Therapeutic Gaming with Zoe Van Kirk, LCMHCA
Therapeutic gaming, or TTRPG (Tabletop Role-Play Gaming) Therapy is a research-backed form of therapy where a licensed clinician uses digital & table-top games intentionally to support mental health.. It serves kids, teens, and adults who may struggle with anxiety, trauma, emotional regulation, social skills, motivation, or engagement in traditional talk therapy. Guided by established psychological frameworks, therapeutic gaming turns play into purposeful treatment, building real-world skills, insight, and resilience in a way that’s both clinically sound and deeply engaging.
Zoe is a licensed therapist and a Certified Therapeutic Game Master through Geek Therapeutics, which means she is trained to use tabletop role-playing games (like Dungeons & Dragons) as an intentional, evidence-based, clinically grounded therapy
Roll for Resilience
A 12-week therapy group for adults with complex trauma, anxiety, depression and relationship struggles to build connection, resilience & self-agency through a collaborative Dungeons & Dragons story-telling.
Snacks & beverages provided!
Everything you need to know about Roll for Resilience
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Therapeutic Game Masters like Zoe use story, imagination, and character-based play to explore real-life themes such as identity, boundaries, communication, confidence, emotions, and relationships. The game provides a safe, structured space to try new roles, make choices, and notice patterns, all while staying grounded in your therapy goals.
Zoe specializes in trauma therapy and facilitates TTRPG therapy in a way that is safe, empowering, and client-centered, allowing clients to pause, step back, or process traumatic experiences at their own pace
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By practicing communication, decision-making, and problem-solving in a safe, imaginative space, clients can develop skills, self-awareness, and confidence that carry over into the real world. Zoe intentionally bridges in-game decisions to real-life situations, helping clients apply what they learn outside of sessions. Skills practiced in play are reinforced through reflection and real-world exercises.
Emerging research suggests that TTRPGs), when used intentionally in therapeutic settings, can support mental health a variety of capacities. This happens through a process called psychological bleed, which is the process by which someone’s aspirational attributes in a character begin to come out in real life scenarios outside of game-play.
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Studies and clinical literature highlight the benefits of structured role-play and narrative-based interventions for increasing engagement, fostering agency, and creating psychological distance that can make difficult topics feel safer to explore. Zoe intentionally emphasizes evidence-informed, research-based application of TTRPGs within therapy, combining experiential play with established therapeutic frameworks like CBT, ACT, and trauma-informed care.
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Everyone at the table gets a say in how the story unfolds based on the group consent checklist, the “X” card and the “rule of cool.” All which is explained during session Zero.
Participants develop a mutual invested interest in each other, their characters and their out-of-character selves. This camaraderie, trust and cohesion is powerful. It’s also the fuel that forwards the story into deeper domains safely.