Thank you for sharing your experience. I think I am reaching a better understanding of my relationship with WoW and gaming in general with my free time. I think now I regard it as not addiction (since I'm really not forgoing anything 'important' to play) and more of just a "default" activity, developed long ago in my suburban childhood when my agency was far more limited than now. It served me well in those days which were chaotic, gave me something of my own that was well understood and I could control.

Now it feels like more of a crutch to fill free time, and not serving me well for the person I'd like to be. However, I do think there's a place for it, specifically with the world of vanilla. Just being in it for a bit fulfills some deeper need to connect with my past.

I just wish I could find something that engages me as much as it used to.