Superbetter

In going through a pile of magazines that had accumulated while I was in the hospital, I came across an old issue of Psychology Today from October 2015 and read the perfect article (applicable for many). In this article the author, Jane McGonigal, PhD, talks about  her program called superbetter, where she likens dealing with illness or life challenges to playing a video game. In her example, she reminds us that in any good video game you have the opportunity for power-ups that help give you extra strength to get you through whatever challenge lies ahead (picture the power pellets in Pacman that make him invincible to ghosts). In life we have the opportunity to look for Power Ups too: what things make you happier, stronger, healthier, or better? Identify those for yourself and know that you can use them for power-ups when things get tough.The author also points out that in any game, there’s typically a nemesis: what are the things that are blocking you: what things are preventing you from being the best you or the healthy you? If you want to get superbetter you can’t hide from the bad guys; you identify them and address them. Sometimes you play a multiplayer game and you identify allies who can help you progress through the game. Who in life helps push you forward?

The idea of superbetter really resonated with me because I like that idea of identifying what my power-ups are, what are the things that set me back, and who are the people that help push me forward and support me. I felt like this is relevant to so many of us not just people who are going through Illness but anyone going through a rough time. So I thought I’d share it with you in hopes that any of you are going through anything difficult can use this model and see if it can help get you through it. You can read more about it in the New Yorker online. Plus, although I haven’t tried it yet, it has also been turned into an app where you can actually track your real life play of the game, listing your quests, keeping tack of power-ups, etc.

And now, Thankful Thursday:

Meri

1. That Linda lent me the book The Samurai’s Garden. I enjoyed it much more than I thought I would.
2. Susan’s beautifully crocheted arm sleeves
3. That mom drove me to the store so I could already get my nieces and nephew their Chanukah presents. Done!
4. Lay’s Dill Pickle flavored potato chips

Sandy

1. thankful for finding a dentist here in Pittsburgh
2. thankful for having Mer back in the apartment with me
3. thankful for eating my own cooking