Sneha Singhal, Jaypee Institute of information technology, Noida
Mental health therapy sessions:
What would you do if a robot werewolf was circling you in a dark alley and snapping its jaws at you?
The issue of robotic werewolves is not something you’ll face every day, but more counsellors are using tabletop role-playing games (TTRPGs) in their sessions. Even teens have difficulty dealing with mental health issues. Using TTRPGs to make group therapy more engaging, Michael Keady works with youth mental health. Michael says it’s fun to work with mental health instead of being uncomfortable or confrontational and offers a way to go about it without feeling like therapy. Michael began utilizing TTRPGs in his therapy sessions after noticing that they encourage pupils to open up more. Michael says a lot of kids find it intimidating to talk about their problems face-to-face with a therapist. Michael states that it interests him to study this subject because not every child is ready to speak with a therapist face to face. After all, they get daunted.”
A bonus to will savings:
TTRPG promotes social skills, creativity, problem-solving skills, and more. With sales of TTRPGs like Dungeon & Dragons soaring by 33% in 2020, despite the ongoing pandemic, these games have resurged. Michael likes to play TTRPGs targeted at young children, like Monsterhearts and No Thank You, Evil! Students then get to choose quests customized for them during the session. According to Michael, No Thank You, Evil! is a simplified version of the TTRPG, making it more accessible to newcomers. The three elements of a character are a noun, a verb, and an adjective. For example, I fight werewolves as a sneaky ninja. That’s all there is to it.
Taking on your demons:
Michael weaves elements of different therapies into his campaigns, including acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) and dialectical behavioural therapy (DBT). Through the therapy, people are taught how to cope with their problems, regulate their emotions, and cope with distress. According to Michael, this is part of a relatively new style of therapeutic role-playing games that has emerged in the United States in the past decade. TTRPGs have a competitive advantage over video games, says Michael, who enjoys both mediums. Video games usually have very limited solutions in terms of outcomes. What makes TTRPGs so special is that you can put players in situations, and they can imagine a solution that you would have never imagined.”
The robotic werewolf:
The reactions of Michael’s students often surprise him, as demonstrated in the way they reacted when they saw the robot werewolf. The kids were supposed to fight the Evil Robotic Werewolf. However, one of them ninjaed onto the back and said that he found the off switch. In response Michael said that it was a killer robot, it didn’t have an off switch. When you are doing maintenance, they asked, “Well, how can you fix that?” As Michael put it, “OK, now you get me.” He intends to make the games physically engaging, kind of like TTRPG Inspirisles, where spells can be cast via signing. According to him, TTRPGs offer players flexibility and freedom in resolving problems. This has a profound effect on them because it encourages them to think outside the box.
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Reference: Pusey, M. & Particle. (n.d.). Behavioural therapy: Taming the black dog with Dungeons and Dragons. Retrieved August 12, 2021, from https://medicalxpress.com/news/2021-08-behavioral-therapy-black-dog-dungeons.html
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