Re: zoning out

[Guest guest]

She could be visiting her internal world. Is she a kid who fantasizes a lot? Growing up I had issues with paying attention in class because I was constantly daydreaming. It could be about something I wanted to draw or write, or whatever movie I was obsessed with.

On 7/3/10 11:49 PM, " ashley " <adramash@...> wrote:

Just curious,

My DD4 will zone out/space out many times throughout the day. It lasts anywhere from a few seconds to a half hour. She will usually lie down suck her thumb and twirl her hair or pull her hair or rake her fingers through it or just pat her head. She seems to tire out more easily than any other 4yo I've ever seen. She falls asleep at night within 5min of laying down and will sleep all night, then take a 1-3hr nap also during the day. Her doctor could give me no good explanation. Any thoughts? Behavioral? Physical problem? I just lucked out having a good sleeper?

[Guest guest]

You daughter may zone out due to sensory issues. She may feel bombarded by noise, lights, social issues, etc. and her way of dealing with the stress of all this is too zone out. She may also play with her hair as a way of coping. I think it is great that she can do this. She has figured out a way to deal with the stressors in her life.

And, she is probably tired from all these sensory bombardments....I know my son is burnt out at the end of the school day. He comes home and chills...zones out ..and doesn't want to talk.

Jan

"In the Midst of Difficulty lies Opportunity" Albert Einstein

Success is not measured by one's position but by the obstacles one has overcome to obtain that position

From: ashley <adramash@...> Sent: Sat, July 3, 2010 11:49:24 PMSubject: ( ) zoning out

Just curious,My DD4 will zone out/space out many times throughout the day. It lasts anywhere from a few seconds to a half hour. She will usually lie down suck her thumb and twirl her hair or pull her hair or rake her fingers through it or just pat her head. She seems to tire out more easily than any other 4yo I've ever seen. She falls asleep at night within 5min of laying down and will sleep all night, then take a 1-3hr nap also during the day. Her doctor could give me no good explanation. Any thoughts? Behavioral? Physical problem? I just lucked out having a good sleeper?

[Guest guest]

I would see a neurologist to check things out, including seizures.

Roxanna

Whenever I feel blue, I start breathing again.

( ) zoning out

Just curious,

My DD4 will zone out/space out many times throughout the day. It lasts anywhere from a few seconds to a half hour. She will usually lie down suck her thumb and twirl her hair or pull her hair or rake her fingers through it or just pat her head. She seems to tire out more easily than any other 4yo I've ever seen. She falls asleep at night within 5min of laying down and will sleep all night, then take a 1-3hr nap also during the day. Her doctor could give me no good explanation. Any thoughts? Behavioral? Physical problem? I just lucked out having a good sleeper?

[Guest guest]

We had thought that our son was having seizures with his staring spells/zoning out periods. Went through a lot of testing and time to learn he's spacing out. It's thought to be a part of his autism )from his doctors) and when I have asked my son about some of the episodes he's told me what he was thinking about--his latest obsession. The zoning out doesn't last too long and there are times when they seem to take over his day. Seems to be no rhyme or reason to the intensity imo.

On Sun, Jul 4, 2010 at 4:27 PM, julie1013 <julie1013@...> wrote:

 

She could be visiting her internal world. Is she a kid who fantasizes a lot? Growing up I had issues with paying attention in class because I was constantly daydreaming. It could be about something I wanted to draw or write, or whatever movie I was obsessed with.

On 7/3/10 11:49 PM, " ashley " <adramash@...> wrote:

     Just curious,My DD4 will zone out/space out many times throughout the day. It lasts anywhere from a few seconds to a half hour. She will usually lie down suck her thumb and twirl her hair or pull her hair or rake her fingers through it or just pat her head. She seems to tire out more easily than any other 4yo I've ever seen. She falls asleep at night within 5min of laying down and will sleep all night, then take a 1-3hr nap also during the day. Her doctor could give me no good explanation. Any thoughts? Behavioral? Physical problem? I just lucked out having a good sleeper?

    

[Guest guest]

My 16 yr old does the sucking the thumb or chewing her fingers, twirling her hair into knots. She will also seem to stare at you and not be there. I suspected seizures also, but can't a neurologist to test her yet. In her psych eval. some tests point towards her having neuro. symptoms that do need to be looked out.I will say the higher the stress the more likely she is to zone out and do her coping skill.

Just curious,My DD4 will zone out/space out many times throughout the day. It lasts anywhere from a few seconds to a half hour. She will usually lie down suck her thumb and twirl her hair or pull her hair or rake her fingers through it or just pat her head. She seems to tire out more easily than any other 4yo I've ever seen. She falls asleep at night within 5min of laying down and will sleep all night, then take a 1-3hr nap also during the day. Her doctor could give me no good explanation. Any thoughts? Behavioral? Physical problem? I just lucked out having a good sleeper?

[Guest guest]

I would suggest an overnight eeg which lasts 24 hours. They are the only ones that are really able to detect these space out seizures. Also my duaghter is 4 and she is very lathargic. She has autism and sensory processing disorder. You might want to read the book the out of sync child. It talks a lot about sensory overload and how children with a difunctional system cope differently than typical kids do. I highly recommend it I don't love reading every book out there but this one really helped me learn why my daughter was so sleepy all the time. Her body is underresponsive and there are ways to wake it up. Like trampoline, body brushing, chewing crunchy foods, deep pressure squeezes, and bear hugs to name a few.

Just curious,My DD4 will zone out/space out many times throughout the day. It lasts anywhere from a few seconds to a half hour. She will usually lie down suck her thumb and twirl her hair or pull her hair or rake her fingers through it or just pat her head. She seems to tire out more easily than any other 4yo I've ever seen. She falls asleep at night within 5min of laying down and will sleep all night, then take a 1-3hr nap also during the day. Her doctor could give me no good explanation. Any thoughts? Behavioral? Physical problem? I just lucked out having a good sleeper?

[Guest guest]

Yuppers...and zoning out could be a way of coping with all the stressors around them...sensory overload....it is a found way of coping ...

"In the Midst of Difficulty lies Opportunity" Albert Einstein

Success is not measured by one's position but by the obstacles one has overcome to obtain that position

From: <doyourecycle@...> Sent: Mon, July 5, 2010 8:50:34 AMSubject: Re: ( ) zoning out

We had thought that our son was having seizures with his staring spells/zoning out periods. Went through a lot of testing and time to learn he's spacing out. It's thought to be a part of his autism )from his doctors) and when I have asked my son about some of the episodes he's told me what he was thinking about--his latest obsession. The zoning out doesn't last too long and there are times when they seem to take over his day. Seems to be no rhyme or reason to the intensity imo.

On Sun, Jul 4, 2010 at 4:27 PM, julie1013 <julie1013@optonline .net> wrote:

She could be visiting her internal world. Is she a kid who fantasizes a lot? Growing up I had issues with paying attention in class because I was constantly daydreaming. It could be about something I wanted to draw or write, or whatever movie I was obsessed with.On 7/3/10 11:49 PM, "ashley" <adramashaol (DOT) com> wrote:

Just curious,My DD4 will zone out/space out many times throughout the day. It lasts anywhere from a few seconds to a half hour. She will usually lie down suck her thumb and twirl her hair or pull her hair or rake her fingers through it or just pat her head. She seems to tire out more easily than any other 4yo I've ever seen. She falls asleep at night within 5min of laying down and will sleep all night, then take a 1-3hr nap also during the day. Her doctor could give me no good explanation. Any thoughts? Behavioral? Physical problem? I just lucked out having a good sleeper?

[Guest guest]

What is he obsessed with?

On 7/5/10 8:50 AM, " " <doyourecycle@...> wrote:

We had thought that our son was having seizures with his staring spells/zoning out periods. Went through a lot of testing and time to learn he's spacing out. It's thought to be a part of his autism )from his doctors) and when I have asked my son about some of the episodes he's told me what he was thinking about--his latest obsession. The zoning out doesn't last too long and there are times when they seem to take over his day. Seems to be no rhyme or reason to the intensity imo.

