[kim_johnson]

I thought I'd post about a couple of things that have really helped me. Maybe they can help other people, whether they have been diagnosed or not.

- Soft tissue massage / foam rolling. I learned how to do it from here:

Athletes Training Athletes :: Self Muscle Massage- Pt 1 The Calf

The youtube video on the page is the short version. There is a lot of information for people who like extra information. You don't have to watch much to get the general idea and then do whatever feels good.

It helps my muscles feel relaxed, which helps me. I think it desensitises my skin so I'm less twitchy / flinchy. I feel less overwhelmed by sensory stimulation if I spend about 20 minutes foam rolling my muscles each day.

- Compression clothing. You can get stuff mostly for kids that is specifically designed for sensory processing problems - but most of it looks fairly ugly. Fortunately, there are a lot of options available now, branded / marketed as athletic performance / recovery gear.

http://ih.constantcontact.com/fs036/...=1105096919963

While there is controversy over whether the gear improves athletic performance it is fairly unanimous that most people really like how it feels to wear it. You feel... Held together. Supported. When I wear the long sleeve / long legged gear I feel aware of where my lower limbs are in space. I feel... Kinda like a superhero or a machine (in a good way). Like I have a second skin, for sure.

- Gym. Lifting heavy weights. Doing spin class. I never used to think of myself as athletic or anything, but exhausting my muscles helps them feel heaps better. I never really thought of myself as being sensory-seeking, I thought of myself as being more overwhelmed by sensory stimuli... It really does seem that (for me) light tickling drives me nuts. Firmer stimulation... From the deep tissue massage, from exhausting my muscles with intense exercise, from compression clothing... Helps me relax so that the light tickly stuff doesn't drive me nuts anymore.

Anyway, I hope this might help someone.

What things have helped other people out there?

[kaliope]

thanks for sharing

[Lexi232]

Thanks!
the Compression clothing would be something i think would help me.

I've also bought noise isolating earbuds, and some headphones (like the kind that covers your ears). the more isolating noise that it does, generally i am less fidgity and more calm.

.. oh and then theres those fidgety twisty toys, i used to have a Tangle. but i fidgeted too much when i was in school (and it became more of a -trying to put the pieces back together). lol

[kim_johnson]

Don't Mourn For Us

This speech. Which isn't really about Autism...

[medicalfox]

I actually do weight lifting since I want to get toned and I foam roll afterwards. I also wear tight compression clothes when I lift and when trail running, I feel like it helps a lot with many things.