In this modern digital era, gaming can be a beneficial habit that enhances the teen’s IQ. However, excess of everything is terrible, leading to severe addiction. The recent pandemic has also increased the addiction to gaming, with an increase of $1.6 billion in video game sales in 2020. That’s why in 2018, the WHO terms gaming addiction as a disorder when teens or adults give more priority to gaming over other activities.
With gaming addiction becoming a serious health concern, it is important to know what can be done to minimize the risks and control the symptom. There can be several alternatives to overcome gaming addiction, for example, watching Netflix shows and documentaries about Japan, bitcoin, and others. Read along to learn different ways to overcome gaming addiction.
Gaming Addiction
Let’s briefly discuss gaming addiction and how to identify it. If someone constantly plays video games for around 12 hours, it’s called gaming addiction. Additionally, other symptoms include when you lose track of time or day while playing games.
One of the primary reasons behind gaming addiction is that the brain is wired to get a reward or appreciation for a well-done task at work or in games. That’s why gaming triggers the brain’s reward mechanism, thus making it a compulsion on people to win or reach a particular milestone.
Furthermore, the other social elements in video games also make them more addictive when you can play with people worldwide. That’s why gamers isolate themselves from the real world and indulge in the gaming culture to earn rewards, praise, and of course, money.
How to Overcome Gaming Addiction
The good news is you can overcome gaming addiction after identifying it as an issue. Furthermore, you need to do your best to limit your gaming hours.
Finally, one of the most effective ways to overcome a specific addiction is to get yourself another habit, possibly a constructive one. For instance, setting fitness goals, daily running, walks, workout, and yoga helps many people overcome gaming addiction.
However, first, you need to make an honest effort by reducing your gaming hours gradually. Next, you should do other activities during the hours you spare from gaming.
Outdoor activities
Let’s start with some outdoor activities, such as a walk or a family picnic on weekends. Later, you can increase the frequency of picnics, especially in summers.
Going outside and breathing fresh air has therapeutic effects on your mind and soul. Additionally, your eyes feel so relaxed as looking at the computer screen for hours puts a strain on your eyes.
Furthermore, you can also indulge in adventurers’ outdoor activities, such as hiking, rock climbing, rafting, and mountain biking.
Board Games
Board games and puzzles can never be out of fashion. We have been playing monopoly and solving puzzles since our childhood till date. You can keep yourself occupied for hours while solving a 500-piece puzzle. Furthermore, solving a puzzle also triggers your brain’s reward system, making you feel fulfilled and accomplished.
Sports Club Membership
You can join a local sports club to play tennis, badminton, squash, or golf according to your liking. Enrolling yourself in a sports club not only polishes your game but also allows you to interact with other people learning the same sports.
Pet
Pets have proven to be the most effective alternative to gaming addiction. So, let’s get into the debate of being a cat-person or a dog-person, but get yourself a pet of your choice. The pets are one of the loveable creatures on earth who knows how to make you fall in love with them.
That’s why you spend most of your time taking care of your pet, feeding it, and spending some time cuddling.
Reading
Let’s switch off your laptop and other smart devices and sit in a cozy corner to read a book. In the beginning, you can set a milestone of reading at least two pages a day, then five, ten, and so on. This way, you’ll develop a habit of reading daily.
Additionally, you can get a membership to a local library and spend at least one hour there reading a book.
Volunteering
Social work or volunteering to do community work is a constructive habit that makes you feel good about yourself. For instance, you can volunteer to distribute food to the underprivileged community, clean the beaches, and maintain hiking trails.
Conclusion
The primary objective of all the alternatives to gaming addiction is to have fun, relax, and socialize. Moreover, you also need to find your passion, other than gaming, of course, such as DIY projects, arts, crafts, gardening, or any other to distract from computers.
The key takeaway of the above article is to help you understand gaming addiction and find alternatives to spend more time with your family.
