Is an Internet-based Career Possible?

[RedPill]

Hello everyone, I’m new to this forum. I used to journal elsewhere, but I’m not sure if I’ll start a new one here or not. I wanted to ask a particular question that I’ve yet to see asked directly on this or any other forum or porn addiction resource…

Will a successful, internet-based freelance career (design, coding, online writing, content creation, online business, etc.) ever be a possibility for a recovering porn addict?

Technically, I get that it’s ‘possible’, but is it be advisable? Wouldn’t it be a constant struggle to stay sober and focussed on the task at hand, particularly if you were busy and stressed? To me it’s synonymous with a recovering alcoholic becoming a bartender - your poison is always within reach at a moment’s notice. Just one click away.

Having struggled to overcome this addiction for over 10 years now, I’m acutely aware of how my job has kept me stuck in front of a computer and using the internet for the whole day, which I’m sure has impacted my ability to recover.

I quit my design job this year, and I’m seriously considering getting a job that is a more ‘real-world’ physical role like working in a store or some kind of trade. I find the constant pressure of having to be ‘creative’ every day and consistently come up with new and interesting solutions to tight deadlines (while doing so alone in an online setting) makes it almost impossible to stay calm, clean and motivated.

To me, the solution to overcoming this addiction lies in engaging with reality - the physical world. I’ve spent my life immersed in a digital haze, bombarded by information overload and dopaminergic stimulation. Can our brains ever be taught to use the internet in a focussed and balanced manner?

The catch is, my only real skill is that I’m good with computers, and I prefer the autonomy of the freelance lifestyle. I’m terrible at building and repairing things, and I’m an awful salesman and communicator. Do I have to abandon all of the previous experience and skills that I’ve developed and try something completely different, or is there a way to thrive in a digital career post-reboot?

I’d love to hear from other people on how this addiction has impacted their digital careers, and if they have managed to salvage them as part of recovery, or if they have gone through a career change in order to move forward with their life. How did you do it? I hope to hear from some of you.

 

[The Tunesmith]

Hmmmm.... I am actually in a position to give you a semi informed answer. I am a composer. I write music, I construct videos to accompany this music, and I spend a LOT of my time online, either working my Youtube channel or culling stills and video clips to construct my videos. Then I spend a lot MORE of my time using various apps to edit the stills and / or video clips I use in these videos. And this isn't including the time it takes me to write and record the music. I either have a laptop in my lap or am sitting in front of a monitor during a large portion of any given day. I am almost 8 months sober now. Internet P is always just a few clicks and keystrokes away. But I have not succumbed to temptation in 35 weeks now. HOW? For starters I have monitoring software on all my devices. You didn't mention your marital status, but it doesn't necessarily have to be a spouse / significant other that monitors your behavior. Anyone you trust and is willing can serve in this capacity. Knowing you are going to get caught is the final consideration when fighting the temptation. Having a support system in place helped me as well... This forum along with visits to a psychologist ( and I am currently looking for a CSAT) helped keep me remain focused on the task at hand. Plus, I am a STUBBORN SOB. The simple fact that I was so adamant 8 months ago that P was a harmless pastime (Trust me, It ain't) actually was a help to me when I finally ditched the denial mentality and went the other direction. As strong (though delusional) as my stance on the harmlessness of P use was, my newly formed allegiance to anti-porn is even stronger. Stubborness is usually a bad thing, unless you are stubborn about maintaining positive changes and doing things right. I am. Once I committed to a porn free life, well, I'll be DAMNED if some images on a screen are gonna defeat me and rule my existence. My age also is a helpful factor. I'm 59. I did not have internet P from the moment puberty set in so I have experienced life at a time when the internet did not exist, and computers were housed only at NASA. You didn't mention your age so I don't know for sure, but it sounds as if you have had access to internet P from the get go. But my age helps because for one, I only have so many years left on this planet and I'll be damned if I spend them as the slave of an industry which only kills, steals, or destroys, and, I don't want to die alone, I love my wife and want to keep her. I don't know if you're 59 or 29, but know this, being a slave to the industry and dying alone are within the realm of possibility for you regardless of age.

Now. My opinion on your particular case.
"To me it’s synonymous with a recovering alcoholic becoming a bartender - your poison is always within reach at a moment’s notice. Just one click away."
As long as you feel this way it probably IS too dangerous for you to expose yourself to the risks involved. It's a bummer that the one talent you feel you have is computer wizardry, and that, even though it provides you with your sustenence, also might encompass your doom. But it is as it is.
My advice. Seek professional help (if you haven't already) and see if you can actually get to a point where you ARE strong enough to pursue your former career. Could go either way, there are guys who can't even watch TV because triggers are so irresistible to them, then there are guys like me.... Are you more like the former or the latter? If you are closer to the former, then you need to flee the computer for the time being until you determine whether or not you CAN become like the latter. And if not, don't despair. There are career paths you likely have an aptitude for that you haven't considered yet.

I wish you well. It sounds like you WANT to beat this. That is the first and most important step. When I attempted to free myself from this crap the first time, I didn't really want too, I was just conforming to someone else's desire. But once I decided to do it for ME, well, 35 weeks...

Persevere Brother....

 

[TryingHarder]

To me, the solution to overcoming this addiction lies in engaging with reality - the physical world. I’ve spent my life immersed in a digital haze, bombarded by information overload and dopaminergic stimulation. Can our brains ever be taught to use the internet in a focussed and balanced manner?

This is certainly something I struggle with (and I'm sure a lot of people do). I've come to realize that I spend WAY too much time in front of a computer. I have a desk job in communications and more or less spend the majority of my time on a computer. Then what happens in my spare time? More time in front of a computer. Even putting aside a porn addiction, it leads to a lot of compulsive behaviour, endless scrolling, loitering, and just wasting time.

I think of the following analogy... In the evening, if I left my home and wandered around the neighborhood, looking inside people's homes, walking into a business where I just stood in the corner, then wandered into an alley to look at a dumpster or two, that would be very strange. And yet, that is more or less what happens on the internet.

I'm doing all that I can to limit my time online. Signed up for some classes, and only allow myself two evenings per week at home doing something on the computer. When I get onto the internet, I ask myself "what am I doing here? What's my goal?" And when that goal is achieved (finding a recipe, reading a Wikipedia article, watching a YouTube video), I say "I'm done, mission accomplished" and close my browser.

And so, to answer your question, an internet-based career could certainly be possible, as long as you give it a lot of thought and make sure you're balancing your time away from the screen.