How can I stop my World of Warcraft addiction?

Im 14 and I also cant Live without Games! When I come home I Rush threw My Homework/dont do it and then play Games for like 1-2 hours then I would stop.But on the Weekend I will go sleep at 3 in the Morning playing.And as you can see with my Xfire I have played more than 300 Hours of Cod4 Multiplayer http://www.xfire.com/profile/ Which is not that much because I have only been playin that game for 4-5 months

So dont feel bad There are a lot of us out there just try and Limit yourself like set tasks out so you know when you are done with this map you must go Wash the Floors or something

Cheers, Matthew

Gambling is considered an addiction, and when you boil it down, aren’t Blackjack and WoW both games??

You are so young and have so much you can do with your life. Please take the time to read my post about why WoW is addictive for you and make a choice to love yourself enough to quit! It will be hard, but worth it..trust me. I am an ex-addict myself. I happen to have a degree in Psychology, and even knowing the negative effects of the game and why it was so alluring, I still played. If you would have confronted me about WoW being unhealthy and effecting my life, I would have made up every excuse in the book why you where wrong. I would have made those same excuses to myself and I would have believed all of it.

WHY ARE WE ADDICTED?

I would say the first problem is not many people are willing to think of a videogame as addictive, so few people find the support they need to quit, but WoW addiction is REAL! Blizzard is a very cleaver company. Of course gamers play it obsessively. Video-gamers all have this in common: we all love our fantasy. But unlike a console game with a clear start and finish, WoW is an endless game. You feel like you want to be the “best” at a game, and beat it..but WoW has not “beating it”..just another level, just one more epic. At lower levels of WoW, the rewards come quickly. This is how they suck you in. But as you level, it takes longer and longer to get the reward! The social environment keeps you hooked, as you start to need others to complete tasks. WoW Endgame has a variable reward system, which is the strongest addictive reward system possible..much like gambling.

It is the same reason gamblers will pull that little crank for hours and hours: the reward is not everytime, but just enough to give you a quick rush when the little bell goes off and coins drop (or the Epic Item you want drops)..Everyone cheers for you! But the reward and rush is short lived, and you are back to the mind-numbing grind. But WoW is even worse: instead of a quick pull of a crank, you spend hours and hours wiping on a boss and several runs before you get a reward. It takes endless hours to get even one reward. If WoW started off like this, no one would have stuck with it, but you feel like you have to justify the time you have already sunk into it. It is an endless downward spiral.

Add to all this, a social environment of like-minded people (chat, vent, TS, forums) and players feel like they are not socially isolating themselves, and you have got a full environment of quick rewards and a group of supportive ‘friends’ who ‘understand you’. The more you play WoW, the more these people seem to understand you and other ‘outsiders’ don’t. Of course they understand you more if you have just spent hours and hours online with them and neglecting anyone else. It plays on the best and worst of our human nature. Also, millions of people have crappy jobs, bad families, lame relationships, lives that kinda suck ..so WoW will always have millions of faithful players. It is easier to zone out in a game where you can be God-like then to face having to make hard choices or deal with the emotional speedbumps of life. And the more you play obsessively, the more these other areas of your life suffer. Good game Blizz, you figured out how to keep people logging on for hours and hours forever and ever.

Please take your problem with WoW seriously and get help from your friends and family. Keep talking about your victories and setbacks. Forgive yourself. There will be times you will be tempted to play again. Make a list of things to do if you feel this way. Go back to the list everytime you feel the pull back to WoW. Post on boards, start a journal ect. Remind yourself this is NOT just a game, it is an ADDICTION and you need to be strong.

GOOD LUCK! :)

I waited for my account card to run out then I uninstalled it and that helped

cancel your WoW account then u wont be ALLOWED to play it…

and then buy guildwars! XD

I had the same prob and even hada lvl 41 druid…the way I got over the addiction, my comp crashed and had to cancel the account…I missed it for a lil, but you get used to it lol

I know just how you feel I went through the same thing I’d just hide away in my room and play games for hours but then one day I realised I let the would pass me by people would say to me have you heard about someone who I new just died.You see you can’t hide away from life because the more you hide the harder it’s going to hit you when you decide to face it.What I tend to do is take walks to clear my mind I now it sounds corney but it helps you think a lot about life and stuff I hope this helps you to get back on track.

this may seem stupid but go on some site and post your username password and login details.

then someone will end up hacking you and you wont have that file

if you create a new file I cant help you, you need serious help

my friend stopped playing cause he realized that that game was wasting his time. he was so busy playing it he missed out on family activities, started flunking in school, and missed his favorite tv shows. he said he only playes it when he is bored.

invite a friend over 2 help u do something else i had a addicaton with comand & conquer games!! lol tell ur mom or dad w/e to take u somewhere for fun or ur get a gf

Heh… DO what I always do… Rip your computer apart into individual circut boards, sell the parts on Ebay and buy older crappier ones so that when you try and play WoW you get 4 pixels, half a crappy spawning sound, and 4 days of loading time… Trust me… I used that to kick my old DOOM addiction. WoW and other MMORPG’s are really more crappy stuff to have a funny story to tell your friends in school.

think of something you’ve always wanted to do (dancing, martial arts, learning an instrument, learning to cook) and do it.

video games are a colossal WASTE OF TIME and will get you nowhere in life.

the longer you play, the harder it will be to break the addiction so do it now!

force yourself to get out there. right now it seems like video games are more fun than real life, but once you give “real life” a fair chance, you’ll see you were wrong

my life is not fixxable atm … and it will not be until i get away from everyone around me ! i think that im just gonna keep playing so time goes by fater until i can escape from my real life.

