It turns out FIFA is ideal for teaching mental health patients about resilience
It's clean, bright and open. There's colourful art on the walls, the lingering but not unpleasant scent of toast, a fish tank bubbling away at the front desk.
A mental health unit looks just like a run-down Travelodge. It's a quiet place for people to get respite from unfair, unstable, unsupported lives, somewhere to learn some sustainable coping strategies. I worked in this unique setting for quite a few years, and it was there that I learned how FIFA can build resilience.
I thought I already knew all about resilience. It had been drummed into me from an early age, from the magical resistance spell in Dungeons & Dragons to the resilience stat in World of Warcraft. It was intrinsic to card-battling and choose-your-own-adventures. Games had been teaching me about the need for a valid defense against the perils of the world, a magic suit of armour. I guess I hadn't been listening closely enough.
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