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Anyone who has experienced the clutches of video game addiction knows how it goes: you lose interest in anything else, you turn down your friends and family, and neglect your physical well-being. These are the typical symptoms associated with video game addiction, but there is no end to how deep it can go - and I am far past that of a normal addict.

To be fair I believe that there are benefits to gaming. After all, how could I not believe there are benefits? I've dedicated my life to the Almighty controller, and that is not an exaggeration: I have been gaming since I was 3 years old. I have been fully immersed in video games for the past 20 years, and what good has it done?

From even preschool, I have had little to do with other people. The kids in school always thought I was strange and I wasn't willing to adjust to their expectations just to fit in. While even today I suffer socially, I have a deep awareness of myself as a person. I know who I am, I know what I like or do not like, and I also know where I fit into the world.

Many who have gotten sucked into video games do not know who they really are or are at a loss - like gaming stole something from them. They regret the things they lost, and for some that is understandable. It's all too easy to forget what real life is when you're playing someone else's, and I am guilty of doing that as well. But I don't regret it.

I have learned a language to game, and that is something I certainly don't regret. I have broadened my horizons and I have something to put on my resume. I have breached out from my second language and even delved into many others - 10 in total - and I can thank gaming for nudging me in this direction.

On the darker side of things, I have ruined friendships for video games and I have lost touch with what I know of other people. I can't hold a conversation with anyone unless we're talking about games, and I have been steadily gaining weight over the course of my lifetime.

However, even amongst the negative, I have moved forward and turned my addiction into a positive. I am a game journalist, and I work doing what I love. I make my living doing the very same things that have been doing all of my life, and I couldn't be happier.

Video games can certainly destroy your life, if you let them. Accepting them as a part of your life and not your whole life is key. I have lost a lot due to my addiction, but at the same time I have gained so much - and I wouldn't change a single thing that I've done.

Learn more about this author, Ashley Shankle.
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