I use Minecraft as part of my rehabilitation

I’ve just recently started playing Minecraft and I’m loving it. In my ignorance, I used to mock it and did not understand the big fascination. To me it looked awkward. The graphics was chunky and the game was about digging? Why would anyone be interested in digging in a video game? I just didn’t get it and why did they not make it with decent graphics like in the other games. It was incomprehensible for me.

My interest in Minecraft started participating in Martin’s passions. He became fascinated with the blocky creatures when he was about 3 years old, after he pointed at them in a toy store. We showed him Minecraft videos on YouTube and bought some Minecraft figures. He loved it. He particularly enjoyed housebuilding videos. With glee, he showed them to his grandfather and explained what was happening on the screen.

I woke up having a stroke

In the very early morning hours of May 4 this year, I woke up while having a stroke in the cerebellum. I lost a lot of my strength and movability of my right arm and leg and my speech was impaired. I was at the hospital for a while and then in a rehabilitation center for a month. It’s been just over 4 months now, and I’m on my way to a full recovery.

During the time I was in rehabilitation, we downloaded the Windows 10 beta version of Minecraft and Martin played the limited version for a while, but for his 4th birthday, we bought the unlimited version and he was very excited. He enjoys playing in creative mode the most. My wife and I are a bit distressed that he loves using TNT and blowing things up and he enjoys setting buildings on fire. We joke about it and hope that he does not transfer this fascination into real life. He jumps for joy after stacking boxes and boxes of TNT and then blows it up and looking at the crater. He is so in the moment and so happy doing it. Usually he rebuilds the houses he burns down. Maybe he feels bad for the villagers. He can also redo and extend a house and call it his own, that he lives there. He has also advanced in gardening and he now sets up and tends to his own garden.

My remaining symptoms

The remaining symptoms that I still have, and which is very slow to fix, is the fine movement of my right hand fingers. The fingers are moving on their own accord, without my input, thus making typing and the use of a computer mouse a little challenging for me. The doctors ensured me that I will regain normal movement, but it will take time. They did not suggest any specific other than I should to use my hand and fingers as much as possible; hence, I play Minecraft as part of my rehabilitation. In Minecraft, I must constantly click, double click and right click. In addition, I have to be accurate and steady on my hand when firing my bow and arrow at the bad guys. It is good exercise for me.

Family event

It has turned into a family event. My wife is just as eager as I am. We bought a Minecraft book for beginners.

We read in it a lot when we play. We are now going to buy the complete series of books. We have plans for what we want to build and how to have the garden etc. We need to proceed further in the game and the book we have has been great, but we need to move on. Although I find a lot of info on the web, it is nice to have the books as reference both for me and for Martin. He is very interested it the book and likes looking at the pictures and asks us all the time about the words and what it says. We answer his questions about words and letters, but we don’t pressure him about reading at all. By doing what he loves, and us providing information to him, he will learn to read.

Martin and I take turns in playing, and we have a world in survival mode together. My wife sits next to me with the book and feeds me info on how to do things or she and Martin are my guards, looking at the screen, telling me where there are Creepers or Zombies or other nasty creatures.

For my rehabilitation, I could have been doing anything, for sure, but this way I combine being there for Martin and participating in his interests and training my hand and fingers at the same time, plus it is fun too.