dissociation

Leveling Up in Games, But Failing in Life?

Peter Pan needs Neverland. Today, Neverland is entirely digital. Video games, porn, weed, infinite scrolling—these are all dopamine pacifiers. Real life is hard. Real life is boring. Real life requires delayed gratification. Neverland, on the other hand, offers instant reward with zero effort. When you spend 40 hours a week gaming, you are achieving victory in a fake world because you are terrified of defeat in the real world. You are leveling up a character while your actual character atrophies. As a psychology researcher, I can tell you this is a form of dissociation. You are checking out because reality demands something of you that you are afraid to give: Sacrifice. It is time to log off and face the real world.