Michelle Nogueira
“Many of my gambling clients would stop gambling and then substitute with gaming.”
Michelle Nogueira is a Problem Gambling and Technology Overuse Counsellor at Homewood Community Addictions Services in Guelph, Ontario.
My personal experience in raising a 17-year-old “gamer” motivated me to add gaming disorder to my clinical repertoire.
With the surge in gaming and the tsunami of problems, I can’t help but be reflective on how gaming has changed throughout the years. Therefore, it is not surprising that helping professionals are having to address this issue in our communities.
To enhance my knowledge and skills I attended multiple training sessions, but I always felt like something was missing.
The INTENTA Gaming Disorder Clinical Training was outstanding. It was seamless, well-researched, and based on best practices. It took a deep dive into the fascinating world of gaming and I learned so much. The training increased my empathy for gamers and their families and provided a responsive road map to address gaming. For the first time, I felt like I understood the lure of gaming.
All of these factors were indicating a growing concern and my need to be proactive as a mother and as a clinician. In 2013, I co-authored a book My Parent’s Aren’t NOOBS! This heartfelt story for children (ages 5-8) and parents highlights the importance of video games with today’s generation of youth and promotes healthy video gaming habits. I wanted to offer parents preventative information and direction to help them navigate video games within the home.