most popular TTRPG, it has been the primary model. One of the pioneers of the therapy,
clinical psychologist Anthony Bean, Ph.D., is now CEO of Geek Therapeutics, a company that offers training programs and certification. And their clientele isn’t limited
to mental health practitioners — it also includes people from other professions. “About 30% of our students are
non-clinical,” says Alicia Figliuolo, director of education and training for Geek Therapeutics. “They include teachers,
Veteran Affairs people, Boys and Girls Clubs leaders, eating disorder specialists, nurses, and even corpsmen from the front lines in Ukraine, who use it to help soldiers process war trauma. “It’s a very holistic
30s — a demographic that tends to shun more traditional modalities, such as talk therapy or other forms of group treatment. “A lot of the folks who play in
our groups might feel intimidated or otherwise turned off by more traditional therapies, so we try to give them the opportunity to do it through a game that is fun,” Nation tells Newsmax. “Many of them already play D&D,
or are at least familiar with it, so it’s not as big a leap as trying other types of therapy.” While a smattering
FIGLIUOLO
pursuit because it allows individuals to feel as though they are managing their own therapy,” says Figliuolo.
NEW APPROACH This type of innovative psychological counseling couldn’t come at a more opportune time, as nearly one in four have a mental illness and three in 10 high school students report poor mental health, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Nation says D&D and other game-
oriented therapies especially appeal to young people — late teens to mid-
of scientific studies on TTRPG therapies demonstrate its potential, the fledgling field still lacks enough evidence- based research to make it widely accepted in clinical communities. But that could change as the therapy
continues to spread. “We’re still waiting for someone
to get the time, energy, and money to do that one bulletproof study,” says Nation, who also serves on the editorial board of the journal Board Game Academics. “But there’s already some research
showing that people have good outcomes from doing it.” For example, a 2024 study published in the journal Autism found that TTRPGs like D&D “can provide a safe space for autistic adults to engage in meaningful social interactions” and potentially
lead to “improved self-esteem.” Figliuolo adds, “I’ve had clients
on the spectrum who are socially inept, but by role-playing through their characters in tabletop games, they can interact more effectively and start to retrain, refocus, and shift perspective.” This type of therapy transcends
role-playing games. Almost any form of pop culture can be a vehicle, ranging from video games to Wordle, say experts. “Video games like Minecraft create
a lot of stress, so a therapist can figure out where the client’s stress points are and help them properly manage that stress in the video game and then relate that to stress in the real world,” explains Figliuolo. “With Wordle, you have to deal
with frustration tolerance. We often use it as a warmup with individuals who have ADHD. We work on focus to build momentum before tackling emotional issues,” Figliuolo adds. It also transcends generations, as
baby boomers and younger or older groups are into gaming or some other form of pop culture. The therapy can potentially work with almost any way of storytelling. “The foundation of humanity
is built on stories that have been passed along through the generations, whether written down or told,” Figliuolo tells Newsmax. “Games like D&D are another way of creating stories, and they reflect humanity in personalized ways that can be therapeutic.”
People with OCD tend to get flustered by uncertainty and act compulsively in a bid to establish a sense of order.
can more easily express them through a character and even share their feelings with the group. They can also work through their “triggers” by having their character
overcome them in the game. Obsessive-Compulsive
Disorder (OCD). People with OCD tend to get flustered by uncertainty and act compulsively in a bid to
establish a sense of order. In D&D, the characters’ fates are decided by the roll of dice, which can help players learn to accept, and deal with, the randomness of life.
OCTOBER 2025 | NEWSMAX MAXLIFE 79
WOMAN/LSOPHOTO©ISTOCK
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