On Sun, Jul 4, 2010 at 4:27 PM, julie1013 <julie1013@...> wrote:

 

She could be visiting her internal world. Is she a kid who fantasizes a lot? Growing up I had issues with paying attention in class because I was constantly daydreaming. It could be about something I wanted to draw or write, or whatever movie I was obsessed with.

On 7/3/10 11:49 PM, " ashley " <adramash@... <http://adramash@.../> > wrote:

 

 

   

Just curious,

My DD4 will zone out/space out many times throughout the day. It lasts anywhere from a few seconds to a half hour. She will usually lie down suck her thumb and twirl her hair or pull her hair or rake her fingers through it or just pat her head. She seems to tire out more easily than any other 4yo I've ever seen. She falls asleep at night within 5min of laying down and will sleep all night, then take a 1-3hr nap also during the day. Her doctor could give me no good explanation. Any thoughts? Behavioral? Physical problem? I just lucked out having a good sleeper?

 

   

[Guest guest]

Hmm...lot's of possibilities. Thanks for all your thoughts.

>

> I would see a neurologist to check things out, including seizures.

>

>

>

>

>

> Roxanna

> Whenever I feel blue, I start breathing again.

>

>

>

>

>

> ( ) zoning out

>

>

>

>

>

> Just curious,

>

> My DD4 will zone out/space out many times throughout the day. It lasts

anywhere from a few seconds to a half hour. She will usually lie down suck her

thumb and twirl her hair or pull her hair or rake her fingers through it or just

pat her head. She seems to tire out more easily than any other 4yo I've ever

seen. She falls asleep at night within 5min of laying down and will sleep all

night, then take a 1-3hr nap also during the day. Her doctor could give me no

good explanation. Any thoughts? Behavioral? Physical problem? I just lucked out

having a good sleeper?

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

The ongoing obsession is with Nintendo games. My son knows everything about their games and he makes his own cutting and pasting to make new ones from Super . This has been an obsession for a couple of years now and not letting up. For a while it was genetically modified foods. He saw me reading an article and asked some questions and learned it pretty well. He emptied all the food out of my kitchen (EVERYTHING) and examined each ingredient in each item. If there was a suspected gmo, he called the company to ask them if their product contained gmo's. He found a few that got past me and promptly threw them out.  I thought that was a neat obsession for a while until he started quizzing everyone that came into our home as to whether or not they ate food with gmo's and just wouldn't let up. I had to divert him all the time to other topics.

On Mon, Jul 5, 2010 at 2:12 PM, julie1013 <julie1013@...> wrote:

 

What is he obsessed with?On 7/5/10 8:50 AM, " " <doyourecycle@...> wrote:

     We had thought that our son was having seizures with his staring spells/zoning out periods. Went through a lot of testing and time to learn he's spacing out. It's thought to be a part of his autism )from his doctors) and when I have asked my son about some of the episodes he's told me what he was thinking about--his latest obsession. The zoning out doesn't last too long and there are times when they seem to take over his day. Seems to be no rhyme or reason to the intensity imo.

On Sun, Jul 4, 2010 at 4:27 PM, julie1013 <julie1013@...> wrote:

  She could be visiting her internal world. Is she a kid who fantasizes a lot? Growing up I had issues with paying attention in class because I was constantly daydreaming. It could be about something I wanted to draw or write, or whatever movie I was obsessed with.

On 7/3/10 11:49 PM, " ashley " <adramash@... <http://adramash@.../> > wrote:

     Just curious,My DD4 will zone out/space out many times throughout the day. It lasts anywhere from a few seconds to a half hour. She will usually lie down suck her thumb and twirl her hair or pull her hair or rake her fingers through it or just pat her head. She seems to tire out more easily than any other 4yo I've ever seen. She falls asleep at night within 5min of laying down and will sleep all night, then take a 1-3hr nap also during the day. Her doctor could give me no good explanation. Any thoughts? Behavioral? Physical problem? I just lucked out having a good sleeper?

    

    

[Guest guest]

At the risk of sounding preachy, I want to know why so many parents are letting their kids— especially kids with AS-- play videogames from such an early age. I see no problem with getting a 10 year old a videogame system, but anything younger than that I am a bit wary. My NT brother— who was playing Atari from age 4 or so— then got into classic NES, then SNES and Genesis... And it was a dental procedure for my parents to pull him away from them. Sometimes he got so frustrated that he hit the Nintendo, or he would break something. Then they would have to unhook the system and ground him from it for a bit. It really was an addiction. If I ever have kids (which I doubt), I might allow them before age ten to RENT videogame systems and games once a month if they beg for them, and perhaps let them OWN a system when they’re at least 10... But no younger.

I’m not saying that you’re doing that, but it just seems so many AS kids are obsessed with video games, and for a kid that young to be playing video games to begin with, a parent has to introduce them (especially if that kid doesn’t have any friends). Take the intense obsessions that AS kids have and combine it with the addictive qualities of videogames, and you have a lethal combination.

On 7/5/10 7:06 PM, " " <doyourecycle@...> wrote:

The ongoing obsession is with Nintendo games. My son knows everything about their games and he makes his own cutting and pasting to make new ones from Super . This has been an obsession for a couple of years now and not letting up. For a while it was genetically modified foods. He saw me reading an article and asked some questions and learned it pretty well. He emptied all the food out of my kitchen (EVERYTHING) and examined each ingredient in each item. If there was a suspected gmo, he called the company to ask them if their product contained gmo's. He found a few that got past me and promptly threw them out.  I thought that was a neat obsession for a while until he started quizzing everyone that came into our home as to whether or not they ate food with gmo's and just wouldn't let up. I had to divert him all the time to other topics.

On Mon, Jul 5, 2010 at 2:12 PM, julie1013 <julie1013@...> wrote:

 

What is he obsessed with?

On 7/5/10 8:50 AM, " " <doyourecycle@... <http://doyourecycle@.../> > wrote:

 

 

   

We had thought that our son was having seizures with his staring spells/zoning out periods. Went through a lot of testing and time to learn he's spacing out. It's thought to be a part of his autism )from his doctors) and when I have asked my son about some of the episodes he's told me what he was thinking about--his latest obsession. The zoning out doesn't last too long and there are times when they seem to take over his day. Seems to be no rhyme or reason to the intensity imo.

On Sun, Jul 4, 2010 at 4:27 PM, julie1013 <julie1013@... <http://julie1013@.../> > wrote:

 

She could be visiting her internal world. Is she a kid who fantasizes a lot? Growing up I had issues with paying attention in class because I was constantly daydreaming. It could be about something I wanted to draw or write, or whatever movie I was obsessed with.

On 7/3/10 11:49 PM, " ashley " <adramash@... <http://adramash@.../> <http://adramash@.../> > wrote:

 

 

   

Just curious,

My DD4 will zone out/space out many times throughout the day. It lasts anywhere from a few seconds to a half hour. She will usually lie down suck her thumb and twirl her hair or pull her hair or rake her fingers through it or just pat her head. She seems to tire out more easily than any other 4yo I've ever seen. She falls asleep at night within 5min of laying down and will sleep all night, then take a 1-3hr nap also during the day. Her doctor could give me no good explanation. Any thoughts? Behavioral? Physical problem? I just lucked out having a good sleeper?

 

   

 

   

[Guest guest]

OMG...in reality ...I think this is NEAT! Who knows...He may start his own gaming company one day...or design games...or he may move on to something else. Just think how smart he is. He called up the company! ! I love it. Kudos to him!

And, who knows, he may eventually move on to something else...

jan

"In the Midst of Difficulty lies Opportunity" Albert Einstein

Success is not measured by one's position but by the obstacles one has overcome to obtain that position

From: <doyourecycle@...> Sent: Mon, July 5, 2010 7:06:59 PMSubject: Re: ( ) zoning out

The ongoing obsession is with Nintendo games. My son knows everything about their games and he makes his own cutting and pasting to make new ones from Super . This has been an obsession for a couple of years now and not letting up. For a while it was genetically modified foods. He saw me reading an article and asked some questions and learned it pretty well. He emptied all the food out of my kitchen (EVERYTHING) and examined each ingredient in each item. If there was a suspected gmo, he called the company to ask them if their product contained gmo's. He found a few that got past me and promptly threw them out. I thought that was a neat obsession for a while until he started quizzing everyone that came into our home as to whether or not they ate food with gmo's and just wouldn't let up. I had to divert him all the time to other topics.

