Stimming at home

Stimming, or stimulating behvaiour, is essential for most autistic people to regulate and process. Stimming can take many forms and whilst being a great release for the person who is stimming, it can be irritating and disruptive for other members of the family. It is important that stimming is allowed because it helps to prevent meltdowns and shut downs.

As well as understanding where the stimming should take place it is important to understand that stimming can happen at anytime but is more likely to happen before or after an exciting or anxiety inducing event, such as visitors coming to the house.

Always allow stimming in a safe space

It is essential that stimming is always allowed in the child’s safe space and that everyone in the household understands this. Having a safe place where your child can stim is also important to avoid them hand flapping or jumping in the kitchen which could cause an accident. It is important that your child understands that they are allowed to stim and not to tell them off for it. If you need to stop them from stimming then positive refocussing or redirecting them to their safe space would be the best course of action.

For more information on what stimming is and why it is so important, visit our free resources here.