Gaming Addiction Support Group

[Maxel]

There's now a support group for anyone who feels they've become addicted to gaming (of any type-- role-playing, video games, MMORPG's, etc.). This is a serious issue that is coming up more and more; we are beginning to see GA's directly addressing this topic.

Addiction to anything is serious; being part of a group of people struggling to overcome a like addiction or strong temptation can help greatly.

[MorningStar]

Do we have a support group for people who are addicted to this message board?

[Guest Utahrulzz]

LOL MorningStar! I was going to say the same thing! We need a support group for our Internet Addiction.

[pam]

I'm not addicted. I can quit at any time. But not until after I have a few thousand more posts.

[annewandering]

I am interested in the subject if not admitting to being addicted. Really dont think I am but I do spend a lot of time on FFXI. sighs.

So do you have many in the group yet?

[unixknight]

I've heard such groups exist but I suppose if I wanted to find one I'd start by googling it. Maybe a set of search words like "gaming addiction" "support group" and then the name my local area like the city or county. (Using the quotes makes Google search for the whole word set instead of words like gaming and addiction separately.)

I have struggled with this issue in the past, and I know how consuming it can be. I used to be hooked on Internet chats. Bad mojo.

[nbblood]

I'm not addicted. I can quit at any time. But not until after I have a few thousand more posts.

Don't worry. Quitting is easy. I've done it thousands of times.

[pam]

Don't worry. Quitting is easy. I've done it thousands of times.

I can relate totally.

[Maxgreen1]

Quitting is easy

Staying quit is the hard part :)

[Angel_Moroni]

I like my gaming, it is sorta like an escape.. I played a lot of FFXI as well, and moved on to other games, WoW, perfect world, magic world.. etc.. I successfully quit each of these games, just to find another one that looks interesting...lol

[Mahone]

I successfully quit each of these games

After you completed them?

[talisyn]

After you completed them?

I can quit FFXI anytime...after I get everything I want

[Maxgreen1]

Hahaha I remember when I was 13-14, I'd play Runescape over 40 hours a week.

I could've worked!

[RanMan]

I had a humorous reply in mind when I read the OP, but then I remembered that I had a very good friend that had his life ruined because of gaming addiction. He played Everquest. At first he quit coming over for social engagements. Then he quit calling or returning emails. Then he did nothing outside of work and game. And eventually he did nothing but game. He lost his job, his home, his friends (not that we abandoned him, but he felt guilty of abandoning us and would no longer associate with us because of his shame.) I don't know where he is, I hope he has found help.

[SGT_C]

i have played World of Warcraft for about 2.5 years now, it can become a serious time-sink if you let it, it did for me at one time. But on the positive side, i met my wife there so thank you very much blizzard entertainment! I still play alot here in iraq, because i really dont have alot to do and i have read so many books since i have been here im all "read-out", but when i get back to the states its definately going to take a far back seat to the family and my guitar playing.

[SGT_C]

In addition to what i just said, gaming addiction is a very serious thing, i have a few friends who take things way too seriously. Theres a feature in WOW that you can find out exactly how much time you have spent there by typing /played. Over a one year period one of my friends logged over 175 days, thats insane. I have also heard of other accounts of a woman who's husband was so addicted, she invited another guy over, sat on the couch kissing him for 30 minutes before her husband even turned around and noticed. Theres also the issue of people spending real money on in-game money and characters. You can look on E-bay and see that well geared high level WOW characters can sell for upwards of $1,000.

[Laureltree]

Although I found humor in many responses, This is a very serious matter in the church. Many men & woman use it as an escape, it ruins families, people loose jobs, loose touch with reality. If you think you might have an addiction get help.....A game and how far you get in it isn't worth what you could loose.

There are many games out there that cant seem like fun but they can consume you without you knowing it.

W of W

D&D

Secondlife : Was built to start the next generation of 3D virtual gaming, now its mostly porn".

MMORPGs : Role playing games that allow you to be someone else, or do things you wouldn't normally do.

Chat sites

Pogo.com

Civilization

Battlefield1942

Gambling

Perfect Dark

Time Splitters

Unreal Tournament

Call of duty

left 4 dead

INVU: Kids chat virtual site, kids are using for sex talk ect....My son got asked for sex on here, he now wont play it.

