After 3500+ WASTED hours of Dota 2, I finally QUIT! The reasons, the addiction and the effects on my life. Feel free to share your stories.

I started playing Dota 2 on March 2012 (if im not wrong), way back when it was beta. So, thats how the last 3 years were spent, literally, in the last almost 3 years Dota 2 was the thing that was occupying 90% of my time while being awake. No lies. So as you can assume there was no time for selfcare, studying etc. I can say I had easily become a nerd with no interests at all, except Dota 2. Not internet, not gaming, not PC, but DOTA 2. Nothing else.

 


I have to mention here that i am 22-23 years old uni student, the time i started playing i was 20 years old obviously.

 


Every day i woke up i used to think in a pattern like "tomorrow i will start studying and organize my life, today is the last day of Dota 2". So I would always start playing. I had to play at least 8 games a day. AT LEAST! After so many games, I would feel extreamly tired, bored, and hopeless. I was feeling guilt. One more day wasted. So I would go to bed hoping the next day some miracle would happen and I wouldn't play Dota 2 and I would go to class. But nope. I was addicted. Most of the time I would NOT enjoy playing. But yet, I was so badly addicted. I would sit on my chair, turn my dusty laptop on (no time to clean the house after the everyday Dota 2 routine) and I would open this game.
My grades were pretty bad, my social life was suffering like never before, I got depression which got worse the more I played Dota 2, I was aggressive with people, I was easily agitated, relationship with parents was suffering too etc etc.
And the funny fact is that after the 1st year, I started to get bored of the game. But I kept playing.
But later on, I came to the point to hate the game, and instead of reducing the play time, most of the days I played even longer.

 


So it came that one day, for the first time after about 2.5 years, and I said to myself, you need to quit this thing! You need to go back to your life and start making things happen. And so, for the very first time, I DELETED Dota 2. My feelings were mixed. I had the same feelings like when i was 5 years old in the supermarket and I couldn't see where my mother was, mixed with hapiness, freedom and excitement. So I was feeling LOST! I didnt know what to do, what to expect, how to act. I remember going to bed and trying to relax. I felt a bit of accomplishment.
I turned on the TV to take my mind off the whole thing and get used to my new life. That lasted hardly an hour. I ran back to my chair, logged in to steam and downloaded the game again. So, long story short, I did this more than 50 times, uninstall, some time off thinking, re-install. No lies. MORE THAN 50 TIMES.

 

Until before 3 weeks. I said you know what? I am dumb. I cant even discipline myself not to play this game but instead I play it all day long without even liking it a bit, and I dont even care about my life. I am dumb. Period. But no matter how dumb I am, I become even dumber sitting inside the house wasting my time in a way i hate. So i will quit this game, once and for all, and no matter how much I want to play, I will remind myself the very negative feelings it caused me each time I played and the hours I wasted for it. And I was pretty confident that this time, I would quit for good. And until today, 3 weeks after I havent played not once and installed it not once. To be honest, during these 3 weeks and especially the first week I had some cravings, but I practiced to defeat them.

 


So, here I am guys, a Dota 2 addict, hopefully an ex-DOTA2 addict, after 3 weeks DOTA-free, and feeling darn good I would say. Only 3 weeks off the game, and my life is already way better. Although I feel like alien after all the years staying home playing, I already practice my social skills to go back to normal, I have started studying, getting close to my relatives, friends etc. I have kinda long run to do to fully fix my life again, but you know, its way better than staying in four walls playing. Although i regret (badly) for the years spent on this game, I have nothing against Dota 2. It's a nice game. Its just me that I cant play in moderation and so I needed to quit.

 


Feel free to share your stories, your thoughts, and your suggestions or techniques which help to quit DOTA 2.
Love ya all. Dont skip enjoying your life. :)