On Mon, Jul 5, 2010 at 2:12 PM, julie1013 <julie1013@optonline .net> wrote:

What is he obsessed with?On 7/5/10 8:50 AM, "" <doyourecycle@ gmail.com> wrote:

We had thought that our son was having seizures with his staring spells/zoning out periods. Went through a lot of testing and time to learn he's spacing out. It's thought to be a part of his autism )from his doctors) and when I have asked my son about some of the episodes he's told me what he was thinking about--his latest obsession. The zoning out doesn't last too long and there are times when they seem to take over his day. Seems to be no rhyme or reason to the intensity imo. On Sun, Jul 4, 2010 at 4:27 PM, julie1013 <julie1013@optonline .net> wrote:

She could be visiting her internal world. Is she a kid who fantasizes a lot? Growing up I had issues with paying attention in class because I was constantly daydreaming. It could be about something I wanted to draw or write, or whatever movie I was obsessed with.On 7/3/10 11:49 PM, "ashley" <adramashaol (DOT) com <http://adramash@.../> > wrote:

Just curious,My DD4 will zone out/space out many times throughout the day. It lasts anywhere from a few seconds to a half hour. She will usually lie down suck her thumb and twirl her hair or pull her hair or rake her fingers through it or just pat her head. She seems to tire out more easily than any other 4yo I've ever seen. She falls asleep at night within 5min of laying down and will sleep all night, then take a 1-3hr nap also during the day. Her doctor could give me no good explanation. Any thoughts? Behavioral? Physical problem? I just lucked out having a good sleeper?

[Guest guest]

Guess what...the whole world is addicted to games...to electronics...not just our children. LOL. I went to one of my son's concerts....everyone had their cells phones going...and not just talking...texting, playing games, etc. Our neighbor who sat next to us (and he is an adult)...watched live tv on his before the concert started.

Then I walked into Wally World last night..I have not been in that store in over 5 years...the young employees had weird haircuts, tatoos, all kinds of piercings showing and while I was waiting to return underwear that my sensory son refuses to wear (of course the 2 packages I brought back were not open...LOL)....2 employees had their phones out...one was texting and the other was showing photos to another employee.

So, it is not just our kids...it is the "world" today. Everyone wants to move fast and faster...speed ...and more speed. Kids today are lost w/out their phones which do everything inlcuding play games and go on the internet.

There are pros and cons to all of it...my son played videogames since he was 7...he is 14. He has an Xbox and Playstation...now he never touches the playstation...and the Xbox...hmmm seems he is playing it less and less. Xbox live is kind of neat because they can connect with other players all over the world.

Our children tend to obsess over things ...certain topics etc. Some will read, some will get into starwars or trains or WWII and some will love video games. It is addicting...yes...well for some...not me...but I look at it this way...if they don't play video games...then they will find something else to play on the computer or whatever...we just need to teach limits and boundaries and how to handle the limits. yeah right in my dreams...ha ha

I guess I would rather my son be obsess with Xbox rather than girls...lol...

Jan

"In the Midst of Difficulty lies Opportunity" Albert Einstein

Success is not measured by one's position but by the obstacles one has overcome to obtain that position

From: julie1013 <julie1013@...> Sent: Mon, July 5, 2010 7:17:53 PMSubject: Re: ( ) zoning out

At the risk of sounding preachy, I want to know why so many parents are letting their kids— especially kids with AS-- play videogames from such an early age. I see no problem with getting a 10 year old a videogame system, but anything younger than that I am a bit wary. My NT brother— who was playing Atari from age 4 or so— then got into classic NES, then SNES and Genesis... And it was a dental procedure for my parents to pull him away from them. Sometimes he got so frustrated that he hit the Nintendo, or he would break something. Then they would have to unhook the system and ground him from it for a bit. It really was an addiction. If I ever have kids (which I doubt), I might allow them before age ten to RENT videogame systems and games once a month if they beg for them, and perhaps let them OWN a system when they’re at least 10... But no younger.I’m

not saying that you’re doing that, but it just seems so many AS kids are obsessed with video games, and for a kid that young to be playing video games to begin with, a parent has to introduce them (especially if that kid doesn’t have any friends). Take the intense obsessions that AS kids have and combine it with the addictive qualities of videogames, and you have a lethal combination.On 7/5/10 7:06 PM, "" <doyourecycle@ gmail.com> wrote:

The ongoing obsession is with Nintendo games. My son knows everything about their games and he makes his own cutting and pasting to make new ones from Super . This has been an obsession for a couple of years now and not letting up. For a while it was genetically modified foods. He saw me reading an article and asked some questions and learned it pretty well. He emptied all the food out of my kitchen (EVERYTHING) and examined each ingredient in each item. If there was a suspected gmo, he called the company to ask them if their product contained gmo's. He found a few that got past me and promptly threw them out. I thought that was a neat obsession for a while until he started quizzing everyone that came into our home as to

whether or not they ate food with gmo's and just wouldn't let up. I had to divert him all the time to other topics.On Mon, Jul 5, 2010 at 2:12 PM, julie1013 <julie1013@optonline .net> wrote:

What is he obsessed with?On 7/5/10 8:50 AM, "" <doyourecycle@ gmail.com <http://doyourecycle@.../> > wrote:

We had thought that our son was having seizures with his staring spells/zoning out periods. Went through a lot of testing and time to learn he's spacing out. It's thought to be a part of his autism )from his doctors) and when I have asked my son about some of the episodes he's told me what he was thinking about--his latest obsession. The zoning out doesn't last too long and there are times when they seem to take over his day. Seems to be no rhyme or reason to the intensity imo. On Sun, Jul 4, 2010 at 4:27 PM, julie1013 <julie1013@optonline .net <http://julie1013@ optonline. net/> > wrote:

She could be visiting her internal world. Is she a kid who fantasizes a lot? Growing up I had issues with paying attention in class because I was constantly daydreaming. It could be about something I wanted to draw or write, or whatever movie I was obsessed with.On 7/3/10 11:49 PM, "ashley" <adramashaol (DOT) com <http://adramash@.../> <http://adramash@ aol.com/> > wrote:

Just curious,My DD4 will zone out/space out many times throughout the day. It lasts anywhere from a few seconds to a half hour. She will usually lie down suck her thumb and twirl her hair or pull her hair or rake her fingers through it or just pat her head. She seems to tire out more easily than any other 4yo I've ever seen. She falls asleep at night within 5min of laying down and will sleep all night, then take a 1-3hr nap also during the day. Her doctor could give me no good explanation. Any thoughts? Behavioral? Physical problem? I just lucked out having a good sleeper?

[Guest guest]

I know it’s not just the AS kids. As I said, my NT brother had an addiction to video games growing up. Sometimes my parents had to take the system away from him and put it in the closet. They truly regret bringing video games into the house. Anyway it indeed saddens me when I see 5 year olds with cell phones, etc. It’s just that AS kids have so much potential, it’s a shame when it turns out their obsession is video games instead of, say, trains or whatever. If the kid is interested in MAKING video games, I think that’s another story. Obviously one size doesn’t fit all and maybe video games are good for some kids with AS. It’s just that they can be a drug to neurotypical people, which is why I wonder some parents introduce their kids to video games at a young age.

On 7/6/10 4:52 PM, " rushen janice " <jrushen@...> wrote:

Guess what...the whole world is addicted to games...to electronics...not just our children. LOL. I went to one of my son's concerts....everyone had their cells phones going...and not just talking...texting, playing games, etc. Our neighbor who sat next to us (and he is an adult)...watched live tv on his before the concert started.

Then I walked into Wally World last night..I have not been in that store in over 5 years...the young employees had weird haircuts, tatoos, all kinds of piercings showing and while I was waiting to return underwear that my sensory son refuses to wear (of course the 2 packages I brought back were not open...LOL)....2 employees had their phones out...one was texting and the other was showing photos to another employee.

