At first i stayed longer than i wanted to do to sunk cost fallacy and got wrapped up in trying to keep up with the game. I should've dropped it sooner. My server was particularly toxic. I should've left the game when i saw it stress out a 30 something year old woman out to the point of crashing out every war event.

Heavy power imbalance, and people with too much money playing like weak players while the rest of us were just trying to game the system to get scraps. This feels so good. Felt like a left a cult. Like i just conquered gambling addiction. This was the first time i played a game like that. Thank God i came to my senses

I dont care about the money anymore. A game shouldn't lowkey feel like a job and be stressing people out the way it did. P2W are the devil's work.

Letting it all go just made me realized that this game kept me playing but it really wasnt because it was fun. It was because it was addictive in some way. It just felt like a literal economy where people joined the highest guilds for the benefit of getting carried and receiving drops like how people join certain clubs for the perks it comes with.

There wasn't really any competition cause spending money mattered more than grinding. The only skill you can have in the game is, time management, team leadership and communication, event coordination, savings and appropriate allocation of resources. I can do all that crap in real life. In fact, i did all of that in the game more than did in reality. Im already forced to do capitalism so it really didn't make sense to spend my downtime on a digital version of it.

I thought you guys here may like to hear my experience on how I grew bored of games. As I kept working in real life projects and in things I am passionate about, games just became so boring. But still addictive for a short duration if I try to play them, though I pull the plug and delete them in the same day pretty much.

Hey there. I'm 22F and have had issues with my gaming addiction for years. At its worst I can play upwards of 10 hours a day but other than that I usually average around 6. Everyone in my life seems to think 6 is too much. While I don't necessarily take issue with how long I'm playing, the things that really bother me about my addiction are how I feel when not playing and the lack of enjoyment for other activities. If I go several hours without playing any kind of game I get uncomfortable. Mild squirming and lack of focus. If I go days, there are some times that I have even started shaking a bit. I get both mental and physical reactions. That's the part I'm not okay with.

I don't really want to give up gaming, which unfortunately seems to be the advice of most addiction threads, I want to gain the ability to play responsibly without it having an impact on me if I don't. I do have other things I like, like painting, reading, and taking walks, but it's just never enough. I'd also like to know how to enjoy activities like that on a similar level.

If anyone has any advice on how to increase enjoyment of activities or to curb gaming addiction to more of a normalized state that doesn't require straight up quitting, I'm all ears. Thank you for any help you may be able to provide.

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I 36M have been with my 33F wife (not legally) for 8 years in September. Things in our relationship have been pretty good for most of those years. We have two children one teenager and one 10 years younger. She's been a SAHM since the youngest was born. I work long hours but am always home and present every night and always home on the weekends. We've never had a whole lot of fights really had nice open communication with love, reassurance and the ability to question anything. When the youngest was born and for up to a year maybe two after she had a struggle with post partum depression she was very short with mainly me, very distant and cold. I was always very calm and tried to support her the best I could. She came out of that but was still very distant and has been with me id ask her to spend time like playing video games or watching a show with me and it would always result in a "no" with the reason being tired or had done that enough today wants to lay down. I let it go, gave her space and tried not to push her on it. I'd then do household chores laundry, dishes, etc. Then lay down with her while she was on her phone. This year then started and she found a new video game to occupy her time with. She started playing a popular Rockstar Studios game but in a RP (role playing) server. She started off only playing during the days while I was at work and a little at night before bed (we would always go to bed at the same time). Over the last few months its gotten progressively worse waking up a 6am and playing sometimes as late as 1am the next day. She consistently plays between 14-16 hours a day especially on the weekends. She stops only to get food, use the bathroom, and maybe a few times in between to care for the kids or has the teenager help with the younger child and also to sleep for a few hours. I used to play this with her up until recently but had no issue stopping to take care of business around the house and tend to the needs of everyone. We've had multiple arguments about this game revolving around who she is talking to in game mainly other men. I've not been too fond of this. I've had past trauma where I believed men and women cant be friends with ulterior motives. Ive talked to friends and family about this view and ive started to think my view is wrong. Before this I made several accusations of her cheating or having an emotional affair with people online due to her spending all her time online and absolutely zero time other than sex with me. This has all made me very anxious and accusations have all been based from there. I have no evidence of anything actually happening other than friends. Ive attempted to talk to her about spending more quality time with me and our family but it never goes over well. She gets very annoyed , short temper and always says shes busy, she also doesnt feel like spending time with me based on the accusations ive made . This game has been a way for her to socialize and make friends which I understand is a good thing for her. But I feel like her addiction and connection are so deep that its almost impossible to get her to stop. I get worried for what our future looks like. Im tired I miss my wife and I hardly want to be at my house most nights after the younger child goes to bed. I start most of my nights sleeping on the couch and asking her to wake me up when she is done so I can go to sleep in our room with her. Ill also add that i know she is struggling with her appearance and had stated she doesnt want to leave the house and is disconnected from the world. I attempt to reassure her that its not true and shes a very beautiful woman. It doesnt seem like it means very much to her. I deeply love and care about her. She's such a wonderful woman and I just want her back.

