From crossword and Sudoku to puzzle phone apps and jigsaws. What is our fascination with puzzles? Newspapers have long used the draw of puzzles to attract readers. Wordle proved so popular, that The New York Times acquired it for their website. And other websites, such as LinkedIn, have also recently added puzzles.
Aside from their entertainment value, most people find it a means of keeping the mind sharp and a way to develop their ability to focus.
Suzy Fuller has a YouTube channel dedicated to puzzles. She offers her take on puzzle appeal, “I think puzzles help us in a lot of different ways. Life is unpredictable and games provide structure. There’s a safe, controlled space to work through our problems. And when we catch it – when we understand that strategy, it can be hugely satisfying. And so, when we can take those successes and propel them into real life, it gives us that courage to go forth and understand ‘I know how to solve problems!’”
Known to her over 65-thousand YouTube channel followers as The Candy Crush Guru, Fuller walks and talks viewers through the most challenging levels. She thinks that part of the appeal of puzzles and games is that they provide an environment where it’s okay if you fail once in a while.
“Some people play Candy Crush and the stakes aren’t very high. It’s inconsequential if I lose this level. Nothing bad is going to happen. Like something might happen in real life and we have to be more particular about our choices. We can just play this as a release,” reasons Fuller.
While puzzles are designed to be fun or challenging, can an entertaining diversion become a distracting obsession? Yes, puzzle addiction is a thing.
Tina Jennings, who wrote a blog about it for her website Sol Sister Sport, says it can creep up on you, “When you’re doing a puzzle you’re just thinking about the puzzle. You’re not thinking about whether some orders gone out wrong or whether your friends are heading out. Whatever. You’re just not thinking about anything except the puzzles. So, I find that very meditative. So, even though a lot of people are going to say, ‘Oh, puzzles are so good.’ I was like, is it really? Because I really do it a lot! And so, I did start taking an interest about whether or not it was – if you could do it too much.”
Jennings points out that feeling you get from solving a puzzle isn’t just psychological, it’s also physiological, “The puzzle, I feel like it’s a little bit of a safe way to get that dopamine hit”.
And, she says, you may want to take notice of the telltale signs.
“Are you missing things that you should be doing? Are you not getting your dog out of the house for the walks? Are you avoiding people? You know, are you hiding out? How much are you hiding? Why are you playing your puzzles?”, asks Jennings.
If you can relate, Jennings provides a number of helpful tips in her blog, but says it basically comes down to a matter of time management, “It’s a matter of just having some self-control and say, yeah, I think that if I’ve done that for ten minutes, that’s enough. You know, you really need to look at how much time you’re spending doing that and, you know, how you want your life to look. Like how you really want to – what kind of things you want to include in your day. And if that’s getting in the way. I would try that and maybe if that didn’t work, maybe you need some more help.”
Everything in moderation – even puzzles.
