notyung

19th May 2016 - Day 7 The one week mark. Hard to believe it was last week I was spending my days playing grinding on Runescape. Even after just a single week I can see the difference in my life is staggering. If you knew me before and I described my life to you now you'd think I was a completely different person or maybe the long lost twin of the gaming shut-in. I don't know whether it was a consequence of discovering this website and the numerous posts and experiences of people I could empathise with or not, but since that day I've felt far more driven daily and lacked the emptiness I expressed in my first post. Today I was an involuntary shut-in due to the heavy rain but I had to pack my things and clean the flat because I am moving out tomorrow anyway; 250 miles south to an English town famous for a certain battle in 1066. It is there I will be working, spending time with family to help them adjust to their new home, and preparing for my move later this year to Seoul. I've been to Hastings many times before. The chalk cliffs and beaches that define the landscape are amazing and I get to spend the summer in their company along with Victorian era piers which spring to life during these months. Summary: Can't complain. There are a number of goals I wish to achieve during this limbo chapter of my life so I thought I share them here. #1 Join the local running club #2 Work hard in my jobs to save a lot of money #3 Help my parents whenever they need me around their house to make their life easier #4 Continue my Korean studies daily Well, see you in a couple of days depending on how smoothly the move goes. Have a nice day

Hey welcome, I really like the idea of posting your progress in a new skill you have to your journal. It will be fascinating to see your progress over the 90 days and beyond. I'll look out for it.

"Theme from Casino Royale" I'll drink to that!

Hell yeah, it's a marvellous city. I don't doubt you'd love it if you haven't been already

18th May 2016 - Day 6 The difference between today and the previous is the same difference between night and day. Here's how it all happened... Since discovering this site I had been trawling through many journals and posts looking to learn from the experiences of others who were far far deeper into a detox than I was. So to everyone who posts their journey a thank you is in order, and keep it up! So what did I do differently today? #1 I was quick out of bed. I had a previous bad habit of loitering and browsing the internet on my laptop for a couple hours. Not today. #2 Made the bed. Simple but effective. This action alone snowballed into further chores being accomplished which I easily did in the time I would previously have spent wondering what Donald Trump was up to this time or checking out the latest highlights from games/sports. #3 Found an app called HelloTalk. The perfect app for anyone who is committed to learning a language. I would describe it as tinder for those looking for a language partner rather than, well, you know. This app alone I've been on for what is now 6 hours and the only reason I've stopped is because it is 2am in Korea and my partners are all sleeping, compared to me cooking at 7pm. The time has flown by as we've been finding out each others goals, learning from each other, and just shooting the breeze. The beauty I think about this app is that it isn't just for people who have a desire to learn a language, but it is also for people who have a desire to help teach their native tongue, or even just make friend across the globe. One girl I've been talking to has been helping me with my pronunciation and conversational skills and is simply happy to do so without anything in return. Her English is exceptional anyway and more comprehensible than most Englishmen I've spoken to (I'm looking at you Liverpudlians ). So here I am now writing my entry with an evening a head of me. Which after today you can bet I'm spending it revising my vocabulary, spelling, grammar. I can't show up empty handed tomorrow can I On a side note, I packed my desktop computer away to free up more desk space. Since quitting I realised how little I need it and that is a relief. The most difficult part about that was just how heavy the damn thing was; I like to think it had grown fat on all the wasted time I poured into it. Cheers, see ya tomorrow

Thanks, I did do this and it works like a charm doesn't it

I love the energy in your posts; keep it up man

Yeah it's very ironic. It will be interesting going into bars and seeing the games I obsessed over broadcast on TV

Cheers everyone, very welcoming! I've just written my first journal post if you are interested. Any advice is appreciated

17th May 2016 - Day 5 This would be my fifth day of detoxing so I will be starting with day 5. My experience of the past 5 days has been a gruelling one. The first steps were far more emotional than I predicted; turning my back on great friends I had been playing games with for years with from across the globe so I could rectify my failing social and academic life and what made it far worse was how understanding they all were. Deleting my various accounts proved just as emotional as if I considered the countless memories I acquired from them, which I could always reflect on with a smile, a contemptuous mistake. In part that is how I feel. The decision to ultimately discard the only lifestyle I've ever known is driven by an urge to take responsibility for my own failures and discover who I am without a computer screen glued to my face 8 hours a day. I had previously discovered who I was by chance a number of years a go... As I detailed my in introduction post, I will be studying in Seoul, South Korea beginning in September. During a placement I got during University I lived in a town popular with eager language students looking to improve their English. It was also in this town that I had to involuntarily give up gaming due to my rented room's dismal internet connection which I required to feed my addiction. However, this apparent nuisance turned into a blessing as I became a much more out-going/healthy person who somehow managed to become friends with a group of Koreans studying at a local language centre. I discovered a new passion in not only helping my friends improve their English but also learning the Korean language and culture from them. This fascination planted the idea of studying in South Korea like they did so in England, and now two years on I have the chance to live that dream. NONE of this would have occurred if I happened to rent a room with a solid internet connection and frankly that makes me scared to imagine my life today if I did. So now I've detailed my motivation for quitting cold-turkey I'll go into how I've been spending the previous 5 days. Boredom, restlessness, agitation. My concept of day length has changed dramatically. From seemingly not enough hours in the day to a plethora. I've filled time with studying Korean, pacing, walking outside while the famously short British summer is under way, I further comb every detail of moving to another county, I allow myself TV in the evening but make a point to associate daylight with productivity, I've always been a runner so I had that from day one at least, and finally my room has never been cleaner. Still, I've never felt emptier. I guess that's the effect off-loading what was a huge portion of your identity does to a person. I tried to keep it short but it's a start at least and it is a relief to have a place to express myself. If you made it this far hello to you, have a nice day and Ill see you in future.

Hi, nice to meet you all. My name's Duncan. I'm 23, and I'm from the UK. I've been fooling myself for too long now that the amount I game is acceptable, which for those wondering was roughly 40hrs per week. I've been addicted to games all throughout my life, most recently games such as Starcraft 2 and LoL. I've also been making excuses that it is worth while because of my very high ranking in both games. It's not worth while though; my regret is that it took so many years to figure that out. Despite all that, I have a lot of hope for the future; one without games. I will be moving to South Korea in September to study there and so my goal is to not only have detoxed fully from gaming, but also to not even consider it when looking for something to fill my time. I've been reading many of the journal posts and I'm glad to see such a variety of people keen on achieving the same objectives as well as supporting each other. I will look to also get involved in my own journal and encourage others. Finally, I've already been cold turkey for the past 5 days going strong! Cheers, I look forward to my experience on the site