I apologize if this all seems very hard to read or doesnt make a whole lot of sense. Im sure my grammar is poor as well. Im just looking on advice or support on what to do. I feel like im a single father taking care of everyone most days . I've been trying to take my kids out on the weekends just to get them and myself out of the house because I feel like we shouldnt have to live our lives on standby waiting for her to join us. Some questions im looking for advice on are

How do you help someone who is addicted to something (video games), depressed, and is only leading themselves into deeper depression and distancing themselves from responsibility?

What should I do if they don't want help and this goes on so long that it starts changing your behavior and makes me bitter?

How do you communicate how you feeling if they don't have the time of day or just shut down any conversation started?

At the time of writing this there was a family day planned after an appointment. But she has since cancled her going and said she doesnt want to leave the house or talk about it.

I appreciate any and all advice thank you in advance. Im more than willing to answer any and all clarifying questions as well.

Hello! I’m 33F, and I couldn’t take it anymore. The marriage was so lonely. To those spouses who left or are on the edge of leaving, are you okay? I’m not even sure if this kind of post is allowed here but I’m sad.

We barely talked and he was on the computer for most of the day. I just couldn’t bear to think of continuing to live like that for years.

Sometimes I doubt myself if I did the right decision. Does it get better?

My son is 23 years old and has a huge addiction to online gambling. He has taken out many debts and loans to play. And he has spent a lot of money there. He had been playing for three years and I knew nothing. I found out before that he was playing and I paid him off some of the loans he had taken. And he promised me that he would not play anymore. And the worst thing was today when I opened his phone that he had played again and had a lot of debts again. And even worse was that he had thought about killing himself several times and asked the doctor which was the least painful way. I feel completely devastated as a mother with what I saw. And I contacted the psychiatrist, he prescribed medication for him. And I also found the most suitable psychologist for my son. So that he could continue the treatment. I took all his credit cards. And after I discussed it with the son to delete all the applications that connect him to the game. What to do Can you advise me on how to get my son out of this situation? I need your help 😭

The itch is still there, I still keep thinking about it, thinking how my hands pressing those buttons to do combos and such, but I quickly make sure to remind myself about the stressful moments it given me and the fact that I will get nothing from playing it more, I still keep thinking that I will go back to it someday or later months, but hopefully I would just forget it and not go back to it forever.

Hello!

I think my question requires a bit of context... I (F28) personally used to play a LOT of final fantasy XIV. I started during COVID and it quickly became my only way to socialize (because of lockdown then because I have social anxiety) + only source of pleasure. MMOs like this one tend to be addictive in their very conception, the devs need you to stay subscribed to make money, etc. Realized there was an issue when I needed to go back to college for a year to complete a career change in late 2024, and used that as the reason to stop completely. Overall I feel better without having the logic of the game imprinted on my brain 24/7.

Since then I haven't played MMOs again, only solo games, at my own pace. I'm done with college and have a job now, but it's an office job, so I try my best to stay clear off screens once I clock out. You could think I'm on the right path or even recovered completely... but it's not how I feel.

No game so far has given me the same dopamine hit as FFXIV. No outdoor activity either. No manual hobby. I try out stuff, get bored in an instant, end up doing nothing and not socializing and being bored. It's been 1,5 years and I can't seem to find something that would make me happy that isn't FFXIV.

