#But I've struggled to do big bangs in the past bc I get overwhelmed and then my mi kick in lol

[benevolentsam]

Does anyone know if there’s an spn femslash bang or spn femslash bingo happening this year??

[adultingautistic]

Hey, since I've followed you, I have noticed quite a lot of behaviours in myself (turns out I do a lot of things that can be considered stimming that I considered just "quirks" or things I did because I was bored or just to stress-relief) My older sister recently tried to get diagnosed but got turned away because she "showed too much mimic"(??) Anyways, sorry for the rant, I wanted to ask if there can be other causes for stimming aside from autism? Just bc I want to consider all possibilities

An excellent question!

So, I was going to write my own answer, but then this article I found worded everything so well that I just decided to paste most of it:

Stimming exists on a continuum. Most people stim at least some of the time. For example, chewing on a pencil while in deep concentration is a form of stimming. Stimming does not necessarily mean a person has autism, ADHD, or another neurological difference. Yet frequent or extreme stimming such as head-banging more commonly occurs with neurological and developmental differences.

WHY DO PEOPLE STIM?

Stimming helps people cope with emotions such as frustration and boredom. It may also help them concentrate, especially on challenging or boring tasks. Over time, stimming can become a habit. A person might come to associate biting their nails or chewing their hair with deep concentration, making it more difficult to concentrate without these stimming behaviors.

Autistic people often feel overwhelmed by sensory input such as flickering lights or loud noises. Stimming can help them recover a sense of control, calming them and making sensory distraction easier to manage. Stimming is often a sign that an autistic person is overwhelmed and struggling to cope with their emotions.

Stimming can also be pleasurable, especially when people associate stimming with relaxation or concentration.

DO ALLISTIC PEOPLE STIM?

Many forms of fidgeting, such as twisting hair or tapping fingers, are also a type of stimming. These forms of stimming are so common that they often go unnoticed.

Toddlers and preschoolers may also stim to cope with overwhelming emotions and having little control over their own lives. Some parents worry this stimming behavior is an early warning sign of autism, but when stimming is the only symptom, autism is unlikely. According to United Cerebral Palsy, about 20% of neurotypical toddlers bang their heads.

Neurotypical people stim for the same reasons that autistic people do—to cope with boredom, alleviate feelings of sensory overload, manage frustration and anxiety, and because stimming can become a pleasurable habit. Fidget spinners, a recent toy fad, are a stimming tool popular among both neurotypical and neurodivergent children.

So then what’s the difference based on neurodiverse stimming vs allistic fidgeting?

First, other neurodiversities absolutely can make a person stim to the same degree that autistic people do.  Anxiety is a big one, so is ADHD.  If you’ve ever seen an actor in a movie start rocking back and forth because they’re THAT scared or upset, this is them stimming because their emotions are THAT overwhelming, so even allistics do stim on occasion.

So what’s the difference then, between autistic stimming and allistic stimming?

1) Intensity: If you’re stimming so hard you’ve rubbed holes in all your shirt-sleeves (ahem: me), then you’ve moved beyond allistic stimming.

2) Frequency:  If you’re stimming so often that you’ve actually caused your arm muscles to get sore from overuse (ahem: me), then you’ve moved beyond allistic stimming.

3) Ability to stop: If stopping causes you stress, then it’s more likely neurodiverse stimming, if stopping is no big deal for you, then it’s more likely allistic stimming.

4) Social acceptability: If you are not able to keep your stims limited to “socially acceptable” stims only, then you’ve moved beyond allistic stimming.  (However the opposite is NOT true- if you are able to keep your stims limited to what’s socially acceptable, this does’t mean you’ aren’t autistic, it just means you’ve learned to mask).

5) Harmfulness: If your stims are causing harm to either you or to objects, and you’re aware of this harm but still do them, then you have moved beyond allistic stimming.

This is not an exhaustive list, and there are other differences as well.  Also, if you do even ONE of these, then you’ve moved outside of allistic stimming and are now in neurodiverse stimming territory.  So don’t feel like “Well I do only 4 of those so I’m not autistic”, no, you do AT LEAST ONE, so you probably are neurodiverse in some way.

But no, it is not only autism that causes people to need to stim more intensely than allistics do.  Any form of emotional distress can cause stimming to increase, as can any form of mental distress.

So if stimming is the only neurodiverse behavior you’ve noticed in yourself, then it probably isn’t autism that’s the cause of it- it’s more likely to be an emotional cause.  But if you’ve noticed many other autistic behaviors in yourself, then autism is highly likely to be the reason for your stimming.