Stimming

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
For the German musician, see Stimming (musician).

Hand rubbing faux-fur
Feeling soft or otherwise enjoyable textures is a common form of stimming.

Self-stimulatory behavior, also known as "stimming"

autistic people.[2] People diagnosed with sensory processing disorder are also known to potentially exhibit stimming behaviors.[3]

Stimming has been interpreted as a protective response to overstimulation, in which people calm themselves by blocking less predictable environmental stimuli, to which they have a heightened sensitivity.[2][3] A further explanation views stimming as a way to relieve anxiety and other negative or heightened emotions.[4]

An autistic adult (center right) stimming with her hands during the 2015 Erasmus Prize ceremony.

Although some stimming behaviors have been shown to be healthy and beneficial—as they help regulate intense feelings—

neurodivergent often feel that they need to hide or decrease their self-stimulatory behavior, as it appears to not be socially acceptable, and often elicits an undesirable response from those who do not understand the compulsion behind them. There are also potential mental health and well-being risks in suppressing and masking autistic stimming behaviors that are harmless or adaptive.[7][6][5][8][9]

Stimming behaviors can consist of tactile, visual, auditory, vocal, proprioceptive (which pertains to limb sensing), olfactory, and vestibular stimming (which pertains to balance). Some common examples of stimming (sometimes called stims[10]) include hand flapping, clapping, rocking, blinking, pacing, head banging, repeating noises or words, snapping fingers, and spinning objects.[11][12] In some cases, stimming may be dangerous and physically harmful to the person doing it; for example, individuals may risk injuring themselves by forcefully banging their body parts against walls.[13]

Stimming and autism

Young autistic boy stimming with cold water in the kitchen sink.

Stimming behavior is almost always present in

autistic people but does not, on its own, necessarily indicate the diagnosis.[5][14] The biggest difference between autistic and non-autistic stimming is the type of stim and the quantity of stimming.[14] In the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, published by the American Psychiatric Association, stimming behavior is described as "stereotyped or repetitive motor mannerisms" and listed as one of the five key diagnostic criteria of autism spectrum disorder.[15]

Different perspectives suggest that stimming involves both sensory and motor functions. Underdevelopment of these sensorimotor functions can result in stimming behaviors produced by the person as a controllable response. One study which interviewed thirty-two autistic adults found that unpredictable and overwhelming environments caused stimming.[16]

lark's head
.

Stimming can sometimes be

self-injurious, such as when it involves head-banging, hand-biting, excessive self-rubbing, and scratching the skin.[17]

As it serves the purpose of self-regulation and is mostly done subconsciously, stimming is difficult to suppress.[18] Managing the sensory and emotional environment while increasing the amount of daily exercise can increase comfort levels for the person, which may reduce the amount of the need for stimming.[19] Consciously or subconsciously suppressing stimming with the aim to present as neurotypical is one type of autistic masking.[20][21] It typically requires an exceptional effort and can negatively impact mental health and well-being.[20][21][22]

See also

References

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  2. ^
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  3. ^
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  4. ^ Eileen Bailey (15 July 2011). "Autism Spectrum Disorders and Anxiety". Health Central. Retrieved 25 March 2014.
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  10. ^ Temple Grandin, PhD (November 2011). "Why Do Kids with Autism Stim?". Autism Digest. Archived from the original on 31 March 2014. Retrieved 25 March 2014.
  11. ^ Eileen Bailey (27 August 2012). "Stimming". Health Central. Retrieved 25 March 2014.
  12. ^ "Stimming: What autistic people do to feel calmer". BBC. 5 June 2013. Retrieved 25 March 2014.
  13. ^ Smith, Lori; Legg, Timothy J. (19 February 2018). "What is stimming?". Medical News Today. Retrieved 19 April 2022. For some, stimming can include higher-risk behaviors such as banging their hands, head, legs, and objects, which may be potentially physically harmful.
  14. ^
    About.com. Archived from the original
    on 30 March 2014. Retrieved 24 March 2014.
  15. OCLC 830807378.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link
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  18. ^ Devita-Raeburn, Elizabeth (10 August 2016). "The controversy over autism's most common therapy". Spectrum News. Simons Foundation. Retrieved 7 April 2023.
  19. PMID 19122856
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  20. ^
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  21. ^
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  22. ^ "6A02 Autism spectrum disorder". icd.who.int. ICD-11 for Mortality and Morbidity Statistics. 2022. Retrieved 7 April 2023.
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