Stop playing its that simple

give me the account

Just Stop. :D Instead read a good murder mystery or start a book or something like that. Please excersice a bit of will power. :D :D.

Stop playing it, only “ losers ‘’ who cant face the real world keeps playing the game, how more you play the game how less you can face the real world, you will get sick in your head, and you know it,

first off all you asked for help —> Good job

Second now use this help to get some help, talk to your parents and ask them to go to a rehab, this will help you out of this stupid game!!

http://www.squidoo.com/wowwidowers

Read this article

http://www.squidoo.com/wowwidowers .. not sure if my first post went through.. but check this article out.

I’m hardly one to talk but I certainly had some semesters where my computer games hurt my grades 20 years ago when the games we had were not nearly as good or as addictive as todays games.

There is no physical addiction to computer games. You don’t go through physical widthdrawl if you don’t play. Today it is popular to make every personal failing a dissease, syndrome, or disability. You have to take responsiblity for your excessive game playing.

I think you hit the nail on the head when you said that you wish your real life was as happy as your life in the game. The game has become an escape for you.

The problem with life is you only get out of it what you put into it. You are in a rut and it is easier to be successful in WoW than in real life.

If you are going to continue playing WoW you are going to have to limit yourself to a set number of hours/week. Some poeple can do this and some can’t. Some people get playing and next thing they know 12 hours have gone by. If you can’t limit your time playing you might have to give the game up entirely.

Everyone knows what they have to do but few people make themselves do it. Do overweight people really need a doctor to tell them to loose weight? Do people who aren’t in good shape need a personal trainer to tell them that they need exercise? We all know what we need to do and you do as well. Spend the long hours you now spend playing WoW addressing whatever is lacking in your life.

best wishes and good luck!

i’ve been playing for 3 days now. and i’m probably not as addicted as u r. but i think im addicted too. here’s what keeps me sane.

1. Don’t eat junk food while playing wow. Eat apples and oranges, stuff that tastes good. Even muffins, over donuts and stuff is better.
2. Do you have a pet? Don’t neglect it. What i do is play with my rabbits, for a little bit, then go back to wow. While im not in instances or stuff where i have to pay attention i will keep one of them in my lap and pet him and stuff like that.
3. Got any friends in wow that you know in real life? Get together and go to the mall or play futbol (soccer), or sumthing.
4. Going to cyber cafe’s and LAN centers with your wow friends can be fun too.
5. DON’T CUT YOURSELF (Or your hand’s off) that makes it hard to type.
6. On patch days (LIKE TODAY! 3 MORE HOURS!) do all the things you said you’d do if you couldn’t play wow. Cuz’ umm… you can’t…
7. Listen to music. Talk on the phone. Interact.
8. Talk to your guild mates. Not about “hey you guys wanna pwn some alliance nubbs??!?!”. but just talk about stuff in current events or sports or sumthing.
9. Just remember that you are not your character. I’ve seen a couple of my friends accidentally address themselves as their Blood Elf.
10. Just remember that WOW is a good thing. Just don’t over do it.

You don’t have to give up wow totally to stop your addiction. Dedicate times of the day to WOW. Do house work. Remember to be human.

I’ll be rootin’ for ya. btw what server u on?

I LOVE WOW haha but im in BC bored outa my tree… So I play it until I go home and get to see my friends :) haha then I wont have the computer anymore :( haha goodluck!

Whats your toon’s name and what realm?

lol I am a girl no im not a virgin nor fat nor ugly im cute and adorable :) and love games :P

HMM cutting my hands sounds interetimg what you say my friends but then how will I masturbate? hmm

i play wow… i LOVE games. im not addicted… i feel like i could play forever sometimes but at the end of the day at about 6 i actually feel sick of it, then the next day im like OMG WOW FUN. I do some questing, and i need loads of breaks to not become bored. I can go through days rather spending time with friends and family than playing… I think ~fooker69~ had great advice. You cant be addicted forever… i think. i would get SO BORED. and your lucky your not fat or ugly or anything bad, being cute and adorable is an oppertunity to live life easier. GO OUT AND EAT SOME PANCAKES AT A RESTURAUNT!!!

well if your addicted I know some 1 like you my friend he dint go 2 school 4 a bout 3 semesters and the cops came 2 get him lol well you can ether cancel your account give me your account which I really whant im not a addic 2 any game even the best so please give it 2 me send me your account 2 me at osvaldo_3900@yahoo.com an any gamecards you have because I dont got money 2 pay it evry month or other so I wount get addicted please thx

Engage in some sports, too. Choose the one that you like. It will distract you from the games for some time and it will make you healthy.

But do it “before” computer time….lol.

try giving it away 2 a stranger somewhere or just bury it in the gorund! oxo ;)

give me your account and any gamecards you have I dont have money 2 pay it so yeah please I really whant it

An addiction can come in many forms…don’t let Life pass you by…Good Luck !!