Steem Monsters... And Dealing With Addiction

It's been a little over two days already and the seriousness of the symptoms have only intensified. Loss of sleep, sometimes appetite, even nausea from "losing streaks". Yes, my wife as I knew her, has fallen victim to Steem Monsters. I write this with shaking hands and terror in my heart. For it was only several months ago that we first heard minor rumblings of this so-called competitive card-based game being developed by @aggroed and @yabapmatt, but had so little information to go on. It began as these "packs" were released soon after the announcement, however containing no stats, numbers or information whatsoever. We couldn't have possibility envisioned what was to come. I mean, could we?

My wife, as I recall her at the time, seemed enamoured by the artwork and stylization encased within those deceptively innocent looking digital cards. She'd pick up a casual pack of 5, which became 10 and ultimately lead to dozens, then finally hundreds. Her rapid transformation was shocking, to say the least. Shorty afterwards, I'd walk into a room, only to see her face buried within her phone, scrolling through the endless stacks of cards she now owned. Sensing my unexpected presence, she attempted to quickly hide her device from sight, also instantly changing her demeanour in the blink of an eye. But I knew exactly what was going on. I always did. The only question in my mind being "To what end is all this leading?". Well, my beseeching pleas to the heavens above didn't fall on deaf ears. In fact, anything but...

One morning, I awoke to find my wife by the dresser, a look of hysterical glee in her eyes and in the throes of a trance whilst gazing at the LED screen. Enough is enough, I thought. Springing out of bed like a kangaroo on steroids, I snatched the phone away. Indeed, the horror was palpable. Stats! Every character now had stats! This was no illusion, no dream that could be pulled away back into the realms of reality. No, this was indeed @aggroed's endgame in sight and all the evidence I needed was right here in the palm of my hands. Steem Monsters was actually... REAL!!! Cradling her in my arms, I stroked her hair, repeatedly cooing in her ear that everything was gonna be OK. Somehow, we'd manage to work through this. Knowing full well that it was only a matter of time until more fury was yet to be unleashed...

Fast forward to present day. A working iteration of the game has manifested itself and it's true power revealed. For alas, my wife has ceased to be the woman I married all those years ago. As we speak, she has levelled up yet another bunch of "Death" splinter cards and I can honestly say I see no end in sight. It also pains me to admit that she has already confessed to considering other splinter to join. This is the current state of affairs as they stand right now. So, this is a personal appeal to @aggroed. In unison with the development of this game, could you help setup a Steem Monsters helpline and support group forum (extending to include family and friends) for individuals that have been affected in a similar manner. I can but hazard a wild guess that social therapeutics could work wonders for all involved. Thank you for taking the time out of your busy schedule to listen. I will keep presenting frequent updates as to the condition of my other half but as of now, the prognosis doesn't look good.

If anyone else has reports of this "phenomena infliction" upon people they know, don't shy away from coming forward to tell your story. We can work through it together as a community. Remember, you are not alone. Together we stand united, divided we fall!

Hope you enjoyed this post, please look out for more on the way... (author: @ezzy)