do YOU have stims? | Autism PDD

Exactly, Mary. thinking about my own occasional slips out of "neurotypical" behavior makes me feel so much better about my son's behavior. I think he's likely to either overcome his desire to do these things, or learn to do them in private, so that they don't hold him back or bring unwanted attention to himself.

I don't want him to live in an "autistic closet," but truth be told, most of us supress some aspect of our true selves when we enter "the real world." It's just the way society works.
mark_dad38582.1507060185I've found that most everyone stims. If you remember "Silence of the Lambs" Hannibal did not stim. He would sit still for hours at a time, even unblinking. That is what made him scarey, other than the killing and eating people of course.

The thing is when we stim it something we do to a much less extreme. Our kids do it a great deal. My daughter chews her hair, does a lot of touching, and lately has a more advanced one, she takes her glasses off and on so she can experience the difference in her vision.

My personal stim is twirling my keyring. My company also sells rachet wrenches and I can wear one of those out at a tradeshow.

Mark,

It IS hard to live in the 'real world' when the world is so fake. (:

Sometimes I think that the world is divided into two groups. Those who march in time and those who strides have no rhythm. I can march if I have too, but I had to learn how, and I can't keep up the pace for very long before I need to break out into my own trot.

Anna will probably be like me. Finding freedom in her restrictions. (Sorry, getting a little deep here).

Managing a way of life that is more abstract than blue printed isn't something I wanted my daughter to deal with. At least I will always understand her, except her, and listen to her. My own mom thinks I am 'strange' because I don't wear a ton of jewelry like her and read fantasy novels. (:

I think it is great that so many parents are dedicated to their children on this board.

Ok I confess. I stim too. (:

I pick my fingers (so does my daugher) I only do it when I am nervous or bored.

I work out at the gym I have to do the exact same routine or else I am a mess and don't feel complete.

I use to drink the same amount of sips from a glass (either 7 or 3). I don't do this much anymore.

I was very very shy, and when I did talk I could't pronounce letters well. I also had this thing where my mouth would still move even after I was done talking.

The good thing is I feel I can better understand Annas world now that I think back to my own problems. I guess that makes me the best one qualified to help her. (:

I have learned that I , too, have very many Asperger indicators. Let's just face the fact that we and our children are simply more highly evolved than the rest of the world. It's really nice knowing that God dipped His brush into very special pots when He created my little boy-wonder and I. What an unexpected joy. I am feeling so very blessed right now. It's 9:30pm here. Night, night. Janet

My husband and I are both terrible nail-biters which I would consider a stim. I've tried so many times to stop! I do it the worst when I'm stressed out, or have to sit still (driving, reading, watching a movie). I also twist my hair a lot. My husband has another really weird one that I guess is sort of related to the restless leg thing. He's a tall guy, with big feet - size 13s, so he has these long toes, and whenever he's just sitting somewhere he wags his toes back and forth. Weird, huh? Great genes we're passing along here.

Rachel

I've been focussing so much on my son's stims (limited hand flapping, limitied toe walking, guttaral "fake" laughter, jumping in place, etc.), that I've started to think about whether or not *I* have stims, too... and you know, I think I do! Though they are minor:

heel-bouncing/leg-twitching (do it all the time, rarely aware I'm doing it)
finger drumming (again, do it all the time, rarely aware I'm doing it)
running my fingers through my hair (don't do it often, but when I do, it can be repetitive)
knuckle and other joint cracking (I can just barely flex my hands and get cracks!)
listening to a piece of music over and over and over (I'm and audio engineer part time, so this may not count!)

When I think about these things, and the fact that I barely said a word before 2 then spoke in very adult sentences, had few friends in childhood, and read very early... sure sounds like mild Aspergers to me... makes me wonder...
mark_dad38581.5365856482

I'm heel-bouncing champion of the world! :)
~Lesley

Yeah, I often wonder if my DH is mildly Autistic. He is kind of quirky in social settings and has some off behaviors. He isn't good at communication verbally. He actually is better writing it down. Makes you wonder, huh?Yeah, it does. And here's another one, one that my coworkers have noticed and seem to think is really strange... when I'm on the phone, I draw spirals on any scrap of paper I can find. If I were to count all of the sprials I've drawn on pieces of paper on my desk here at work, it would number well over 50.

And again, I'm rarely aware I'm doing this stuff!

OH NO YOU DI-INT! LOL

I am the heel bouncing, leg twitching champion of ALL TIME! LOL

I think I have what is called restless leg syndrome, which is also classified as a neurological disorder. I have most of the symptoms and have had them since I was very young. And, my DH is OCD and possible ASD...Very smart, Genius level IQ, etc... So it really does make me wonder...Just like the silicone valley Asperger's baby boom.

hi,my son,josh.has autism.he's 2.Lesley, i challenge you to that. i'm heel-bouncing as we speak.

[QUOTE=rachelleh]

OH NO YOU DI-INT! LOL

I am the heel bouncing, leg twitching champion of ALL TIME! LOL

[/QUOTE]

OH GUESS WHAT, I JUST DID! BRING IT! LOL

i have restless leg syndrome, as do my mom, brother, and daughter. although we all have it very mild. whenever i fall asleep at night, i have to be moving my feet. if i cant move my feet, i cant fall asleep. i remember the first time i noticed my daughter had it too. she was just a newborn, and i was feeding her in a rocking chair as she was falling asleep. i felt a tickling down by my elbow, and when i looked down, both of her tiny little feet were twirling. it was one of the cutest things i have ever seen. i thought "aww... at least she got something from me!" lol

I saw a study not too long ago that stated that people that have the jitters tend to not have issues with weight. It was saying that people that do this burn off their extra calories. I know it runs in my family.

Tammy

[QUOTE=tabitha]

Tammy

[/QUOTE]

tell that to the extra twenty pounds sitting on my hips and thighs. LOL

My sister is overweight and she does that. So I know that study is flawed, lol.

Tammy

[QUOTE=little byrd]He isn't good at communication verbally. He actually is better writing it down.[/QUOTE]

Definitely very true for me, as well. I am a writer by trade. But when speaking, I find myself "rehearsing" what I will say before I say it so that I don't make a fool of myself. I've always chalked it up to lacking self-confidence... but man, it does make me wonder.

It's really hard to get clear info from my family about what I was like as a child. My brother (who is 10 years older than me) says that I was "cool" (emotionally) and that I didn't speak til I was 2, and then it was sentences so adult that people would laugh out loud. As an example, when asked if I wanted something that I did not want, instead of the classic toddler "No!" I would say "I would NOT."

Really, really has me wondering. Especially since I know my parents are the types to ignore any and all sings of illness or abnormailty. They just "pray on things."
mark_dad38581.8356828704I tend to play a my favorite song on a CD over and over and over again and I don't exactly do well in social situations............I wasn't completely toilet trained until I was 7 years old............makes me wonder if I might have a mild ASD

My family doesn't let you know about the family medical history until that person has died. Then they will say "oh yeah she had ___" fill in the blank with anything almost, lol. It would be real helpful to have this ahead of time. Now I just tell the doctor "as far as I know that doesn't run in the family".

Tammy