I try to hide it and never spoke to my psych about it, but my emotions show physically. Especially to relieve stress, but also joy or excitement. As a kid i had…compulsions? Tics? And i still do loads of things - repetitively moving my fingers and hands, playing with a pen, walking on my toes, covering my ears and rocking. Catatonia and pacing, in more severe cases. It is not constant, just when im very emotional/stressed.
I kind of wondered how common this is for a non-autistic person? Does anybody have such things?
I am ashamed of it, it feels like something that fits a 4 year old with classical autism, not an adult with no such diagnosis. It is mostly sort of controllable, unless i am too overwhelmed, then it isnt.
My psych doesnt know, because i felt stupid about it.
Yes, maybe i should. It is kind of a signal of being overwhelmed and incapable of regulating my emotions and input in more common ways. It isnt really a big problem. But it is a sign.
I rock back and forth all of the time. I told my former pdoc about it and he said, “That must be comforting”. (He was a genius in his field, by the way).
Anyway, I also kick my feet when I am in a sitting position. It seems to bug some people because others have commented on it.
I also press my lips together repeatedly as a habit. I have been doing this for over 50 years and I hate it immensely but, I can’t stop.
Yes I have tics and stimmimg behavior when I get really emotional, and not just with bad emotions. Excitement, pride, jest, comfort; I have a hard time containing them. Oh, and I don’t have autism. They thought I did when I first got ill, but I didn’t show any symptoms that weren’t explained by spending most of my time with my autistic brother until age 14. Just natural mimicking of the behavior of someone so close to me.
I rock back and forth, occasionally. I do it when I’m upset or stressed. I also flap my hands when I’m disgusted, physically hurting, or super excited. I don’t have autism, though.
Stimming is almost always present in individuals on the autism spectrum, but does not necessarily indicate its presence.[8] The biggest difference between autistic and non-autistic stimming is the type of stim and the quantity of stimming.[8
Stimming is almost always a symptom of autism, and it’s usually the most obvious. After all, few typically developing people rock, flap, pace, or flick their fingers on a regular basis. While autistic stimming does look unusual, however, it’s important to note that subtler forms of stimming are also a part of most people’s behavior patterns. If you’ve ever tapped your pencil, bitten your nails, twirled your hair, or tapped your toes, you’ve engaged in stimming.
The biggest differences between autistic and typical stimming are the type, quantity, and obviousness of the behavior.
