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Nail biting or finger snapping - habit or stimming? Neuro(a)typical behaviors.

What are Stims?

These are nothing more than repetitive behaviors, movements or sounds that help calm down. Their purpose is to relieve tension or express emotions. This includes, for example, moving a leg rhythmically, twirling a pencil in your hand, whistling or snapping your fingers. The word "stim" itself comes from "self-stimulatory behavior," meaning self-stimulating behavior.

What are they used for?

Stims, on the one hand, help to relieve tension and calm down in a nervous situation (e.g., biting the tip of a pen during a difficult exam), on the other hand, they help to focus attention and maintain concentration or stimulate the body when more energy is needed (e.g., tapping a pencil on the knee in a boring lecture). For individuals on the spectrum, repetitive behaviors can provide the stimuli needed at a given moment or help cut off excess stimuli (e.g., waving a hand in front of one's face helps cancel out harsh light). In addition, stims for autistic people help them feel their own body and gain control over it, feel more confident in new surroundings, or express emotions.

Who stimulates?

Stimwalking, although it seems characteristic of people on the spectrum, affects all of us. Stimuli are part of typical human development. They occur in children up to about age 3 and help, among other things, in learning to coordinate movements (such as turning from side to side). Through repetition of certain actions, children become proficient. Stims do not disappear with age, although they are no longer as frequent. They are most easily observed in situations that cause stress or fatigue. The sight of people "clicking" a pen, shifting from foot to foot or sighing before a difficult exam surprises no one. So is "rocking" in a chair during a boring lesson. Autistic people usually feel the need to stimulate more often than others. In doing so, they perform many intensified stims. More intense perception of the world and sensory stimuli, as well as a penchant for routine, means that people on the spectrum are more likely to have to deal with emotions, and stims are helpful in this.

Each stims in its own way

Some bite their nails nervously, others clap or whistle. Stims are a very individual thing. Each person stimulates in their own way. Each person is encouraged by different things or situations to stimulate (for example, public speaking may or may not be a source of stress). Similar stims can have different functions and serve different purposes, e.g. some people's finger snapping calms them down, while others are stimulated. The timing and intensity of stims also depends on the needs of specific individuals. Where a subtle hand movement repeated for a minute is enough for some, others will need several hours spent on various forms of stimulation.

The most important question

Stims are not only repetitive movements, but also sounds. Researchers divide individual stims into 3 categories: harmless (snapping fingers, whistling), destructive (banging the head against the wall, scratching the skin), or aggressive (directed against another person). At the same time, it is impossible to talk about valuing stimuli, because these are not from ntura "good" or "bad". Their intensity and timing depends on the emotions that the person is trying to deal with in his own way. In order to support her - in case she stims in a destructive way, for example - it is necessary to understand her. Only the answer to the question "why is she doing this?" will make her understand and work through certain things. There are a number of devices that can be used to regulate tension in stimulants. These include manual toys such as cubes, spinners and stress bags. By looking at stims as meaningful and important activities, we can better understand the needs and emotions of autistic people.

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