I joined it with a friend when I was in grad school this past summer, we were checking out feasibility of creating online classes there, companies that already do that, etc. I was Davinia Beresford but only spent a day and a half on there. I went to an agency and looked for an apartment to rent but realized I didn't want to spend real money on fake life, that I had enough trouble with my life as real life :-)

You have to get out of the game and spend some time with people "here", even though it will be scary and painful. You can't have a real life there, no matter how real-like it is. It's no different than living in academia or reading, etc. and you're too young to get swallowed by that. Staying in there too long will make it that much harder to get out and eventually you won't want or be able to get out at all but it will never be fulfilling.

Do you have a therapist? You should probably get one for the addiction to the game. It's no different from any other gambling addiction I don't think; you are getting occasional feelings of having "friends". You don't, the gamepiece does. Do you want to remain a gamepiece?