Mischa livestreams to a social media site called “Twitch” and it is full of live streamers doing a wide range of activities. The site has different categories; like gaming, artwork, chatting, jewelry, music, vlogging, etc. Mischa streams Thursday, Friday, Saturday & Sunday from 12 pm to 5 pm est.
Mischa primarily does game while talking to her viewers. She also discusses LGBTQ+ issues and interests frequently, as both she and most of her viewers are a part of that community. Mischa’s online screen name, Mischacrossing, is based on the classic Nintendo franchise. She fondly remembers her humble beginnings enjoying the game before beginning her streaming career.
“[M]y username on Twitch is [a] play on words of my favorite Nintendo franchise of all time and what has gotten me into streaming in the first place. [T]hanks to the good old days while I was on Tumblr and I was, and still am, obsessed with a game called Animal Crossing.”
Back between 2013 and 2015, Mischa would spend hours on Tumblr looking at things on Animal Crossing forums to get inspiration for the respective games with her friend Sarah. Sarah was also a streamer of the game before Mischa, which led to the latter's initial interest. Mischa then began live streaming herself on YouTube in 2016 when the feature launched on the site. From there, her community seemed to grow overnight. Many people were able to meet and bond over their mutual love of Animal Crossing thanks to Mischa’s work. However, as the years have gone by, she has delved into different games, expanding her horizons as a streamer, and expanding her community. Much has changed since 2016, but Mischa is much the same. Streaming does not feel like a chore to her still.
“[S]ince I have had this job, it is easy to get burned out and tired of playing games you’ve played over and over again online, but the thing that will never get boring is the amazing friendships and conversations I get to have with my friends on a weekly basis.”
Dyllon, who is also a live streamer on Twitch, speaks about his lifelong struggles with mental health. Dyllon live streams from Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday 1 pm to 8 pm cst. He helps his followers feel less alone with their struggles and encourages people to get professional help with their issues because he is not a licensed professional. He highlights the more taxing aspects of such a personal profession:
“Streaming is very fun when you don’t think about the number of people who follow you but it’s always in the back of your mind nagging you to do your absolute best. It is kind of a double-edged sword. If you focus on your numbers and they are normally low, you will start to doubt yourself. If you notice your numbers are high, you will feel the need to overwork yourself and not focus on what you want to do. It’s a complicated cycle.”
In comparison to Mischa, his desired area of discussion can be more challenging, though he still does stream his favorite game. Dyllon is a part of an online community that has a group of people talking about mental health just like him. They are called “HeartSupport.”
“The reason my main focus is mental health is not only because I love helping people, I just want to share my experiences to people and let them know they’re not alone and it’s an integral part of my life that I am struggling with. It’s the only personal part of my life I like sharing because the rest of it is just downright depressing.”
He began to tell me how he got into streaming as well, he mentioned that he knows the same Sarah Mischa knows, Sarah was also the one who got him into streaming. He used to be in her evening streaming almost every night she streamed, but sadly he does not see her as much because of differing schedules. Back in the day, his username on twitch was different from what it is now; it was Gooperatives (pronounced *Go- Operatives) Everyone; me included called him Goop. But around the same time, I discovered his streams, he changed his username to fit his real name, DyllonKG.
“the reason I changed my name from Gooperatives to DyllonKG was because the name just didn’t suit me anymore and back then when I had that username, I was more abrasive, brash and very rude. But over the years I have learned to be patient with other people and myself. More importantly, I have learned to trust people more and let people in.”
Throughout all the years I have known Mischa and Dyllon, they have been extraordinary individuals. They have remained true to themselves and continued to cultivate their own communities and have done wonderful things online and offline. I have learned more about myself when I am with them. I am one of the people that Dyllon has helped when it comes to talking about mental health struggles, he has given me so much coping mechanisms and good one-on-one talks about how I am not alone and much more. Mischa and her community have helped me feel less alone as well! All the people in are just like me they are part of the LGBTQ+ community and I can relate to what they are going through. I love my chosen family.