An Unique Mind

Stim #3

September 13th, 2022

Clearing the throat

This is one of the main stim behaviors I experience. I’m literally doing it as I am writing this. An urge would come if I try not to.

This is way harder to put into words than it sounds. I mean, who would think that clearing of the throat is a stimming behavior among neurodiverse individuals?

I most definitely wouldn’t think of this…

When I was a teenager, I would clear my throat quite often. Jessica (my twin sister) would as well. I did not have a cold or have a hoarseness in my voice. So, my mother asked me why I was clearing my throat so often. I had absolutely no idea what to say because I did not have an answer at the time. She went on and assumed that my throat was dry.

For years, I assumed my throat clearing was due to dryness. That all changed recently when I researched repetitive behaviors in neurodiverse (autistic) individuals. “I googled stimmimg behavior in autistic individuals.” Low and behold I see clearing of the throat as one of the most common behaviors. I thought “oh, now I get it.” My neurodiverse body and mind were behind this annoying behavior. Not throat dryness.

Meanwhile, clearing of the throat is not a tell tail sign of autism due to countless others reasons why this happens. Repetitive behavior itself is the main sign of the disorder. What makes autism so unique is the fact that auties experience repeated behavior differently from one another. Some may clear their throat (like myself) while others pace around (like Jessica).

Autism is not only unique, but extremely diverse. It’s like a rainbow🌈 Actually, it is 🙂
Stim #2

September 6th, 2022

Repeating the same song

I do this every single day! Whenever I pick up my IPad and play a song or a favorite scene of a show or movie, there is this urge that says, “play it again. And again. And again.

For example, I listen to whatever catches my ear drums by storm; Rihanna, Blink-182, Linkin Park, Mariah Carey, Eminem, etc. I would put one song on repeat and play it a number of times unknown. Like yesterday, “Stay Together For the Kids” (by Bink-182) was playing non stop when I was taking a shower. No worries, I change songs. Meanwhile, I would play that song over and over again as well.

Also, Shrek is one of my favorite childhood movies. There is a fight scene in which Shrek and Donkey kick the daylights out of Lord Farquaad’s knights due to Shrek’s life being in danger. I repeated that scene dozens of times because I found it awesome that an ogre could put out more than one person successfully. I was not laughing, but I was smiling so hard that my cheeks ached.

In actuality, I am confident that there are auties that do this all of the time. It’s a behavior that is often done using ear buds, phone, speaker, television or tablet. What easier way to perform repetitive behavior than playing a song or favorite movie/show scene over and over again?

It may sound annoying to many, but it’s quite fun to autistic people who have this habit. Quirkiness is not as bad as it seems once you accept it as a part of you 🙂

Stim #3

Stim #2