Stimming

Post Reply New Topic

I kinda wish i had a less harmful stim like rocking or spinning like some of you have.

I tend to pick at my skin and when i get quite nervous I pick at or rub a callous on one of my fingers to calm me down. Is there any way of stopping this? half the time it seems im not even aware im doing it until someone else picks up on it as its gross.

Quite difficult, maybe if you removed the callouses. It's like when you have a scab, you are always touching it until it falls.

Speaking of callouses, I have them on my feet and I do pick at them a lot. I also pick at the thick skin on my heels. But, I never gave it any thought or even consider it as stimming. But, I know there are so many methods when it comes to stimming. But, my biggest stim to keep under control in public is my face tics. When I'm not stimming in another way than the face tics kicks in.

If there is no one around you, I say keep stimming like that as long as you don't hurt yourself. From my own experience it is very hard to stop since most of the time I'm not even aware of it such as in your case, until someone mentions it. Don't worry about what others say.

I used to smack my head and pull my hair.
I actually trained myself to use other stims. Now its obsessive nail cleaning and hair twirling. It took a long time, but I managed. It helped that I always liked the feel of hair, and could use it in a mild stim.
Perhaps cleaning your nails would be an alternative? I use folded, soft paper, so I don't hurt myself.
Or maybe you could find an object? Like a clicker, or a squishy ball?
Sorry, I have no more ideas. Hope I might have helped....

It's very hard to stop, but maybe you can talk to a therapist about it.

I'm also trying to stop skin picking....it's really hard.

The best thing to try to replace it with would be something you could also do with your hands....not rocking or spinning, but twirling something, rubbing or fiddling with something......still I end up doing both.....it's hard to stop picking.

Elaborating on this:

Maybe you can buy some sort of manipulative toy or huggable stuffed animal to hold. I mean, it may be politically incorrect to have an adult playing with a toy in public, but it's less harmful than skin picking.

Keeping my nails short has been somewhat successful at preventing this.

I didn't even know I did this but it worked because of the social stigma of everything else. Go to the store (with office supplies) and find a quiet click pen...

Now carry that pen with you and use it when needed. That's the first step. It won't stop all the need for other stimming but it gets better.

Now that you often have the pen around start playing with it when you stim. This click is important as it gives you a focus point but also try to find a way to play with it. I can actually twirl a pen passing it between fingers (not just between 2 fingers like a drum stick) for minutes on end without ever having to touch it against anything else (I can catch and push vertically with my thumb to change where on the pen I am twirling). you even get to where people want you to teach them which is a nice way to align interests... It is also socially acceptable in meetings as long as it is silent.

I use this trick ALL the time. I twirl my lighter, keys, basically anything... There is always something around and no one sees a problem with it at all.

incidentally this will help with fine dexterity and reflexes.

Hope this helps.

I used to bite my fingernails, and even my toenails; no longer do I do that, thankfully. I stopped around 2001/02, IIRC.

Oh, and I sometimes pick the skin on the lower bottom of my feet if they accumulate like that.

Wow, I've never thought of myself as stimming at all, but I have literally never once cut my fingernails with scissors in my entire life. I suppose biting your fingernails isn't that normal really is it? [/light going on]

I bite my nails for the most part but I use clippers for my toenails. sometimes ill do my fingernails when they get really jagged to start a fresh edge

Stims I realise I do are rock my head from side to side, rock back and forth in my chair, bite nails, finger tap / mouse click, pull at my hair and put objects against my lips.

2 weeks ago I would have said I didn't 'stim' anymore...until I gradually realised that I stim like crazy!

Last edited by Si_82 on 12 Oct 2012, 6:55 am, edited 1 time in total.

I think I will try the pen idea as it would help me blend in a bit more. Trying to find ways of controlling my anxiety as the more anxous i get the worse the stims become.

You could also try covering the area with a bandage. You wouldn't be able to get to the callus to irritate the skin, but you would be able to play with the bandage, so you'd still have an outlet.

Well a certain amount of stimming is normal in the population....although for adults and big kids only the socially acceptable ones are considered normal (e.g not hand flapping, twirling fingers, rocking etc). Nail biting is a socially acceptable one but the amount of time you spend doing it could be excessive.

Aww. Finally, someone who gets it! It's not whether or not you stim, it's how, and how much you do it.