So, it is not just our kids...it is the " world " today. Everyone wants to move fast and faster...speed ...and more speed. Kids today are lost w/out their phones which do everything inlcuding play games and go on the internet.

There are pros and cons to all of it...my son played videogames since he was 7...he is 14. He has an Xbox and Playstation...now he never touches the playstation...and the Xbox...hmmm seems he is playing it less and less. Xbox live is kind of neat because they can connect with other players all over the world.

Our children tend to obsess over things ...certain topics etc. Some will read, some will get into starwars or trains or WWII and some will love video games. It is addicting...yes...well for some...not me...but I look at it this way...if they don't play video games...then they will find something else to play on the computer or whatever...we just need to teach limits and boundaries and how to handle the limits. yeah right in my dreams...ha ha

I guess I would rather my son be obsess with Xbox rather than girls...lol...

Jan

" In the Midst of Difficulty lies Opportunity " Albert Einstein

Success is not measured by one's position but by the obstacles one has overcome to obtain that position

From: julie1013 <julie1013@...>

Sent: Mon, July 5, 2010 7:17:53 PM

Subject: Re: ( ) zoning out

At the risk of sounding preachy, I want to know why so many parents are letting their kids— especially kids with AS-- play videogames from such an early age. I see no problem with getting a 10 year old a videogame system, but anything younger than that I am a bit wary. My NT brother— who was playing Atari from age 4 or so— then got into classic NES, then SNES and Genesis... And it was a dental procedure for my parents to pull him away from them. Sometimes he got so frustrated that he hit the Nintendo, or he would break something. Then they would have to unhook the system and ground him from it for a bit. It really was an addiction. If I ever have kids (which I doubt), I might allow them before age ten to RENT videogame systems and games once a month if they beg for them, and perhaps let them OWN a system when they’re at least 10... But no younger.

I’m not saying that you’re doing that, but it just seems so many AS kids are obsessed with video games, and for a kid that young to be playing video games to begin with, a parent has to introduce them (especially if that kid doesn’t have any friends). Take the intense obsessions that AS kids have and combine it with the addictive qualities of videogames, and you have a lethal combination.

On 7/5/10 7:06 PM, " " <doyourecycle@ gmail.com> wrote:

The ongoing obsession is with Nintendo games. My son knows everything about their games and he makes his own cutting and pasting to make new ones from Super . This has been an obsession for a couple of years now and not letting up. For a while it was genetically modified foods. He saw me reading an article and asked some questions and learned it pretty well. He emptied all the food out of my kitchen (EVERYTHING) and examined each ingredient in each item. If there was a suspected gmo, he called the company to ask them if their product contained gmo's. He found a few that got past me and promptly threw them out. I thought that was a neat obsession for a while until he started quizzing everyone that came into our home as to whether or not they ate food with gmo's and just wouldn't let up. I had to divert him all the time to other topics.

On Mon, Jul 5, 2010 at 2:12 PM, julie1013 <julie1013@optonline .net> wrote:

What is he obsessed with?

On 7/5/10 8:50 AM, " " <doyourecycle@ gmail.com <http://doyourecycle@.../> > wrote:

We had thought that our son was having seizures with his staring spells/zoning out periods. Went through a lot of testing and time to learn he's spacing out. It's thought to be a part of his autism )from his doctors) and when I have asked my son about some of the episodes he's told me what he was thinking about--his latest obsession. The zoning out doesn't last too long and there are times when they seem to take over his day. Seems to be no rhyme or reason to the intensity imo.

On Sun, Jul 4, 2010 at 4:27 PM, julie1013 <julie1013@optonline .net <http://julie1013@ optonline. net/ <http://julie1013@.../> > > wrote:

She could be visiting her internal world. Is she a kid who fantasizes a lot? Growing up I had issues with paying attention in class because I was constantly daydreaming. It could be about something I wanted to draw or write, or whatever movie I was obsessed with.

On 7/3/10 11:49 PM, " ashley " <adramashaol (DOT) com <http://adramash@.../> <http://adramash@ aol.com/ <http://adramash@.../> > > wrote:

Just curious,

My DD4 will zone out/space out many times throughout the day. It lasts anywhere from a few seconds to a half hour. She will usually lie down suck her thumb and twirl her hair or pull her hair or rake her fingers through it or just pat her head. She seems to tire out more easily than any other 4yo I've ever seen. She falls asleep at night within 5min of laying down and will sleep all night, then take a 1-3hr nap also during the day. Her doctor could give me no good explanation. Any thoughts? Behavioral? Physical problem? I just lucked out having a good sleeper?

[Guest guest]

What happens at age 10 that makes it suddenly acceptable?

It sounds to me as if you are taking your experience with your brother to mean it happens to everyone the same way. Like many aspects to parenting, once you are one, you tend to step off the imaginary "I would never!" and get practical. lol. But even so, video games are not evil or bad. Many kids do just fine with them and they also can be a way for kids with AS/HFA to fit in with the other kids and have something in common, something they are good at. Sorry it didn't work for your brother but when you are a parent, you have permission to provide any experiences you like with your kids based on your feelings and their needs.

Also, you mention kids with AS having problems with obsessing as if not playing video games will prevent that from happening. It doesn't. They will obsess over whatever catches their fancy whether video games are there or not.

Roxanna

Whenever I feel blue, I start breathing again.

Re: ( ) zoning out

At the risk of sounding preachy, I want to know why so many parents are letting their kids— especially kids with AS-- play videogames from such an early age. I see no problem with getting a 10 year old a videogame system, but anything younger than that I am a bit wary. My NT brother— who was playing Atari from age 4 or so— then got into classic NES, then SNES and Genesis... And it was a dental procedure for my parents to pull him away from them. Sometimes he got so frustrated that he hit the Nintendo, or he would break something. Then they would have to unhook the system and ground him from it for a bit. It really was an addiction. If I ever have kids (which I doubt), I might allow them before age ten to RENT videogame systems and games once a month if they beg for them, and perhaps let them OWN a system when they’re at least 10... But no younger.

I’m not saying that you’re doing that, but it just seems so many AS kids are obsessed with video games, and for a kid that young to be playing video games to begin with, a parent has to introduce them (especially if that kid doesn’t have any friends). Take the intense obsessions that AS kids have and combine it with the addictive qualities of videogames, and you have a lethal combination.

On 7/5/10 7:06 PM, "" <doyourecyclegmail> wrote:

The ongoing obsession is with Nintendo games. My son knows everything about their games and he makes his own cutting and pasting to make new ones from Super . This has been an obsession for a couple of years now and not letting up. For a while it was genetically modified foods. He saw me reading an article and asked some questions and learned it pretty well. He emptied all the food out of my kitchen (EVERYTHING) and examined each ingredient in each item. If there was a suspected gmo, he called the company to ask them if their product contained gmo's. He found a few that got past me and promptly threw them out. I thought that was a neat obsession for a while until he started quizzing everyone that came into our home as to whether or not they ate food with gmo's and just wouldn't let up. I had to divert him all the time to other topics.

On Mon, Jul 5, 2010 at 2:12 PM, julie1013 <julie1013optonline (DOT) net> wrote:

What is he obsessed with?

On 7/5/10 8:50 AM, "" <doyourecyclegmail <http://doyourecyclegmail/> > wrote:

We had thought that our son was having seizures with his staring spells/zoning out periods. Went through a lot of testing and time to learn he's spacing out. It's thought to be a part of his autism )from his doctors) and when I have asked my son about some of the episodes he's told me what he was thinking about--his latest obsession. The zoning out doesn't last too long and there are times when they seem to take over his day. Seems to be no rhyme or reason to the intensity imo.

On Sun, Jul 4, 2010 at 4:27 PM, julie1013 <julie1013optonline (DOT) net <http://julie1013optonline (DOT) net/> > wrote:

She could be visiting her internal world. Is she a kid who fantasizes a lot? Growing up I had issues with paying attention in class because I was constantly daydreaming. It could be about something I wanted to draw or write, or whatever movie I was obsessed with.

