1) When do you journal daily?

2) What replacement activities did you start with to keep you from gaming?

3) Recommended sleep/wake up times?

4) What books do you all recommend for self-improvement?

1) I've never been able to establish a journaling habit.

2) I am starting a youtube channel. Fitness helps a lot because of the noticeable improvement. Still looking for something competitive. 

3) This depends on your responsibilities and desired life style. For example, if you want to workout in the morning to start your day off hard, your sleep schedule will differ radically from someone who doesn't. 

4) I highly recommend Emotional Intelligence by Daniel Goleman. 

Bonus: I would look internally for the answers to these questions. You need to find a schedule and activities that serve your needs instead of copy and pasting from overs. For example, when you journal should be based on what you want to get out of journaling. If you want reflective insights, journal at the end of the day. If you want motivation to conquer your day, journal at the beginning. 

On 10/15/2020 at 6:59 PM, cryptosam said:

When do you journal daily?

Only at work, when it is related to work

On 10/15/2020 at 6:59 PM, cryptosam said:

What replacement activities did you start with to keep you from gaming?

Repair projects/Politics/Volunteering in social projects/Sports/Reading

Biggest part: meeting friends and going out for a walk

Everything that helped me meet people in general.

On 10/15/2020 at 6:59 PM, cryptosam said:

Recommended sleep/wake up times?

 

On 10/15/2020 at 6:59 PM, cryptosam said:

What books do you all recommend for self-improvement?

Books never helped me much. I just did got out to meet people.

On 10/15/2020 at 12:59 PM, cryptosam said:

1) When do you journal daily?

2) What replacement activities did you start with to keep you from gaming?

3) Recommended sleep/wake up times?

4) What books do you all recommend for self-improvement?

1. I journal before bed but if I'm distraught I journal immediately.
2. I started with recording a podcast, then did yoga, then did floor hockey and volleyball. I stuck with hockey and volleyball and added rock climbing and 3d animation.
3. That's up to you. I do 12 to 8. If I have a purpose to wake up for in the morning I enjoy waking up at 6 AM though.
4. I don't think you should read self improvement books because most of it is recycled garbage from authors taking advantage of people. People read self help books to feel like they're improving their life but don't improve their life because reading requires energy and you have to actively put energy into quitting video games for the first few weeks. I recommend just journaling your thoughts, asking for help, seeking a therapist, and actively moving forward.

For a first-time quitter, here are some practical thoughts:

Journaling – Best time depends on your goal. If you want to set intentions and structure your day, journal in the morning. If you want to reflect and release stress, journal at night. Personally, I find evenings best since I can track progress and see what worked.

Replacement activities – The trick is to fill the time slots when you normally gamed. For me, simple habits like walking, basic workouts, or even reading short articles helped. Over time, you can scale to hobbies like writing, sports, or creative projects.

Sleep/Wake times – Consistency is more important than exact hours. Many people struggle here, but tools like Uhrzeitlive are great because you can visually manage your time blocks, track your peak energy hours, and stick to a steady routine. It helps avoid the trap of “just one more hour” that gaming creates.

Books – Instead of chasing endless self-help titles, I’d suggest a balance:

Atomic Habits by James Clear  for building daily routines.
But don’t just read apply.

At the end of the day, quitting isn’t about replacing games with another escape. It’s about building a lifestyle with structure, purpose, and small wins you can measure.

What helped me was to go out on a trip for a week with my girlfriend , but aside from that I've started to "play" with 3d puzzles made out of wood, this helped me switch focus and do something that stimulates my brain.

Aside from this I've also started to learn how to do small projects in Blender, like shape a cube in different shapes, my goal is to try to make a full fores full of animals which I could expand into something to occupy my mind when I have a feeling of wanting to play video games.

Try socializing with new people or with current friends, trips to another city, try painting,music, graphics design, programming, climbing/hiking etc

Before I went on holiday what really helped me in the first 3 days was to play chess with my girlfriend, we bought a chess board and we played for 3 hours straight in one day and this has helped take my mind off of games.

Replace the Habit

1. Physical: Gym, running, sports

2. Creative: Drawing, writing, music

3. Productive: Learning, coding, journaling

4. Social: Join local clubs, online forums (non-gaming), volunteer