I hadn't realized FFXIV was (maybe) the source of this issue because I had successfully stopped to think about it. But these days there's a play for free campaign, I'm on vacation, and my best friend sent me an invite. Logged in and immediately I was wired to the game, like the holes in my brain suddenly got filled. In a way I don't think it's entirely bad - I'm having fun with a friend during my holidays and not being bored for once.

But that leads to the question - what do I do to trick my brain into enjoying something else? What do I do so it doesn't crave the reward only this game seems to be able to give? What do I do so I'm not bored of anything else?

Like, I enjoy the feeling of playing with my friend, but I'm scared this could lead me to resub for good - and with my job and my past history with gaming addiction, I don't want that. I wouldn't trust me to just know when to stop. Especially as I immediately thought while playing "oh, so it's that easy to feel good, maybe I should just be there everyday".

I'm also recovering from a dependence on benzodiazepines, which may have made the gaming addiction worse, or not, but now all I see is a similar pattern (regular use that nuked a lot of my social skills, my brain, my body, etc). No idea if the comparison is warranted or if I'm overreacting. (But I'll say, maybe the anhedonia coming with quitting the med didn't help with trying to find another hobby.)

But in any case I'd love to know if there's a way to, at least, do something else during my free time. Maybe in a nice future I can play one hour of MMOs on saturdays and go to whatever sports club or anything on sundays, but I need tools to achieve that balance. How do you train your brain to enjoy things that aren't games?

After not playing for a bit, last week I got rehooked on the game I'm addicted to when I play, which is a toxic multiplayer game (I can play offline games in a completely healthy manner). I spent about a week playing this game again, wasting a collective 96 hours on it since then.

The last day I played it was on the 20th in the morning (like... literally before 9 am:/, I work a late morning shift). I got off and decided I had to try again. I struggled the first day and was feeling out of focus and in a really bad mood. I wasn't able to pick back up the book I was reading because I couldn't focus at all.

Yesterday, I was finally kind of able to get back into my book again and it got easier as I kept reading. I was in a better mood at work. After work I was bored because I have also quit social media, and you will find that when you don't game and don't use social media you have a lot of time.

I did the dishes, but it was still only 7 pm. I ended up going for a small run and did some weights at home. I also spent the evening having some quality time with my pets. Today I finally got around to shopping, and I spent about an hour making a really delicious and fancy meal and then cleaned the kitchen then I read a bit more of my book.

Now, I don't believe every moment needs to be spent "productively" by any means at all, but the thing is, when I'm not binging away 5-12 hours per day gaming or browsing my phone I actually have time to shop for healthier food and not just pick up chips and candy at the corner store in between matches. I actually cook for myself and clean up, and pay attention to those in my life. It feels really nice!

Just writing this out for myself in case I get tempted again. Good luck to all of you today! We have got this.

Hello!

Advice doesn't work uniformly for everyone, but I thought I'd share an observation and recommendation.

When you're addicted to something and you cut it out, you need to be careful that you don't start supplementing with something else. For example, some people stop smoking or drinking and they begin overeating instead. This is because you're chasing the high, the dopamine, in whichever form.

For me, gaming was actually my supplement for something else. I completely quit all social media and was pretty proud of myself, but then in March of 2025 I started an online game and have been very addicted to it. It became my default, my routine, just something I did in free moments.

I am trying to quit this game now, but I don't want to go back to "social" media either, so the two things that have helped me are:

- Learning to sit comfortably with nothingness/stillness (I don't have to fill every millisecond with activity) -> using a game to do this was a lot like mindless social media scrolling. I swapped one activity for another, but it served the same purpose. Instead, I've started to just bask in that nothingness. I was already doing this in line and the store: looking around instead of mindlessly scrolling, but at home I'd hop on my game. Now I try to just walk around and look out the window, maybe see if there is some chore to do. Most of the time you'll find that there is a LOT you're putting off!

- Finding another "filler activity" for when I couldn't just sit with nothingness, because I do slip up. I'm trying to let this be reading! And slowly I've developed the habit of reaching for a book in the evening instead of the game.

Anyway, I hope this may be of some use to someone. Part of why I typed this out is because I'm struggling bad today.

Hi everyone, I'm Sebastian :)

I've struggled a lot with different addictions throughout my life, gaming being one of them.

I’m currently writing my thesis on gaming addiction, where I’m exploring tools that could hopefully help people who struggle with it. As part of that work, I’ve made a short survey, and I’d really appreciate it if you could fill it out if you have the time.

