Reddit ruined my life
I’m a 25-year-old guy and I need to get this off my chest because I feel stuck in a cycle I can’t seem to break.
A while ago, I started sharing pictures of my body and p-word on Reddit. I had never done anything like that before. The response was overwhelming. A lot of women rated me highly, complimented my body, sent me DMs, shared their own pictures, and wanted to sext or move conversations to other platforms like tg and dc.
At first it felt amazing. I’ve never received that much attention or validation before. Every message felt like a rush. I felt attractive, desired, and confident.
The problem is that it quickly became something I couldn’t seem to control.
I’ll get caught up in it, spend way too much time checking messages, talking to people, and chasing that next compliment. Then eventually I feel disgusted with myself, delete my Reddit account, and promise myself I’m done for good.
A few days or weeks later, the urges come back. I make a new account, tell myself it’ll be different this time, and end up right back where I started.
The weird thing is that I don’t think it’s even about sex anymore. I think I’m addicted to the validation, attention, and dopamine rush of knowing people find me attractive. When I’m away from it, I crave it. When I’m doing it, I feel temporary relief. Afterwards, I feel ashamed and disappointed in myself.
I genuinely want to stop. I want to have control over my behavior again and not feel like I’m constantly fighting this urge to go back.
Has anyone else dealt with something similar? How did you break the cycle? What helped you stop chasing validation online and regain control of your life?