<\/p>\r\n
May is Mental Health Awareness Month, and we at the UNT Media Library would like to take a moment to highlight the benefits\u00a0that games,\u00a0gaming,\u00a0and play can have on mental health and general well-being.<\/strong><\/p>\r\n Whether it be relaxing\u00a0<\/span>by<\/span>\u00a0playing your favorite adventure game, staying active and challenging your brain by solving a difficult puzzle, enjoying a new or classic boardgame, or even hopping on your phone to play a few minutes of a mobile\u00a0<\/span>game<\/span>\u00a0when you finally have a moment away<\/span>, many of us utilize games and gaming in some form or fashion to relax and unwind or, alternatively, to stay active and engaged.\u00a0<\/span>Each of<\/span>\u00a0these activities can be a great resource to de-stress, spend time with friends, and visit other worlds, all the while unlocking rewards, completing goals, or earning achievements.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n For some, the best way to decompress is by participating in a solo, single-player adventure at your own pace\u00a0<\/span>a<\/span>nd at your own will. For others, the most freeing thing about playing a game is the ability to engage in a multiplayer setting while continuing to foster camaraderie and support\u00a0<\/span>a\u00a0<\/span>connection w<\/span>ith<\/span>\u00a0others<\/span>,<\/span>\u00a0even during times of social distance.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n There are times that games can support mental health and well-being even just by watching your favorite e<\/span>sport<\/span>\u00a0or seeing your favorite streamer play<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>through a game you enjoy (or a game you c<\/span>an\u2019<\/span>t beat) while you sit back\u00a0<\/span>and relax\u00a0<\/span>with a bowl of cereal<\/span>\u00a0on a Saturday morning<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n Gamification, the application of game-design elements and game principles in non-game contexts,\u00a0<\/span>is<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>also<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>often\u00a0<\/span>utilized in various forms\u00a0<\/span>during\u00a0<\/span>counseling sessions.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n When playing a game, the player can create a set of goals or have those goals provided, complete objectives they set their mind to, and gain a sense of accomplishment when these goals are completed; the rewarding sensation of progressing beyond a milestone and earning a reward for doing so can at times be almost unrivaled. The player can explore, experience, and create worlds. They can encounter and discover characters of all kinds and can\u00a0even\u00a0build bonds with these characters and live through the countless stories presented.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n There are numerous game<\/span>s<\/span>\u00a0that<\/span>\u00a0are great resources for developing positive mental health and well-being.<\/span>\u00a0Some games which are said to foster and\u00a0<\/span>support well-being include titles like\u00a0<\/span>Journey<\/span><\/i>,\u00a0<\/span>Hollow Knight<\/span><\/i>,\u00a0<\/span>Abzu<\/span><\/i>, and\u00a0<\/span>Animal Crossing<\/span><\/i>. However, t<\/span>here are even<\/span>\u00a0games<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>known to have accurate or positive<\/span>\u00a0in-game representation<\/span>s<\/span>\u00a0of mental health as well, such as\u00a0<\/span>Hellblade<\/span><\/i>,\u00a0<\/span>Life is Strange<\/span><\/i>, and\u00a0<\/span>Celeste<\/span><\/i>. For example, in\u00a0<\/span>Celeste<\/span><\/i>, the game is structured in a way that allows the player\u00a0<\/span>to<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>gain a<\/span>\u00a0better\u00a0<\/span>understand<\/span>ing of<\/span>\u00a0what they may be dealing with in their own lives, with personified problems that allow the player to address things in the game or within themselves.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n Regardless of the delivery method, whether it be playing video games, playing tabletop and board games, watching others play games, ro<\/span>o<\/span>ting for your favorite team<\/span>\u00a0or player<\/span>, or even just making a game out of something that wasn\u2019t initially a game\u00a0<\/span>to begin with<\/span>,<\/span>\u00a0games and gaming have the tremendous ability to allow<\/span>\u00a0us<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>to relax, unwind, and enjoy\u00a0<\/span>ourselves<\/span>\u00a0truly<\/span>\u00a0how<\/span>ever<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>we<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>see fit.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n For more information on mental health and games for well-being, as well as a comprehensive list of games which can support mental health, head over to\u00a0CheckPoint\u00a0to read more about the psychological benefits of video games:\u00a0<\/span>https:\/\/checkpointorg.com\/games-for-health\/<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n You can also access and join\u00a0CheckPoint\u2019s\u00a0pro-mental health gaming community,\u00a0GamerMates, here:\u00a0https:\/\/checkpointorg.com\/gamermates\/<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n For more mental health and well-being resources located on\u00a0the UNT\u00a0campus,\u00a0head over\u00a0to the following link\u00a0here:\u00a0https:\/\/studentaffairs.unt.edu\/speak-out\/mental-health-resources<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n Be well and game on.<\/span><\/p>\r\n <\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" May is Mental Health Awareness Month, and we at the UNT Media Library would like to take a moment to highlight the benefits\u00a0that games,\u00a0gaming,\u00a0and play can have on mental health and general well-being. Whether it be relaxing\u00a0by\u00a0playing your favorite adventure game, staying active and challenging your brain by solving a difficult puzzle, enjoying a… Read more »<\/a>","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[9,116,102,115,33],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2316","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-board-games","category-gaming","category-media-library","category-mental-health","category-video-games"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p5CjJ3-Bm","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.library.unt.edu\/media\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2316","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.library.unt.edu\/media\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.library.unt.edu\/media\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.library.unt.edu\/media\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/84"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.library.unt.edu\/media\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2316"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.library.unt.edu\/media\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2316\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2341,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.library.unt.edu\/media\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2316\/revisions\/2341"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.library.unt.edu\/media\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2316"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.library.unt.edu\/media\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2316"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.library.unt.edu\/media\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2316"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}