Stimming is Self Stimulating Behaviour and refers to repetitive behaviours or sounds. Stimming is often associated with autism.

Stimming can look like flapping hands, rocking motions, pacing, repeating words or phrases, leg bouncing, nail-biting, spinning a ring on your finger, wringing hands etc.

Stimming can often be helpful for people with autism/autistic people to regulate their emotions or deal with overwhelming situations. Stimming can be unhelpful when it is self-injurious (biting or head-banging) or when it disrupts an individual's ability to learn or foster a desired social connection but for the most part, it’s a useful tool. Neurotypical people also stim when they are overwhelmed in an attempt to self-soothe so while it’s often discussed in the context of autism it’s something we can all do.

As providers of ABA, our practice SHOULD NEVER try to stifle stimming when it is helpful to the individual.

Behaviour that may seem different to some, like stimming, in all likelihood is a necessary tool for self-regulation for an autistic individual. We need to ask ourselves are we changing this behaviour for the benefit of the individual or for our own benefit?

Therefore as we help those autistic individuals in our lives thrive in a neurotypical world, it's incumbent on all of us to understand autistic experiences so we can adapt our expectations of socially significant behaviours and improve the right outcomes. Shifting expectations on how everyone should act and accommodating those who use behaviour in different ways to cope and express themselves will go a long way to making the world a more inclusive place.

The next time you see your child or someone stimming, don’t be concerned, worried or dismissive. It’s natural. Ask yourself is this really an issue? Is it disrupting their life or helping them cope? In many cases, it’s not an individual’s behaviour that needs to change, it’s our understanding and perspective that could use some modification.