Whether you’re stressed due to the current COVID19 pandemic, a high workload, or something else, stress levels are rising with more and more people around the world reporting that they are suffering from heightened levels of stress and anxiety. If you often feel like you don’t have enough time to simply kick back and relax, playing online games can be an ideal way to wind down and help relieve high stress levels. No matter what kind of games you prefer, there have been several studies linking online gaming to lower stress and more relaxation. Some of the main ways that playing online games can help you destress include:
Focus on Something Else
Online games give you the option to focus on something other than what is stressing you out. They can be an excellent distraction from any stressful situations that you are not in a position to do anything about right now. Online games like the casino games at Play Live Casino give you the chance to shift your focus and thoughts from whatever is causing your stress to doing something more enjoyable. Play Live is the biggest casino in South Africa, offering a wide range of fun and interesting games to play including slot games and table games.
Relax and Unwind
With more people working from home now than ever before, the work-home interference can lead to more stress than usual. When you work from home, it can often feel impossible to separate your work life and your personal life as the lines become blurred. The last thing that you want is to find yourself thinking about work a lot even when you are not on the clock. Setting aside time to do something like playing online games once your working day is over can help you set limits and prevent your work life from interfering with your life at home.
Become a Better Communicator
While some online games are best played alone, others are designed to be played as part of a team. Taking part in these games either with your friends or with other players online can be a good way to improve your communication skills, which in turn can help to improve the way that you deal with stress. Collaborative games give you the chance to practice better teamwork and communication in a non-stressful and fun way, which can ultimately improve your skills when you are working together with other people in stressful situations.
Prevent Panic Attacks
Studies have found that high-focus online games such as Tetris can help to put you in a state of flow during a stressful situation, which can ultimately help prevent you from having a panic attack. In addition to this, studies have found that playing games like Tetris after experiencing a traumatic event can help to reduce the risk of developing symptoms of PTSD. One study found that a researcher who played chess on their smartphone after feeling a panic attack coming on was able to stop the panic attack from occurring and get back into a state of calm. If you’re feeling panicky, playing a high-focus game on your smartphone can divert your attention and help you ground yourself.
Find a Healthy Outlet
Some online games can involve violent gameplay, like shooting characters or hunting zombies. While violence in video games might have a bad reputation among some, with people worrying that it might encourage violence in real life, evidence suggests that these games might actually have the opposite effect. This is due to the fact that violent video games give you the chance to get out any feelings of anger that you are experiencing in a safe way that does not cause any harm to yourself or others. Studies have found that playing violent video games can be an effective strategy for anger management.
Be More Active
Studies have found that physical activity can be one of the most effective ways to reduce stress levels, and the good news is that there are many online games you can play that will help you get more active and encourage you to get moving more. Playing online dance games, sports games, and more can be a fun way to get moving and increase endorphins, which can help you feel better and reduce your stress levels. Virtual reality games are becoming a popular way to do this, allowing you to completely immerse yourself in the game and move around much more.
Whether you like playing action games, casino games, strategy games, or roleplaying games, there is lots of evidence to suggest that online and other types of gaming can be an ideal way to reduce stress, find a distraction from anger and anxiety, and help yourself feel better no matter what situation you’re dealing with.
Leave a Reply