Stimming
What kinds of things are classed as stimming when it comes to aspergers/autism?
Are there things that NTs don't do as I know that some NTs can stim (ie pace or tap their fingers) but how can you tell if it's regular NT stimming or a possible autistic thing?
The reason for my question is that I am not officially diagnosed with an ASD, I am diagnosed with anxiety, depression and severe social anxiety (I am almost housebound so bad am I at the social stuff...can't get it right so I give up. I ALWAYS end up being mocked, bullied or told off even when I try really hard so I hide out at home most of the time to avoid it), but I have certain traits that resemble Aspergers. What I don't know is if I stim though. I do have a piece of silky material that I will rub at every opportunity I have to rub it. I rub when I need to concentrate, I rub when I am stressed, I rub it when I am bored, I rub it at night when I go to sleep....and so on. I have been rubbing silky material since I was knee high, if not before. It is called my tickle because that is what I named my original piece of silky material back when I was a child, even though that particular piece has long worn out and I now have a new one lol (the material has to have the right feel though, I can't just rub any piece of material!).
Could that be stimming or is it just an odd NT habit I have?
Oh I also have a bad habit of compulsively talking to myself. It can freak people out as they seem to think I am talking to imaginary voices or people who are not there. On the contrary I am neither hearing voices or talking to invisible people...I just seem to have trouble thinking quietly and will often think aloud or natter away at myself, especially if I am alone. I do try not to do it in public though as people don't like it lol. Could talking to myself be a form of stimming? Or am i just a really really nuts NT?
I think talking to yourself is "vocal" stimming, or is that only making weird noises?
Anyhow, i think the difference between NT and ASD stimming is the consistency. NT`s "stim" much less then Aspies. i Don`t think you can judge if its an NT stim or Aspie stim so quickly.
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I think that the silk-rubbing can be considered autistic stimming, because you do it a lot in a lot of different contexts.
Like you, I talk to myself a lot, but I have not considered talking to myself in a meaningful way to be autistic stimming. It is only when I am saying the same words over and over and over again and again and again that I consider my repetitive verbalizations to be autistic stimming.
I can repeat the same subject over and over but not exactly the same words. I just talk about the same thing endlessly lol. Mind you I do that when talking to people. I am forever going back to the same topic all the way through the conversation which drives people nuts because they want to talk about something else lol. I will basically say something then say it again but this time using different words...but I am in fact saying what I have already said before lol
The tickle thing I get away with with friends and partners etc as they think it is strangely cute until I lose my tickle and all hell breaks loose. I have been known to turn a house upside down looking for it because I need it and can't find it. *ahem*
