent some time on lynda.com to learn photography. I worked for about two hours on my thesis which is surely not enough! It is still difficult for me to be more productive!
June 19, 20187 yr Author 5th & 6thday: I started enjoying Photography alot as a replacement for gaming. I think that is why I didn't have any craving in the last two days. We had a scheduled power outage yesterday so I am posting in the 6th day. I am not yet productive! I have to work harder on my thesis.
June 20, 20187 yr Author 7th day: Thankfully, I got so into photography that I totally forgot about gaming! Isn't that weird! My wife says I cannot do anything in moderation! I think as Cam said in one of his videos, my brain is adapted to high stimulation esp. because I used to play intense games very competitively. It seems that photography is able to stimulate my brain in a way that gaming doesn't even cross my mind! Well, taking nice photos and post it online on social apps, I get some satisfaction. This satisfaction is the replacement of the satisfaction that I used to receive by winning in games. Still not spending enough time on my thesis and procrastinating alot. I need to focus more on my work!
June 21, 20187 yr Author 8th day: I do not have any craving for games. It feels really good that I finally overcome my gaming habit after so many years! Gaming doesn't even cross my mind. When I intentionally think about it, I do not like it as the game I used to play was very intense and competitive. Photography gives me a better feeling. It has a moderate cognitive stimulation and an artistic value. For me, being from an Engineering field of work, I never knew that I have a talent for art! My progress in photography in few days is so massive that I am amazed at how much talent I have. What a waste of time, money and energy that went into gaming for years. Sigh!
June 23, 20187 yr Author 9th and 10th day: Still, don't have any craving for playing thankfully! Getting back to work.
June 24, 20187 yr Author 11th day: I am a paper with Latex and dealing with many errors! I wasted two days working really hard and got no results! I am about to pull my hair and kick my head to a wall! This made me so nervous that I am craving to play some games. The computer is locked so I cannot get into a game! However, I can play some games on my smartphone! Does it break 90-day Detox? What should I do now to calm down!? Apparently, I do not get any progress on my work!
June 24, 20187 yr I so understand. For 1 whole week I have been fighting a database problem where everything works OK when I am debugging, but on the test server it can't connect. If only Microsoft would tell me WHY it can't connect, it would be great. I took a lot of photography classes in high school, would you like some assignments to help you pass the time?
June 24, 20187 yr 6 minutes ago, Some Yahoo said: I so understand. For 1 whole week I have been fighting a database problem where everything works OK when I am debugging, but on the test server it can't connect. If only Microsoft would tell me WHY it can't connect, it would be great. *crazy mumble is heard from beneath this post* this actually is a feature that is shared among most of the beautiful MS products. If it works, it works, if its not, well fuck you we won't log why it doesn't work. My most beloved error message was "wireless didn't connect, for more information go to advanced logs" and in advanced logs "wireless didn't connect". Like.. Wow. Thanks for noticing dear Windows :-)
June 24, 20187 yr Author 3 hours ago, Some Yahoo said: I so understand. For 1 whole week I have been fighting a database problem where everything works OK when I am debugging, but on the test server it can't connect. If only Microsoft would tell me WHY it can't connect, it would be great. I took a lot of photography classes in high school, would you like some assignments to help you pass the time? Thanks for offering, but no thanks. I have many photography assignments to do as I follow the lessons on lynda.com.
June 28, 20187 yr Author Day 12 to 15th: I am enjoying my life way more right now compared to those days that I used to play games. Life can be so fulfiling and satisfying when you embrace it and look forward into it. I am so happy that I finally managed to create a big change in my life. I cannot believe what I have done to myself for years by wasting all I had! I betrayed myself and my family. Today, my wife gave me a gift and thanked me for spending my time with her and our baby! We both cried after that! I am very happy now! I am working hard on my thesis right now and also spending all my free time on learning photography which is more fun than playing for me. Thanks for everything, Cam.
July 1, 20187 yr Author 18 minutes ago, Cam Adair said: Way to go Mohammad! You're doing great. I am sure I won't get back to gaming! :D Enjoying my life way more right now...
July 1, 20187 yr 1 hour ago, Mohammad said: I am sure I won't get back to gaming! :D Enjoying my life way more right now... What are you enjoying about it? Curious what you've replaced gaming with!
July 2, 20187 yr Author 5 hours ago, Cam Adair said: What are you enjoying about it? Curious what you've replaced gaming with! Photography! I started watching Lynda.com, Introduction to photography by Ben Long. His videos are so great. I keep watching his courses to reach an advanced photography. I made such an improvement in photography that I was amazed at myself! I replaced photography because its challenging, highly-cognitive stimulating, and rewarding, and I get so much appreciation from my friends and families on social media.
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