The Stim

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I self diagnosed a year ago age 60 when I hit rock bottom. I have many traits associated with ASC (I prefer Condition to Disorder), the strongest was the special interests. But I don't want to talk about that here, but to discuss stimming.

I remember stimming quite young. I finger wag often in symmetrical shapes - regular triangles, figure eight, squares, squared hour glass (Like Extinction Rebellion symbol). I think that I do that to relax, when nervous.

Yes I sometimes rock, but more often I flex a calf to rapidly shake a leg when seated. That sometimes attracts attention. And I fiddle a lot. I think I do these for the same reason.

But I have another class of stimming that I do when I am happy - when I achieve something, or work out some problem. Does anyone else have this? It is more pronounced than any of the calming stims and totally involuntary. When a young man, it was poking out a tongue. That somehow moved to rapidly rubbing the side of my pelvis/hip with a hand. Unfortunately that one would attract attention! Mid-life it jumped from rubbing the pelvis/hip up rubbing the back of my head. When feeling really pleased with myself, I automatically rub the back of my head with both hands! I mean, rapidly. Sometimes I simply rub hands together with an intensity. It attracts unwanted attention, I often find strangers staring at me before I realise what I have been doing. I'm famous for it among my workplace colleagues. An ex partner said that it was a sign that I was 'mental' (when I was leaving her) But I don't have any control over it.

Before I self identified as ASC, I wondered if I was Tourettes. I still wonder if this is an autistic trait - to have these involuntary tics whenever I feel pleased with something that I've done or thought?

I'd appreciate any thoughts, and if not, the experiences of others with stimming. Thank you Community.

I have this stim when I'm nervous or anxious when I keep moving my legs, even in my sleep.

Sounds like it is something that you cannot control and it bothers you. Or is it due to overexcitement and nervousness? If it feels like uncontrollable and completely involuntary might also be Tourette's. It is not uncommon those two to co-exist.Tourette syndrome (TS) is a co-morbid disorder with autism spectrum disorders.

I quote " Stimming is a repetitive movement that serves the purpose of people with autism soothing or comforting themselves. Stimming appears when the individual is stressed out, nervous, or overstimulated in an environment. Tics are commonly involuntary and harder to suppress. They involve an unexpected movement of body parts, such as flapping hands, repeating words, rocking, and blinking. Tics and stims look very similar however, in reality, they are different".
Source: https://carmenbpingree.com/blog/tics-an ... onnection/

You can ask the same question in here ( Bipolar, Tourettes, Schizophrenia, and other Psychological Conditions )
viewforum.php?f=35

I have done two separate YouTube uploads explaining different STIMS





I hope this helps to understand what it means to STIM.