Changing a Stim

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My son, who is almost 3, started shaking his head about 2 weeks ago. This is the first time I have seen him do an obvious stim.
We don't have a diagnosis at this point but I am fairly certain it's coming... Anyway I don't really want to stop him from stimming.
The problem is that he shakes his head so hard that he falls over. I'm afraid he will get hurt.
He bumped his head on the coffee table tonight.

When I was little I used to spin a lot on a sit n spin, so we got him one with the hope that he would use it instead of head shaking.
Any ideas on how to get him to change to something a bit safer for him?

Should I just grab him and put him on the sit n spin when he starts to head shake? Or should I try putting him on it before he is likely to? I know he does it when he is tired and when he is watching tv and gets excited.

My son was diagnosed at 2 and we got him a Sit n' Spin, he's 4 now and he still won't use it. He'll spin himself though and sometimes he'll do the head shaking too *while he's running* (I did it too) ... I think it would be tough to redirect that stim especially if he's the stubborn type. We invested in some foam rubber bumpers for dangerous corners and just try to keep an eye on him if he's about to get hurt, sometimes he'll still careen into something like a door frame without warning and cry for a minute but he hasn't really hurt himself yet.

Stims are a highly personal thing. Instinctively, we know what we need to fulfill our needs. I think for me when I suppress my stims it is way more painful than a conk on the head. Because the resulting enduring of over-stimulus, sensory overload or even Shutdown is painful in a way I can't even describe. Going into shutdown is very dangerous as well.

I think if he gets enough conks to the head he will gravitate or change his stim when he needs to. I know mine have changed and morphed over the years.

Maybe this isn't what you wanted to hear... but it is how I feel about my stimming...

I hadn't really thought about it being so personal. But you are right. I rock side to side because it calms me down and I can play it off as dancing.

I used to spin when I was little and fell over a lot. That is the reason they got me the sit n spin.
I don't remember if I shook my head but my dad used to put me on the sit n spin and tell me to do it there where I was safe.
But then, he wasn't really asking me to do something different, I was still spinning, just changed location.
I wish they made something like an adult sized sit n spin. I would have one... really.
I no longer spin except when I can get in a tire swing. And yes we have a tire swing.
Yep I'm in my 40s and still get into a tire swing and spin at every opportunity.
I think I changed to the side to side rocking when I got into middle school and there was no playground.
That's also about the time that people started looking at me funny for spinning round.

Yeah - teasing makes stimming hard in your youth... I like to spin in my office chair... but I can only spin to the left or it makes me ill... have you tried spinning in an office chair? That is sort of like a sit n spin

I had a sit n spin as a kid too .... haven't seen one in so many years!

Thank you both for your comments on stimming. My 6-yr-old son does a lot of hand flapping (in the air and on the floor/wall/table), and he also runs back-and-forth in set areas, particularly when he is excited or happy. I am very concerned that he will be picked on in school, but I know it is a part of who he is. Reading your comments on the subject have helped.

My son hand flapped and did a simultaneous verbal stim... they diagnosed him ADHD - but I am not so certain that is all it was/is anymore as I know so much more learning through my own diagnosis process and issues. I have only been officially been diagnosed ADHD as well, but we are on our way to diagnosing Aspergers.

We did biofeedback for my son and he is only left with verbal stims now... We had wanted to stop his constant jumping around before starting school...

Now all his teachers scoff saying he is the best ADHD student they ever had. He still has lots of issues - but not in the hyper active way.

I have to admit though - my auditory processing issues are driven bonkers by his auditory stims.

Ok, maybe I need to check into this "biofeedback" you speak of. I'm still learning as I go. (Having a husband that is not completely onboard with my son's diagnosis has made things a little more difficult, not to mention frustrating.)

My son began taking Adderal XR for ADHD halfway through the school year last year, and it did help a lot. Still have definite issues with staying focused, but he was able to finally start completing most of his school work. I agonized over the decision to put him on medication, but I could not deny the improvements at school.

I looked into the meds thing for my son too - after agonizing I went the opposite way. Meds are a stimulant - but so is caffeine. I began allowing my son to have one cup of coffee before school - helped a lot. I understand this is a hard decision - and I respect people's choices.

My son's father is not on board either - and he was most the reason i needed to get my son to stop jumping around.. he just disciplined him too too much saying it was a discipline issue and lack of caring. Deeply offending to me. Disipline is one thing if EARNED and truly rotten behavior. I could tell this had nothing to do with self control or being a "bad" kid - and heck.. I rocked and stimmed all over the place (though back then I had no clue about anything!) My son is the best kid I could hope for.

This is definitely not an easy road in life - but it is a road well worth traveling