Stim behaviors?

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I understand that stim behaviors are wrist flapping, finger flicking, verbal sounds, jumping up and down, etc...but what "actually" are stim behaviors. What is the child trying to do and why? I've asked kids and also adults as to why and I haven't got an answer yet. Is it similar to a sort of convulsion where a patient feels it coming on but once it's happening, they're out of control? Anybody have any info? Years ago, I observed a child on a bus doing this and though something exciting was about to happen but nothing happened. Now I know this child was probably doing a stim behavior...I guess...

It depends. Stim is an abbreviation for self-stimulation. Generally, self-stimulation is done by those who're (momentarily) deprived or if there's a general lack of sensory stimuli. Beside creating additional stimuli input that can lesson the boredom, the deprivation, the lack of stimuli, that stimulation can also be comforting.

It's not that different from sexual stimulation or professional massages in the sense that it can feel 'good', soothing, comforting, calming to get exactly a certain sort of sensory input from, say, spinning in circles or flapping hands.

Furthermore, another way self-stimulating behaviour can help is that the additional sensory input helps focus and attention. Or that a certain way of sensory input must be present to get into that mode. That's a bit like... when people have to dress into comfy clothes at home, shut out noises or chaos in order to be able to relax.

Then it can also be an outlet. When emotions are not shown in a certain way, but are very strong (which would result in a laughing fit or a big smile or tears from a typical person) or if this typical way of showing the emotion is too weak and not lessening the force of the feeling, then self-stimulation can become the output of that.

A child who's very happy, excited, terrified can be flapping, jumping up and down and moving their body to ease the tension they feel but cannot get rid of in an expected way.

All of these is closely connected though and just representing facets of the same mechanism due to it's nature (as an intense physical movement or other intense sensory input) - it can be an outlet for inner psychological and emotional tension and physical discomfort but also as an input to counterbalance too few stimuli or wrong stimuli and to produce the ability to be in a certain state of mind (focus, attention mostly).

There might be a certain neuro-chemical element to self-stimulating behaviour too. It can release and heighten the levels of certain chemicals in the brain such as endorphins, I think.

What makes self-stimulating behaviours in autism complicated is that they can also be connected and be influenced by the perception style and perception of the environment. As well as by the restrictive patterns of interest and other repetitive activities besides self-stimulation and the attention and fascinating with details. That is a parts of why some kids are opening and closing doors or flapping their hands in front of lights for hours and days.

Some autistic kids who barely react to or just have moments in which they do not react to langauge or other attempts to get in contact with them react if you copy their self-stimulating behaviour.

It's really complex.

I tend to do it when things aren't moving fast enough for me (in elevators, stuck in traffic, etc). Fortunately I taught myself to play the drums, so that 'explains' it..

I wish I knew. I only know that I do it all the time. I don't know what qualifies as involuntary but it's generally not conscious. I would often prefer not to. I just get so uncomfortable if I don't. Really, I wonder if I'm just OCD, but that's just me.

I think you'll find that some of us here came to, among other things, explain why we do things just such as this. We know we do it, we've figured out all we can, now AS is our reason. We may never find a more elaborate one. Except the one above, of course. Me, I hadn't noticed all that. I just always have to be doing something, weirder stuff in private (like trying to get air to blow into one eye if the other is irritated... feels nutty and surely looks worse).

I've had them, still have them, nothing dramatic, but I've always thought of them more as stress relieving activities than stimulating activities. Who knows, maybe they're just two ways of saying the same thing?