Video Games Saved my Marriage

Yes, you read that right. Video games saved my marriage.

Like many couples, my husband and I had communication issues. But over time, they seemed to get worse and worse. A few times, we’d discussed divorce but always decided that we wanted to continue trying to work it out.

My pain, both physical and emotional, was getting higher and higher by the day. I didn’t want this to be the end, but things just weren’t getting better. We were in the middle of another fight where we both felt very misunderstood.

“Honestly, I can’t keep this up,” I blurted out. “I just feel like my HP is trashed and I’ve blown through all my MP…”

“What?” he responded, his voice filled with curiosity.

“I’m all out of HP and my MP is running dangerously low,” I repeated, hoping it made sense.

He sighed. “I get that! I definitely understand!”

That was the beginning of the repair. When we used terms we knew from our games, things like hit points, mana, healing potions, etc., it removed the emotional charge. It was just information about our current status. No one felt emotionally attacked. Everything made sense like numbers on a character sheet.

From there, things got better. We were able to communicate and understand each other, probably for the first time ever really. Then, something interesting happened…

We started telling other people, and it made sense to them. They brought it into their relationships, and it helped them. General relationship help and self-help can be too woo for a more practically-minded nerd. But, if you put it in-game terms, it not only made sense but it could also be used. It could help.

The backbone of the relationship side of Running Westholme was born.