On 7/3/10 11:49 PM, "ashley" <adramashaol <http://adramashaol/> <http://adramashaol/> > wrote:

Just curious,

My DD4 will zone out/space out many times throughout the day. It lasts anywhere from a few seconds to a half hour. She will usually lie down suck her thumb and twirl her hair or pull her hair or rake her fingers through it or just pat her head. She seems to tire out more easily than any other 4yo I've ever seen. She falls asleep at night within 5min of laying down and will sleep all night, then take a 1-3hr nap also during the day. Her doctor could give me no good explanation. Any thoughts? Behavioral? Physical problem? I just lucked out having a good sleeper?

[Guest guest]

I'm not clear why obsessing over trains is better than obsessing over a game? I guess it depends on what you think is important - i.e. a personal preference.

Roxanna

Whenever I feel blue, I start breathing again.

Re: ( ) zoning out

At the risk of sounding preachy, I want to know why so many parents are letting their kids— especially kids with AS-- play videogames from such an early age. I see no problem with getting a 10 year old a videogame system, but anything younger than that I am a bit wary. My NT brother— who was playing Atari from age 4 or so— then got into classic NES, then SNES and Genesis... And it was a dental procedure for my parents to pull him away from them. Sometimes he got so frustrated that he hit the Nintendo, or he would break something. Then they would have to unhook the system and ground him from it for a bit. It really was an addiction. If I ever have kids (which I doubt), I might allow them before age ten to RENT videogame systems and games once a month if they beg for them, and perhaps let them OWN a system when they’re at least 10... But no younger.

I’m not saying that you’re doing that, but it just seems so many AS kids are obsessed with video games, and for a kid that young to be playing video games to begin with, a parent has to introduce them (especially if that kid doesn’t have any friends). Take the intense obsessions that AS kids have and combine it with the addictive qualities of videogames, and you have a lethal combination.

On 7/5/10 7:06 PM, "" <doyourecycle@ gmail.com> wrote:

The ongoing obsession is with Nintendo games. My son knows everything about their games and he makes his own cutting and pasting to make new ones from Super . This has been an obsession for a couple of years now and not letting up. For a while it was genetically modified foods. He saw me reading an article and asked some questions and learned it pretty well. He emptied all the food out of my kitchen (EVERYTHING) and examined each ingredient in each item. If there was a suspected gmo, he called the company to ask them if their product contained gmo's. He found a few that got past me and promptly threw them out. I thought that was a neat obsession for a while until he started quizzing everyone that came into our home as to whether or not they ate food with gmo's and just wouldn't let up. I had to divert him all the time to other topics.

On Mon, Jul 5, 2010 at 2:12 PM, julie1013 <julie1013@optonline .net> wrote:

What is he obsessed with?

On 7/5/10 8:50 AM, "" <doyourecycle@ gmail.com <http://doyourecyclegmail/> > wrote:

We had thought that our son was having seizures with his staring spells/zoning out periods. Went through a lot of testing and time to learn he's spacing out. It's thought to be a part of his autism )from his doctors) and when I have asked my son about some of the episodes he's told me what he was thinking about--his latest obsession. The zoning out doesn't last too long and there are times when they seem to take over his day. Seems to be no rhyme or reason to the intensity imo.

On Sun, Jul 4, 2010 at 4:27 PM, julie1013 <julie1013@optonline .net <http://julie1013@ optonline. net/ <http://julie1013optonline (DOT) net/> > > wrote:

She could be visiting her internal world. Is she a kid who fantasizes a lot? Growing up I had issues with paying attention in class because I was constantly daydreaming. It could be about something I wanted to draw or write, or whatever movie I was obsessed with.

On 7/3/10 11:49 PM, "ashley" <adramashaol (DOT) com <http://adramashaol/> <http://adramash@ aol.com/ <http://adramashaol/> > > wrote:

Just curious,

My DD4 will zone out/space out many times throughout the day. It lasts anywhere from a few seconds to a half hour. She will usually lie down suck her thumb and twirl her hair or pull her hair or rake her fingers through it or just pat her head. She seems to tire out more easily than any other 4yo I've ever seen. She falls asleep at night within 5min of laying down and will sleep all night, then take a 1-3hr nap also during the day. Her doctor could give me no good explanation. Any thoughts? Behavioral? Physical problem? I just lucked out having a good sleeper?

[Guest guest]

I think you are misunderstanding me.

I was SPECULATING about what I would do if I had kids. Of course I don’t know what I would do and I won’t until if I ever get there. As far as video games, I sure as hell wouldn’t encourage them. I’m sure some good things can come out of playing them, but the first few years of life are so critical so I would want to wait as long as possible before introducing them, if at all. I don’t know what the right age is for kids, and it probably depends on the person. But I sure as hell wouldn’t give them to a toddler. Ten years old is just an estimate.

You are right that a kid with AS will always be obsessed with something. You’re preaching to the choir on that one. Before I knew I had AS and I wondered why I had this insane obsession with The Addams Family film in 5th grade, I also wondered what would have happened if I hadn’t seen it. My mom said, “If it wouldn’t have been The Addams Family then it would have been something else.” Touché. However, the difference is that with a movie, it runs for two hours and it’s over. Fortunately, when I pursued my obsessions, they weren’t always in the form of watching the movie. I drew the characters, wrote stories about them, etc. So, yes, if the kid doesn’t get obsessed with video games, he’ll get obsessed with something else. That’s exactly my point. The thing is, if a kid is playing 12 hours of games per day and he is truly obsessed, taking his video games away would have been like taking Back to the Future away from me when I was 9: taking an obsession away is like taking a baby away from a kid with AS. As I said, with a movie it’s a matter of it running for 2 hours and then it’s over, and perhaps limiting the viewing for once a week. But with a video game, if the kid is obsessed with it, it’s easy for an inch to turn into a mile because it doesn’t have a set beginning and ending point. “One more level? Two? Three?” and so forth.

Do you guys get what I’m saying?

I’m not passing judgment on any of you (but I cringe when I hear about toddlers playing video games, sorry), but I think this is something that’s worthy of more discussion. Perhaps I’m wrong and video games may be good for AS kids, at least in small doses. In fact, it wouldn’t surprise me. But I would suspect large doses can be damaging. If this is not the case, in terms of large doses, please enlighten me.

On 7/6/10 10:59 PM, " Roxanna " <MadIdeas@...> wrote:

What happens at age 10 that makes it suddenly acceptable?

It sounds to me as if you are taking your experience with your brother to mean it happens to everyone the same way. Like many aspects to parenting, once you are one, you tend to step off the imaginary " I would never! " and get practical. lol. But even so, video games are not evil or bad. Many kids do just fine with them and they also can be a way for kids with AS/HFA to fit in with the other kids and have something in common, something they are good at. Sorry it didn't work for your brother but when you are a parent, you have permission to provide any experiences you like with your kids based on your feelings and their needs.

Also, you mention kids with AS having problems with obsessing as if not playing video games will prevent that from happening. It doesn't. They will obsess over whatever catches their fancy whether video games are there or not.

Roxanna

Whenever I feel blue, I start breathing again.

Re: ( ) zoning out

At the risk of sounding preachy, I want to know why so many parents are letting their kids— especially kids with AS-- play videogames from such an early age. I see no problem with getting a 10 year old a videogame system, but anything younger than that I am a bit wary. My NT brother— who was playing Atari from age 4 or so— then got into classic NES, then SNES and Genesis... And it was a dental procedure for my parents to pull him away from them. Sometimes he got so frustrated that he hit the Nintendo, or he would break something. Then they would have to unhook the system and ground him from it for a bit. It really was an addiction. If I ever have kids (which I doubt), I might allow them before age ten to RENT videogame systems and games once a month if they beg for them, and perhaps let them OWN a system when they’re at least 10... But no younger.

I’m not saying that you’re doing that, but it just seems so many AS kids are obsessed with video games, and for a kid that young to be playing video games to begin with, a parent has to introduce them (especially if that kid doesn’t have any friends). Take the intense obsessions that AS kids have and combine it with the addictive qualities of videogames, and you have a lethal combination.

