# Exposure Therapy: Virtual Worlds



## fire mage64 (Jun 20, 2011)

For those with severe social anxiety, have you tried creating an account for a social networking site that uses virtual worlds to chat? You can walk around the virtual world using an avatar and type/speak to other people in real time. Some examples are gaiaonline.com and second life.


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## WanderingSoul (Apr 22, 2012)

I've used PS Home on Playstation 3. To me, personally, the act of walking around a virtual world and communicating with people by typing doesn't provoke any anxiety. No one will notice your real life body language, your stuttering or stammering, or any other nervous characteristics you have.

I made friends with a few members and because I had built some rapport with them through typed conversations, I was confident enough to converse with them on the microphone.

I also simulated "picking up" girls and taking them back to my virtual apartment. That may have produced minor anxiety, because even in the virtual world you can get vibes from a girl if they are bored with you or maybe just tolerating you. Luckily my virtual apartment had a bunch of cool virtual gadgets.


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## fire mage64 (Jun 20, 2011)

hikkikomori said:


> I've used PS Home on Playstation 3. To me, personally, the act of walking around a virtual world and communicating with people by typing doesn't provoke any anxiety. No one will notice your real life body language, your stuttering or stammering, or any other nervous characteristics you have.
> 
> I made friends with a few members and because I had built some rapport with them through typed conversations, I was confident enough to converse with them on the microphone.
> 
> I also simulated "picking up" girls and taking them back to my virtual apartment. That may have produced minor anxiety, because even in the virtual world you can get vibes from a girl if they are bored with you or maybe just tolerating you. Luckily my virtual apartment had a bunch of cool virtual gadgets.


Yeah it could be used to get become comfortable with talking to potential dates and exposing your voice to friends.


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## WanderingSoul (Apr 22, 2012)

fire mage64 said:


> Yeah it could be used to get become comfortable with talking to potential dates and exposing your voice to friends.


Have you used any of these games? I think the only beneficial aspect of it is the microphone. Otherwise it's just another method of day dreaming or wasting time... fantasizing about what your life could be.


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## fire mage64 (Jun 20, 2011)

hikkikomori said:


> Have you used any of these games? I think the only beneficial aspect of it is the microphone. Otherwise it's just another method of day dreaming or wasting time... fantasizing about what your life could be.


I used gaiaonline to talk(type) to other people


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## Invisiblehandicap (Jul 31, 2011)

I am going to try this. I wanted to earlier today but was put off of talking to people on this site. It makes me anxious. Its funny because I find talking to people on actual fighting games easy. Because I can talk about the game only and not myself. 

I guess I should go out and try to get rejected as many times as possible. It is far easier to talk to people in person or chat rooms for some insanely weird reason O_O. I guess it is because of the nature of this site? I don't like the 'game', but I will play it for exposures sake.


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## odd_one_out (Aug 22, 2006)

Here's a study called Treatment of Social Anxiety Disorder Using Online Virtual Environments in Second Life


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