Do People Ever Comment on Your Stimming?

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StarTrekker
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06 Dec 2012, 9:12 pm

I've never had anyone comment on my stimming before, everyone mostly ignored it, so I was startled today when my teacher mentioned it. I had just turned in my final exam and was flapping a little, mostly because it felt good and I wanted to, and my teacher asked, "Are you okay? Do you think it went alright?" (This is my abnormal psych teacher, plus she knows about my AS, so she recognises stimming when she sees it) I looked round to see what she meant, and she was kind of mimicking the motion I'd been making with my hand, so I knew what she was referring to. I think she thought I was stressed by the exam (I wasn't, I'm an expert at abnormal psych), but I found it curious nonetheless. Has anyone else ever brought attention to your stimming?


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glasstoria
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06 Dec 2012, 9:21 pm

yes because I used to repetitively hum or sing Christmas songs (anytime of year), and sometimes I still hum when I am around other people.


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cathylynn
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06 Dec 2012, 10:48 pm

you betcha. people want to know what it is.



MusicIsLife2Me
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06 Dec 2012, 11:08 pm

People comment on my stimming a lot. They have made comments about it since I was a child. They usually tell me to "stop being so nervous". I have tried explaining that I am not always nervous when I stim, but I don't think they believe me most of the time.


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mmonroe
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06 Dec 2012, 11:18 pm

Yes...since I was a child. I have various stims, not all of them are obvious, but it seems as though each has been noticed, pointed out or asked about at some time.



mmonroe
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06 Dec 2012, 11:19 pm

Yes...since I was a child. I have various stims, not all of them are obvious, but it seems as though each has been noticed, pointed out or asked about at some time.



EMTkid
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06 Dec 2012, 11:57 pm

One of my stims involves having to do something with my hands, which of course gets worse when I'm nervous. Once, I was at a job interview where a friend worked and I had to wait. I was exceptionally nervous, but my friend was in there with me. It was a very casual interview (the norm for my profession, Thank God) and I was practically tying my fingers in knots. A few minutes before the director came in, my friend handed me a deck of cards to play with. In just a couple of minutes, I was doing simple, repetitive card tricks and was way calmer. When the boss came in, my friend suggested that I show the boss one of my tricks. It made things go so much smoother.



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07 Dec 2012, 12:19 am

Only my mother and my daughter. It annoyed my mother and it annoys my daughter. People have laughed at me before on buses and such and I think it was because of stimming.



Sylkat
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07 Dec 2012, 1:15 am

Yes, and I hate it.
My stimming is whistling, or singing or repetitive sounds, and until pointed out, I forget that it annoys others.

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07 Dec 2012, 1:28 am

People comment on it quite a bit. Especially my mother. It sometime annoys me and it doesn't at others. But my mother usually tends to make a big deal out of it.

Actually, during dinner tonight, I was stimming and she took the object I was stimming with and said, "Don't make noisy, con!"
(And yeah, my mother has an Asian accent.)


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Bloodheart
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07 Dec 2012, 1:47 am

Oh, how I fear for anyone who even mentions my stimming...
A lot of my stimming just looks like nervous behaviour so no one mentions it, but the big one is when I tap my fingers on a table...the faster/harder it gets the closer I am to having a meltdown, my meltdowns are uncontrollable crying but there's a point just prior when I'm really mad (I'm mad during the meltdown too, I just can't express it). Anyone even mentions the stimming I'd likely bite their head off.


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League_Girl
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07 Dec 2012, 2:08 am

My husband, my mother, kids on my softball team, teachers and students in school. As a child, everyone just thought they were habits so they always told me to stop and I did every time. But then do it again later. My stims just looked like things normal kids do like whistling or feet kicking or humming or pencil tapping, and one teacher commented on me drumming my fingers on my notebook in 6th grade. I had one stim where I liked bouncing on soft furniture and I did it at group therapy a lot and I also did pacing and the teacher would tell me to sit down. My stims have changed over the years and new ones always take place. Earliest stims I ever had was wringing my wrists and my mother brought that up when I was being tested for AS. It's in the videos too and mom showed it to me and I thought it looked normal so why was it made a big deal? I seemed content in the video too, not stressed out nor stimulated from the noise.


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Rhinox
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07 Dec 2012, 2:13 am

People have commented, yes, but they don't call it/recognize it as stimming.

I'm a huge Transformers fan. I always have at least one or two minicons or microbots on me. I fiddle around with them in my pocket or, when I have the opportunity, pull them out and just play with them. Nothing big, just manipulating them, keeping my hands busy.

It's funny. When I ran for mayor here, I had to do a few televised debates. I made sure I had a few minicons in my pocket that I played with under the desk. No one watching could even tell that I was playing with toys while discussing the fiscal future of our city.


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StarTrekker
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07 Dec 2012, 2:28 am

Rhinox wrote:
It's funny. When I ran for mayor here, I had to do a few televised debates. I made sure I had a few minicons in my pocket that I played with under the desk. No one watching could even tell that I was playing with toys while discussing the fiscal future of our city.


That's really funny, I can just picture it :) My stims have changed over the years too. When I was really young my big ones were spinning around in circles until I fell over and bouncing on my toes, to the point where I sprained the ligaments in both ankles and had to be physically restrained. After that I used my middle finger to rub at the skin on the knuckle of my forefinger on each hand until they became raw and scabbed. I also used to screw up my face and tense all the muscles in my neck, but that one gave me headaches. After that it became the classic flapping, I don't remember where it came from, but I didn't think there was anyone else who did it at the time. I had a period less than a year ago where I twisted my whole body from the knees up from side to side while standing. That one dissipated after I left the stressful job I was in. Now it's mostly rocking and flapping, both of which I picked up deliberately after deciding I liked how they feel. Now sometimes they're conscious, sometimes they're not.


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Shellfish
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07 Dec 2012, 2:57 am

My son stims in various ways and he will be starting primary school next year (in Feb) - his kinder teacher commented that although the kinder kids don't really notice now they will next year. He shakes and rocks, and clicks his tongue continuously - he doesn't seem to realise he is doing any of this. is it something that generally leads to bullying? I am not sure what to do about it...


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felinesaresuperior
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07 Dec 2012, 3:12 am

i flap a pen at work for six hours straight between my fingers and sometimes flap my fingers as well. my supervisor at work said she's never seen anyone do it before, and that i'm an expert because i dont drop it.
another worker asked me if i can stop, because she's bothered by it and she said she cant stop looking because it's right in front of her, which is a damn lie, because i sat to her left and who asked her to turn her head, anyway. so i told her, "no, i cant stop." and went right back to flipping.
as a child, i'd flap my fingers in public, and my mother said i should keep my wierdness to myself, so i learned not to flap my fingers in public, except at work, because flipping the pen isnt like flapping your fingers, and when i do flap my fingers i keep them very close to the computer, so it's not easy to see. at home, i close all windows before stimming so my neighbors wont know.
keep stimming, everyone! dont let anyone stop you. it's a free country.