Table Talk - Are Board Games Good For Your Mental Health?

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We know board games are designed to be fun, but in what specific ways do they positively (or negatively) affect our mental health? Let's discuss!

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[suzanne]

My husband had cancer this past year. He had a peg tube for nutrition. He couldn't eat or drink by mouth. He became severely depressed. We got into gaming and it helped him in ways that even I couldn't. I am grateful for this channel which has introduced us to so many wonderful games and helped my husband through the toughest time of his life. Thank you Rodney!

[tracieroberts]

I am a recovering drug addict. 7 1/2 years clean. Board games have become my refuge and my peace during my recovery. It gives me something to do, something to learn, something to enjoy! I am very grateful for the hobby. Thank you for doing this video!

[robertbouley]

Therapist here - I (and other coworkers) have used board games in our therapies, sometimes during sessions, as a prelude to trauma work or to manage symptoms of anxiety.

Solo play has also been instrumental for my own mental health.

Thank you for presenting this at the start of mental health month.
Best wishes to you.

[lukepickles]

This has been on my mind recently. About a month or two ago, a friend of mine came over for a game day and she mentioned she was incredibly stressed with work and personal life and such. The best way that I was able to help her was to offer to play her favourite game with her on BGA. It’s a game I have no real love for but I know it’s her favourite and it brings her joy so I was happy to play it repeatedly to at least offer the distraction from the trash in the world

[prestonpennington]

As someone who struggles with anxiety and related mental health issues from a past career, board games allow me to focus on something else. They are an outlet to develop social skills, put down our phones, eat junk food and give my mind a break from intrusive thoughts. A respite to positively feed my soul.

[FunkyFoxGaming]

I lost my Dad last summer and my partner at Christmas, both to cancer. After a couple of months of barely leaving the house and not socialising, I finally started inviting friends over again to play board games a couple of Saturdays a month. This finally started to bring some normality back into my life after it had been turned upside down, with the added bonus of having those close friends with me to just talk and have fun. While board games are mostly just a temporary distraction, they also helped provide me with that company I was missing.

Last month I also found a local board game group that meets once a week, this has helped to push me to start getting out more again, make some knew gaming friends and introduce me to some new games as a bonus.

[thomazcastilho]

I have generalized anxiety disorder. This hobby saves my day. Everyday.

[ABlackfyre]

I am consultant psychiatrist and of course I am so exited that this topic came up. In our times of increasing social disconnection, Board games are a great way to connect to other people. I am a passionate Board gamer myself and so much could be said about it’s pros (and very few cons). Thank you watch it Played for this episode.

[rafiweiss]

Oh my goodness, Rodney, your point of providing structure for even an hour or two, is SO relatable! Thank you for this video!

[jeremiahhoward]

Thank you so much for this video. I clicked on the video because I thought it would be an interesting topic. But it ended up being more than I thought and really struck me emotionally. You hit on so many aspects that I never even thought about and resonated with me. I'm in IT and I've noticed I don't enjoy getting on my computer at home anymore to play games. And since then I've jumped head first into board games. I think I realized my need for in-person social interaction was something I was craving and board games scratched that itch. It's crazy the little things you don't notice until someone points them out. Thank you for bringing that out. And lastly, reading through the comments brought me to tears. It's wild how board games can help us mentally. Board games are such a great outlet to just get away from reality and share time with friends. Again, thank you and to all that have commented. It really hit me hard.

[adammckiernan]

Bouncing off your first point, there's a great book called Games: Agency as Art by philosopher C Thi Nguyen that explores the nature of games as an art form. One of the things he highlights about the appeal of games is that in life, we are often given inadequate tools for our problems (dealing with incurable diseases, a task in our jobs that we can't resolve) or tasks that are too simple (doing chores around the house, commuting to work). Games create spaces of agency where we are given toolsets perfectly tuned to the problem. This generates a satisfaction that the outside world rarely affords us. Highly recommend checking out the book if you haven't; it's served as a bedrock for my understanding of games since reading it.

[jr-]

I will second the point that board games give your brain something to focus on. Focusing for me has always been a struggle, but I find board games very easy to focus on. I think it's because I am very systems-minded and it's fascinating to look at a board game and all of its different mechanisms and how they interact with each other.

