Topic: How Minecraft saved my life (it's long but I really want to share)
Anonymous A started this discussion 14 years ago#19,598
A little over a year ago, I found myself working a new job in a small computer manufacturing company. The work wasn't bad and I had been doing well there. Well enough, in fact, that I'd been tasked with a major assignment. I had to cover someone else's position while she traveled to visit her family in Russia for a month. I had two weeks to learn a new job from someone whose English was not her first language. I got sick and had to come into work very sick during training because each day was vitally important if I wanted to learn the job. In over a decade with that company, she was the only one who had ever done this job and she had never taken more than one day off.
Just after she left the owner of the company decided it was time to change to a new system. Everything I had been taught was now ruined because half of it didn't apply with the new system. We also discovered a major problem with the way we'd been keeping inventory for some processors. Basically the job that was already difficult became near impossible.
The month was one of the worst I've experienced. The stress was overwhelming to the point where I couldn't sleep or eat. I began getting panic attacks daily. I finished out the month and I was able to hand her position back to her without there being any major issues. But, my health had suffered in return. I was tattered. I ended up in the ER one night and sought out a therapist immediately after. I began taking medication to deal with the panic attacks. Things got so bad I couldn't hardly leave my home for fear of more panic attacks. I had to leave my job.
It was around this time I discovered Minecraft. I'd heard of the game before and I had been watching tutorial videos. By the time I made the purchase, I already had several crafting recipes memorized and I knew how to survive my first night. The day I bought Minecraft was the day the panic attacks got better. When I felt stressed or overwhelmed, simply getting on the game and branch-mining or exploring helped a lot.
After a couple weeks things had mellowed out. I was still having trouble leaving the house, but things at home were more stable. By this point, I was playing several hours a day and really getting the hang of it. I decided to try my first multi-player server.
For me, someone who had stopped all socializing, it was refreshing to find myself in a multi-player game like Minecraft. I couldn't leave my house yet, but I had no trouble getting out in Minecraft. I made friends, I made enemies, I made mod/admin in a couple of places.
I've just been hired for a new job I'm looking forward to it. I can leave the house easily and driving is enjoyable again. The panic attacks are minimal and I'm off meds. My therapist obviously helped a lot, as did my husband and the medications I took in the beginning. But, I know that the process would have taken longer if I didn't have this game.
So thank you Minecraft. Thank you Mojang. Thank you r/minecraft. I owe you guys.
tl;dr- Minecraft helped me deal with my panic attacks, stress and agoraphobia.
Anonymous A (OP) double-posted this 14 years ago, 1 hour later[^][v]#321,699
It was a long road and I'm glad I'm through the thick of it. Now I have several tools in my arsenal for handling these issues and Minecraft (and a few other games) are definitely among those tools.
I have always liked going to games as a way of relaxing or winding down. But I think Minecraft is particularly good for me when dealing with stress. The repetition of some actions and being able to be creative seem to work well together. Seeing a project to fruition is also rewarding. So is finding diamonds.
Anonymous A (OP) triple-posted this 14 years ago, 3 minutes later, 1 hour after the original post[^][v]#321,700
Minecraft isn't a magical drug that made me suddenly better. What it did was provide a comfortable, stimulating way for me to calm down and get the panic attack in check. One of the things about panic attacks is that increased frequency and duration can have major implications later down the road. Agoraphobia is, largely, a phobia about getting panic attacks and not being able to take care of it. Being able to reduce the number of panic attacks or the intensity of them can go a long way towards regaining the life you were used to.
I suppose you could call it a coping mechanism though. But you have to consider the fact that there are such things as positive coping mechanisms. It would be unnatural for me to deal with these life changing panic attacks and not want to find a way to deal, or cope, with them, wouldn't it? Your message seems to imply that having a way to cope is a bad thing. It really shouldn't be. Any behavioral therapist will tell you that relaxation techniques can play a vital role in conquering the attacks.
Anonymous A (OP) quadruple-posted this 14 years ago, 1 minute later, 1 hour after the original post[^][v]#321,701
Minecraft seems to be one of those things that needs to be experienced. I have tried explaining the game to people and I end up sounding like an idiot because there is no really good way to really, fully explain it. You can get down the main points. You can tell them about the mechanics, crafting, mining, etc. But, there seems to be more to it.
Anonymous A (OP) quintuple-posted this 14 years ago, 1 minute later, 1 hour after the original post[^][v]#321,702
My new job is working with elementary school kids. When I got the job, I thought to myself that it would be a bit like being supervising a minecraft server. Obviously not everyone is that young, but I think the potential for chaos and name-calling is still there.
Anonymous B joined in and replied with this 14 years ago, 4 minutes later, 1 hour after the original post[^][v]#321,703
@previous (A) > My new job is working with elementary school kids. When I got the job, I thought to myself that it would be a bit like being supervising a minecraft server.
Try working with autistic kids for the full experience.
dw joined in and replied with this 14 years ago, 3 hours later, 4 hours after the original post[^][v]#321,717
minecraft is stupd
Anonymous D joined in and replied with this 14 years ago, 13 hours later, 18 hours after the original post[^][v]#321,805