On 7/5/10 7:06 PM, " " <doyourecycle@...> wrote:

The ongoing obsession is with Nintendo games. My son knows everything about their games and he makes his own cutting and pasting to make new ones from Super . This has been an obsession for a couple of years now and not letting up. For a while it was genetically modified foods. He saw me reading an article and asked some questions and learned it pretty well. He emptied all the food out of my kitchen (EVERYTHING) and examined each ingredient in each item. If there was a suspected gmo, he called the company to ask them if their product contained gmo's. He found a few that got past me and promptly threw them out. I thought that was a neat obsession for a while until he started quizzing everyone that came into our home as to whether or not they ate food with gmo's and just wouldn't let up. I had to divert him all the time to other topics.

On Mon, Jul 5, 2010 at 2:12 PM, julie1013 <julie1013@...> wrote:

What is he obsessed with?

On 7/5/10 8:50 AM, " " <doyourecycle@... <http://doyourecycle@.../> > wrote:

We had thought that our son was having seizures with his staring spells/zoning out periods. Went through a lot of testing and time to learn he's spacing out. It's thought to be a part of his autism )from his doctors) and when I have asked my son about some of the episodes he's told me what he was thinking about--his latest obsession. The zoning out doesn't last too long and there are times when they seem to take over his day. Seems to be no rhyme or reason to the intensity imo.

On Sun, Jul 4, 2010 at 4:27 PM, julie1013 <julie1013@... <http://julie1013@.../> > wrote:

She could be visiting her internal world. Is she a kid who fantasizes a lot? Growing up I had issues with paying attention in class because I was constantly daydreaming. It could be about something I wanted to draw or write, or whatever movie I was obsessed with.

On 7/3/10 11:49 PM, " ashley " <adramash@... <http://adramash@.../> <http://adramash@.../> > wrote:

Just curious,

My DD4 will zone out/space out many times throughout the day. It lasts anywhere from a few seconds to a half hour. She will usually lie down suck her thumb and twirl her hair or pull her hair or rake her fingers through it or just pat her head. She seems to tire out more easily than any other 4yo I've ever seen. She falls asleep at night within 5min of laying down and will sleep all night, then take a 1-3hr nap also during the day. Her doctor could give me no good explanation. Any thoughts? Behavioral? Physical problem? I just lucked out having a good sleeper?

[Guest guest]

I think a number of people have enlightened you on the subject but you seem determined to get rid of video games. Any obsession is a problem - in your scenario, you can obsess about a movie long after that movie is over with. Just because it is over in 2 hours means nothing. That is why it's called an obsession. So one is no better than the other. Everything else you've brought up has been addressed.

Roxanna

Whenever I feel blue, I start breathing again.

Re: ( ) zoning out

At the risk of sounding preachy, I want to know why so many parents are letting their kids— especially kids with AS-- play videogames from such an early age. I see no problem with getting a 10 year old a videogame system, but anything younger than that I am a bit wary. My NT brother— who was playing Atari from age 4 or so— then got into classic NES, then SNES and Genesis... And it was a dental procedure for my parents to pull him away from them. Sometimes he got so frustrated that he hit the Nintendo, or he would break something. Then they would have to unhook the system and ground him from it for a bit. It really was an addiction. If I ever have kids (which I doubt), I might allow them before age ten to RENT videogame systems and games once a month if they beg for them, and perhaps let them OWN a system when they’re at least 10... But no younger.

I’m not saying that you’re doing that, but it just seems so many AS kids are obsessed with video games, and for a kid that young to be playing video games to begin with, a parent has to introduce them (especially if that kid doesn’t have any friends). Take the intense obsessions that AS kids have and combine it with the addictive qualities of videogames, and you have a lethal combination.

On 7/5/10 7:06 PM, "" <doyourecyclegmail> wrote:

The ongoing obsession is with Nintendo games. My son knows everything about their games and he makes his own cutting and pasting to make new ones from Super . This has been an obsession for a couple of years now and not letting up. For a while it was genetically modified foods. He saw me reading an article and asked some questions and learned it pretty well. He emptied all the food out of my kitchen (EVERYTHING) and examined each ingredient in each item. If there was a suspected gmo, he called the company to ask them if their product contained gmo's. He found a few that got past me and promptly threw them out. I thought that was a neat obsession for a while until he started quizzing everyone that came into our home as to whether or not they ate food with gmo's and just wouldn't let up. I had to divert him all the time to other topics.

On Mon, Jul 5, 2010 at 2:12 PM, julie1013 <julie1013optonline (DOT) net> wrote:

What is he obsessed with?

On 7/5/10 8:50 AM, "" <doyourecyclegmail <http://doyourecyclegmail/> > wrote:

We had thought that our son was having seizures with his staring spells/zoning out periods. Went through a lot of testing and time to learn he's spacing out. It's thought to be a part of his autism )from his doctors) and when I have asked my son about some of the episodes he's told me what he was thinking about--his latest obsession. The zoning out doesn't last too long and there are times when they seem to take over his day. Seems to be no rhyme or reason to the intensity imo.

On Sun, Jul 4, 2010 at 4:27 PM, julie1013 <julie1013optonline (DOT) net <http://julie1013optonline (DOT) net/> > wrote:

She could be visiting her internal world. Is she a kid who fantasizes a lot? Growing up I had issues with paying attention in class because I was constantly daydreaming. It could be about something I wanted to draw or write, or whatever movie I was obsessed with.

On 7/3/10 11:49 PM, "ashley" <adramashaol <http://adramashaol/> <http://adramashaol/> > wrote:

Just curious,

My DD4 will zone out/space out many times throughout the day. It lasts anywhere from a few seconds to a half hour. She will usually lie down suck her thumb and twirl her hair or pull her hair or rake her fingers through it or just pat her head. She seems to tire out more easily than any other 4yo I've ever seen. She falls asleep at night within 5min of laying down and will sleep all night, then take a 1-3hr nap also during the day. Her doctor could give me no good explanation. Any thoughts? Behavioral? Physical problem? I just lucked out having a good sleeper?

[Guest guest]

Yes, this is true, and after a movie was over I would go draw the characters or write stories. If a kid is inspired to do the same thing from a video game, then great. I could be 100% wrong. But I do know that video games can be addicting.

On 7/7/10 9:49 AM, " Roxanna " <MadIdeas@...> wrote:

I think a number of people have enlightened you on the subject but you seem determined to get rid of video games. Any obsession is a problem - in your scenario, you can obsess about a movie long after that movie is over with. Just because it is over in 2 hours means nothing. That is why it's called an obsession. So one is no better than the other. Everything else you've brought up has been addressed.

Roxanna

Whenever I feel blue, I start breathing again.

Re: ( ) zoning out

At the risk of sounding preachy, I want to know why so many parents are letting their kids— especially kids with AS-- play videogames from such an early age. I see no problem with getting a 10 year old a videogame system, but anything younger than that I am a bit wary. My NT brother— who was playing Atari from age 4 or so— then got into classic NES, then SNES and Genesis... And it was a dental procedure for my parents to pull him away from them. Sometimes he got so frustrated that he hit the Nintendo, or he would break something. Then they would have to unhook the system and ground him from it for a bit. It really was an addiction. If I ever have kids (which I doubt), I might allow them before age ten to RENT videogame systems and games once a month if they beg for them, and perhaps let them OWN a system when they’re at least 10... But no younger.

I’m not saying that you’re doing that, but it just seems so many AS kids are obsessed with video games, and for a kid that young to be playing video games to begin with, a parent has to introduce them (especially if that kid doesn’t have any friends). Take the intense obsessions that AS kids have and combine it with the addictive qualities of videogames, and you have a lethal combination.

On 7/5/10 7:06 PM, " " <doyourecycle@...> wrote:

The ongoing obsession is with Nintendo games. My son knows everything about their games and he makes his own cutting and pasting to make new ones from Super . This has been an obsession for a couple of years now and not letting up. For a while it was genetically modified foods. He saw me reading an article and asked some questions and learned it pretty well. He emptied all the food out of my kitchen (EVERYTHING) and examined each ingredient in each item. If there was a suspected gmo, he called the company to ask them if their product contained gmo's. He found a few that got past me and promptly threw them out. I thought that was a neat obsession for a while until he started quizzing everyone that came into our home as to whether or not they ate food with gmo's and just wouldn't let up. I had to divert him all the time to other topics.

