The Ultimate Guide to Stimming and Autism: What You Need to Know
As a parent of a child receiving applied behaviour analysis (ABA) therapy for autism, you might have observed your child exhibiting behaviours that are repetitive or may seem uncommon. These behaviours, referred to as “stimming,” serve a significant role in the way your child engages with their environment.
“Stimming,” an abbreviation for “self-stimulating behaviours,” is a coping strategy often seen in children with autism. These behaviours are believed to generate an enjoyable sensation and if stopped abruptly, can provoke negative reactions.
Many parents and guardians of children with autism often ask how they can stop stimming altogether. But what’s even more important is to learn effective methods to gradually and safely guide the child away from stimming, especially when it becomes disruptive or detrimental. Thankfully, ABA therapy provides strategies to manage stimming if it starts to cause complications in social or operational scenarios.
Understanding these behaviours might seem challenging if they differ from your initial expectations. But only by truly understanding stimming can we better assist our children in their journey. Read on to find out what you need to know about stimming.
What are examples of stimming?
Stimming behaviours can take many different forms, and they may vary from child to child. However, some common examples of stimming include:
Hand flapping or finger tapping. This involves rapid, repetitive movements of the hands or fingers. For example, your child may flap their hands up and down or tap their fingers together repeatedly.
Rocking back and forth. Your child may rock their body back and forth, sometimes while sitting or standing. This can be a way to self-soothe or calm themselves down.
Spinning. Your child may spin around in circles, sometimes for extended periods. This can be a way to feel the sensation of movement or to relieve stress or anxiety. They may also like to look at spinning wheels and objects.
Repeating words or phrases. Your child may repeat the exact words or phrases over and over again. This can be a way to self-stimulate, or to communicate their needs or desires.
Flapping objects. Your child may flap or wave objects in front of their face, such as a string or a toy. This can be a way to create visual stimulation or explore different objects’ sensory qualities.
Stimming behaviours can change over time, and your child may develop new ways of self-stimulating as they grow and develop.
What are examples of stimming?
Stimming is a behaviour that’s commonly associated with autism, but it’s not exclusive to this condition. There are a variety of conditions that can cause stimming, including anxiety, ADHD, and sensory processing disorder.
Autism
Autism is a neurodevelopmental disorder that affects how a person perceives and interacts with the world around them. One of the hallmarks of autism is the presence of repetitive behaviours, often referred to as stimming.
ADHD
ADHD, or Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder, is a condition that can affect a person’s ability to focus and regulate their behaviour. For example, people with ADHD may struggle to sit still, stay focused, or control their impulses, causing stimming practices.
Anxiety
Anxiety can cause a person to engage in repetitive behaviours as a way to cope with feelings of stress or worry. For example, you might find yourself tapping your foot or biting your nails when you’re feeling anxious. Similarly, people with ADHD may use stimming to help them focus or regulate their emotions.
Sensory processing disorder
Sensory processing disorder can also contribute to stimming. This condition affects the way a person’s brain processes sensory information, making certain textures, sounds, or smells overwhelming or uncomfortable. Engaging in repetitive behaviours, such as rocking or humming, can help a person with a sensory processing disorder feel more in control and calm.
In what ways can ABA be used to manage stimming?
Through ABA therapy, parents and caregivers can adopt effective strategies to navigate and address stimming behaviours in children with autism. These are some of those strategies:
Functional Communication Training
Functional Communication Training (FCT) is a technique in which the child is taught alternative ways to express their stimming needs or desires, using tools like pictures, symbols, or gestures, instead of overly relying on repetitive self-stimulatory behaviours. The goal of this approach is to replace excessive stimming with other, more appropriate, forms of communication that suit the child’s needs better.
Social Skills Training
Children with autism might have difficulties with social skills, which could contribute to stimming. Social skills training focuses on teaching children with autism essential skills for successful social interactions, such as managing stimming during conversations, interpreting social cues related to stimming, and understanding others’ perspectives about their stimming behaviours. This method enhances the child’s understanding by teaching conversation management, training in recognising and responding appropriately to social cues about stimming, highlighting perspective-taking, and improving role-playing skills.
Visual Support
Visual support, like picture schedules or visual cues, can help children with autism understand what’s expected of them, thus reducing their dependence on stimming. For example, a visual cue, such as a picture of a stop sign, could be used to signal when to stop a specific stimming behaviour. Visual supports can also assist in teaching new skills, such as social or self-help skills, and help the child remember and adhere to rules and routines.
Tackling The Root Cause
Children may engage in stimming behaviour in response to overstimulation. Mitigating these external stimuli could potentially lessen such behaviour. However, it’s essential to desensitise the child to these stimuli in a progressive and controlled manner. This involves gradually exposing them to these external stimuli, thereby allowing them to develop adaptive coping mechanisms through a well-structured, incremental process.
Redirection
It could help to divert a child’s focus away from stimming behaviours to prevent them from becoming habitual. A successful strategy might involve redirecting their attention to activities that utilise the specific stimming action. For instance, if a child tends to engage in hand flapping, prompt them to mimic certain hand movements. This way, the child is still using their hands but more intentionally, helping to shift attention away from the flapping behaviour.
Positive Reinforcement
Positive reinforcement is a standard technique used in Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) therapy to minimise undesired behaviours and promote desirable ones, including the reduction of disruptive stimming in children with autism. For example, praising and rewarding the child when they manage their stimming appropriately can reinforce this positive behaviour and motivate them to continue using it.
My child is stimming — What to do next?
In the context of ABA therapy, stimming, or self-stimulatory behaviour, is viewed as a functional behaviour that serves a purpose for the individual. These behaviours can help an individual with autism to self-regulate, manage anxiety or stress, or provide a source of sensory stimulation.
ABA therapy, however, does not seek to eliminate stimming outright. Instead, it aims to understand the function of these behaviours and how they help the individual cope with their environment. The goal is to support the individual in learning to use these behaviours in a way that is adaptive and does not interfere with their learning, social interaction, or daily living skills.
For example, if a child is flapping their hands excessively and it’s preventing them from participating in school activities, an ABA therapist might work with the child to develop alternative behaviours that serve the same function but are less disruptive, such as squeezing a stress ball or fidget toy. However, it is important to note that this approach is usually a last resort.
Additionally, ABA therapy takes into consideration the context and intensity of the stimming behaviour. If the behaviour is causing self-injury, extreme social isolation, or significantly interfering with learning or daily activities, an ABA therapist might create a plan to gradually reduce the behaviour while simultaneously teaching more adaptive coping mechanisms.
Finally, ABA therapy encourages parents and caregivers to support their child’s unique needs and behaviours, including stimming. This might involve creating a safe and accepting environment, providing sensory tools or calming strategies, or learning to recognize when a child is likely to engage in stimming behaviour.
At AutismSTEP, we tailor a customised treatment plan that meets your child’s needs and goals. By working together and supporting one another, we can help children with autism thrive and reach their full potential.
To help you make an informed decision on the type of therapy your child needs, please schedule a consultation with us today, or call +65 6456 9950.