I went through the same thing around January time and after logging in for countless consecutive days, I was in patrol doing my bounties and suddenly just thought "WTF is the point!? I have everything I want in this game and I'm levelling gear up for the sake of it."
I then took a break of about 3-4 weeks and came back to it as my friends did. The difference since then though is that there's no urge to play, level things up or chase a carrot. I play to enjoy the game, I help friends out if they want to do end-game activities and PvP with them. When I got to this stage I actually enjoyed and appreciated the game a lot more for its social and gameplay mechanics rather than enjoying it because of its Skinner Box (Google this theory if you aren't aware and see how it relates to Destiny).
The best advice I can give:
1. Wean yourself off it, gradually increasing your time off. You don't have to stop playing, you just need to break the habitual nature of Destiny and manage that going forward.
2. During your 'off-time' try to take up something productive that fills the void:
• Reading (highly recommend Song of Ice & Fire series),
• Gym
• Playing an instrument
• Develop RL skills
As replacing an addicting game with another game will help in the ST, in the LT it doesn't solve the underlying issue.
3. Ignore the trolls on here, they're likely not self-aware or smart enough to recognise that they're addicted. You recognised that it's an issue for you, now you need act on that.
Good luck, OP.
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[quote]. When I got to this stage I actually enjoyed and appreciated the game a lot more for its social and gameplay mechanics rather than enjoying it because of its Skinner Box (Google this theory if you aren't aware and see how it relates to Destiny). .[/quote] Good advice! Once you understand some of the manipulation going on in games like Destiny, it helps....maybe not to cease playing entirely, but at least to recognize some of the unhealthy aspects of the game. Older article, but very relevant to Destiny - http://www.cracked.com/article_18461_5-creepy-ways-video-games-are-trying-to-get-you-addicted.html
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Aye, I've read that. Yeah I agree, around December I read an article from Bungie's research lead (I can try and find it if you haven't read it) on how to 'keep players playing' through patterns and reinforcement. Nearly everything discussed has been implemented in to Destiny. Simply reading the theory behind it seemed to knock me out of my trance-like state of incessant grinding. Obviously [i]all[/i] games' ultimately aim is for this, however, it just seems a lot more prominent in Destiny.