Do you ever just zone out while stimming?

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HeroOfHyrule
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16 Feb 2021, 3:48 pm

This isn't an important or serious question, I'm just curious about how many people here who stim do this. I know some people do and some people don't.

Sometimes when I do certain stims (usually listening to some repetitive sound that I like) I unintentionally "zone out" and just don't really think about anything else. It doesn't cause me issues or anything and honestly does the opposite, as it prevents me from focusing on intrusive thoughts for a minute or two. It's the only time I can just chill out so I like it. I've done this since I was a kid and it's probably why some of my toys mysteriously stopped making noise since I didn't play with them and just listened to the noise they made (sorry, parents lol).

If you do this, what kind of stimming causes you to zone out? Do you have issues from it or not?



Danusaurus
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16 Feb 2021, 3:58 pm

Yes I often get lost in thought but like my mind wanders and my anxiety level goes down.



XSara
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16 Feb 2021, 4:05 pm

yes i do this. when i zone out i rock back and fort, or side to side, then something or somebody brings me back to reality and if notice myself rocking, i immediately stop myself because i'm ashamed of it. i know i should't be...but when i'm with my friends i try to hide my stimming because i don't want them to think i'm weird. their opinion of me matters to me.



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16 Feb 2021, 4:35 pm

Yes. When I am alone in my room and fiddling with my ribbons, I often wander deep into my thoughts for a few minutes.


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16 Feb 2021, 9:49 pm

Yeah definitely. Especially when I'm in my room with calming music on and brushing Appa, my fluffy furbaby. The repetitive motion of brushing him calms and I completely check out. I look up at some point and notice like 5 songs have gone by etc.

I also, tend to count things in public, not out loud but in my head. I zone out when I do that and don't remember getting to the number I'm at. That's when I'm stressed, not all the time.


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18 Feb 2021, 5:39 pm

Yes, totally! I literally can't hear anything when I stim sometimes because I'm so into my stim to calm myself down. Especially when I'm coloring. :)



AardvarkGoodSwimmer
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18 Feb 2021, 6:14 pm

Alone in the privacy of my own bedroom, I will take a couple of favorite soft articles of clothing and squeeze, twist, and pull them. Older clothes occasionally get a “job promotion” of sorts and used for this purpose.

And I will zone out for a minute and a half, or maybe eight minutes. It’s pretty highly variable.



Abstract_Logic
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19 Feb 2021, 1:14 am

I do this finger tapping stim and sometimes I zone out while doing it. Whether I experience intrusive thoughts while doing it I guess depends on my mood or if they were triggered by something that made them more intense.


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aquafelix
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19 Feb 2021, 3:25 am

I draw or paint repetitive shapes and just get lost in the movement of my hand making the stroke and am totally absorbed and calmed by this. I'm only recently recognized this was a stim