I am writing on detailed blog post on stimming, but it‘s going to be a while - so I thought I‘d share some key points here, because it keeps coming up.

Stimming means „repetitive self-stimulatory behavior“.

ANYTHING that‘s 1. repetitive and 2. self-stimulatory can be stimming.

„Self-stimulatory“ refers to stimulating one‘s senses.

Any one or more of one‘s senses.

These are the human senses:

- sight
- hearing
- touch
- smell
- taste
- proprioception
- balance
- pain
- temperature

(There is always ongoing debate about whether to include more.)

Stimming is often talked about in regards to autism - but anyone can stim. Autistic, neurodivergent, neurotypical, abled, disabled...anyone.

Autistic people‘s neurological differences just mean that we tend to stim more often, more intensely, longer, and more stereotypically.

Stimming can be

sub-conscious
conscious
involuntary
voluntary
controllable
uncontrollable
painful
positive
neutral
negative
self-injurous
communicative
non-communicative
...and everything in between.

Stims are as highly individual as we are as human beings!

People stim for many reasons!

Distraction
Focus
Distress
Communication
Expression
Reaction
It feels nice
...and more.

Many people have specific stims for specific circumstances, and learning their stims can help you understand them better.

Generally, stimming should be accepted.
NEVER mock or punish it.

Some stims (e.g. self injurous ones) may require replacing, or the use of protective equipment...ideally find out why they happen and minimize the trigger.

ALWAYS mind the autonomy and agency of the stimmer!

Often it is appropriate to encourage stimming, because one of its purposes is self-regulation.

A person in distress may benefit from prompts for stimming, the offer of stim tools, and a space to stim so they can self-regulate better.

Stimming can be a very important tool!

Some examples for stimming:

Hair twirling
Rocking
Foot wiggling
Hand flapping
Swinging
Headbanging
Humming
Eating
Thumb sucking
Smearing feces
Watching flickering lights
Biting
Fingertapping
Listening to a song on repeat
Spinning

(remember: repetitive and self-stimulatory)

People stim with...

Objects - like flicking a string in front of their eyes, spinning a spoon on the table...

Their environment - like touching surfaces, watching reflections...

Their own body - like rocking, biting, flapping, blinking...

Possibilities really are endless!

Stimming can interfere with a person‘s life - like if one gets stimstuck.

Being stimstuck is what I call it when one can‘t stop stimming. This can last for minutes...or hours.

I get stimstuck in the bathtub every morning and thus have to plan more time for my morning routine.

Another distinct experience with stimming is what I call getting stimstruck.

Getting stimstruck describes a sudden, short, reactionary burst of involuntary stimming.

Like there‘s a sudden loud noise and I have to „shake it out“ by rapidly flapping my hands for a couple moments.

Stimmy is the word I use to describe how much I am stimming, how much of a need to stim I experience, as well as how much something makes me want to stim.

Some days I am way more stimmy than others.
Some experience make me more stimmy than others.

How stimmy are you usually?

For ME stimming is often

involuntary
sub-conscious
a distress response
a response to yummy food
an expression of excitement
an coping mechanism for anxiety
mildly to moderately self-injurous but necessary
body stims

But this differs for all of us and ALL stimming is valid!

I hope I didn‘t forget anything important...if you think I have, let me know and I might add to the thread.

If you have any stimming related questions, feel free to ask them here, or send me a DM!

And I invite everyone to share their own personal stimming experiences!

Hashtags for this thread on stimming:

#ActuallyAutistic #autism #stim #stimming #autistic #disabled #disability #AutismAwareness #AutismAcceptance #DiagnosedAutistic #AllAutistics #sensory #SelfHarm #NonSpeaking #NonVerbal #AutismMom #AutismDad #AutismParent #ABA #noABA #SIB