General Introduction

The purpose of this section is to better understand depression and addiction and what can be done about it if it's having a negative impact on your life?

Addiction usually means alcoholism or drug abuse, right? Stuck in a corner unable to get up or do anything, hooked on tranq or fentanyl or something even worse?

Not really. Addiction is mysterious and comes on many shapes and forms.

Depression occurs because no matter how hard you try, you can't seem to pick yourself up and do what you want.

A mixture of depression and addiction is like being tied and gagged to a table and unable to move.

Depression and related Addiction covers just about anything, from mild negative gambling habits, watching too much binge TV or YouTube, to faffing your life away through constant procrastination.

In all instances, addiction it sucks away your valuable time and gives little back in return - my main discovery over the years - how little or nothing you get back for your efforts. Yeah, and I mean 'efforts'. Those thousands of hours doing stuff that seemed productive at the time when it wasn't, like writing this introduction (maybe) that no-one may ever read!

This area of the site especially addresses two problems that I have personally had, and continue to have, throughout my life:

• Videogaming

• Porn/glamour but this can be interchangeable with
  

• Gambling

• Drug or alcohol abuse

• Overeating

• Excessive procrastination

• ... just about anything that brings you down and makes you depressed.

If you're having problems addressing any of these issues, this site could be good for you. If you want to support me in any way at all, thank you - I know that I can help you if you're reading this, as well as continuing to self-help myself and get closer to my personal goals.

At the end of the day, if you feel bad about yourself because of something you can't control, this will have a negative impact on the quality of your life and your overall happiness. Learning to get that control back by even 10% is worth it. That's 10% feeling better about yourself, which is massive!

Truthfully, no-one really cares what you do or what sewer you currently live in, but by accepting who you are, you're 10% there already.

I suffer from DEPRESSION and related ADDICTION.

Instead of shaking it these negative feelings off, I get hooked on activities because of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) that turns these activities into minor addictions, which in turn, leads to further depression.

It's an endless cycle. Feeling depressed, not knowing how to shake it off, indulging in unproductive activities to feel immediately better, but ultimately feeling even more depressed.

What about you?

Life passes you by and you get nothing done.

There is so much accessible, immediate and pointless junk around: gaming - from AAA games to basic mobile apps - porn and glamour for all your sexual needs, regardless of gender or orientation - gambling sites, casinos, lotteries, to bet away your time and cash - junk food and yet more food - TV, streaming, YouTube and billions of ways to procrastinate instead of producing anything.

If you have a job, college, commitments... - most of us do - your spare time could be a mix of time-wasting that brings you down without even realising it.

None of these habits are wrong, none of them! Do whatever makes you happy, but when they stop making you feel good and keep you tied down, you can have a problem with addiction and become depressed, or feel depressed and become a minor or major addict. That's what we are discussing here: getting some of your life back in a world where there is so much overwhelming junk.

If any of this makes sense to you, open one of the other articles in this Addiction section and see what you think.

R. Alex