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YouTube Addiction

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Re: YouTube Addiction

#331

Post by csomar »

oramit wrote: post #164

While the author compares his problem to Alcohol addiction I was struck by the sentence: "It's gotten to the point where I don't really enjoy the video as much as the numb hypnotic state from consuming that much content." This to me matches up most with gambling addiction. There is a great book on the subject that I recommend to the Author called "Addiction by Design" by Natasha Schull. The main thrust of her argumen…

I had the exact same reaction the first time I entered a casino. I was expecting the movie’s vibe: people crazy about the bets they are making. What I found is semi-conscious humans turning wheels and slots. Felt they were just hanging in a cool and colorful place.

The casino knows this too. It was not a pushy place to make sales. It was also a very safe and cool place to hang in.

Re: YouTube Addiction

#332

Post by boredemployee »

the_only_law wrote: post #247
boredemployee wrote: post #119

I wonder if all the addiction related to internet (porn, gaming, surfing, you name it) has anything to do with our daily routine (aka work) that is so boring that we want an immediate and constant distraction

I mean if I had something interesting or fun to do that was remotely as accessible as YouTube I’d probably be more interested in that. Unfortunately “interesting” stuff tends to be really inaccessible and COVID did a great job of killing off “fun” stuff, at least around me. At the same time I get really complacent really fast if I’m in the same place for more than a few years and I think it’s about time for a “soft”…

Idk. I think the pandemic changed me and my general view of the world. And I didn't even notice when it happened. I lost at least 5 people close to me that I remember in a blink. I'm not depressed but it's like I lost the joy of many things that I like, anything corporate-related is all BS to me and serendipity is something really rare these days. Or maybe I'm just getting old.

Re: YouTube Addiction

#333

Post by csomar »

cm2187 wrote: post #18

To cure your youtube addiction, just disable your adblocker. Works very well.

This is no joke. I used to watch lots of youtube on background when I had a desktop with multiple screens. I’d put mostly the news.

Now I’m on the road and I have a laptop and an ipad. I’ve got no extra screen and the extra tab will be expensive on my battery. I tried the iPad YouTube app but I’d get an ad for every 4-5 minutes.

After a couple weeks i stopped watching YouTube altogether. I was considering getting a premium subscription but found out later that I don’t miss it that much.

I think the $5/month will be used to stream bitcoin to podcasts over lightening.

Re: YouTube Addiction

#334

Post by mindslight »

86J8oyZv wrote: post #321
mindslight wrote: post #198

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I agree. Rather than trying to focus on not doing the thing you want to do in a sea of few options, one needs to develop new patterns. Go travel, visit some friends overnight, go camping, anything to get out of the house and create new (or at least different) experiences and a bunch of simple-but-different problems you need to solve. When you're done and get back home, you can reintegrate to the Internet, catch up, a…

I would add that clubs, gyms, and meetups are a good, often free or very cheap option as well. Running, biking, skateboarding, climbing, calisthenics/acrobatics, board games, maker groups, art, music… all have very low cost of entry and likely have communities in any town or city. I feel compelled to also add that while it seems well-meant, I think the tone of your last paragraph is a bit unproductive. A lot (most? a…

I was trying to head off a response of why the advice to get out and do something out of one's groove is impossible. Myself, I would include "family, economic, and social conditions" within the general category of "depression", rather than reserving that label for "purely chemical" problems.

Internal and external factors tend to pile up and reinforce one another, and if someone is at a point where those external factors are contributing to not being able to try changing patterns of behavior, that would be seem to be indicative of a problem that should be acknowledged.

It feels like I'm coming from a place that is the dual of your comment - even though everyone could theoretically benefit from therapy, people are not going to seek it out and add even more complexity to their lives unless they feel they need to - especially with the care-denying medical bureaucracy that permeates the US and apparently Canada. Acknowledging a problem is a first step to addressing it with an appropriate tool rather than normalization and coping band aids.

Re: YouTube Addiction

#335

Post by ipqk »

Waterluvian wrote: post #299
fleddr wrote: post #297

Earlier quoted context omitted.

