Top 7 Games for Children with Anxiety

Anxiety is the sensation of intense nervousness or worries about a particular event or outcome. Almost every child experiences anxiety at one point or another. But there are some who fail to conquer their fears common in the early years of childhood. Children who suffer from anxiety might experience worries, which can affect their everyday functioning.

Games and activities for children with anxiety can help them deal with the issue and get back to their daily routines. So, encouraging kids with anxiety to establish good habits and participate in relaxing activities is essential to assist them in conquering their fears.

Here are the most preferred seven effective games for kids with anxiety that will help children learn strategies to control their anxiety levels! These anxiety games help children learn how to manage their stress so that they are able to use these to cope with any difficult situation they experience while increasing their resilience to life.

1. Superbetter

SuperBetter is a game that takes the idea of combating anxiety and turns it into an interactive game. The app for mobile devices has been proven scientifically through a clinical trial as well as an uncontrolled, randomized trial in order to "build personal resilience," according to their website. Players are able to become heroes as they go through a series of IRL missions that are tied to their goals.

SuperBetter also gives players powers to help in quests and throws in some villains or ordinary obstacles to the equation. When a player performs an action IRL, it is possible to record it in SuperBetter in order to move in the game. Research has shown that even one minute each day can boost mental health over the course of one month.

2. MentalUP

The award-winning app MentalUP aims to develop kids’ cognitive skills like memory, logic, attention, visual, and language while reducing their stress levels with the funniest and most beneficial games.

What makes MentalUP that special? Millions of parents and teachers worldwide suggest MentalUP as one of the best educational apps that support kids’ psychological and physical health. With over 150 learning games for girls and learning games for boys and 240 physical activities such as PE games, gymnastics games and warm up games for kids, children can enjoy improving their physical and mental abilities anytime and anywhere they want!

3. Bejeweled Classic

Researchers have discovered that games with a casual theme are excellent for relieving anxiety. A study from the 2011 East Carolina University Study, funded by the developer of puzzle games PopCap Games, evaluated the mental health benefits of Bejeweled as well as other mobile games.

According to Kotaku, the study assessed participants from Bejeweled 2, Bookworm Adventures, and Peggle to conclude that the games helped improve mood and reduce anxiety. It's time to be a Bejeweled tile-matching expert!

4. Flower

Even though Flower was not originally designed as an aid for people suffering from depression or anxiety, the concept was designed to bring joy to players. The fundamental character of the game is calming and doesn't present any challenges to the players.

The objective is to keep the wind under control in a way that blows a flower across fields and gardens. If the petal is in contact with other flowers, additional petals are added to the group. A few fields that were dead before are revived upon contact with the petals floating in the air. Flower does not have a dialogue but only gorgeous and tranquil nature scenes that will bring you to a peaceful place.

5. Personal Zen

Personal Zen is another mental health-focused app that makes use of mind games in order to "break the cycle" of anxiety and stress. Similar to SuperBetter, Personal Zen has been the subject of numerous clinical trials and has been proven that it can "build stress resilience" through long-term use, according to the website.

The game is played on a field of grass with faces that are sad and a smiling face. If the faces vanish, players must follow the sparkling marks left by the smile. This will teach the brain to concentrate on the least threatening alternative.

6. Prism

PRISM is able to keep players away from the things that are causing anxiety. The game's minimalist design lets players open different geometric shapes and then put the pieces in the right places to reveal the shapes' center.

The game comes with 13 levels that keep players interested and focused on completing the task. There are no time limitations, so players can play for as long as they want. While playing, you'll hear relaxing music to help players relax and help reduce stress.

7. Stardew Valley

Stardew Valley, despite initially being released in 2016, quickly became an instant hit video game that was designed to help with anxiety. It's now an extremely talked-about relaxing game, and with the right reason! While many of the games discussed above target anxiety as a strategy, the beauty of Stardew Valley stems from the freedom it provides.

At first glance, it's possible that a game of this kind might seem daunting: farming to earn money, working out which varieties of seeds will yield the highest profits, and focusing on farming livestock and mining for gold are only some of the jobs you're likely to take on. However, the captivating location and characters, as well as the narratives, provide this relaxing game its depth. You'll be immersed in all the details that hours of your stress will pass in a flash.

Not to be overlooked is the soundtrack of the game, which is full of different themes for different seasons, locale characters, locations, and other things. This is a soundtrack that many players enjoy listening to in order to relax and go to sleep! While you can get the entire soundtrack on platforms such as Spotify or Apple Music, it's worth looking through the entire vinyl set.

Can Playing Games Reduce Anxiety for Kids?

A lot of us, even as adults, choose video games when we want to relax from a stressful time or just want to relax and enjoy an unwinding day. Certain games are enough to provide an escape from the many thoughts that run through the mind of an anxious person. Some are made to help reduce anxiety and increase mindfulness. Therefore, it's essential to react to the onset of anxiety in a manner that works for them.

Anxiety-related symptoms are also common among children and teens, with 10 and 20% of school-aged kids having anxiety symptoms. Children of all ages are able to benefit from mindfulness activities and meditation with the help of technology. The games can help your child learn to be more mindful and meditate.

Children can develop the ability to cope with anxiety by acquiring two important skills: calming down and resolving issues. Understanding how you can aid your child in managing their anxiety will help them become more relaxed. The games we've suggested can be beneficial to make your kids deal with stress more easily.

To Sum Up...

There's been extensive research conducted on the application of mindfulness-based stress reduction for the purpose of managing stress and reducing it, and according to the researchers, playing games has a positive impact on kids.

These are just a few of the games on mobile that are available to ease anxiety and make you relax for a set duration of time, but you can use regular methods such as stretching exercises for kids and outdoor activities for kids to tackle the issue of improving mental health. You may also discover other customized healthcare apps (not listed above) to meet your individual requirements or devise your own ways to manage your emotions.

Find the meditation activity that your kids enjoy and take control of their stress!