It's amazing to read your story @jerrybanfield . It is so similar to my own. I loved videogames from the age of 7-8. And it was my first addiction. In high school I couldn't wait to get home to play Diablo 2 or Counter Strike. I didn't have any drug addiction in those days, but at 17 I started smoking weed. So my life was pretty much like yours just with weed. Luckily I had friends, so we hung out together playing videogames. We had a great time, but as I got older I can see now that it was not healthy. From 20-25 I lived alone and besides lifting weights I played and smoked weed. Rented a place with some friends who also played and smoked.
At 26 I met my wife for 10 years, and she helped me out of it. We changed a lot together in both our lives. I worked night shifts and played videogames and smoked in the afternoon. That was it.
Once we decided to start leveling up and gaining skills in REAL life, the red pilling happened. And then it was all about hacking life.
Life can be such a strange journey. You can literally change your mindset 180 degrees. One must use the addiction..ate? mindset for something worth while. A computer game is not worth it. Use your addictive personality on business or creation, or both. Seems like that's what we're both doing.:)
Thanks for a great read!