What Is Stimming?
Stimming is short for self-stimulating behaviors. The term “stim” is used to describe one of these behaviors, which can include doing an action over and over or repeating the same sound several times. You may use stimming to help cope with emotions.
While many people may engage in stimming, the behavior has become associated with autism.
Stimming Behaviors
There are many different types of stimming, including:
- Auditory stimming. These involve your hearing and sounds, such as snapping your fingers, repeatedly touching your ears, or listening to the same sound over and over.
- Vocal stimming. This type includes sounds you make with your voice or throat, such as coughing or clearing your throat several times, repeating the same word, or humming.
- Tactile stimming. These include actions that involve touching or feeling, such as when you rub or scratch your skin, open and close your fists, tap your fingers on an object or surface, or flap your hands or arms.
- Visual stimming. These behaviors involve sight, such as looking at lights for a long time or frequently blinking or rolling your eyes.
- Vestibular stimming. This type involves movement or balance, such as pacing back and forth or twirling around.
- Olfactory stimming. These stims involve tasting or smelling, such as smelling or sniffing things or people, or chewing on or licking objects.
- Full body stimming. This type of behavior includes movement that involves your entire body, such as rocking your body back and forth or spinning around.
Stimming Examples
Stimming refers to repetitive behaviors or motions that you may use to help cope with emotions. Some examples of stimming include:
- Biting your nails when you feel anxious
- Twirling your hair when you feel bored
- Flapping your hands when something excites you
- Jiggling your foot when you are concentrating
- Banging your head
- Turning a light off and on
- Scratching your skin repeatedly
Stims may help to distract you, relieve stress, or calm you down. While the repetitive behavior serves a purpose, it can also cause harm if the stim involves hurting yourself.
Stimming in adults
Adults may rely on stims to help deal with overwhelming situations, too many things going on at once that affect one or more of their senses, or uncontrolled emotions and thoughts. Examples of adult stims include:
- Fiddling with your necklace or bracelet
- Pulling your hair
- Flexing your feet
- Muttering
- Whistling
Stimming in babies
Examples of behaviors in babies that could be stims include:
- Putting things into lines or groups again and again
- Repeating unusual body movements
- Repeatedly stiffening legs or arms
- Repeating circular hand motions
Stimming in Autism
While many people have a stim they use to self-regulate, it’s not always obvious to others. You may not use your stim often, or you
