Video Game Addiction Support Group

we've been together for just over 5 years, living together for just over 4 years. he's truly the love of my life and not being with him is not an option. i know he loves me, too. but he also loves WOW. he's been playing since roughly sept. 2006. he's got 2 "level 70 epics". he gets home from work around 6, and plays pretty much till bed, which has gotten later since he started playing, giving him only about 5.5 hours of sleep before he gets up for work. when i leave for work on a saturday, it'll be about 12:30pm. he'll be up and playing, and still playing when i get back around 8. often he hasn't eaten, turned on the light, showered or changed. he doesn't clean up in the apartment--something i'm bad at too but really working on because there's no other choice--and the area around the desk is littered with empty cups and bottles.
he still plays after i get home. he's gotten his brother hooked on it, too, and so now when his brother comes over on saturday nights, they're holed up in the other room, instead of all of us hanging out like we did before.
my friends all miss my boyfriend. i miss him. i hate having to say why he's not coming out--being "tired" isn't cutting it anymore, it's embarassing to tell the truth, i don't want to seem like a nag...people have thought that we broke up, because i tried to call his bluff and go out on my own with our friends.
i know that he goes through phases like this, and i am pretty sure he's got depression issues because he hates his job, he's 27, he wants to go to school but thinks he can't afford it (he can--veteran)...i feel like i have no real place to say anything about cleaning up or other stuff, because i don't make very much money. i'm a student, a nanny, a dance teacher, and a waitress. things are starting to pick up, but things aren't 50-50. so i feel like i can't complain when he comes home from a long work day and wants to play his game. i don't even mind if it was for 2-3 hours...i just mind that it's ALL my smart, loving, fun and funny formerly spontaneous man wants to do.
i hate having to come home from work, and then go right back out to get dinner because he's starving because he hasn't eaten all day. he's gaining weight from being so sedentary.
i just don't know what to do. i've talked to him about it, i'm trying so hard to be patient...i KNOW i am not going to leave him, i believe in getting through (and this is not the worst issue in the world) i just want some advice. i'm trying to spend my time alone improving our living space, reading, and giving advice on an answers site, usually i'll answer 3-5 questions a day and it makes me feel nice to help people that way. but now i need advice.
i also have no interest in getting an account--my money is stretched thin enough without me shelling out money for a game every month. i don't mind playing PS2 games now and then, but i don't even know if they have an attraction for him anymore. he tends to beat games he gets within a few days, so they become boring. i think because WOW is pretty much infinite, that's part of the draw.
so, what do i do? any tips on things to say, ways to keep busy, even ways to argue about it rationally? i'm not a screamer or yeller...i'm a crier and i'm stubborn. he's stubborn too, and ultimatims are not either of our styles..
any help is appreciated, and thank you for reading.
Posted on 06/14/07, 02:06 am