Free Realms : They advertise, " Do whatever where ever, its your world".

This list goes on and on....From the simplest games like pogo, to virtual games and gambling. This just isn't adults, kids are having issues with it to. Its there way of escaping the stresses of friends, school, family etc.....Husbands and wives use gaming to escape the stresses of parenting, work, school, and problems in their marriage.

If you wonder if its becoming a problem or is.....read these questions ...

I have had family & friends have this ruin their lives, it is a serious matter.

Love & Prayers

LaurelTree

Basic Symptoms

When it comes to substance abuse, a number of basic addiction symptoms tend to show up repeatedly across the board. While these don't cover all the bases, they offer a pretty reliable early indication of addiction:

1. You engage in substance use or drinking as a means to escape the realities of your life, whether those are boredom, stress, sadness, fear, and so on.

2. You find yourself engaging in substance use or drinking with increasing frequency over time.

3. You are frequently concerned about making sure you have a supply of your choice substance close by and cannot focus on anything else until you do.

4. Giving in to your urges to engage in substance use or drinking leads to an immediate feeling of comfort or security (which can be soon followed by remorse).

5. You've engaged in substance use or drinking even at the risk of damaging important things in your life like your career, your relationship, and your ambitions.

6. You have already tried to stop the behavior but found that you were unable to do so.

7. You find your personal goals and interests changing. For example, you lose interest in your hobbies or stop using your

.

8. When faced with any kind of daily hardship or setback, your first instinct is to turn to substances or alcohol.

If you found yourself relating to a lot of these symptoms, you may very well be dealing with an addiction. Now it's time to formally take inventory of yourself and your life.

Are You an Addict?

Serious addiction problems are the product of many factors but a common thread between addicts is the inability to "self-soothe" oneself from the effects of depression, anger, loneliness, stress, and more. Substance abuse and drinking offer a means to cheat the treatment of these troubling feelings by manipulating the brain and often numbing the mind to the effects of these problems. Unfortunately, drugs and alcohol can potentially make rapid changes to the brain, and the addict loses the ability to soothe oneself without them which can quickly lead to a downward spiral of addiction.

Apart from the self-soothing problems, there are more traits shared by addicts that can help you recognize an addiction in yourself. These are not symptoms of an addiction but rather traits that might hint at a predisposition to addiction:

1. A family history of alcohol and/or substance abuse. Although there is no definitive data on the precise influences of genetics and environment on an addiction, it is commonly accepted that a family history of addiction makes you more likely to succumb to addiction yourself.

2. History ofin yourself or your family. Substance and can often have a particularly strong effect on people with any traces of mental illness, often resulting in the rapid onset of addiction.

3. Lingering untreated physical pain. Just as substance and alcohol abuse are often used to numb mental pain, they are just as easily used to numb physical ailments. People living with a high degree of physical pain, such as serious back problems, often slip into an addiction by simply trying to keep their pain at bay.

Making a Change

One of the most dangerous enablers of substance and alcohol abuse is denial. As an addiction grows stronger, the mind automatically seeks to rationalize the addiction in any way possible, making it very possible for you to convince yourself that you don't have a problem at all.

Denial may begin as an attempt to hide your addiction from others; however, once you're using it to rationalize your own addiction to yourself, you've started to surrender to the pervading feeling of powerlessness that accompanies addiction. In order to get yourself on the right path, you'll need to convince yourself that you will eventually be able to assert control over your addiction and that you are not ruled by it.

[Ghost_Rider]

I was Reading this today and saw that I am like the complete opposite of my brother. He has always played games and had to always beat said game. then came Everquest. I have seen him get a brand new game and beat it within a few hours. Saw him waste a lot of money on games. I never had the attention spa.....squirrel...um ya. That or i would just chunked the controler then have to have to buy lil brother a new one.

