I suffer from chronic pain, and I agree distraction is a fantastic thing. Glad you’re getting some relief, even if it’s not actually relief. Believe me I get it.
Just wanted to say that what I’ve bolded as well. It surely not has anything to do with us per se.
It just comes only from the distraction and fun you have with the game, because while you play the game, you stop thinking about the pain and when you stop completely about thinking the pain (its some kind of phenomenon), then the pain will be lesser for somebody, to even the point, that you can completely ignore it, because you are in that moment so fixated on the game with that you have fun, that you could completely forget everything around you as long you are focused so much on the game.
Thats the reason, why people can even forget completely to eat and drink something, while they play.
But you need to be cautious.. this can quickly become some kind of Online ADDICTION to the point, that you play more and more and forget everything around yourself, because of the game becoming more and more your “pain free time”.
Don’t see this please as a hyberbole, it is just a good meant advise.
Thats something that always has to be taken serious. because those “pain killers” are nothing but drugs that surpress the pain for you.
Drugs from which you can become addicted to, same as much as like people can become addicted from playing games…especially when they are used as replacement for something else that has been used earlier to get a certain “effect” out of them.
Sure is, the game will be definetely healthier for you and your body, but take it just as a little warning – never underestimate the influence from Online Games.
They maybe make not physically addicted, but definetely mentally if you use them as some kind of permanent medicine replacement, once you maybe start to believe, that you “need to play” to feel no pains anymore.
Thats the moment where you should stop and should reduce playing, because a game will never replace real medicine. The distraction and the joy that comes from playing the game, is just a positive side effect from the sense of pleasure that you feel while playing, which helps in surpressing the pains.
Its nice to see when games can help people get somehow better through their lives, but to glorify them as kind of “live savers” wouldn’t be right now, because with them you can jump quicker from the frying pan into the fire, than you like, without even noticing it eventually.
Because people just don’t realize it in most cases by themself when they are addicted to something, they see their behavior always on as “being normal”, unless somebody else points them on their abnormal behaviour to bring them to realize it, which is why many people need for this therapies.
Pain can drive people quickly into depressions, what makes people also easier receptive for all kinds of addictions to get relief somehow from the pain – be it drugs, alcohol, games and other types of good distractions that can completely fascinate them to the point, that that start to forget other things so that they have more time for what fascinates them at the moment.
Why do I write all this, some may ask now?
Simple – to eventually prevent others to go through, what I have gone through.
I was addicted to GW2, due to depressions (which is just a mental pain) – played the game nearly daily for quite a long time, forgot to eat and to drink, because the game just distracted me so much from my depression, that I can say today luckily only that I have oversaturated myself last years wintersday with it to realize my problem self when I grinded for Winters Presence – that my behaviour has become totally abnormal – since then I’m inactive in the game and starting the game just gives me a feeling of disgust now, despite a small part in me still wanting to play it.
For me it was just the right decision to make a break from the game at that time, or I don’t know, where I would be now.
Personally I like the idea behind sub classes ~ quoted from Chris Whiteside