On Mon, Jul 5, 2010 at 2:12 PM, julie1013 <julie1013@...> wrote:

What is he obsessed with?

On 7/5/10 8:50 AM, " " <doyourecycle@... <http://doyourecycle@.../> > wrote:

We had thought that our son was having seizures with his staring spells/zoning out periods. Went through a lot of testing and time to learn he's spacing out. It's thought to be a part of his autism )from his doctors) and when I have asked my son about some of the episodes he's told me what he was thinking about--his latest obsession. The zoning out doesn't last too long and there are times when they seem to take over his day. Seems to be no rhyme or reason to the intensity imo.

On Sun, Jul 4, 2010 at 4:27 PM, julie1013 <julie1013@... <http://julie1013@.../> > wrote:

She could be visiting her internal world. Is she a kid who fantasizes a lot? Growing up I had issues with paying attention in class because I was constantly daydreaming. It could be about something I wanted to draw or write, or whatever movie I was obsessed with.

On 7/3/10 11:49 PM, " ashley " <adramash@... <http://adramash@.../> <http://adramash@.../> > wrote:

Just curious,

My DD4 will zone out/space out many times throughout the day. It lasts anywhere from a few seconds to a half hour. She will usually lie down suck her thumb and twirl her hair or pull her hair or rake her fingers through it or just pat her head. She seems to tire out more easily than any other 4yo I've ever seen. She falls asleep at night within 5min of laying down and will sleep all night, then take a 1-3hr nap also during the day. Her doctor could give me no good explanation. Any thoughts? Behavioral? Physical problem? I just lucked out having a good sleeper?

[Guest guest]

I am sorry I have read some of this thread and also about phones and what not. I understand the uneasy feeling video games but this gives my son a conversation point with other kids, he is no good at school, sports or friends, but this helps. Eg have you played ..... Oh yeh my high score is .... It's the same with phones, tvs, iPods, etc. I don't want my son to have any other reason to be picked on. When all the other kids are talking about these things I want him to feel a part of that.Hope this makessense. But really at the end of the day there is no parenting rule book we all just do the best we can.I will keep climbing the mountain.Sent from Kel's iPhone On 07/07/2010, at 1:15 PM, julie1013 <julie1013@...> wrote:

I think you are misunderstanding me.

I was SPECULATING about what I would do if I had kids. Of course I don’t know what I would do and I won’t until if I ever get there. As far as video games, I sure as hell wouldn’t encourage them. I’m sure some good things can come out of playing them, but the first few years of life are so critical so I would want to wait as long as possible before introducing them, if at all. I don’t know what the right age is for kids, and it probably depends on the person. But I sure as hell wouldn’t give them to a toddler. Ten years old is just an estimate.

You are right that a kid with AS will always be obsessed with something. You’re preaching to the choir on that one. Before I knew I had AS and I wondered why I had this insane obsession with The Addams Family film in 5th grade, I also wondered what would have happened if I hadn’t seen it. My mom said, “If it wouldn’t have been The Addams Family then it would have been something else.†Touché. However, the difference is that with a movie, it runs for two hours and it’s over. Fortunately, when I pursued my obsessions, they weren’t always in the form of watching the movie. I drew the characters, wrote stories about them, etc. So, yes, if the kid doesn’t get obsessed with video games, he’ll get obsessed with something else. That’s exactly my point. The thing is, if a kid is playing 12 hours of games per day and he is truly obsessed, taking his video games away would have been like taking Back to the Future away from

me when I was 9: taking an obsession away is like taking a baby away from a kid with AS. As I said, with a movie it’s a matter of it running for 2 hours and then it’s over, and perhaps limiting the viewing for once a week. But with a video game, if the kid is obsessed with it, it’s easy for an inch to turn into a mile because it doesn’t have a set beginning and ending point. “One more level? Two? Three?†and so forth.

Do you guys get what I’m saying?

I’m not passing judgment on any of you (but I cringe when I hear about toddlers playing video games, sorry), but I think this is something that’s worthy of more discussion. Perhaps I’m wrong and video games may be good for AS kids, at least in small doses. In fact, it wouldn’t surprise me. But I would suspect large doses can be damaging. If this is not the case, in terms of large doses, please enlighten me.

On 7/6/10 10:59 PM, "Roxanna" <MadIdeasaol> wrote:

What happens at age 10 that makes it suddenly acceptable?

It sounds to me as if you are taking your experience with your brother to mean it happens to everyone the same way. Like many aspects to parenting, once you are one, you tend to step off the imaginary "I would never!" and get practical. lol. But even so, video games are not evil or bad. Many kids do just fine with them and they also can be a way for kids with AS/HFA to fit in with the other kids and have something in common, something they are good at. Sorry it didn't work for your brother but when you are a parent, you have permission to provide any experiences you like with your kids based on your feelings and their needs.

Also, you mention kids with AS having problems with obsessing as if not playing video games will prevent that from happening. It doesn't. They will obsess over whatever catches their fancy whether video games are there or not.

Roxanna

Whenever I feel blue, I start breathing again.

Re: ( ) zoning out

At the risk of sounding preachy, I want to know why so many parents are letting their kids— especially kids with AS-- play videogames from such an early age. I see no problem with getting a 10 year old a videogame system, but anything younger than that I am a bit wary. My NT brother— who was playing Atari from age 4 or so— then got into classic NES, then SNES and Genesis... And it was a dental procedure for my parents to pull him away from them. Sometimes he got so frustrated that he hit the Nintendo, or he would break something. Then they would have to unhook the system and ground him from it for a bit. It really was an addiction. If I ever have kids (which I doubt), I might allow them before age ten to RENT videogame systems and games once a month if they beg for them, and perhaps let them OWN a system when they’re at least 10... But no

younger.

I’m not saying that you’re doing that, but it just seems so many AS kids are obsessed with video games, and for a kid that young to be playing video games to begin with, a parent has to introduce them (especially if that kid doesn’t have any friends). Take the intense obsessions that AS kids have and combine it with the addictive qualities of videogames, and you have a lethal combination.

On 7/5/10 7:06 PM, "" <doyourecyclegmail> wrote:

The ongoing obsession is with Nintendo games. My son knows everything about their games and he makes his own cutting and pasting to make new ones from Super . This has been an obsession for a couple of years now and not letting up. For a while it was genetically modified foods. He saw me reading an article and asked some questions and learned it pretty well. He emptied all the food out of my kitchen (EVERYTHING) and examined each ingredient in each item. If there was a suspected gmo, he called the company to ask them if their product contained gmo's. He found a few that got past me and promptly threw them out. I thought that was a neat obsession for a while until he started quizzing everyone that came into our home as to whether or not they ate food with gmo's and just wouldn't let up. I had to divert him all the time to other topics.

On Mon, Jul 5, 2010 at 2:12 PM, julie1013 <julie1013optonline (DOT) net> wrote:

What is he obsessed with?

On 7/5/10 8:50 AM, "" <doyourecyclegmail <http://doyourecyclegmail/> > wrote:

We had thought that our son was having seizures with his staring spells/zoning out periods. Went through a lot of testing and time to learn he's spacing out. It's thought to be a part of his autism )from his doctors) and when I have asked my son about some of the episodes he's told me what he was thinking about--his latest obsession. The zoning out doesn't last too long and there are times when they seem to take over his day. Seems to be no rhyme or reason to the intensity imo.

On Sun, Jul 4, 2010 at 4:27 PM, julie1013 <julie1013optonline (DOT) net <http://julie1013optonline (DOT) net/> > wrote:

She could be visiting her internal world. Is she a kid who fantasizes a lot? Growing up I had issues with paying attention in class because I was constantly daydreaming. It could be about something I wanted to draw or write, or whatever movie I was obsessed with.