For me it was especially shocking because I've experienced no transition, straight from 0 to 100 instead. I've always exclusively interacted with Youtube from my PC, with uBlock enabled. I don't see ads and because I haven't for such a long time, I've normalized that state. Until I got a new TV, with a fancy TV OS. My mother-in-law was visiting and I was trying to play some clips of her favorite music via the TV app.…

We used to let the kids watch YouTube videos. But now it’s “daaaaad Ad…” every two minutes. YouTube is now banned on the TV. And while we’re on this topic: Google’s rockstar elite engineers and designers removed the ability to force a resolution for YouTube + Chromecast. But it also wrongly auto detects my gigabit internet as being too weak so it’s literally impossible to get anything above 480p on my basement TV. (T…

I pay for Google Premium for my nephews. I saw the "advertisements" they were showing, and wasn't going to let them see that.

Re: YouTube Addiction

#336

Post by sedivy94 »

bobmichael wrote: post #138
starbugs wrote: post #131

Earlier quoted context omitted.

While I believe that’s good advice, I find it hard to ignore the irony here.

Don't ignore it. Laugh about it! It wasn't lost on me writing the comment either. Isn't it great that the very thing that brings us pain can also be the vehicle for our healing?

This is an ancient concept that we’ve largely forgotten in the west!

Re: YouTube Addiction

#337

Post by escapedmoose »

mindslight wrote: post #334
86J8oyZv wrote: post #321

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I would add that clubs, gyms, and meetups are a good, often free or very cheap option as well. Running, biking, skateboarding, climbing, calisthenics/acrobatics, board games, maker groups, art, music… all have very low cost of entry and likely have communities in any town or city. I feel compelled to also add that while it seems well-meant, I think the tone of your last paragraph is a bit unproductive. A lot (most? a…

I was trying to head off a response of why the advice to get out and do something out of one's groove is impossible. Myself, I would include "family, economic, and social conditions" within the general category of "depression", rather than reserving that label for "purely chemical" problems. Internal and external factors tend to pile up and reinforce one another, and if someone is at a point where those external fact…

Valid points, but you’d do well not to refer to that state as “depression.” Depression is a particular pathology and most people are going to interpret it in regards to the medical/chemical circumstance rather than what you’re describing.

Re: YouTube Addiction

#338

Post by escapedmoose »

bouncycastle wrote: post #316
oramit wrote: post #164

While the author compares his problem to Alcohol addiction I was struck by the sentence: "It's gotten to the point where I don't really enjoy the video as much as the numb hypnotic state from consuming that much content." This to me matches up most with gambling addiction. There is a great book on the subject that I recommend to the Author called "Addiction by Design" by Natasha Schull. The main thrust of her argumen…

I can activate the 'flow" state, starting with doing small tasks in the comments like changing / editing comments, commit them to git, and then see if your next commit can have more changes than the last one, perhaps find and fix a small bug. In a sense, a git commit is like hitting a winner, releasing the dopamine required to get you in "flow".

+1 to this. The habit/ritual of pulling/pushing in git has become a reliable way to activate flow states for me :)

Re: YouTube Addiction

#339

Post by vladdoster »

Thanks for sharing.

I watch mostly art, history, and tech videos (i.e., perspective & timeline channels). IMO, Youtube is king of diverse content when compared to streaming services.

Regardless of content, I don't view it any different from spending the time listening to music or podcasts.

For context, my time watched via YouTube mobile app:

  Today: 17 hr 6 min
  Last 7 days: 117 hr 35 min
  Daily average: 16 hr 48 min (19% down from last week)

Re: YouTube Addiction

#340

Post by boppo1 »

BizarreByte wrote: post #107

I am seriously addicted to the internet in general and while it may not be an addiction in the physical sense, it has caused major issues in my life. The amount of time I spend on the Internet is insane and no matter how hard I try to will power through it and cut down my usage I always fail. If I ever figure out how to overcome it I'll have to write a book or something, because I've wasted years of my life and misse…

Yeah same thing here. I kicked an addiction to prescription amphetamines but I can't seem to stop myself from filling my free time with forums.
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