Behind the Theory
Finding a Common Language
Any time there is an intrinsic difference in language, finding a way to communicate those differences in a way that everyone can understand is challenging. People who don't struggle with a mental or physical illness often have a difficult time understanding the depth or breadth of the experiences and limitations of those that do.
This experience was no exception for me. I struggled to find a label that made sense to me. On one side, people would suggest that I may be depressed or have anxiety, but when they would describe their experiences and I would think, "No, that's not me." On the other side, I would explain my struggles, and people found it difficult to relate and understand how it affected my life.
When describing "Why" wasn't possible
Sometimes, I could readily and accurately say what was wrong and why it was causing me to miss deadlines, fail to do chores, or operate below my typical baseline. Most times, though, there was no reason or the reason wasn't clear enough to articulate.
But the request for why was always there, even though answering "Why?" was often impossible.
Why are you struggling?
Why can't you make make dinner?
Why is making a phone call so hard for you?
It made me feel like there was something wrong with me. Shouldn't there be a reason why I felt the way that I did? I was left wondering why I was different, why I couldn't seem to figure it out, why I seemed to always fall short of lifes expectations. It would be years later, and years after I created the Mana Theory, before I learned the answers to those questions.
Asking the right questions
The inability to assign a why became a source of frustration in my relationship. Any time a no-reason low occurred, I would try to explain, he wouldn't really understand and get frustrated, and pushback on getting a reason would cause me to shut down further.
The conversation that created the Mana Theory was a bit of a fluke. Rather than asking why I was struggling or what was wrong — both questions that usually prompted our frustration cycle, my partner asked a new question. One that prompted an answer that clicked for us:
It’s like trying to cast a spell when your mana bar is empty.
Building the Theory
Most games, and especially open world and role-playing games (RPGs), have real-to-life components to them. For the sake of this theory, an RPG is any game where you play as a character immersed in a world. Some worlds are open and the story you follow is loosely present like Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild or Minecraft. Others are more prescriptive, where the character you play must complete the story in a specific order like Mario RPG or the older pokemon games. Game designers and writers use world building to create immersive experiences for you (and your character) to play.
The Mana Theory uses you as the playable character and the world around your character is quite like the world you live. The theory then builds on this world to apply game playing elements that allow us to talk about and discuss difficult or otherwise "unexplainable" topics in a way that is understandable and approachable. Drawing parallels between the real-world and game-world by using game terminology allows us to describe Executive Dysfunction, the Impossible Task, and even how decisions one day effect the next. That's what makes this analogy so special.
Understanding the Terminology
If you are unfamiliar with the terminology used in games, this is a quick primer on the definitions of some of the terms used in the theory and comics.
Class
A "Class" refers to a job or profession that defines the abilities a character can perform. Each class utilizes resources to perform abilities related to their profession.
Caster
Casters are a group of Character Classes that use (cast) magic. Most casters use mana to cast, hence why our characters look like wizards!
HP (Health/Hit Points)
Regardless of Class, every character has HP which tracks the characters overall health.
Mana (Resource)
Each Class has a resource. "Mana" is a resource used by a caster class to perform spells.
Status Effect
A "Status Effect" is any effect that affects status. This can be beneficial (buff) or detrimental (debuff). They are usually temporary resolved by time or removed by another ability. They can affect both Health and Mana.
Why Mana?
We like using mana as a resource because it carries no other meaning that might diminish the analogy. For example, rogues use energy, warriors use rage, and hunters use focus. Energy, focus, and even rage, all carry meaning beyond the world of gaming. And, that meaning is different from person to person, further diluting the effectiveness.
Furthermore, spells are more imaginative than the abilities of physical classes. The energy cost to throw a dagger is easy to conceptualize. The mana cost to throw a fireball is more difficult. Using mana forces us away from conceptualizing the energy and focus cost of daily tasks.