why i got this addictive personality?

Hello everyone, this is my first post on the internet addiction forum but there are many other addiction forums i could post because i am an addict of all those things! To make a long story short my whole life is a series of addiction and i could be clean of one only if i replaced it with another. I had rpg game addiction and ended up playing WoW 18 hours straight without food or sleep. Then i got fb addiction and was 20 hours per day on fb. I decided to quit and ended up in spending addiction. Currently i am financially destroyed and binge eating every day although i have struggled with anorexia too. I have been in therapy because my mother is a malignant narcissist and abused me since infant. At 17 i was an addict in antidepressants and got to be in rehab. After that the psychodr tries to help me with cognitive behavioral therapy but personally i find all this ineffective because so far nothing helped me. I wonder and blame my self because all my addictions are non-productive why cant i be worcaholic for once so at least i could have some money. Here noone understands they see me as weak and noone values me. I feel really alone and desperate. How do you handle your addiction? Have you been addicted in good things? I have read almost anything that is online and many books and they work for short periods of time unless i either relapse or find the next addiction. I havent said all this to anyone and writing it took all my courage. I am looking forward in what you have to say

Hi Juusan,

I have the same problem. I get really addicted to things and try really hard to quit, but as soon as I do, I just pick up another addiction to replace the old one with. I'm not completely certain why this happens, but since I have an internet addiction, I've googled lots on the topic of addictions/psychology/etc, and I think people like us have low dopamine levels.

It's suggested to try to exercise and eat healthier. I think that might be a cure for a lot of things, but it's hard when your mind is consumed with all the other fun stuff we want to do (pig out on really unhealthy food, surf the internet mindlessly for hours, etc. etc.).

I'd be a hypocrite if I told you I usually eat healthy and exercise to naturally increase dopamine levels, but here's the advice I have (that I should also use for myself, but probably won't...):
- Eat healthier (fruits/veggies/home-cooked meals)
- Exercise routinely (daily - at the very least 30 min.)
- Set aside an hour or two every day that you are away from the internet
- Try new things (if you don't usually watch TV, try watching TV... passive entertainment)
- Create morning/night routines (and stick to it)
- Keep a log of your activities during the day
- Help others as much as you can (I find this helps distract me from my cravings to do something addicting... actually .... idk... that can also be addicting in itself so idk)
- There was one more important thing but I forgot... sorry... lol

Anyways - good luck and let me know how everything goes. It feels good to know you're not alone.