STIMMING/would like your input

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Noticed something today. There is a new kid in my neighborhood who is obviously neurotypical - brand new and already has tons of friends) He was playing football with another neighborhood boy and the way he contorted his face when the ball came flying toward him reminded me of my son's face when he stims while/after he anticipates something enjoyable. I started to wonder if my son has some sort of confusion as to what is a physical object vs. an actual concept. He contorts his face in the same manner when he anticipates something pleasurable as this other boy did when he anticipated catching the ball (which he caught.) It's as though my sons views a trip to an amusement park as a flying ball coming his way that he must catch. Do you know where I'm going with this? I feel like I'm on to something here but I don't know what to do with it. I need you guys to help me.
This has got my wheels turning. I've been wanting to understand why people stim for a long time now almost to the point of going mad. Please add anything you can think of about your own child or maybe mine if you have any ideas. Thanks

I have no idea where you're going with it, because I can't picture a facial expression as any sort of 'stimming' behavior.

You'll find a lot of varying opinions here on what even constitutes stimming, much less what causes it. IMHO, true Self STIMulating behaviors are for the relief and soothing of the extra high levels of stress Autistic people incur, mostly unconsciously. When you feel constantly out of place and ill at ease in the world you live in, when sensory input tends to be a constant bombardment of sensation so complicated to process that it is barely tolerable, one tends to live in a near-constant state of nervous stimulation.

This is why I believe things like rocking and swaying to be true 'stims,' because, like rocking an infant, they help soothe the effects of that stress. Unless the mind is focused on something specific as a distraction, that sort of stim can be almost unstoppable, because when forced to stop, the stress of processing sensory stimuli increases immediately.

I don't personally believe fidgety habits like nail biting and hair twisting to be classic 'stims,' because although they may cause a physical stimulus, they don't really create any kind of soothing sensation, they're just physical distractions and even the non-Autistic and completely neurotypical do these sorts of things all the time. 'Fidgits' are not due to Autism, though excessive and even self-injuring fidgits may be due to something like OCD.

As far as the object/concept thing, again I'm not entirely sure I'm following your train of thought at all, but my sense is that in both boys, the facial expression, or tic or whatever it is, is the result of an internal sensation, in much the same way that people make specific types of faces when overcome by emotion, just before they begin to weep. Clearly, its an expression of anticipation, apparently a pleasurable one.

I'm going to add that stims are not just soothing. They can be to Stimulate an understimulated brain, too. My son is constantly trying to self-regulate under too much and too little stimulation.

As far as the face goes, I would look at it this way: When you see a ball coming your way, the sight is a form of stimulus, as is any other piece of information you get through your senses. So the boy reacted unconsciously, with an anticipatory face. You might wince as you watch a nurse get the needle ready for a shot, also.

When my son anticipates something happy and exciting, he jumps up and down and flaps, trying to burn off the overstimulated feeling he has from anticipation. He rocks in his chair when bored, etc.

The face, I don't think is part of the stim. Maybe it is in anticipation of whatever the stim is prepping him to countervail, or just that his actions bring him happiness that is a bit overwhelming.

Quote-unquote 'normal' people (no such thing as 'normal' anyway and how boring the world if there were! ) will play with a pen while talking on the phone. I think this is done to maintain concentration. To phase out other things in a potentially chaotic environment and focus in on one thing. This is a more task-oriented or utilitarian use of stimming.

Another very important use of stimming is that it enables a person to really get into an activity. This is the same reason people rock climb or drive hundreds of miles to attend a music concert.


PS I am not a parent. I do live my life on the Spectrum, comfortably self-diagnosed, and I try and help out where I can.

This is very confusing, and I do not understand at all what you are talking about. Facial expressions aren't stims, unless you repetitively move your lip or something like that I suppose.