Addicted to dramas - Hyper Binge-Mode On - Time to 'talk'

I relate to you quite a bit. I am a binge-watcher too and I have been binge-watching dramas for quite a while. This is evident from my stats (check it out in my profile). I agree that this addiction of mine is indeed unhealthy and I have been trying to change, though it has not been easy. 

For me, the most effective method thus far is to set some rules for myself. These are the rules. 

Weekdays: Build MDL profile / contribute to forums / watch variety shows
Weekends: Binge-watch through 1 / 2 dramas
Only start dramas on Saturdays. Do not start on any other days (especially Sundays).
Record progress in a table and evaluate success after a certain period of time.

I want to focus on my school/work during the weekdays and on Sundays and dedicate my Saturdays to drama watching. This compromise works to a certain extend (sometimes I still end up watching dramas on Sundays) but it has been the most effective so far. 

 bubblesdramagirl:

Recently i started watching currently airing dramas coz i have no choice but to wait for the episodes every week & with eng subs coming in late, it rather effective in stopping my nerves & curiosity. 

I don't think I will be able to stand this hahaha. Afterall, curiosity kills the cat. 

 bubblesdramagirl:

You really do have a great self control & discipline.

I highly doubt so lol

 bubblesdramagirl:

TRUE that! I have been watching currently airing Cdrama 'My Girl' and oh boy! im obsessively refreshing dramacool for eng subs. Argh!!! i can't wait for more episodes. BUT somehow i'm unable to find another drama with same vibes and since then i have been trying to find a good drama to watch and i couldn't nail down one.  

I have not watched 'My Girl' so I can't give any recommendations yet. Will watch it when it finishes airing :))) 

 bubblesdramagirl:

Everyone keeps recommending 'Love 020' on this platform. But somehow i cannot get myself to watch it :(

Sigh... alright then...

I'm in a similar boat where I'm binge watching way more as we're stuck in the house and naturally have nothing to do, so don't to feel too guilty about it and beat yourself up over it. Other people are doing the same thing! Controlling it is also a good thing to do though, and it's great you're thinking about doing so. 

I also personally think it would help if you put your dramas into a schedule of some sort that can keep your binging style but restrict it down. Just for example: I set mine to a certain amount of episodes I can watch in a day. It tends to be 2-4 eps usually and I'll watch a few more episodes occasionally when I know I've done everything I've needed to. (I also often pick up airing dramas since I can't binge watch them since there's no new episodes to binge.) That works for me and it may not for you, but maybe it can give you a few ideas?

Another thing that could maybe be handy is making alarms or a list when you wake up just to remind you at some point "have you eaten/done work/spoke to someone/etc?" or even a just "stop watching dramas now!" alarm could help you realise that you've been watching for too long and need to get on with something else.

Honestly, I've never felt guilty. My younger brothers like to laugh at me enjoying my "Asian shows", the irony being they too enjoy Asian shows in the form of Anime. However, even then I kind of just shrugged it off.  Binge watching is what helped me get through my classes a few years back, because of the way I studied, so I would study for an hour watch and episode, study for another our, and so on.

It's been a long time since I've really binge watched anything though. Now I usually end up doing two things at once, playing a game on my phone, (with everyone home) starting random conversations with the person in the next room, stepping outside for a few minutes, I always end up taking way too long to even finish a single episode now.

It's kind of come in handy picking up on words and phrases. I've worked with a number of Korean bosses and co-workers, and it was always interesting/funny to hear them talk, as I would sometimes find myself understanding a bit of what they were talking about. Sometimes my non-Korean co-workers would wonder what they are talking about and I would sometimes say "Probably *insert whatever I think they're talking about here*" and when they turned around to ask I would be in the right ball park.