Highlights
- Stimming, or self-stimulatory behavior, is natural human behavior that can affect anyone. But it most often affects people with neurodevelopmental disorders, including ADHD and autism.
- If you have ADHD, you may stim to help you focus. Stimming can also help you cope when you’re over- or understimulated or to express your emotions.
- Stimming is not inherently a problematic behavior. If it’s negatively affecting your relationships, then you can replace your stims or talk to your loved ones to make a plan. ADHD treatment can also help.
Have you ever drummed your fingers against a table or shaken your leg when you were anxious? If so, then you’ve experienced a behavior that’s known as stimming. Stimming is a natural human behavior, but it’s often mistakenly assumed to only affect autistic people. However, you may not have known that people with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) also exhibit stimming, although it may be for different reasons.
In this article, we’ll go over what stimming looks like in people with ADHD, why stimming happens, and how to manage it if—and only if—it has become a problem for you.
The Meaning of ADHD Stimming
“Stimming” is shorthand for “self-stimulatory,” and describes repetitive physical movements like hand-flapping or vocalizations. Stimming is a natural behavior that’s used to self-stimulate—whether it’s for focus, self-soothe, or something else. Although anyone can experience stimming, it tends to be more common in the neurodivergent population, including people with ADHD.
If you live with ADHD, you may stim for many different reasons, but it could often be because it helps you focus. People with ADHD can also stim trying to cope with different emotions or external stimuli.
Types of ADHD Stimming Behaviors
There are many different types of stimming behaviors but they are typically based on specific sensory experiences:
- Visual: These stims are associated with sight, so staring at bright or moving objects, reflections, or just into space feels soothing. Other examples include spinning small items, doodling, switching lights, or blinking frequently.
- Verbal: These can be related to both listening to or producing sounds. For example, singing, muttering, humming, repeating song lyrics, snapping fingers, or constantly having specific or repetitive background music while working or studying.
- Tactile: These stims can be self-oriented, like hair twirling, skin rubbing, scratching, nail-biting, or making twiddling movements with hands. They may also be focused on other objects, for example, picking lint or fidgeting with items that have a pleasant texture.
- Vestibular: Movements like rocking back and forth, bouncing the leg, spinning, jumping, or shaking the head can be vestibular stims.
Examples of ADHD Stimming Behaviors
Each individual is unique, so there are many different kinds of stimming behaviors. However, there are some “stims” that are more common than others:
- Finger tapping
- Leg bouncing
- Hair twirling
- Pencil spinning
- Lip biting
- Humming
- Hand flapping
- Repetitive blinking
- Rocking back and forth
- Visual stimming (e.g., watching spinning objects or flickering lights)
- Repetitive noises (e.g., humming, clicking, or tapping sounds)
- Fidgeting with clothing or jewelry
- Vocal stimming (e.g. repeating sounds, words, or song lyrics)
- Throat clearing
- Knuckle cracking
- Ear rubbing
- Skin picking or rubbing
- Repeatedly drumming or rubbing fingers
- Playing with textures or soft objects
- Rhythmic foot stomping
- Repetitive hand or wrist movements
- Nail biting
- Twirling small objects (e.g. keychains, rings)
Fidgeting vs. Stimming
People with ADHD, especially the hyperactive-impulsive or combined type of ADHD, can often be found fidgeting. If you live with hyperactive symptoms, you might find it very difficult to sit still, even when it’s necessary to do so. To cope with the frustration and restless energy, you might fidget or squirm.
Neurotypical people also fidget when they’re uncomfortable.
In many ways, fidgeting is a type of stimming. For example, if you live with ADHD and “fidget” by tapping your feet in boring situations, then that could be a type of stimming.
However, in general, stimming tends to be more extreme than ordinary fidgeting. Neurotypical people may fidget—for example, they might twirl their hair when they’re nervous—but it might not be noticeable to others. Even if it is, the behavior might be within a range that others can easily understand.
Stimming, on the other hand, can often get in the way of your success in social and work-related activities. For example, you may feel like other people judge you when you stim, or children who stim may unfairly get disciplined at school. Stimming also tends to be more frequent and severe than fidgeting.
