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Benjammin0817
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25 Sep 2017, 6:14 pm

I find I always have to be moving. When it's not for a specific purpose (work, walking, hobbies), i feel the need to keep moving for no purpose (pacing, bouncing my knee, chewing my nails, tapping my fingers).

The only times I really stop moving is when i consciously focus on staying still (quite difficult), when I'm sleeping, and when I'm completely zoned out (although i also do that while moving)

Anyone else notice this about themselves?



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25 Sep 2017, 7:16 pm

I notice this in myself sometimes too. I have read that it is a sensory thing- more specifically a way to gain vestibular input. I also crave vibrating movements. They make me feel calmer and able to focus more.


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25 Sep 2017, 7:18 pm

Even as a young child, I tended to be lazy, rather than in "constant motion."

My mind used to be too "quick," though---and still is, to some extent.



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26 Sep 2017, 12:57 am

Absolutely. My office chair at work both rocks and swivels, and my preferred motion is a rock that doesn't hit either end of the arc, so it's a constant motion, like waves on water. If the chair is squeaking too much that day, I'll switch to a swivel that doesn't hit either end (same motion in a different plane). If I'm not doing that, I'm bouncing my leg or jiggling a foot or something. I even rock in a stationary chair or on the couch. Being still is very tough. I agree that it's probably some kind of vestibular input seeking, just like I'm deep-pressure tactile seeking. I also remember reading somewhere that rocking is a stim, creating alpha waves in the brain (somebody correct me if I'm wrong on that please), and I do find it very soothing when under stress. But I do it all the time, stressed or not.



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26 Sep 2017, 4:28 am

It's that way for me. That's what autistic stimming is. Whatever the repetitious movement is, it's going on all the time. Even changing what position I'm sitting in every couple of minutes.



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27 Sep 2017, 11:32 pm

When I was diagnosed with ADHD, not being able to sit or stand still was the only criterion I met for the hyperactive version (I'm inattentive).

Can't sit still even at the movies. And in my computing classes I have a swiveling chair and that gets a workout.



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27 Sep 2017, 11:41 pm

Exactly the same as you. It seems like I always need to keep moving.

My ASD diagnosis explicitly states that I am able to remain focused for long periods of time, so I'm pretty sure that I don't have ADHD. The only condition that that I know I have that might have that might result in me needing to pace, bounce my knee, chew my nails, and tap my fingers (exactly the same as you, plus a few others, but not classic stims like rocking or hand flapping) is ASD/Asperger's.


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27 Sep 2017, 11:45 pm

I'm just about constantly stimming in some way, I've noticed over the past few years. I have a hard time even staying still long enough to get to sleep - I have to have my feet in a very specific position, or I'll unconsciously start rubbing them together, and either the motion or the conscious effort to stop keeps me awake.


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28 Sep 2017, 12:41 am

Benjammin0817 wrote:
I find I always have to be moving. When it's not for a specific purpose (work, walking, hobbies), i feel the need to keep moving for no purpose (pacing, bouncing my knee, chewing my nails, tapping my fingers).

The only times I really stop moving is when i consciously focus on staying still (quite difficult), when I'm sleeping, and when I'm completely zoned out (although i also do that while moving)

Anyone else notice this about themselves?


If you are on any medication, this could be a side effect called akathisia.



dragonsanddemons
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28 Sep 2017, 6:31 am

Chronos wrote:
If you are on any medication, this could be a side effect called akathisia.


Thank you for mentioning that - I wasn't aware of it. I don't remember stimming nearly as much as a kid, when I was on different meds (although I also didn't know what stimming was, so I was probably less aware that I was doing it). I should probably look around online to see if it's a possible side effect of any of my current meds.


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-H. P. Lovecraft, "The Outsider"