Ugh this feels so bad. Have played wow for 4 years. Quitting has made me face the fact I have no friends anymore, no hobbies and no life. My parents have both died, no brothers or sisters or childern. God i'm so alone. My phone doesn't ring and i have no one to call.
I have replaced having a life with pixels and people who won't miss me for 5 mins. At least i had something , but truely i know i had nothing in Wow. I quit smoking years ago and this is as bad in a wierd way because it is forces me face my losses and my brain needs to re wire itself and be able to think again.
Ok, I have to suck it up and start finding my place in life. I just have to find things to keep me busy. Try reading but can't concentrate. Exercise - walk the dogs, need to sign up for a class. Have an appointment with a therapist but can't get in for 2 weeks , by that time hopefully will have fought the wow demon off by myself.
I mustn't replace wow with bad habits eating to much, or drinking to much.
My progress report. Day 3
Cheryl
Hi Cheryl,
Congratulations on your wake-up call. I have been where you are now.
At this stage in your recovery it is quite normal what you feel. I was really surprised to discover physical withdrawal symptoms.
I spend the first fortnight vegging - watching TV and movies, staying close to this site, and eating sugary foods. But I got through it.
What is important is you keep a single focus on not gaming. So long as you can keep 'not gaming' for a while, things will get better.
I suggest you be good to yourself and dont stress yourself with unrealistic expectations. If you walk ten miles into the woods you have to walk ten miles out.
Relax, take it easy, and dont game. Everything will get better if you keep focussed on that objective.
- dark
I second Dark's response. Its a very couragous step you are taking and want to say that i know how you must be feeling..
Take heart and welcome to OLGA...
You can do this :)
Hugs...
Hang in there Cheryl and like Alana, I so agree with Dark.
One moment at a time game free...they really do add up.
Monica
"Fall seven times and stand up eight."
Japanese Proverbs
Hey Cheryl,
Welcome to OLGAnon and please, stick around.
Like you I'm an addict, something I only discovered about 6 weeks ago. I had all the same horrible feelings you're having but I'm happy to tell you they go pretty quickly (at least they did for me).
This may sound an odd thing to say, but you have to be stronger than the random thoughts that pop into mind. If you hear a voice rationalising that gaming is fine, tell it to take a running jump and then move your thoughts to something completely unrelated to gaming.
I did some strange things in the first few days, things like play with Lego, colouring stuff in and doodling - really childish things, but they took my mind off games.
Good luck and congratulations for waking up to the truth. We're here when you need us.
:) I'll have to remember those for the next time I'm having a gaming crave :)
Congratulations on 3 days... that is great! It does get easier. Come here a lot, especially in the early days, for support and encouragement.
Hi Cheryl and welcome.
One of the things I busied myself with was thinking of ways to get rid of my computer, or at least limit my access to WoW. I needed it to do some stuff, and pay bills etc.... so I couldnt remove it completely, but changing a few things can help the temptation. You may have done all this stuff, so feel free to ignore if you have... what i did was:
-Switch a good graphics computer to one with poor graphics. iPads are an easy switch if you just want a computer to check email and websurf.
-Change over to dial-up. it is slow... tediously slow for gaming.
-Put the computer somewhere uncomfortable, somewhere conspicuous. I put mine on our bedroom dresser. I have to stand to use it (my legs get sore just checking this website!)
-Make a list of all the terrible things that your addiction and this computer has brought. Make it bold. Tape a copy on your monitor.
-Make a list of your alternatives to gaming. Put that by your bed, in your bathroom. at the computer. Read this list before you go to bed. before you turn on your computer. when you wake up. You may replace WoW with chocolate or TV (thats what I've done)... but over time work to bring in the good things for your life.
You do have a life... it started 3 days ago. Make it great!
-- There Is No Spoon --
It is amazing how the computer takes over our lives in so many ways- not just gaming.
I was wondering if that by spending all that time playing a game or in a fantasy or just sitting in front of a screen we have somehow shut down the other parts of the brain that can also give us pleasure such as taking a walk out in the country - or anywhere, listening to a beautiful piece of music that can soothe us and take away stresses, having a warm bubblebath or hugging someone. So the task can be painstaking to get those other neurons freely flowing again. Also we have denied our brain those things and we've orverloaded it with one thing only (the game) so when it is denied it's "fix" the brain goes a bit wonky and wonders what the heck is happening and even shuts down
I guess that is why people say they sleep a lot or eat sweets.
If you find that being online greatly impairs your ability to control yourself, then as others above have stated you need to make it harder to get online for awhile. Hacks has some great explanations above on how to do this.
You could also get rid of a computer all together if feasible, and then just use the one at your college library, local library, or in a cafe. You could use the connection on your phone, but that could rack up serious charges if you are not careful at all.
Another great idea is to use OpenDNS, if you can figure out how to set your DNS thru IPv4 in your Internet Connection Properties in Windows then you can filter out unwanted sites that way. Just change the password to something really long, and put the password in a location that is a pain to get to if you need it. This could help you filter out gaming sites and other content like Adult sites.
They call me Mr. Sugar Pants.
You can do it. Just know that we have all experienced the same feelings. I myself just quit gaming, and I know what you mean by having to rewire our brains. It's like we need to relearn pleasure and fun.
Just stay strong, and keep us updated!
One week Wow Free, Yeah!!!! My brain seems to be relaxing. I was at work today and enjoyed myself didn't have the urge to rush to finish so i could get on line and raid. I am beginning to believe there is a future in my life other than wow. I can watch an hour of TV with out running to computer to check what i'm missing. I still have random thoughts about wow and my friends but was able to shake it off today.
One Day at a time, and today was good.
Cheryl, that's wonderful to hear!
318 Days for me! Looking forward to the holidays and more time with my family. And I will NOT be taking my laptop with me :)
Joe
Im sooo happy to hear that you enjoyed your day at work and didn't rush. I remember the feeling, it feels great and it will stay there just be strong and stay game free!
Good luck I'm sure youll make it through! :D
graz on one week:)
leveling in steps, serenity, sponcys, sponsors, exercise, and sleep, (sanity has been downsized) sober from all electronic games since 11/19/2010
Yeah, my first week was brutal! Good work for getting past that!
Mario