I am just so thankful that most of the issues that I have had like this with addiction (ie Tabobaco and alcohol) have been dealt with within the church and with help from ppl from said congregation. IDK guess i consider myself lucky

[LocalFarms]

It's my opinion that online gaming can be a worthy distraction as long as care is taken to make sure it doesn't control your life. I think with anything that can be compulsive like that (like chocolate!) is moderated easier by taking fasts from it. If you can't make yourself go longer than 24hrs without it, it's a good sign that you should stop playing for an extended period or for good.

[Mahone]

I was Reading this today and saw that I am like the complete opposite of my brother. He has always played games and had to always beat said game. then came Everquest. I have seen him get a brand new game and beat it within a few hours. Saw him waste a lot of money on games. I never had the attention spa.....squirrel...um ya. That or i would just chunked the controler then have to have to buy lil brother a new one.

The above quote also applies to me. I regularly speak to my brother about it, but he denies he is addicted. While he spends a good deal of time each day playing xbox live, he has also been months without it in the past (under duress from his mother). While he may have been forced to quit, he didn't display any kind of withdrawal symptoms during the time he was without them. He also claims (which actually makes sense to some degree) that playing games has helped him in real life situations, for example: leadership skills. When you lead a gaming clan online, you have to manage them in a similar way you'd manage staff at work. So it's not all disadvantageous. The same applies to the ability to work as a team.

Edited February 16, 2010 by Mahone

[Landy77]

I have been a gamer for most of my life. Certain parts of my life I could call myself a gaming addict. I started playing games intensively at 14. I would come home from school and instead of friends or activities I would sit on the computer all afternoon and late at night. After school I went into the army and had the same habbits. I was what you would call a barracks rat. When the barracks was empty on the week ends I would be in my room playing world of warcraft or what ever. In college it was the same. I associated my lack of a social life to me being an intravert and used video games as an excuse to not grow up or face reality. I don't remember much of my time in high school or in the army. Not because I have a poor memory, I spent all my time in a video game to notice anything. When I got married I had the same habbits. My wife was pregnant and I would be up at night on a video game. She said she wondered why we got married when I loved games over her or our family. My activity in playing games would come and go at this point of my life (30 or so). Sometimes I wouldnt game at all and then all the time. Eventually I realized most of my life I have let pass me by because I was to occupied in a fantasy world to pay attention. I realized that my issue was my outlook on life and not wanting to deal with the mundane of daily life we all face. Some people may call this depression or being lazy. Either way the person is choosing to live in a fantasy world instead of reality.

I think the underlying issue of gaming is someones decision that a fantasy world is more interesting or enticing than the real world. Much like any other addiction, the addiction of pleasure does not have to come from a needle or a pill.

[Armor_of_Truth]

Games companies know they are doing this. If you like humor and don't mind small amounts of profanity read this article:

5 Creepy Ways Video Games Are Trying to Get You Addicted | Cracked.com

[Moksha]

Rather glad they only had board games when I was growing up. I seldom played them. I went out and did things because staring at the walls or watching TV were the only alternatives. When I read, it was out of a book. One of my sons is very much into gaming. Sixteen hours a day on World of Warcraft to be exact. While he does have his online friends, the rest of his life seems on-hold.

[Landy77]

One thing that people do not notice about spending a lot of time in a video game is you are cutting yourself out of the world. You do not learn social skills and you do not interact with others and learn how to interact in society. When your son goes out into the world he will have a hard time unless something changes.

[Mahone]

One thing that people do not notice about spending a lot of time in a video game is you are cutting yourself out of the world. You do not learn social skills and you do not interact with others and learn how to interact in society. When your son goes out into the world he will have a hard time unless something changes.

It's not entirely true that modern day games limit your social skills due to lack of interaction with others. In many ways, it's the other way around. With online games, you often vocally interact with your gaming peers during the game. You talk to each other in the same way that you would if you were sitting next to each other. You work as a team together. You talk as a team. I'd say this can enhance both your social skills and team working ability. It sounds odd, but your reaction time is also decreased in real life, not just within the games. In the gaming world, the time it takes you to react to something is critical, and this also rubs off on you in reality. You learn the ability to make quick and sensible decisions during times of pressure, with very limited time to think.

That's just some food for thought. Gaming is actually a positive thing, but like everything else, you can get too much of it.