Ashamed of how much I've spent on a stupid mobile game

[CareHomeWorries]

Been having a really rough time so far this year (my mum died, my dad was moved into a care home, my car was written off by a drunk driver crashing into it and I've been suffering with very severe anxiety)

I've been playing a stupid game called Gecko Out. It's a puzzle game and has been a good distraction from everything. I've just looked properly at my bank and I've spent £100+ on buying coins and power ups.

I feel so ashamed and bloody stupid for doing it. I can afford it but it's such a waste of money. Just didn't realize how often I was spending money on it, especially when it was just a couple of quid at a time. I've deleted it now and won't do it again but I feel awful over wasting the money.

I used to play that too (I love a merge game).
A now ex-friend saw the app on my phone and went round telling people I had "a gossip app". She was a massive gossip 😂

Dont be too hard on yourself. Uninstall the game and upload some free ones xxx

@CareHomeWorries I’ve spent more than that!!! At first I was mortified when I realized I spent much more than you did, but at the time it was such a relief from the stress I was going through. I could afford it. I rarely buy myself anything (no clothes, no shoes, no books etc). I’m feeling better now, and don’t play games anymore so 🤷🏻‍♀️🤷🏻‍♀️🤷🏻‍♀️. Hope you feel better soon.

If it makes you feel any better, Tetris is genuinely used as a tool after traumatic events and has been clinically proven to help reduce PTSD. Obviously better not to pay for it but the game you’ve been playing could have been having a similar helpful effect on your brain through a difficult time.

I think this is very common but not many admit it! Its just paying for a leisure activity like others have said.

I've done it myself on a few different games over the course of months and years. Met my spouse on one of them so maybe it was worth it.

Cut yourself some slack. It's done now and you were able to afford it - just put it behind you and move on. We've all done daft things when we've been low.

My kids often ask for Robux for Christmas etc. At first I had the same attitude as you - what a waste. But actually it’s not going to landfill, it’s not rotting their teeth and it brings them joy.

Don’t worry OP 🥰 You’ve recognised it early and taken action to stop it getting worse. At least you could afford it and it hasn’t left you in hardship. ♥️

money well spent if it helped you even a little bit during this hard time. Sending hugs to you. Don’t beat yourself up.

We pay for things to entertain us. You paid for entertainment when you really needed a distraction. No need to feel silly. Sorry to hear about your mum and dad- do whatever you need to get through! (Although would recommend investing in a game that doesn’t offer pay as you go)

Me too. But I think it's good you've noticed. A lot of these games are designed to tap into the parts of your brain in a similar way to gambling. So it's really good you're aware and therefore in front of it! Delete and don't reinstall and see if you can put blocks on your phone in app purchases if you find yourself reinstalling.

I agree with this. Unless it’s taking food from your children’s mouths I wouldn’t worry about it. Take care of yourself.

If you had spent £200 on coffees, you would feel differently. It's good you have recognised it and stopped, but it's not the end of the world given you could afford it.

In the short term as a distraction it’s not the end of the world, it sounds like you have had a tough time recently so forgive yourself and think of something else to keep you mind occupied. It’s worth remembering that such games are designed to keep you spending. My husband has issues with such games and in the past has spent thousands. In a 6 month period in 2021 he spent £6200. That is when I found out about it. He still occasionally has a relapse and there is limited support out there as it not quite like gambling.

Go easy on yourself, it's not ideal but you realised and deleted it now, you could have quite easily blown way more on a big night out or similar to distract yourself.

Ah now don't be so hard on yourself, you've been going through a tough time and it gave you a bit of an escape

Okay that was a lot less bad than I was expecting.. I was thinking thousands in debt from the title.
You’ve recognised it was becoming problematic and stopped. There’s nothing to be ashamed of, you don’t need to feel bad about this.
Sorry you’ve had a difficult time.

It wasn’t a waste of money if it enabled you to cope and keep on going during a very difficult time.

Don't be hard on yourself OP. You've been through a lot and it's understandable. You've realised you need to stop, so that's a good thing.

Just think of people treating themselves after stressful times, ie, a new duvet, a weekend away etc. No one would bat an eyelid over that so don't feel bad just because it's gaming.

Wishing you all the best.

I think £100 on a game to distract yourself with sounds absolutely fine. Don’t put that shame on yourself. You can stop now, if you want, but it served its purpose.

Drink/drugs/shopping/smoking as a distraction would have cost significantly more than this! Even something ‘positive’ like gym membership or taking up knitting would have likely cost more!

Been there, done that!

On the one hand - I think spending on video games, or other digital products, is totally fine.

But I do miss the days when you could just buy a game and that was that. In-game purchases are a scourge.

Sounds reasonable when as PP said you think of it as “I spent £200 on a regular leisure activity”. The only problem here is that you hadn’t realised how much you were spending.

i pay for Apple Arcade and we only use games through that so no in-app purchases. I’m happy to pay for games but don’t want me or the kids racking up in app purchases.

I would either do a subscription/paid for games only. Or set yourself a strict time/money budget for the games.

And give yourself permission to have fun/some escapism. Xx

Dont! Have spent so much on yarn and sewing supplies over the years!!!

I deleted Royal Match last week after I realised I’d been suckered in to paying £150 last month. I miss the distraction but that’s just insane !

Thank you all for being really kind!

I think I'm just frustrated with myself because it's basically throwing money away. At least with an Xbox game or whatever there's the ability to replay it unlike buying extra lives and coins for a daft puzzle game.

To be honest I think this has given me the push to stop being on my phone as much as start crafting and baking again because at least then you have something to show for it at the end!