I totally do this too.
I used to be much worse. In fact, I used to exhaust people. The only people I could keep in my life were the people I was partying with (back when I was still drinking and using).
I find I still slip into this today, but thankfully I don't stay there. I recognize the futility of it, as, based on your own post, I'm sure you do too. It is self-defeating, self-sabotaging, and when I find myself doing it (whether internally with myself, or externally with others) I get to a point where I just have to shut it down, because I don't want to be that person anymore. It hurts other people as much as it hurts me, and I now have that awareness.
You're right in stating it's an attention-seeking behavior. And I believe that once you learn to get your needs met in other (healthier, more direct) ways, this form of communication won't seem so easy for you to turn to, because we get a lot further in life if we're able to ask for what we need and treat people with respect, ourselves included.
If you have enough insight and awareness into this to post this thread, I suspect you're well on your way.