The Rise of Gaming Therapy: How Games Are Helping Heal Trauma

The Rise of Gaming Therapy: How Games Are Helping Heal Trauma

Blog Article

For a long time, the general idea has been that video games are only for fun, but from the recent past, gaming has converted into a robust tool to be used in therapy and healing. Platforms like Bitsky are exploring innovative techniques of using the potential of gaming to help mental health especially in the case of trauma victims. The spread of gaming therapy, based on its successes, is manifesting as an alternative or support to the traditional approached used in treating psychological problems. IT manifests through exemplary storytelling and its power to bring the player into a virtual world through interactive simulations.
What Gaming Therapy Does
Gaming therapy is a treatment form based on video games, which impacts the psyche, in the addition, a player uses them as a pilot of treatment, in the form safer and controlled of emotion. The gaming is a medium where the player can communicate with others, for example, talking about his or her pain with the therapist to be able to be the experience more relevant. So, gaming therapy is a good alternative for clients that have difficulties verbally expressing their emotions.
Some of these therapeutic games are based on elements of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), mindfulness practicing, and the other ones are based on exposure therapies. An example of the game named Sea of Solitude and another one like the Celeste video games that elaborate on issues such as anxiety, depression, and self-discovery will allow gamers to recognize themselves in the characters and subsequently, stand in the characters' shoes to find the solutions for the real-life difficulties encountered.
What is the Science of Healing Through Gaming?
It has been proven by research that gaming is able to cure mental illness in persons through reducing stress levels, emotional regulation, and social connections. Gaming is the most interesting part of the brain because it requires interaction, part of the brain responsible for problem-solving and memory gets stimulated, which in turn makes this type of intervention very effective for people who undergo PTSD, Panic Disorder, and Depression.
Additionally, VR therapy, which is based on virtual reality, is more and more used to help trauma survivors. VR-based games can form artificial environments that are controlled and enable individuals to expose and process traumatic experiences in a safe, guided manner. This type of exposure therapy has been very useful for the war veterans who had to deal with the post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and the individuals who had to recover from phobias or severe anxiety, respectively.
The Role of Fantasy and Storytelling
Fantasy and storytelling are essential parts of gaming therapy, as they not only take the players out of their difficult lives but also, at the same time, nudge them gently in the direction of self-examination and healing. Games like Dragonz Quest and Journey not only let players embark on epic quests that reflect their own struggles but also teach them about the value of perseverance and emotional strength.
With the help of engaging stories, visitors of these games can adopt diverse perspectives, build empathy, and be motivated to confront and win against their difficulties. This type of interaction can be very useful for trauma survivors since their recovery process is the time they need to feel empowered and in control.
The Seven Challenges of Gaming Therapy
Despite the fact that gaming therapy represents such a boundless potential, it still has its problems to deal with. In the same way that the seven sins are the main stumbling blocks, there are seven primary difficulties that need to be overcome:
Accessibility – Some people are not allowed to participate in the gaming process due to lack of access to therapeutic games or the technology used to play them.
Misuse – Dependence on gaming may be taken too far as some might use it primarily as a way to escape whereas it should be a way of healing and touching the essence.
Stigma – Some individuals' opinions of gaming still subsist apparently very unproductive, acting as a deterrent to its recognition as a legal prescribed therapy.
Cost – Therapy games and VR are nice gadgets to use for treatment, they are incredibly high in price and not accessible for many people in need.
Regulation – Although game-based therapy is increasing in popularity, the absence of precise gaming therapy protocols leads to a debate on therapy of games as a valid treatment methodology.
Overstimulation – Excessive environmental information might be perceived as difficulty distinguishing reality from the situation may mice with high anxiety or those who experienced trauma causing a worsening of symptoms.
Sustainability – Until we receive necessary information from long-term experiments, gaming therapy cannot be completely the solution we are searching for.