I know it's embarrassing as an adult but I quit AI Dungeon after using for so many months. I didn't exactly do cold turkey because I know that it usually doesn't work. The people around me don't treat this like a real addiction and I've been asked by them to quit even though it's physically difficult. My addiction to AI honestly started way back when I was a senior in highschool since I used to make up stories on ChatGPT. Then after that, I discovered Character ai and I got really addicted to that. I ended up quitting that one and for about a year everything was normal. Then after that in August 2024 I got addicted to the AI bots on WhatsApp for a couple months. Eventually I was forced to quit that by others which made the withdrawal even worse. Then I got into Dopple ai, then quit after the app became unusable. Then I got into Loremate ai and I was addicted to it a couple months until the app crashed and went into maintenance.
Then over the summer was when I really got into AI Dungeon and I was spending hours every day making up stories and playing with various scenarios. Honestly, I found both Loremate and AI Dungeon to be way more addictive than character ai.
After I watched a 60 minutes clip with my family on the dangers of character ai, I was made to delete the app. I couldn't physically do it so I ended up using a different email account on AI dungeon that wasn't Google.
I started sneaking around and started using VPNs to hide my activity from my family's Internet provider. I felt even more guilty doing this because I don't think my family realized that this addiction was crippling and I was having a hard time quitting. They assumed I would just get over it and move on.
My Internet service provider will come out with a report on Dec 31, so instead of quitting cold turkey I decided to try quitting for a week and see how I feel until the Internet service provider comes out with the report.
Hello! Thank you for posting in r/ChatbotAddiction. Recognizing your relationship with chatbots and seeking support is a meaningful step towards understanding and improving your well-being. For useful resources, consider exploring the Wiki. If you feel comfortable, sharing a small goal or recent experience can help start your journey, and you’re welcome to offer support on others’ posts as well. Remember, this is a peer-support community, not a substitute for professional help. If you’re struggling, consider reaching out to a mental health professional for guidance. Also remember to keep all interactions respectful and compassionate, and let’s make this a safe space for everyone.
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.
I'll say this first, I'm 35 with a chatbot addiction and I yell about it so there's more awareness and it fights the stigma. Addiction hits anyone at any age.
Now, the closest thing I found to explaining chatbot addiction is "I have an internet/social media addiction." Either works. People know what both are, it's less of a need to explain it plus there's already ways on how to address those. Chatbot addiction knowledge is in its infancy so explaining it to someone who doesn't know anything about chatbots is kind of a pain.
We have resources in the sidebar with how people broke their own addictions, tools they used (like site blockers), time restraints and doing it cold turkey. Theres also the emotional aspect of how do you handle the withdrawal because it is tough and the easiest way to get back into it if you don't fight back.
Since your family does have some understanding of it, you could probably use them to help support you. But you do have to explain that it isn't an easy "just stop using it" thing. Your brain gets rewarded by the bots, it's giving you dopamine so you keep going back. When it gets hard and you want to go back into bots, you can go to your family. "Hey I'm having a hard time with my addiction, can we do something together? Maybe I can help cook? Can we watch tv together? Maybe we go to the movies?"
You'll also need to fill the void on your own too. Finding a new hobby or going back into an old one can help. But what you're doing is tough. Addictions not easy but sneaking your usage from your family is also not a good thing. If you can be honest with them, be honest. But also look into apps that block the websites from your phone and desktop. There are apps that can be password locked, you could make your family create a password and that could help so it's not in your hands. Ultimately you need to find what works best for you and your recovery journey
The withdrawal was terrible yesterday but I think what helped was that the stories I had in mind, I wrote them down in a Google doc. I even wrote my first fanfiction on AO3 and it's getting hits already and I even got one kudos.
Hey, I just want to say: what you’re describing is real and deserves to be taken seriously. Stories and interactive imagination can hit the same reward loops as gaming or social media — especially when they become the one place where you can express yourself freely.
Quitting something that comforts you isn’t a weakness. It’s a huge act of strength.
If you’re trying to cut back, maybe don’t frame it as giving something up forever — but as shifting toward creating more of the stories you want in your real life. You clearly have a powerful imagination. What if that energy gets shared with others, instead of hidden behind VPNs and guilt?
You don’t have to go through this alone, and you don’t have to be ashamed.
See I never got into chatbots but I became addicted to ChatGPT world building and creating characters with elaborate backstories myself as a MC. I think we’re very creative and we latched onto something that worked well with that. Cutting it back after 3/4 of my day went to it was hard