Gaming for Stress Relief
Have you ever been so tired and wrecked after a long day, or maybe even from nothing at all, but somehow when you start playing games all of your energy comes back out of nowhere? Or maybe when you stop playing games and you think you are okay but five seconds later you crash and pass out on your bed without even realizing how sleepy you were? If you are like me, that’s a yes to both.
Throughout my whole life gaming has always been an amazing way to rest and recover from the trials and tribulations of the days activities, beyond being my first choice for enjoyment. Whether it was coming home from school, needing a break from study, or even just dealing with bad news, games have always been a great distractor, and an even better means of stress relief. As a kid I can remember staying up all night just playing Pokemon under my bed sheets and feeling totally fine, only to stop playing in the morning and immediately have a tidal wave to exhaustion just slam into me.
No doubt, this varies from person to person. People enjoy different things, some might relax by watching movies, hanging with friends, listening to music, the list goes on, but chances are you have your personal way of managing your fatigue when times get tough. This can change from time to time, sometimes you get sick of your usual hobbies for a while, it happens to all of us. Sometimes when I’m just not in the mood to play games, curling up in bed and watching Youtube is my go-to in order to relax.
That’s what it really comes down to, is enjoyment. If you enjoy doing something, chances are that when you get to do it you will feel so much better and stress-free and that’s part of what makes it awesome. On the flip side of the coin, if there is something you hate doing, it drains your energy that must faster, and it makes you tired and stressed. I know this probably sounds obvious, but if you have things in your life that you don’t enjoy doing, and surely there are some, keeping those to a minimum, and making the most out of the things you do enjoy is critical.
Are there games more suited to R&R though?
Again, it’s all personal preference, but it really depends on my mood and situation. Luckily, there are so many games out there that there is bound to be something to do in order to get my much needed hit of dopamine before the next energy consuming activity of the day. If I’m studying and only need a small break, usually I’ll hop on to Call of Duty and just play a few rounds. I find that the quick, 5 – 10 minute games can help make sure I don’t spend longer gaming than I should. Maybe I will hop onto Diablo and see if I can find a few cool pieces of loot. Whereas when I have more time up my sleeve, I can turn to games I know I would be able to just sit and play for hours, such as Skyrim or Minecraft.
But having breaks like this is essential I believe to living a healthy life. Especially with study and work etc. life is bound to get stressful from time to time, and rather than just dealing with it and pushing forward, the best thing to do sometimes is to just acknowledge that you need some time to recover, and taking that time to do something that helps to relieve that fatigue. This will allow to move into your next endeavor without that kind of weight on your shoulders bearing down on you. A little stress can actually be good, but large amounts of it for a long time can be very unhealthy, so keeping it under control is important. Also having huge amounts of stress just plain sucks. Certainly being a student and taking small breaks to game in between study has helped motivate me and and keep me studying without becoming overwhelmed.
Gaming can be a powerful tool to managing stress and fatigue, which let’s face it, usually come hand in hand, but just be careful not to procrastinate too much. As great as games are for relieving stress, they can be addictive, and you can have too much of a good thing, or else you will end up even more stressed than before.
So just be careful. 🙂
But this is just my opinion, I would love to know, do you have any go-to games when life wears you out? Are there any other ways that you find work wonders for your stress and fatigue? Let me know in the comments, and if you enjoyed this post, be sure to give it a like. Until next time, stay beautiful, and stress-free. 🙂
End note: Authored by Genesis & Locikll for Psilink Gaming & MediGamer Blogs, Redistributed, and edited for Steemit officially
Agree, playing games can reduce stress but playing too much or being addicted can also give you more stress instead. I'm completely agree with your article, yet I don't do this thing that I agree on. Instead of playing games to relief stress, I usually do another stuff to relief my stress and then play games when I feel relaxed already. Sounds wrong isn't it? lol
Absolutely not! Everyone is completely different and I'm glad that this works well (I assume it works well) for you. Maybe you enjoy the types of games that are more invigorating and adrenaline-fueled, so that being in a relaxed state when you start is much more beneficial :D, thanks for your perspective!
Great post man ! I really enjoyed it. I like any kind of game because they all help you to escape from reality. Ok, i don't really like shooters or racing games when i am just trying to relax. They have the opposite effect on me, haha. I mostly play RPG's or Strategy games, or any kind of game where you have to build and craft things. I always enjoyed them.
Thank you very much man!! Absolutely, games that immerse you in their story telling and experience are phenomenal games (and hence experiences and ways to reduce stress). Exactly! I feel that indie games, and creative games like Minecraft relax me when I'm stressed, and games like Battlefield pump me up when I need an adrenaline boost and when I want the challenge.
Gaming can sure be a stress relief.
I've had the experience.
Thanks for sharing @locikll
.. pls do stay in touch.
Awesome! I'm glad you have relaxing experiences with gaming too :) I will do!
Thanks bro
And sometimes, believe it or not, I get tired of playing violent 3D super graphics or detailed games... So i switch to 2D or classic games...
To be honest, those type of games are relaxing me so much that they can even remove a headache. And the most successful game until now for that was drum roll
Stardew Valley.
I think I will make a late review of it even if it's not relevant anymore.
Absolutely! Sometimes we just need a break from games like PUBG, Grand Theft Auto, Call of Duty or what have you, and go back to playing some good-old fashioned, simple fun games, like Stardew Valley (that you've mentioned) or Minecraft, et cetera.
Absolutely man, Even if it's not 'Relevant', if you're interested in doing so it would make a great post.
Steemit for me has never been and will never be about the "Money" or "what people find relevant/care about", I just write what I write, because that's how I feel and what I think, if other people feel the same way, or gain something out of it then that's a huge bonus!
Nice post, i just upvoted you, and you can also follow me @stevearticlepro
Please do not ask for follows on other people's posts, this is spam and will get you rep-f***'d here on Steem pretty quickly, when that happens no one will be able to see your posts.
@locikll Thank you for taking such a strong position against this type of people!
No worries! It really sucks when people hijack posts I absolutely hate seeing it everywhere I go and am making an up-to-date list every few dates or so to catalog these types of spammers. If you know of any spammers who you've seen, please let me know their usernames so I can put them on this list, so we, the users can uphold the integrity of the Steemit service!