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A new word for Stimming

I hate stimming with passion but it just does not seem to go away from my system and I am sure and I am open to correction that all aspie sufferers hate it also . It just makes your life uncomfortable and painful , so let's agree to disagree , you do have a point in a way because stimming makes a person calmer , because they know that whatever they have done, they done that task correctly but it does not relax your mind because a few moments later you get anxious and you want to stim again . I do not really know what I am trying to gain by creating an argument about this , but what I know for sure is that stimming makes a persons life very unpleasant , at least from my own firsthand experience .
 
AsheSkyler said:
Is it an encompassing word, or do we want two different words? One for happy twitchiness and one for destressing fidgeting?
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I'm happy to have two if that makes more sense. Or maybe three words if we include an encompassing one too :-)
 
odwa gayiya said:
I hate stimming with passion but it just does not seem to go away from my system and I am sure and I am open to correction that all aspie sufferers hate it also . It just makes your life uncomfortable and painful , so let's agree to disagree , you do have a point in a way because stimming makes a person calmer , because they know that whatever they have done, they done that task correctly but it does not relax your mind because a few moments later you get anxious and you want to stim again . I do not really know what I am trying to gain by creating an argument about this , but what I know for sure is that stimming makes a persons life very unpleasant , at least from my own firsthand experience .
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I think we're just making lighthearted fun of ourselves here, but I'd agree with you in principal odwa gayiya, I wouldn't say I hate it with a passion, but I strenously try to avoid stimming in public, just so I seem 'normal', but it seems to be an insidious thing - I catch myself just as I'm doing a nose twitch or twining my fingers, or whatever. The ones I have a problem with really, are knuckle cracking and teeth grinding, as I'm causing damage to myself.. I rather value the teeth I have :D
 
DogwoodTree said:
Usually when I'm "stimming" it's to vent energy...I'm not hyperactive in the sense of ADHD, just the anxiety or pent-up emotions that don't have anywhere else to go, well, that energy has to go somewhere.

But "venting" already has a colloquial meaning, that someone is releasing tension by talking about a difficult situation.

So maybe... "hyperventing"?
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That's a half-step to "hyperventilating". But could be amusingly workable!
Angry Aspie: hyperventing
Anxious Aspie: hyperventilating
Happy Aspie: Just plain hypering

I may go with that! :yum:
 
odwa gayiya said:
I think the term distressing fidgeting would be more than just a useful term to describe it .
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What about distressed fidgeting? Because it's not the fidgeting itself that's distressing; something else is distressing, hence the fidgeting. I think that's a really important distinction to make. These things have their causes, and it's only by accepting and understanding what's causing it that we can try to gain a modicum of control over it.

There are plenty of stories out there of aspies who are repeatedly told not to stim, who are reprimanded for it. Where even small stims are turned into a big issue, because it's annoying to others perhaps, or because it's perceived as weird and therefore unwanted and society will pass it's eternal judgement on those who do and all that BS. And it is BS, dangerous BS, because it's telling people that who they are and what they do is wrong, bad or undesirable, while actually, in most cases, there's nothing wrong with it. It leads to self-loathing, depression, a feeling of guilt, all kinds of bad things. Suppression doesn't work. To the contrary, it only exacerbates a problem which isn't necessarily a problem.

And I know, it's easy to give in to that thinking, to that mindset. I've spent most of my years hiding stims myself, and I think a lot of us have. As a mere matter of survival, of trying to avoid ridicule, or out of a want to be 'normal'. And I still do in certain situations. Let's face it, the world isn't always a nice place. But if I can't accept myself for who I am, who else will?

Maybe I'm just writing this for parents who first encounter stimming behaviour in their aspie child. The way I see it, it's mainly just a way to deal with stress, to relieve anxiety, good or bad. So try to understand that, and don't go against it, or turn it into some kind of taboo, because it only causes more stress, which will lead to worse stimming in the end. Don't yell, or blame, but accept it and maybe try looking for workable stims.

Not that stimming can't evolve into problematic behaviour. If you're scratching yourself so much that your skin starts to bleed for example; that's obviously not something one would want. But I don't think it ever starts out like that.

Anyway, it's a little besides the point of the thread because we're looking for a new word, which is a nice endeavour. Just thought it deserved mentioning. I don't mean to come down too hard on those of you who do have issues with their own stimming. It's completely understandable. Just know that you don't have to hate yourself for it.

Respecting oneself starts with accepting oneself. Take care people.
 
I think hyperfigimeep is only distressing when we're concerned about what others think about us doing it, or when it becomes self harm, right. Correct me if I'm wrong.
Anyways, still looking for the perfect word...
Any Smurf fans out there want to vote for 'smurfing'? I'm smurfing my knee as I type this :-)
 
Vanilla and zurb, I like the word "quirks" and "quirking." :) "Smurfing" sounds good too, and I also like your suggestions, Spiller. :) I haven't really any suggestions of my own, put I'll post again if I do think of any.
 
Smurfing seems to fit pretty well, actually. In networking, a smurf attack is when a bunch of little, innocent messages get targeted to a single computer until the computer gets overwhelmed.

And in the original cartoon, "to smurf" was a generic verb used to refer to a huge variety of different activities.
 
Similar to the generic 'smurfing', maybe 'asping', 'aspering' or 'auting'? Just as Smurfs smurf, Aspies asp! And if you are really stressed, you might hyperasp.
 
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i never like the sound of 'stimming'. its just a weird sounding word.

i like 'self soothing' better. it sounds nice and pleasant and relaxing, a good description of how 'stimming' makes me feel.
 
odwa gayiya said:
I hate stimming with passion but it just does not seem to go away from my system and I am sure and I am open to correction that all aspie sufferers hate it also . It just makes your life uncomfortable and painful , so let's agree to disagree , you do have a point in a way because stimming makes a person calmer , because they know that whatever they have done, they done that task correctly but it does not relax your mind because a few moments later you get anxious and you want to stim again . I do not really know what I am trying to gain by creating an argument about this , but what I know for sure is that stimming makes a persons life very unpleasant , at least from my own firsthand experience .
Click to expand...

I suppose we all have different experiences, but I for one love stimming (or smurfing, meeping ext.) For me the problem lies in how society treats these behaviors. Were it socially acceptable I would probably be shaking dog collars all over the place, in plain view, only putting them away when there was something more meaningful to occupy my hands. As it is, people's disapproval lead me to decades of shame and stimming in secret. How is that healthy?
 
GROOVIN'! :) Wheeee!! Yes, I squish my stims into stealth mode when in public, though they sneak out without my awareness.

Stimming gives tremendous relief from pent-up flustercation. :eek: If I keep it up, stimming brings me to a point where I can tackle a complex mental challenge such as a complicated recipe. If I continue stimming further, then it goes from relief- to making mental processing easier- to a cresting wave of near euphoria. :) Wheeee!
 
I don't mind the word 'stimming' but I see how the negative connotations and weird sound are offputting.

I rather like 'fidgeting' as a replacement but it's easy to say and everyone knows what it means without me having to seem too abnormal.

Like if start stimming at work, for example, I can't just write it off as 'Oh, I'm just fidgeting. I'm just a fidgety person' and no one has to know I have AS if they don't need to.
 
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