What is hand flapping?

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Can someone explain in detail? I ask because I always thought I didn't have hand flapping, but today I caught myself doing something very weird with my hands, and remembered that in the past I used to do it a lot.

Haven't listened to the sound on this 'cos I'm on a break at work and people would get annoyed... but;

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JZHARPuQ6-w&NR=1[/youtube]

It's not hugely different in adults and doesn't happen all the time.

It refers to any of several movements.

It can be up and down or sort of shaking the hands side to side, and sometimes it involves doing it against a body part and sometimes just in the air. (At least, those are all the kinds I've seen.) And the fingers/hands themselves can be held in several different positions while doing it.

Non-autistic people sometimes handflap too, I've noticed. I've witnessed non-autistic people hand-flapping and sometimes called them on it. They usually get really embarrassed (if they get the reference).

Thanks for that, did not know before about the grinding teeth, something I use to do a lot of. Also feel now I'm quite possibly was a hand flapper too, still find if very excited kind of shake my hands, one of my many quirks - what are yours...

I still flap my hands. I do it all the time, I thought it was because of anxiety. Thanks for inquiring, or else I would have never known.

asplanet wrote:

Tend to flap when frustrated (not giant bird-wings, just small flaps).
Tend to chew my nails - which actually seems to be a stimming thing for some people.

Forever fidgeting with my hands, bending fingers, clasping, making "finger stars" while walking etc..
Doing the "Freddy Kruger glove-shuffle" (where you start with your smallest finger and rotate each finger inwards) - he does it in the movies all the time.

Knee bobbing, foot bobbing
Tend to flick my tounge on the inside of my teeth (a great way to stim without being noticed).

A bit of facial twitching/gesturing/shaping

Quite a lot of quirks actually.

Sounds a lot like me.

ditto

I still don't understand The video wasn't clear to me either....

[youtube]http://youtube.com/watch?v=48SbzefUMrA&feature=related[/youtube]
Heres another one found on youtube


Its just a way of stimming

thanks, I'm starting to get an idea...

Reminds me that another one I do is one hand flicking and the other hand flapping, or one hand flapping side to side another up and down.

Sorry Greentea, I chose the first video because it was subtle and I thought more people would see that behavior in themselves.

Maybe I selected one that was too subtle, Dave089's one is a lot more obvious but bear in mind that the child in question could be further along the spectrum or could have more of a flapping problem.

The amount of flapping varies with age, circumstances and position on the spectrum.

Flapping problem?

Dave089Thanks for that, so another thing I still do - a little ritual me and my boys do together...

I chewed on the inside of my mouth when get anxious or bored.