Mental health warning for video games.

Playing video games can be a lot of fun and some make a living out of playing them, but there is a darker side to playing some games, my husband and I have been watching YouTube gamers and one particular game actually had the player in tears, it was quite hard and disturbing to watch, another YouTube gamer was telling his viewers that the game was really effecting him and he had to stop, seeing this got me thinking about the kind of warnings that should be on some of these games, some games do have health warnings for conditions like epilepsy which is extremely important, however for some games there should be a mental health warning, if the game makes you cry or effects you in a negative way then you should really stop playing, or at least have a break from it.

Ok so here is some advice for gamers and parents.

If your finding the game content hard to watch or listen to, if it's triggering something in you then just stop playing instantly, and do something calming or relaxing and do something you enjoy.

If the game is playing on your mind after playing it, again try to do something that will relax you, find a distraction, listen to music or watch your favourite film, you need to take yourself out of that mindset.

Tell someone how the game made you feel, it's important that you share your feelings about it, if nobody knows that some games can be damaging to mental health then no one can help, so please tell someone.

Its important to distance yourself from the game and the characters in the game try to disassociate yourself from it, if you immerse yourself into a game that could potentially be damaging then you could be harming your mental state without even knowing, it's essential that you go into a game with a clear head.

If you know yourself well and you know that a particular game could potentially effect you, then please just don't play it, it's not worth risking your mental wellbeing for it.

For parents.

Always check any warnings on the games, and the age rating before buying the game, also ask around and see of you think the game is suitable for your child, you know their personality and you know if the game will be dangerous for them or not.

Allow them game time but try to limit it so that their not playing for a long period of time which is how they can become immersed in the game and possibly get attached to the characters in the game.

Keep the console downstairs and not in their rooms, this will allow them to distance themselves from it and you can allocate the game time as gaming can also become addictive which is also an issue.

I'm not in anyway saying that gaming is bad, I love watching gaming youtubers, I just think people need to be aware of the potential dangers some games can have on mental health, I think it would be amazing if gaming companies could put a mental health warning on some of their games, but ultimately you know you, you know if you will get effected or not.

I really hope you found this article helpful or useful, happy gaming, stay safe. X

Alexandra Denman. Psychotherapy practitioner.