FYI: nice CNN story on SL

SL and autism:

http://www.cnn.com/2008/HEALTH/conditions/03/28/sl.autism.irpt/index.html

It's always nice to see good news about SL, thot I'd pass it on.
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Nice article, ty.

Awesome article Nika! TY! Both my children are autistic. I think my 12 year old would benefit greatly from the social aspect and creativity in SL when he gets a bit older.(teen grid of course)

Speaking of Autism. Are those kiosk I see really from Autism Speaks? I wanted to donate some lindens to it but I don't want to be just giving my money away to some random avatar who is not even affiliated. Also,does anyone know of any volunteer opportunities through them or a like company in world?

As an Aspie, I can say that SL interraction is easier than RL. I have trouble with the more subtle aspects of facial expression and body language - but in SL, everyone is restricted to my level. No one is assuming I can read their non-verbal cues since there aren't any.

I notice my older son takes a lot of language literally* and he has little to none concept of body language or facial expressions either.

*For example, I would tell him to "hold his horses" if he was being impatient and he would look around looking for the horse,lol. Kind of cute actually

How old is he? If he's exhibiting this behaviour beyond the toddler stage, I would definitely suggest having him in for tests.

Maybe he's part Vulcan. You know how pendantic they can be.

autistic child respounces to flashing light stimulations. They are draw to screans, monitors, tv etc...I know this because my little girl has autistic condition

He is 12. Well, this is one behavior he never grew out of. He has always been like that and it's doubtful he will change. He goes to a special school and is tested quarterly academically and physcologically(sp?).

He also sees his doctor,psychiatrist and a development specialist monthly,they seem to think it's normal behavior for a child his age with his level of Autism. I do have concerns of him reverting back to other repetitive harmful behaviors as of late,but that's a whole different subject.

Thank you for sharing this we me............Resently 1 year ago my almost 3 year( now) said to be experiencing autism. During this time I was wondering if i could continue be on SL because IN RL she sees me playing on the screen and i was told that this child might have "FITS" because of the light stimulation that causes their brain to overload.
This is real Life its not madeup of a drama.......But since this piece does hit me in rl i thought I tell my story now..............................

thank you again Nika for pointing me to this writing


Usagi

Oh, so he's alredy been diagnosed. nm then. I guess I should have read your posts more carefully. LOL

My four year old has to have OT for his sensory problems. He is very sensitive to lights,the sun. He can't touch anything that is not hard in texture...etc..Will not eat certain foods that have bright colors..

Do you have her in early intervention? My first was not diagnosed until he was 5, they had no idea why he couldn't talk or why he repeatdly banged his head and had incredible mood swings. It was not as common back then. Luckily I knew the signs the second time around and my second was diagnosed at 17 months. He will be four next month and is now talking the way a two year old would. Which is far better progress than his brother had at that age.

Sorry im rambiling...

LOL that's okay

These days there are many many studies on autism, many many new advances that might help us understand better how to retrain this child to live a better life as adults. My child has been going to one such school for about one year now. And she has improved so much that she might not have to return full time. But instead enter a normal school setting this coming april.
There is a big movent worldwide to understand this condition....UNC in the usa is the leader in this field of research of autism.........

what is special with my child is she is a girl. most are boys......So it was that much harder to understand and deal with because unreal she had it.....

They found out as i said 1 year ago..( read my post before this one. )

thank you for sharing

My children are pretty severe,so they will probably never be able to go to a normal school or live on their own. But the programs they are in are very helpful and have made a world of difference for them. it's amazing what a difference 9 years makes in terms of the way they treat Autism now. We had barely any options back when my oldest was 5.

Anyway back to the orginal question,does anyone know if these kiosk are the real deal?

In my case she is also speaking both japanese and english.........which for her caused a speach delay.....( another factor of autism)......She is pretty active and easy going at times. but last year it was very very hard.........

I looked into this a bit. The kiosk group is "Autism Speaks in Second Life", a separate group from RL "Autism Speaks". ASiSL was started Nov. 2007 by a well-meaning avatar:

http://daphnesdelights.blogspot.com/2007/11/designers-wanted-autism-speaks-in.html

and AS was started in 1994. I see no mention of ASiSL on AS's website, and could not find any accounting of the real relationship (if any) between the two organizations, other than Daphne's assertion that the two will be working closely together.

The picture is clouded further by the opposition in SL of various Autism protest groups, who do not feel that autism is a 'disease', or that research into genetic anomalies may lead to 'genocide', or that ASiSL is US-only; there has been much contention.

So, for myself, for autism I would end up doing what I usually do: if a charity in SL has a real-world arm, I give directly to the real-world arm, because that HAS to be more efficient. [If for no other reason than that I do not pay any fee to convert the donation to L$]. A RL donation also is less open to having funds siphoned off by random individuals on its path thru SL.

If a charity is SL-only (e.g. NCI or an SL museum), I give directly inworld.
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I have had a tiny bit of experience working with autistic adolescents (as a "para-professional" and I always found it very interesting. Thanks for this link.

Thanks for the info Nika! I already donate to Autism Speaks and several other organaizations in RL. I was just wanting to donate some extra lindens laying around in world. But I think I will refrain until I find some more legit info.


Usagi,he loves water NOW,but he didn't for the longest time. Bath time use to be a complete horror show!

Can I quote this part..................

There are (A-typical) cases and (Typical) cases of autism. As i said autism is a HOT type of study many many child psych are studies these days........ So its understandable that their is a battle between the two beliefs..........

My case OMG she loves water. floods..happen many times in my place

I am so happy this came out, i had this inside me for a year while on sl. But now seeing this exposed on sl really makes me feel good...........The though about leaving sl because of her condition almost caused me to leave. ( this is real no pretending, no drama just real life ! )

*bump* for night people who may not have seen the thread.