[notthatseanbean]

Board games are THE family activity. When I’m considering a game, I’m actively thinking of the members of my family at our table playing that title. From the mental health aspect, we’re are juggling a million things at once, and this gives us a pause. We need it, we need the love, we need the support and laughs.❤

Edit: Thinking about this a little more, I thought I’d add how I’ve adapted our gameplay to make the experience more enjoyable for the different members of our family. We’ve found the longer it takes to lose a game, the more it causes frustration. We keep our competitive games short and funny, and lean more into co-op.

[scottkroll]

When I had my shoulder surgery, I was unable to sleep. On top of that, I was on some fine narcotics to manage the pain. This led to crippling anxiety and exacerbated the mental issues for which I was already getting treatment. Setting up games and playing them with my children gave me something that I could focus on instead of the cloud of mental gloom I was experiencing. Watching the videos on this channel with Rodney and his children playing games were also of great comfort during the times I was unable to sleep.

[sirravhim]

I have diagnosed OCD, and my brain is hardwired for 'right and wrong' for every single interaction I have with people and objects. You're absolutely correct about the relief having clear defined rules can be. It's a vacation for my brain where I don't have to be constantly worried about the morality or correctness by how I performed in life, and instead I have a small time to know without a doubt if the things I am doing are correct or incorrect. It really reenergizes me for going back out into a shades of grey world.

[clintonjeffrey]

As someone on the autism spectrum, the comments about structure really resonate. I got heavy into solo gaming as a way to recharge during military exercises. My wife has ADHD and we play together a lot, and it's really helped our communication, seeing the way we each parse info on the game board. It's also one of the key ways I relate to my kids.

[jenrichardson]

Rodney, I love your videos and this one really spoke to me. When I moved to where I currently live, I didn't know anyone except co-workers. They're great, but they have their own lives and activities. I was told by a local game store that there was a local gaming group on facebook. I posted and luckily for me, everyone was so nice and accepting. The first time I met them at the store, I was nervous. Whew! talk about anxiety. They immediately introduced themselves and started teaching me the game they were playing. A few of the members and a friend from work, play a couple of times a week now with me. As far as losing the games, we all really just take it in stride and laugh about it. We boost each other and nobody feels bad. I usually lose, so one time I thought I won, and got so excited I jumped up and yelled "I WON!!" (Oops, I goofed and the game wasn't over yet) That's one of our running jokes. The advice I can give to those who want to have people to play games with, is to take a deep breath, get out of your comfort zone and take that first step and find a group!

[opheliabedelia]

I've only recently gotten into board games with my girlfriend and as someone who just has a fair handful of diagnosed mental disorders and general lack of social skills - they definitely make me feel like I'm a part of something, even though I don't play with anyone else aside from her. Between learning of things like Etsy sellers selling custom upgrade minis, or 3D printed walls or stickers for wooden meeples and adding those to the games in my own collection or discovering some "well established" online house rules that can make some games feel more accessible or just more fun in general. It's definitely a feeling I've never gotten from any other type of community I've been in in the past. Absolutely a positive on my mental health <3

[danielhorton]

Let’s not forget the art of board games! They are aesthetically pleasing, cool to setup and the themes are amazing and can make us feel apart of a mission aside from normal life.

[Haldurson]

I've been living for years with clinical depression, a generalized anxiety disorder, as well as Trauma and A.D.D. Boardgames have been a godsend for me. And I currently do volunteer work for an NYS organization that helps, among others, people who live with mental health and/or addiction issues. I've hosted both board and on-line (Zoom) games for participants in this program, plus I host regular board game events on the weekend that I do separately from my volunteer work. And it's something that has spread through the organization by word of mouth, to the point that I keep getting new people. We all have different issues, but the days when I host those games really give me a natural high, because everyone always has a great time

One of the worst parts of dealing with mental illness is the tendency to isolate and stay home. But I try to give myself (and others) a regular event to look forward to so that we aren't isolating. Some people are still afraid to try to play a game, so I've made it clear that people can come just to socialize. I do try to frequently include very easy games that anyone can play. But some people come just to have lunch with us, and to socialize.