How I got Over an Internet Addiction

I've been scrolling through Facebook and Twitter feeds lately, if only because I have literally nothing better to do. (To be honest, I'd prefer going out and having a real life.) And of course, now that the 2020s have started, Y2K era nostalgia is in full swing- you know, Britney, Myspace, Limewire, Juicy, you get the picture. Despite (or perhaps because of?) my status as a member of Generation Z I'm totally intrigued by the fads of my childhood, if only because I was locked out of the loop.

Well, mostly.

Now, for some strange reason millennials really enjoy feeling nostalgic about website called Neopets. (Basically, users would take care of an animal, or a group of animals, in a virtual setting.) Even pop star JoJo herself posted an image on her Twitter feed (You'd think that, with all the work she put into being a child star, she wouldn't have time to take care of a virtual pet, let alone as religiously as I have.) Needless to say, I don't recioporacate their feelings. In fact, I feel jealous that they had a better experience with that website.

When I was younger, I was really hooked on that website. Honestly, if my parents hadn't intervened I'd have spent all day on that website. And in fact, there was even an instance where I tried just that, over (get this) a sore tooth that wouldn't fall out. Seriously. 15 years later, and I call still hear my mother's dear voice telling me "No Neopets."

While I also had unheathly relationships with my fixations of shows like VeggieTales or Alvin and the Chipmunks, they weren't so bad because they were taught me how to be a good person, or at least something my parents also enjoyed, so I enjoy reminiscing about them. Heck, VeggieTales taught me about the magic of storytelling! Not to mention, while I was in front of a computer screen a lot when I was younger, most of the games I enjoyed were educational in nature (Allie's Playhouse, Jumpstart games, Travels with Timmy) or at least taught good values (lookin' at you, Backyard Sports!) so even when I spent God knows how much time in front of the computer, my parents figured "What the hell, she's learning." While Neopets kind of has an educational component, you have to squint to see it through all the junk and commercials. And boy, there is an awful lot of it!

My fixation got so bad, I even prioritized it over my own family. When I was younger, I also happened to go to this Girl's Group, and every week the girls were asked to discuss what was good and bad about their week. My great-uncle had passed away earlier that week, and while they didn't explicitly say it, everyone had expected me to mention him as the "bad" of the week. But no, yours truly just had to mention something about- you guessed it- Neopets, which nobody else was familiar with, and they were wondering why the hell I even mentioned it. Okay, so I wasn't too comfortable talking about my great-uncle's death, and fixating on favorite topics is a common coping mechansim with autistic people, but it was still incredibly disrespectful. Isn't family more important than gaming, Jenny?

Oh, and that's not even getting into days where I had no access to a computer. My mom brought me over to a doctor often, and said doctor was practically an hour away- sometimes, I would be lucky enough to have to go to appointments on school days, and of course Mom wouldn't take me out of school just for an appointment. Once, I got so upset that I threatened to run away from home, simply because I read a Neopets story in which the character (who actually had an abusive setting, mind you) "Oreo the Faerie Xweetok did it!" Look, if you're willing to run away from home because your parents didn't let you use the computer, and you're using an internet character as a defense mechanism, it's time to pull the plug. Period.

Looking back on my fixation, however, I realized that the reason I was so hooked in the first place, was that I wanted to, but didn't know how to connect with the real world, so I sought out internet simulation games to get the same experience. (You wouldn't BELIEVE how long I spent on dating sims in the latter half of the era.)

However, it's been much easier for me to get accustomed to the "real world." In 2010, I went to the Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear, and while it was hectic, I couldn't believe how much fun I had without much in the way of screens! Heck, even earlier in the year, I would often listen to music while reading or hang out with friends, and not even miss the internet as much.

Bottom Line? If your parents show concern or say you're hooked on the web, you probably are, even if you don't realize it. After all, even if you have difficulty joining the real world, there's no substitute for getting out and being engaged with your friends.