On 7/3/10 11:49 PM, "ashley" <adramashaol <http://adramashaol/> <http://adramashaol/> > wrote:

Just curious,

My DD4 will zone out/space out many times throughout the day. It lasts anywhere from a few seconds to a half hour. She will usually lie down suck her thumb and twirl her hair or pull her hair or rake her fingers through it or just pat her head. She seems to tire out more easily than any other 4yo I've ever seen. She falls asleep at night within 5min of laying down and will sleep all night, then take a 1-3hr nap also during the day. Her doctor could give me no good explanation. Any thoughts? Behavioral? Physical problem? I just lucked out having a good sleeper?

[Guest guest]

Yup you are right...it keeps the kids in the loop...something they can talk about with other kids. When my son plays live Xbox....he plays with all kinds of kids...and no one knows that he is so excited that he is rubbing his hands together or whatever he may be doing. It would be nice if all kids went out and played...but they don't. It isn't just our kids...I know Nts that play for hours. My son has 2 friends come down...they play Xbox, go on computers, and play monopoly. My son does go swimming when he other friends goes but 2 of his friends hate swimming. I must say my son is playing Xbox less and less. So, maybe they outgrow it to an extent...they get interested in other things like Girls...lol.

Jan

"In the Midst of Difficulty lies Opportunity" Albert Einstein

Success is not measured by one's position but by the obstacles one has overcome to obtain that position

From: Mayne <jazjamloch@...>" " < >Cc: " " < >Sent: Wed, July 7, 2010 5:15:23 PMSubject: Re: ( ) zoning out

I am sorry I have read some of this thread and also about phones and what not. I understand the uneasy feeling video games but this gives my son a conversation point with other kids, he is no good at school, sports or friends, but this helps. Eg have you played ..... Oh yeh my high score is .... It's the same with phones, tvs, iPods, etc. I don't want my son to have any other reason to be picked on. When all the other kids are talking about these things I want him to feel a part of that.

Hope this makessense.

But really at the end of the day there is no parenting rule book we all just do the best we can.I will keep climbing the mountain. Sent from Kel's iPhone

On 07/07/2010, at 1:15 PM, julie1013 <julie1013@optonline .net> wrote:

I think you are misunderstanding me.I was SPECULATING about what I would do if I had kids. Of course I don’t know what I would do and I won’t until if I ever get there. As far as video games, I sure as hell wouldn’t encourage them. I’m sure some good things can come out of playing them, but the first few years of life are so critical so I would want to wait as long as possible before introducing them, if at all. I don’t know what the right age is for kids, and it probably depends on the person. But I sure as hell wouldn’t give them to a toddler. Ten years old is just an estimate. You are right that a kid with AS will always be obsessed with something. You’re preaching to the choir on that one. Before I knew I had AS and I wondered why I had this insane obsession with The Addams Family film in 5th grade, I also wondered what would have

happened if I hadn’t seen it. My mom said, “If it wouldn’t have been The Addams Family then it would have been something else.†Touché. However, the difference is that with a movie, it runs for two hours and it’s over. Fortunately, when I pursued my obsessions, they weren’t always in the form of watching the movie. I drew the characters, wrote stories about them, etc. So, yes, if the kid doesn’t get obsessed with video games, he’ll get obsessed with something else. That’s exactly my point. The thing is, if a kid is playing 12 hours of games per day and he is truly obsessed, taking his video games away would have been like taking Back to the Future away from me when I was 9: taking an obsession away is like taking a baby away from a kid with AS. As I said, with a movie it’s a matter of it running for 2 hours and then it’s over, and perhaps limiting the viewing for once a week. But with a video game, if the kid is

obsessed with it, it’s easy for an inch to turn into a mile because it doesn’t have a set beginning and ending point. “One more level? Two? Three?†and so forth.Do you guys get what I’m saying?I’m not passing judgment on any of you (but I cringe when I hear about toddlers playing video games, sorry), but I think this is something that’s worthy of more discussion. Perhaps I’m wrong and video games may be good for AS kids, at least in small doses. In fact, it wouldn’t surprise me. But I would suspect large doses can be damaging. If this is not the case, in terms of large doses, please enlighten me.On 7/6/10 10:59 PM, "Roxanna" <MadIdeasaol (DOT) com> wrote:

What happens at age 10 that makes it suddenly acceptable? It sounds to me as if you are taking your experience with your brother to mean it happens to everyone the same way. Like many aspects to parenting, once you are one, you tend to step off the imaginary "I would never!" and get practical. lol. But even so, video games are not evil or bad. Many kids do just fine with them and they also can be a way for kids with AS/HFA to fit in with the other kids and have something in common, something they are good at. Sorry it didn't work for your brother but when you are a parent, you have permission to provide any experiences you like with your kids based on your feelings and their

needs. Also, you mention kids with AS having problems with obsessing as if not playing video games will prevent that from happening. It doesn't. They will obsess over whatever catches their fancy whether video games are there or not. RoxannaWhenever I feel blue, I start breathing again. Re: ( ) zoning out At the risk of sounding preachy, I want to know why so many parents are letting their kids— especially kids with AS-- play videogames from such an early age. I see no problem with getting a 10 year old a videogame system, but anything younger than that I am a bit wary. My NT brother— who was playing Atari from age 4 or so— then got into classic NES, then SNES and Genesis... And it was a dental procedure for my parents to pull him away from them. Sometimes he got so frustrated that he hit the Nintendo, or he would break something. Then they would have to unhook the system and ground him from it for a bit. It really was an addiction. If I ever have kids (which I doubt), I might allow them

before age ten to RENT videogame systems and games once a month if they beg for them, and perhaps let them OWN a system when they’re at least 10... But no younger.I’m not saying that you’re doing that, but it just seems so many AS kids are obsessed with video games, and for a kid that young to be playing video games to begin with, a parent has to introduce them (especially if that kid doesn’t have any friends). Take the intense obsessions that AS kids have and combine it with the addictive qualities of videogames, and you have a lethal combination.On 7/5/10 7:06 PM, "" <doyourecyclegmail> wrote:

The ongoing obsession is with Nintendo games. My son knows everything about their games and he makes his own cutting and pasting to make new ones from Super . This has been an obsession for a couple of years now and not letting up. For a while it was genetically modified foods. He saw me reading an article and asked some questions and learned it pretty well. He emptied all the food out of my kitchen (EVERYTHING) and examined each ingredient in each item. If there was a suspected gmo, he called the company to ask them if their product contained gmo's. He found a few that got past me and promptly threw them out. I thought that was a neat obsession for a while until he started quizzing everyone that came into our home as to whether or not

they ate food with gmo's and just wouldn't let up. I had to divert him all the time to other topics.On Mon, Jul 5, 2010 at 2:12 PM, julie1013 <julie1013@optonline .net> wrote:

What is he obsessed with?On 7/5/10 8:50 AM, "" <doyourecyclegmail <http://doyourecycle @gmail.com/> > wrote:

We had thought that our son was having seizures with his staring spells/zoning out periods. Went through a lot of testing and time to learn he's spacing out. It's thought to be a part of his autism )from his doctors) and when I have asked my son about some of the episodes he's told me what he was thinking about--his latest obsession. The zoning out doesn't last too long and there are times when they seem to take over his day. Seems to be no rhyme or reason to the intensity imo. On Sun, Jul 4, 2010 at 4:27 PM, julie1013 <julie1013@optonline .net <http://julie1013@ optonline. net/> > wrote:

She could be visiting her internal world. Is she a kid who fantasizes a lot? Growing up I had issues with paying attention in class because I was constantly daydreaming. It could be about something I wanted to draw or write, or whatever movie I was obsessed with.On 7/3/10 11:49 PM, "ashley" <adramashaol (DOT) com <http://adramash@ aol.com/> <http://adramash@ aol.com/> > wrote:

Just curious,My DD4 will zone out/space out many times throughout the day. It lasts anywhere from a few seconds to a half hour. She will usually lie down suck her thumb and twirl her hair or pull her hair or rake her fingers through it or just pat her head. She seems to tire out more easily than any other 4yo I've ever seen. She falls asleep at night within 5min of laying down and will sleep all night, then take a 1-3hr nap also during the day. Her doctor could give me no good explanation. Any thoughts? Behavioral? Physical problem? I just lucked out having a good sleeper?