Playing computer games to de-stress yourself? Sounds counterintuitive to me. But then again, I get stressed just playing FreeCell. So what do you make of this?
According to Dr. Kathleen Hall and the Stress Institute, playing a game for five minutes can be just the thing you need to lower your blood pressure and get your body into a more Zen state. Dr. Hall, a stress expert, is working with Pogo, a casual gaming site that's aimed primarily at women. Pogo, which offers both a free site (Pogo) and a paid subscription-based site (Club Pogo.com) with a focus on multiplayer play, combines casino games, word games, puzzlers, and other easy-to-learn games with the power of community. "Women," says Beatrice Spaine, vice-president of Pogo marketing, "love to chat and bond while they play."
Hall, who Martha Stewart called the Queen of Stress, advises that games like the ones on Pogo.com can work wonders, increasing brain health and staving off depression, anxiety, and disease. At a recent Pogo event, Hall said that older women in particular could benefit by playing games that keep their brains fit. She told stories of triumph about women who thought of themselves as overweight, suffered from depression, had substance abuse and self-image problems, and more. They all believed Club Pogo contributed to their personal solutions.
Together, Hall and Pogo are launching "Take 5 To Play," a campaign to encourage women everywhere to pick up their mice and start playing games like Pogo's hits Poppit! and Word Whomp. As part of the campaign, you'll find Hall on the Pogo web site answering questions about stress that are posed to her by the players.
Pogo's not alone in the casual gaming space by a long shot. The casual category has been identified as the fastest-growing part of the gaming industry. Each has a different twist, though. Bonus.com is relaunching this month as a place for Gen X families to play together. It will combine family social networking activities with casual gaming and entertainment. PopCap, creators of popular casual games like Bejeweled and Zuma, want you to download their games and play casually by yourself, minus the social networking. What they all have in common is a belief in "better living through gaming."
I've said it before—I don't play computer games in my spare time (probably because I'm on the computer so much of my non-spare time). The thought of relaxing in front of my computer is right up there with relaxing in front of my dentist. For me, equating games with de-stressing is like Ponce de Leon equating Florida's waters with everlasting youth, but then again, maybe not. The number of casual gamers is just too high.
Maybe there is something to this notion of gaming to help you distress that I'm missing.
Set me right if I'm wrong. Does gaming help you cope with stress?
Source: Yahoo Tech
