Farmville Addiction

Anyone with a Facebook account knows that Farmville is the latest unlikely hit, allowing users to design and operate their own cartoon farm complete with too cute livestock and the unlikely banana tree that still produces a crop every three days regardless of the snow on the ground.

With millions of players, the charming escapist guilty pleasure can quickly become an addicting habit. If you find youself addicted to Farmville, consider the following ways to break the cycle.

5. Don’t Start Playing

Probably the most unlikely solution, it nevertheless is true that abstinence is the only certain way to avoid fullblown Farmville addiction. But those cartoon cows are just too cute, so we’ll move on to…

4. Set a Timer

You don’t need to spend hours a day organizing your livestock and rearranging your orchards or crops. At its heart, Farmville is a beguilingly simple game. Set an egg timer, or an old fashioned kitchen alarm, and tear yourself away when the bell rings. If that doesn’t work, you can always…

3. Ask Your Friends For Help

In this age of TV shows like Intervention, there’s likely a whole host of family and friends who will be eager to stage a fun and melodramatic effort to help your Farmville addiction.

2. Get Addicted to Something Else

Facebook offers a whole host of other classic time sucking games for escapism purposes. Try a walker on the darker side with the silly Mafia Wars, or search for pirate gold in Treasure Madness.

All that is fine, but I’m betting the most surefire way to cure Farmville Addiction is surprisingly simple:

1. Visit A Real Farm

Somehow, cartoon animals seem a bit less appealing when you’re reminded that their real life counterparts require a bit more work than the occasional brushing. The stench of cow manure alone could easily be enough to shatter the illusion!

If you have tips for beating a Farmville addiction, leave a comment below!

Related Health Blog posts:

1. Tips to Prevent Internet Addiction

Internet Addiction

For now, I want to offer some tips to help prevent Internet addiction. Whether you use these for yourself or a “friend” who is addicted to the Internet (Farmville addiction anyone?)

ZenHabits – a very cool site, btw – has 8 Practical Tips to Cure Your Internet ADD (Attention Deficit Disorder.)

Offline Day. Try to cure your Internet Addiction by having, at least once a month, a “completely offline” day. From the time you wake up till the time you go to sleep, avoid any contact with the Internet. No PDA, no email, no IM, no blogs.

MentalHealth.net has a good primer on Internet addiction titled Introduction to Internet Addiction.

Mental health professionals are split as to whether or not Internet addiction is real. No one disputes that some people use the Internet in a compulsive manner even to a point where it interferes with their their ability to function at work and in social relationships. What is disputed is whether people can become addicted to the Internet itself, or rather to the stimulation and information that the web provides. The controversy surrounding Internet Addiction is precisely whether people become addicted to the net itself, or to the stimulation to be had via the net (such as online gambling, pornography or even simple communication with others via chat and bulletin boards.)

If you need a good look at the basics of Internet addiction that article should be able to help you.

If you need a more detailed and academic look at Internet addiction, there’s Internet Addiction Disorder: Causes, Symptoms,and Consequences by Jennifer Ferris. Not the most light reading, but if you’re interested in Internet addiction, it’s a good read.

And maybe it’s ironic that you’re looking up information on Internet addiction while using the Internet?

What are your thoughts? Are you addicted to the Internet? Do you know someone who is? How has it affected your life? Leave a comment below and let us know!

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