Dismantling Stigma in Interactive Digital Literature

Hana feels 2

Friends serve as pillars of support in our lives, yet when dealing with mental health issues, we often isolate ourselves like Hana, consumed by the self stigmatization instead of seeking refuge in their understanding embrace. This withdrawal from friends only deepens the loneliness. Hana embodies this struggle in the game as she constantly turned down Jen when she tried to hang out with her by going on a double date. Hana also refused the advances of a man she was initially interested in. All of this climaxes when Jen realizes this and cuts Hana off , her reason being that she needed support from her friends and Hana was not providing it. As we see in the image, Hana didn't even try to fight for the friendship, only contributing half-baked replies to the conversation.This further deepens Hana's mental health struggles, reinforcing the cycle of self-stigmatization she had been battling. The absence of Jen's understanding presence becomes an added weight on Hana's already fragile emotional state, intensifying her internal turmoil.

This page has paths:

This page references: