So, I have boys, lots of boys and these boys love to play video games. I’m betting I am not alone here. I never really understood the draw until now. 

I grew up in the eighties, I didn’t have a cellphone until I was in my 20’s. We went outside like all day long. We found our own fun or created it. We climbed trees and drank from garden hoses; we had keg parties in fields.  I still consider this the greatest generation but, I may be a bit biased.  

Fast forward to today. I have overcome the cigarette addiction that lasted for 4 decades. (Quit date Dec. 30^th, 2019) I still have drinks and enjoy it. I know I have a shopping problem, I’m looking at you Amazon, I get a little dopamine rush when I find a good deal or the cutest shoes I must have. Are you seeing a pattern here? 

In December, I began playing a solitaire game to keep my mind sharp. (I think I was just convincing myself of that). I hadn’t played video games since the days of Pong (if you know, you know). Well, that solitaire game led me down a rabbit hole, and before I knew it, I had more than 10 games downloaded on my phone. “Look, this one pays you money when you play just 10 minutes a day,” and so on. “Make money from your couch.” Just a month into this video game thing, I was hooked. I could see where this was headed and decided I was not going to give my precious time away.

I started thinking about it and realized how quickly I had fallen for the advertising schemes. I consider myself a fairly intelligent person, yet I was drawn in by all the fluff and bluster of these ads. Those tricky ad people are very good at their jobs. I think of our boys and all the time they spend in front of screens—whether TV, computer, phones, or video games—and it scares me to think about the influence these have on their generation.

The invention of the internet was a wonderful thing. It has brought our world much closer together but, it has also created bigger divides. We have become a “need it now” society. Our children haven’t known anything other than this lifestyle. They no longer can go outside and entertain themselves. They are in need of constant excitement.  

So, how am I going to stop this in its tracks? 

I had to use the same mentality that I used to quit smoking. I went in and deleted all of the games and got my yoga mat back out. I dusted off my running shoes and I ordered an exercise bike.  

You can check out my post on New year New Habits… here

Now I look at that paragraph and wonder if that is my next addiction?  Well, at least that would do some good for my midsection. 

There must be something to this. I get addicted to things awfully quickly?? HMMMMM. It turns out that there is actually research done on addictive personality disorder. I am not self-diagnosing here, but I feel like I may have some of the traits.  

The cigarettes, the shopping, the alcohol, and now add video games? Nope, I am not going there.  

Update on the “make money from your couch” I made a total of $27. Twenty-seven dollars for an unknown amount of mindless screen time. Nope, not worth it. Add to that, these “free” games get you hooked and then they want you to spend money to get more imaginary spins or rolls so the other imaginary people on the same game cannot damage your imaginary city you are building….see what I’m saying. I know of people who cannot pay their bills but are buying pretend rolls or spins because of the addiction. I know of people that have borrowed money just to keep playing or build the next pretend city. 

I will say if this was the thing that made me open my eyes to how easily I and quite possibly others can be manipulated by fancy advertising and chances to earn a “quick” buck. I’m terrified for our next generation.  

I cannot say for sure if I actually have addictive personality disorder or if I am actually a shopping, drinking etc. sort of junkie but, it has sure opened my eyes to doing something about it. 

If you can relate to this post and would like to read a little more from some actual professionals, not just little old me ranting on my couch. Check out this article from the Mayo Clinic. here

I know this is going to sound super corny but, I am choosing to thrive in 2025, wanna come along with me? Here are a few things I am starting with…

Click on any of the images above to get your year started off right. Let’s do this!

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