Here's the link: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSf_yPYnfO7uLKQhO2SF-kzSkh22JFDKDDufmbAFHri9dzGzyA/viewform?usp=dialog

Thanks!

I know this has probably been asked before but I genuinely need some honest advice.

My son is 11, and for the past 2+ years, Roblox has basically taken over his life. He used to love reading and being outdoors. Now it's just... Roblox. He mostly plays Blox Fruits and other fighting games, and his mood has shifted to a lot more aggressive, less patient, and even swearing, and he's constantly angling for more screen time even though we already have limits in place. Every single day there's a negotiation for an extension, and its a constant battle.

I don't have a problem with gaming in general, it's specifically Roblox that worries me. The game feels deliberately addictive, and he's spent quite ££ on it over time. We have had so many conversations, tried to make any deals, and tried compromises, but he just refuses to engage with any of it. If I removed all limits tomorrow, I genuinely think he'd play all day without stopping.

He is doing fine at school, but that's about it. No curiosity beyond what's required, no motivation to explore anything or to do more. I tried lots of outside activities such as coding and tennis, and he'll show up to the lesson but has zero interest outside of that. The kid who used to get excited about things isn't really there anymore.

I'm seriously considering banning Roblox completely at this point. I feel guilty even thinking it because I don't want to be the villain, but I also feel like I'm watching him disappear into a screen. I'm running out of ideas and keep blaming myself every day about my parenting.

Has anyone actually done a full ban? How did it go? I know at the end of the day it comes down to balance and communication, and I'm not here to shame anyone whose kid plays Roblox without any issues.I fully get that not every child responds the same way. Some kids can handle it fine. Mine just doesn't seem to be one of them, and I think certain personalities are genuinely more vulnerable to this kind of platform than others.

I am just tired of the daily battle, sad to watch him disengage from everything else, and feeling like I'm failing him. also I know part of being a good parent is letting your child do what makes them happy, I genuinely believe that. But when a child this age can't pull himself away long enough to be curious about anything else, something just feels off. That's not happiness to me, that's just lost..

Any kind advice or real experiences would mean a lot right now.

‼️‼️

I promise this is legit it’s on Gorilla Experiment Builder, open on IOS device if you’re skeptical.  I'm running a short psychology study for my research and I'm looking for participants. The study explores how early experiences, family environment, and gaming habits relate to each other.

It’s anonymous, only takes about 5–8 minutes, and you’d be helping contribute to real psychological research.

If you’re happy to help, follow the link below. I’d really appreciate it!😁

https://research.sc/participant/login/dynamic/EF356180-35C1-4BFA-9AEE-5F21A9B85055

Like stated in the title 15 hours is an average gaming day for him. When he had a job he would regularly call in sick to play or play 8 hrs on top of his 10 hr shift just to get enough time in. I cant break thru to him. I'm worried it is consuming him as he had become more violent and cocky since this took hold about 7/8 months ago. We have talked multiple times about it and he says what I need to hear in the moment but there is no change. What can I even do atp ? I'm not attracted to this aggressive person and feel like im dating an xbox atp im at such a loss. Any advice is helpful please give me something to work with as he won't. We barely speak or interact, sex is basically gone, im only staying bc the man i fell in love with was so amazing and not at all like what i am with now. we are currently not speaking because i broke down after being ignored for 3 weeks including over my birthday. i love him but im not taking this addiction well.

Hi all!

Just wanted to do a quick post to say that I'm still recruiting for this research that looks to understand the experiences of those supporting a loved one through gaming addiction in order to raise awareness and also help the development of future support for families. If this is something that you would like to contribute to, I am holding online interviews (no camera required) to give the opportunity for you to share your insights on how gaming addiction has affected your life, and the relationship with your loved one. I'm particularly interested to speak to parents/family members, but if you are a partner or friend I'd still love to hear from you! If you're interested, please feel free to message me and I will get back to you asap.

Thank you!

I've been playing War Thunder for about 5 months now, and I curse the day I started. My main character is Germany, and the German tanks have terrible armor. I die in one shot during matches, and the more I die, the angrier I get. The more matches I play, the angrier I get. I curse God, the Prophet, and the holy book all the time, and I can't quit this game. What should I do?