Understanding before action.

Helping parents and professionals understand what gaming can mean to young people, why it can matter so much to them, and how adults can respond in a more informed and constructive way.

For parents and carers For professionals

Playing on Your Mind is not anti-gaming, and it is not about telling parents to remove boundaries. It is about understanding the person behind the behaviour before deciding what action is appropriate.

The approach

A therapeutically informed way of looking at gaming and wellbeing, for adults who may not be part of the gaming world themselves.

Understanding before action

Adults often move quickly towards rules, restrictions and consequences. The first step here is to understand what is actually happening.

The person before the behaviour

Gaming behaviour is not necessarily the whole story. There is a young person behind it, and they are worth being curious about.

Boundaries still matter

Understanding a young person's relationship with gaming does not mean unlimited gaming or removing parental boundaries. It means making more informed decisions about them.

No judgement

Parents are not the problem, and neither are young people. This is a space for working things out together, not for assigning blame.

Gaming can mean something

For a young person, time spent gaming can involve far more than what's on the screen.

Friendship
Belonging
Identity
Autonomy
Creativity
Escape
Connection
Exploration
Community

Every young person's relationship with gaming is different. For some it brings real benefits, for others it can also become a source of difficulty, and often it's a bit of both. Getting curious about what gaming means for your young person is the first step towards a response that genuinely fits them.

The questions we explore

What does gaming provide to your child?
What might it mean to them, and what needs is it meeting?
What happens when adults only see the behaviour rather than the purpose?
How can parents maintain appropriate boundaries while also becoming more curious?
How can professionals develop a more nuanced understanding of the young people they work with?

The focus is not on gaming addiction, screen-time policing, online safety scare stories, technical gaming advice or gaming in the classroom. It is on the young person, and on the adults who care about them.

Who I work with

Playing on Your Mind supports two groups of adults: the parents and carers of young people who game, and the professionals who work alongside them.

Parents and carers

You might be here because gaming has become a source of tension at home. Perhaps you:

find that gaming has become a regular cause of conflict
don't fully understand why it matters so much to your child
aren't sure how best to respond
feel like too many conversations end up in a negative place

That's a really common place to be, and it doesn't mean you're doing anything wrong. Workshops are a chance to step back, get curious and find a way forward that works for your whole household.

Professionals

For counsellors, teachers, pastoral staff, youth workers and others who support young people and want a deeper insight into gaming and its significance in their lives.

Gaming is part of the social, emotional and personal world of many young people. Understanding it better supports a multi-disciplinary approach, and with it better outcomes for the young people you work with.

Services

Interactive workshops for parents

Shared, collaborative sessions exploring gaming, household tension and how to respond with both curiosity and boundaries.

Parents and carersOnline and in person

1:1 integrative therapy

Individual integrative therapy for parents, and for young people aged 11 and over.

Parents and young people 11+Online

Psycho-educational workshops for schools

Workshops for school organisations, for staff and for students.

School staff and studentsIn person, in and around Berkshire

CPD events for counsellors

Continuing professional development exploring gaming through a therapeutic lens.

CounsellorsOnline

The 1:1 work is the only therapy offered. Workshops are a shared space to explore these questions together, led by my own personal and professional knowledge and experience.

A selection of workshops

For parents

Stop the War on Wi-Fi

A two-and-a-half-hour interactive session exploring household tension relating to young people and gaming.

Counselling CPD

Gaming: a therapeutic lens

For counsellors wanting a deeper understanding of gaming in the lives of the young people they work with.

For school staff

Belonging, identity and gaming

For educators wanting to understand more about young people and the digital world of gaming. With an in-depth look at belonging, identity and autonomy.

Hi, I'm Georgie

I'm an experienced integrative counsellor with a particular interest in young people and the digital gaming world. I started my own gaming journey all the way back in 2005, and I wanted to create a space where adults can build their knowledge of the hobby.

In my work, I help others understand the reasons behind adolescent behaviours, and how they can work together to create healthier households. My work with professionals is about building a multi-disciplinary approach, so that young people are better understood and given the best outcomes.

My flagship parent workshop, Stop the War on Wi-Fi, draws on a lot of my own experience, including the router going missing when my parents thought things were getting too much.

I'm not anti-gaming, and I'm not pro-excessive screen time. I'm simply pro-communication, and pro setting informed, healthy boundaries that work for the whole household.

Georgie Cheeseman, founder of Playing on Your Mind

Get in touch

To ask about workshops, CPD, school sessions or 1:1 therapy, or just to follow along, you can find Playing on Your Mind here.

Instagram @playingonyourmind LinkedIn

Need help right now? Playing on Your Mind is not an emergency service and can't respond to urgent messages. If someone is in immediate danger, call 999. For urgent mental health support, call NHS 111 and choose the mental health option. Samaritans are available day and night on 116 123, and young people can call Childline free on 0800 1111.