Hi.

I know this probably sounds crazy, but this “spring break from furry socials” that I said I’m taking isn’t just going to be spring break. I’m leaving. Forever.

So like I said, I’m home with my family in Illinois for this week, the first time I’ve been home since Christmas-time 2024. My parents sat me down last night and revealed that they know a LOT more about my online furry activities than I thought. You might think they’re ridiculous for the way they try to keep an eye on the online activities of their almost 24-year-old son, but they believe that my furry activities are tantamount to a porn addiction, and if I am being fully honest with myself, there’s at least some truth to that. It is true that the time I’ve been spending doing furry things (e.g. chatting, RP-ing, looking at and sharing art) has been eating up a significant chunk of my time on a weekly, even daily basis, and thus pulling me away from IRL activities, relationships, responsibilities and opportunities that I should be focusing on instead, many of which are very likely to play a significant role in determining the trajectory of my life in the next few years.

It's worth noting that I have ADHD, and fairly severe ADHD at that. I haven’t been regulating the amount of time I’ve been spending online since I went from being a “lurker” to being active in online furry circles (which only happened as recently as January), so it’s become clear to me that I can’t just try to compartmentalize it or keep it to a minimum. I’ve reached an ultimatum. It’s all or nothing. And if I choose the “all” option and keep doing what I’ve been doing, it’s going to have a strong negative impact on my relationship with my family, and continue to distract me from the IRL things that I ought to be focusing my time and attention on, and ultimately possibly derail me from the aspirations I have for my career and life in general.

As fun as it has been to chat with you and others and all the other things I’ve been doing in the online furry fandom, I think the truth is that my patterns are indicative of addictive behavior, and that means it has to stop. My parents are concerned enough that they are “staging an intervention,” which means that I’ve agreed to delete all my furry socials, completely withdraw from the fandom, and then they are going to be installing a software called Qustodio, which will enable them to receive detailed reports on my online activity as well as remotely block or limit websites or apps on my devices as they see fit. This might seem absurd to you, but it’s the equivalent of the accountability that any person dealing with an addiction needs during an intervention/rehab.

I hope you understand why I feel this way, and it’s absolutely nothing against you or anyone else I’ve gotten to know. I wish you all the best, but this is goodbye.I hope you understand why I feel this way, and it’s absolutely nothing against you or anyone else I’ve gotten to know. I wish you all the best, but this is goodbye.

Sincerely,
Nate da Bulldawg