Hello Everyone!

[Average_Guy]

Hello Everyone,

I've been here for a few days, but I've haven't made a formal introduction yet!  I also wanted to be able to have a link in my Journal, so it would be streamlined a bit.  I will make a TL;DR at the bottom.

Gaming History/Life Story:  Like most people here, I started gaming when I was very young.  I played a few games on the N64 and Xbox, but during that time I stumbled upon Oldschool Runescape (OSRS), an extremely fun and addicting game that I would eventually sink countless hours into.  During high school (2007-2011) I played a few of the Halo series games, but when I wasn't playing these games with my friends or brother,  I was still secretly playing Runescape.  During my last two years of highschool I gave up Runescape because I had found a new source of Dopamine: smoking, drinking, partying, and a girlfriend.  I continued to ride this path straight into my first year of college at an art school in Georgia.  However, I did not escape this path unscathed.  Right before graduating I contracted the Epstein Barr Virus (Mono) from a few of friends who also had the virus.  

Most people that get Mono can recover with rest in a few weeks or months, but this was not the case for me.  I rested for a few weeks before going back to my unhealthy lifestyle of partying.  Fast forward to the last semester of my third year at college and I know my body is not well.  I only have six weeks left before I can go home, so I do what I've done for the last couple years, push through the sickness.  At this point I'm having chronic fatigue, headaches, sensitivities to almost all food I eat, congestion issues, and worst of all, a deep depression.  My workload wasn't that tough at school, so I had to find a way to pass the time and fortunately, I had recently heard that OSRS had just come out so I thought that'd be a great solution.  For the next six weeks I would stay in my room gaming day and night, sometimes until 4am, to make it to the end of school.  

That summer I tried going back to school and after three weeks I was so sick I had to drop out and move back in with my parents. At the worst points in the illness, I was so exhausted that I didn't have the strength or energy to lift my head or get up off the couch.  After living with my parents for a few months, I was introduced to League of Legends.  For the next two years recovering from my chronic illness, I played League or other games for 12+ hours a day.  At this point in my life, video games were a constant escape from the reality I dreaded.  I eventually became well enough that I thought I could try going to school again.  My health felt like it was at 90% and I quit video games once again to focus on school, what career I wanted to pursue, and some new friendships.  

My first semester of school was going great, my grades and motivation were at an all time high.  I had made friends and was starting to feel like I was finally doing what I was supposed to be doing, but under the surface there were still health complications and my condition was on a constant decline.  I had never found a doctor that could treat my illness in Georgia.  So for the second time, I had to drop out of school.  Almost one full year later I'm still recovering at my parents house.  My health is doing much better, but still nowhere near what I would consider normal or healthy.  I'm at a crossroads in my life, and instead of taking the path of least resistance, I'm trying to overcome these challenges and create a different life for myself.

TL;DR - Been gaming almost my entire life.  Only stopped gaming when I was involved with other addictions.  Been chronically sick for 8 year, dropped out of college, and haven't found my calling/career yet.  Quitting gaming and completely uprooting my neuro-pathways so I can better overcome life's challenges and become a much better version of my self.  Also quitting to help with other addictions.

[Cam Adair]

Hey welcome to the forums. You'll find a lot of like-minded people here.

[Average_Guy]

Appreciate it.  Happy to be a part of it.