Stimming

[PrettyCandles]

Could someone please explain what stimming is?

It's self-stimulation.

So flapping/flicking hands in front of eyes, or spinning objects, or humming.

The actions are usually repetetive.

They're not always THAT 'odd' sometimes it can be kicking a ball against a wall over and over again, or playing the same tune on a keyboard over and over again.

Toad hums constantly.
When he's happy or anxious then he hand flaps.

any physical repetative behaviour my sons biggest one (the others change occasionally on to something else) is rocking back and forth wether sitting or standing

DS2's favourite right now is clicking the button over and over again on this radio in his room.

He has some vocal and some physical stims. It seems like he generally has one or two major stims going for awhile, with a few smaller ones - depending on where he is - and then he will find a new one and drop one of the other stims in favour of the new one. Usually just about the time we are past going crazy over it and have finally mastered tuning it out mentally .

yep that sounds about right Triggles

Is it a constant behaviour, or one that is triggered by certain emotional states?

And how is it different from 'habit'?

Ds does it more when he's tired or has been busy and needs to 'tune out' So it's not constant,but he can repeat the same behaviour or sound over and over for a sustained period.

my ds does them when hes concentrating and excited / or upset as a stimulas a way for inner calm i believe

Yep, as others have said... we see it more when he's tired or stressed... it's not constant.. but it can certainly SEEM like it is!

@ TRIGGLES

My family is full of what we call 'twiddles' and 'jiggets'. I'm trying to get my head round them. Some of it is absent minded, but other things, aren't. They definitely seem to be self-soothing behaviours.

I didn't really think much about these behaviours until I started suspecting that several of us might have a degree of AS. I'd only ever heard of spinning, rocking, hand-flapping, and groaning as stimms, and as none of us do any of these I discounted it. But now I'm wondering...

Do NT people stimm?

i think its called being an annoying git if you do lol just kidding my husband does but he is As ..AND an annoying git at same time haha

nt people do stim occasionally but most wouldnt pick up on it
and not necesarly for the same reasons

its more common things like toe tapping or leg bouncing /jiggling when stressed or nervouse or something

stimming is realley sesnsory equilization

its a really quiet room they may drum fingertips to add sound or in a really busy place they may hum to bottom out the noise with a constant baseline

its done for 3 reasons from what i can gather

to little input
too much input
or comfort

rubbing a textured toy when in a fairly quiet room or singing would be because of too little sensory input

the same in a very busy room is to fucus on one input at the cost of all others

a person who hums when upset would probobly be doing it for comfort

this is what ive gathered i may be wrong in some(probboly all ) aspects

The little girl I work at school does this. When we're walking down the hall she occasionally does a sort of..shivery flapping thing? And makes an odd noise. I think it's the wide open space of the hallway that does it. When she's wearing a compression vest it doesn't happen nearly as often. Also, she can control it if you remind her. Saying, "just walk, honey" will usually do it.

I think I stim!

I "fiddle" all the time. If having a coffee with someone I am a nightmare - I fiddle with the sugar bowl, a lot. People who know me remove things from in front of me!

I scratch at the sofa and the cushions on the sofa. I used to have a "binky" till I was 12 which I scratched and sniffed.

Am I a stimmer? I find it calming and feel quite cross when we get a new sofa and the "good bits" aren't there any more.