Stimming in ADHD vs. Autism Spectrum Disorder
Although it affects many people with ADHD, stimming is not listed as a formally recognized symptom of ADHD. It is, however, listed in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) as a symptom of autism.
Stimming in autism and ADHD can be similar. Both groups can stim to self-soothe or deal with uncomfortable stimuli. Both can involve repetitive behaviors like movements or vocalizations.
However, stimming in ADHD can often be more subtle. For example, someone with ADHD may tap a pen or repeat song lyrics. On the other hand, stimming in autism can be more overt, like hand-flapping or rocking back and forth, and can even be involuntary or unconscious.
In addition, people with ADHD often stim to help them focus, while for autistic people, stimming serves as a form of self-expression. For example, they may stim to express joy, discomfort, anger, and more.
Also, it’s important to keep in mind that there is a significant overlap between autism and ADHD. Up to 70% of people with autism also have ADHD symptoms. So the differences between ADHD and autism stimming may not be as drastic as we’ve assumed.
Causes of ADHD Stimming
People with ADHD stim partly because of the biological differences in their brains. Research shows that ADHD causes an imbalance in a brain chemical called dopamine, which is why if you live with ADHD you may often feel bored or understimulated. Stimming may be a way that you deal with the relentless feelings of boredom and keep yourself more engaged in your surroundings.
Research has also found that stimming, or fidgeting,
Some people with ADHD may also stim because they’ve learned through repetition that it’s comforting and pleasurable, and helps them cope with uncomfortable emotions or sensory input. For example, if you’re sensitive to loud noise and you’re at a crowded concert, you might stim to self-soothe.
Triggers
Many things can trigger ADHD stimming, but it may happen more often when you feel under- or over-stimulated.
Some specific stimming triggers could include:
- Feeling bored or unfocused: Stimming can provide needed stimulation during tasks that feel dull or repetitive, helping with focus.
- High stress or anxiety: Stressful situations may lead to stimming as a way to self-soothe and stay grounded.
- Sensory overload: Busy or noisy environments can lead to stimming as a way to manage overwhelming sensory input.
- Difficulty with impulse control: For people with ADHD, stimming can be an instinctive way to channel impulsive energy in a more manageable way.
- Periods of intense focus (ADHD hyperfocus): During deep concentration, stimming can help you stay focused, especially on tasks that require extended attention.
- Fatigue or low energy: Stimming can provide a small energy boost and make it easier to stay alert, especially when you’re bored or understimulated.
- Excitement or happiness: Strong positive emotions often prompt stimming as a way to release excess energy. This is often seen in autistic people but may affect those with ADHD as well.
Benefits and Drawbacks of ADHD Stimming
Again, research has found that fidgeting and stimming behaviors can help improve cognitive functioning and focus for people with ADHD. Additional benefits can include:
- Improved stress relief, with stimming serving as a calming tool in stressful situations
- Better emotional regulation (ability to manage painful emotions)
- Sensory comfort and self-soothing, especially in environments that feel overstimulating
- Increased ability to sustain attention during tasks that would otherwise feel tedious or draining
The only real drawbacks of ADHD stimming have more to do with the people around you than how stimming affects you, yourself. Sometimes, people in your life may simply not understand stimming and judge you unfairly for it. At other times, stimming may be more disruptive—for example, vocal stimming while in an important meeting could interrupt others’ productivity.
In these cases, it may be important to either find alternative ways to stim or to talk to your friends, colleagues, or a healthcare provider to come up with a plan.
Management
Stimming is not inherently a negative or harmful behavior. In fact, as we’ve already mentioned, it can be very helpful for focus.
So if your stimming helps you and it doesn’t have any negative consequences on your life, then there’s no real need to “manage” it. However, if stimming is becoming disruptive to you or the other people in your life, it can be helpful to learn how to deal with it. This doesn’t mean that you need to stop stimming altogether, but you may benefit from adopting new ways to stim that don’t cause as much disruption in your relationships. For example, instead of repeating words out loud during meetings, you might write them repeatedly in a notebook.
In addition, ADHD treatment—which often includes both medication and behavioral therapy—can help you cope with different effects of ADHD, including stimming. By working with a healthcare provider, you can learn how ADHD affects your brain, why you do the things you do, and how you can use your ADHD symptoms to your advantage while minimizing the negative effects they have on your life.
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