Hi, I am a 13 year old kid and i am obsessesd with video games. My parents disagree with my addiction, kind of. My mom is ok with me playing games but my dad is not. It is summer break where i live so there is no school. My grades and studying have been declining ever so slowly but the difference between my old and new grades is clear. My addiction started in fifth grade when my friends started playing a game calledTeam fortress 2. I soon joined them. This isnt intended to be racism but my dad is asian so he gets on my case a lot about studying. He has to go to work im the mornings and at night. That is when i can play video games. our family is not doing so good right now. Since my dad is international. he can only stay in usa because he has a visa. He has had multiple jobs which have allowed him to stay in america but he is about to lose his for some reason. He wither has to get a greencard soon or get a new job. My mom is a student at a college and has to go to the library everyday to study and work. Right now my family is under a lot of pressure, we are starting to save our money for reasons and my parents really want me to start studying. I really feel guilty about playing games but i cant quit. Right now i play tennis and practice evryday on weekdays. My friends are almost if not all gamers. They are my closest friends and i have had them eve since i came to va and i want to keep in touch but video games is really the only way. I want to quit but if i did then i wouldnt know what to do in my free time because i dont even know what to study. i siad earlier that my parents are very busy so they cant take me anywhere. (i am an only child). If my dad cant find a job or get a greencard or get a new job at the university then we have to go back to china at the end of 2014. The rest of our money will be for my mom who is studying. we dont know what to do when we get to china and we will probably live with other family. The problem is that since i have been in america my whole life moving to china will be hard to adjust to especially since i cant read or write chinese, i can speak it though. I might be able to come back to america but not after spending at least 1 or 2 years in china. If i can quit video games i may be able to learn a bit of chinese.
If anyone has tips for what to do i would really appreciate it.
i also want to know if the internet rom china allows me to connect with america so i could skype with friends or something.
I know that this si a lot of words and i appreciate if anyone could read it and give advice.
:D
Backwardsyarn,
I'm a 32 year old man and I began playing video games at your age very heavily.When I was 6, I started piano lessons and continued to play and become quite good until your age. I stopped playing because of video games. When I turned 16 I stopped playing all sports, because I was playing more video games. When I turned 18 I ditched prom because I wanted to play video games at a lan party with friends. As the years go by, more and more things in my life and opportunities were given up or passed by because of my video game addiction.
The hardest thing for me when my parents tried to take away my computer or video games was that all my friends were gamers too. That was how I "hung out" with them. By taking away my games, it felt like my life was being taken away. What I didn't realize was that I was creating a life in a vaccum, with empty friendships and empty feelings of "happiness".I could have stopped when I was 14 and my father sold my super nintendo and went back to music. I would have been almost friendless at first though. I would have had to try hard to make new friends, people that would share the other interests I would have chosen to pursue - for me, it would have been music and sports. I could have chosen a life focusing on academics and surrounded myself with those type of people who have a passion for that too.
My point is. Whatever life we choose, we can find people who will share it with us. By giving up games, you have the chance to create a life that will be more fulfilling than anything an addiction can bring you. I promise you that.
So, as you are very young, I can't possibly tell you that you're addicted. Only you know that. But if you feel you are...realize that it's a path that you cannot and do not want to continue down.
We are here for you. Come to meetings. Message us. Talk to your parents about your feelings on your game habits, and your feelings of powerlessness to stop it. They love you and they will help and support you overcome as well.
I wish you the best.
Regards,
Jesse
A wise man once told me to shutup.
\\ Free from games since 03.13.2014 //