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In Person
Innovations in Mental Health Conference in Minnesota

Narrative, Play, and Participation: Table-Top Role-Playing Games in Mental Health Treatment

Kayla Roper, OTR/L
Rebekah Camacho, OTR/L
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Description

This event will explore the vital role of occupational therapists in facilitating tabletop role-playing game (TTRPG) groups as a therapeutic intervention in mental health care. Attendees will learn how therapists can effectively grade activities, adapt gameplay, manage group dynamics, and process therapeutic experiences to enhance skill generalization among participants.

We will delve into the core therapeutic mechanisms of TTRPGs, including:

• narrative identity

• role experimentation

• social problem-solving

• emotional regulation

• perspective-taking, highlighting their significance in achieving mental health treatment goals.

Additionally, the session will present TTRPGs as an evidence-based experiential group intervention, demonstrating how they foster experiential learning by providing clients with opportunities to practice interpersonal skills, distress tolerance, executive functioning, and emotional expression in a structured yet flexible environment

Learning Objectives

Participants will be able to:

  • Describe the occupational therapist’s role in facilitating TTRPG groups, including activity grading, adaptation, group dynamics management, and therapeutic processing to support skill generalization.

  • Identify core therapeutic mechanisms of TTRPGs (e.g., narrative identity, role experimentation, social problem-solving, emotional regulation, and perspective-taking) and their relevance to mental health treatment goals.

  • Describe tabletop role-playing games as an evidence-based experiential group intervention in mental health care.

  • Explain how TTRPGs support experiential learning by allowing clients to practice interpersonal skills, distress tolerance, executive functioning, and emotional expression in a structured yet flexible group environment.

Educational Goal

The goal of this presentation is to educate and empower therapists and mental health professionals on the effective use of tabletop role-playing games (TTRPGs) as a therapeutic intervention.

Target Audience

  • Addiction Professional
  • Counselor
  • Marriage & Family Therapist
  • Psychologist
  • Social Worker

Presenters

Kayla Roper, OTR/L
Kayla Roper, OTR/L is a licensed occupational therapist specializing in adult mental health within Partial Hospitalization (PHP) and Intensive Outpatient (IOP) settings at PrairieCare. She has led the development of adult OT programming at her site, designing occupation-based group interventions that support executive functioning, emotional regulation, and functional independence. Kayla is passionate about helping adults reconnect with meaningful roles and daily routines during periods of mental health destabilization. Her work integrates evidence-informed practice with creative, engagement-driven approaches that foster collaboration, skill development, and sustainable recovery.
Rebekah Camacho, OTR/L
Rebekah Camacho, BSN, MS, OTR/L is a clinical services leader with 15 years of experience in healthcare, whose work centers on expanding evidence-informed, occupation-based interventions within behavioral health systems. She currently serves as the Lead Occupational Therapist at PrairieCare, where she designed and implemented the organization’s first occupational therapy service line across eight sites and 14 programs serving youth and adults. Her leadership focuses on clinical infrastructure development, interdisciplinary integration, and scalable models of care delivery within complex mental health environments. Rebekah specializes in the therapeutic application of tabletop role-playing games (TTRPGs) as structured, occupation-centered interventions that support narrative identity development, executive functioning, emotional regulation, social participation, and skill generalization. As a Certified Therapeutic Game Master through Geek Therapeutics, she applies principles of activity analysis, therapeutic grading, and group process facilitation to operationalize gameplay into measurable clinical outcomes. In addition to her clinical innovation work, Rebekah contributes to systems-level cultural advancement as a member of Newport Healthcare’s Inclusion & Belonging Advisory Council. Her work emphasizes equitable access to meaningful participation, culturally responsive care models, and the intentional cultivation of belonging within treatment environments. She holds a Master of Science in Occupational Therapy from Columbia University and brings a dual clinical foundation in nursing and occupational therapy to her interdisciplinary approach to mental health care.

Financially Sponsored By

  • Newport Healthcare