Does anyone know the story of how the idea got started of using ones child pictures in avatars? I just think it's a cool idea and was wondering if it had an interesting history or if it was just something one or two people started doing and it just caught on.

There's something kind of powerful about it. Like a resurrection. I might resurrect myself too when i get tired of looking at my current self. I don't know though...i look like hell in most of those old ones. It's like every picture ever taken of me growing up was taken on a major bad hair day. I keep thinking i must have always got my haircuts after the picture taking. lol

I don't know how it got started. I used a cartoon for the first few months then I found some old pictures of me and of course I was no longer ashamed and alone in my experiences so felt more comfortable using the childhood picture.

Blueshift,

Hmmmm.... I am not really sure about the history, but I have to agree with gatekpr. I have found it very liberating to share mine. The fear and shame has forced us to keep this secret for so long, that when you finally begin to realize it wasn't our fault, you do feel like you're being resurrected.

When I first put my picture up, (I didn't have a crown) but I did have huge ears. That was the thing that stood out the most. I have also found a bunch of other pictures. The site is planning to make a photo page, and I have shared those with Nathan, to be posted.

I am no longer affraid of my past, I hate what happened, but I now face that demon and fight those shadows.

I like your eye, but I would love to see some of your childhood pictures. About your hair, PUH---LEEEEEEASE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! did any of us care what our hair looked like back then? BTW... look at my bangs....what's with that??? my barber couldn't cut straight across????

Hope to see more of you soon,
Carl

I don't know either how it got started. For me when I look at my picture, my avatar, I see my "inner Child" before the sexual abuse of my body and mind started.

Until I found this picture of "my Little guy", I was sure I did not have a childhood at all. All I could remember is all the bad shit that happened to me.

Now I am working on finding and healing my inner child so I can move on with my recovery. I was a good kid and what happened to me was Not My Fault. I know that, I now have to remind myself of that every day.

Ken

Well, maybe it's just the old "everything about me was bad" feeling, but your hair looked pretty good compared to the animal that died on my head! lol Donald Trump has more natural looking hair.
Love, peace,
Doug

I know what you mean. I can't really understand exactly how i manage to blame myself, yet i know i do. I guess we all do. I think we get so used to being so much more powerful as adults than we were when we were kids that it's hard for us to imagine how we could have "allowed" it to happen, but "allowing" was something adults did.....kids just complied and it was the adults that did all the allowing, but the difference was obscured from us.
love, peace,
Doug

I think it had to do with not putting current pictures of ourselves to keep some people from looking at this site as a hook-up place to pick up other guys.

I think childhood picture was a great idea. Maybe someday I will have the courage to put up my childhood picture.

-Jim

Hmm. yeah i guess that is a possibility. Hard to see why someone would do that when there are so many better ways on the intnet to pick up guys in ones own locale. But then if someone is looking for another survivor for some reason...i give myself the creeps sometimes thinking that maybe there are rapos out there trying to target people who are already victims for some sick reason.