Is this an aspie thing?

[Aspigander]

I do something that I'm assuming might be an aspie thing but not quite sure, so I thought I'd ask.

Hopefully this doesn't sound too bizarre, but if there was such a thing as Jumpers Anonymous I think I'd be a prime candidate. I jump. Quite a bit actually. Sometimes I'll be sitting here at the computer, and suddenly stand up and start jumping. Why, I'm not sure. I think it's a 'get rid of pent up energy' thing. Not anxiety, but energy. I think. I've been a jumper for pretty much as long as I can remember.

Now, obviously, when it's just me at my apartment, it's really not much of a problem. But I'll do it other places too. Like for instance, on Mother's Day, my mom went to grill chicken for her mother, and invited me along. I was standing next to my mom at the grill and started jumping. She seemed bothered but I'm not sure why. My grandfather also commented on the jumping. So I gather it's not exactly something expected from someone my age. lol

Is this an aspie/asd thing? I'm just trying to figure out why I do it (like I said, I think it's an energy thing, but not 100% sure), and kind of wondering what I can do to not distract others with it. Often I don't really give much thought beforehand. Just one minute I'm not jumping, the next minute I am.

[LIZARD]

Hopefully this doesn't sound too bizarre, but if there was such a thing as Jumpers Anonymous I think I'd be a prime candidate. I jump. Quite a bit actually. Sometimes I'll be sitting here at the computer, and suddenly stand up and start jumping. Why, I'm not sure. I think it's a 'get rid of pent up energy' thing.

I think you're right, Lauren. My son (HFA, 15 this July) does it, too.


LIZARD :)

[peglem]

Allie does it, too. If we ever meet, I'll jump with you! How fun.

[Aspigander]

Lizard,
You think I'm right about it being an energy thing (just making sure I understand what you think I'm right on)?

Peglem,
You know, I think I might be a little horrified to see someone join in. I'm afraid it might show me that it looks just as ridiculous from the outside as I gather that other people think it looks. Remember the thread about the pacing and my mom finding it bizarre? She actually demonstrated to me (by doing it herself) what it looked like from the outside, and while I do think pacing is better than meltdown, it was a little shocking. So I'm not sure having someone join in would be all that fun. lol Might mortify me.

[peglem]

Lizard,
You think I'm right about it being an energy thing (just making sure I understand what you think I'm right on)?

Peglem,
You know, I think I might be a little horrified to see someone join in. I'm afraid it might show me that it looks just as ridiculous from the outside as I gather that other people think it looks. Remember the thread about the pacing and my mom finding it bizarre? She actually demonstrated to me (by doing it herself) what it looked like from the outside, and while I do think pacing is better than meltdown, it was a little shocking. So I'm not sure having someone join in would be all that fun. lol Might mortify me.

Really? Even if I enjoyed doing it with you? I think adults give up way to many simple pleasures by growing up. I think if it works for you and its not hurting anyone, who cares what it looks like? Allie has taught me some useful things. I wouldn't want to mortify you, so I guess I woldn't jump with you, but I also would rather you just jumped when you felt like it in front of me instead of suppressing yourself into an anxiety attack.

[Aspigander]

Well, okay, if jumping isn't so ridiculous, why was I getting comments?

[peglem]

Well, okay, if jumping isn't so ridiculous, why was I getting comments?

I'm not saying other people don't find it ridiculous. I just think if it works for you and does no harm to anybody else, why do they care? I think it would be fun to just let go once in awhile and do what feels good...my kids get embarrassed when I sing in the store or other places in public. I don't do it all the time, but when I do, I'm just happy doing it...don't know those people, don't care what they think. I'm not hurting them and it makes me feel good. They have their own little idiosyncrasies...

[Nikabee]

I agree with Peg... if it works, go with it. Sure, some people might not consider it 'socially appropriate' but if it makes you feel good - so what? I guess the only reason I would consider it an issue would be if other people's reactions caused you to feel uncomfortable. But then you would be changing it for *you* and not necessarily for them. Does that make sense?

As for why you feel the need to do it - it could be sensory thing. The impact on your joints when you land could be a sensation that you need and so you jump to get that. Remember how I talked about proprioception last night? That could be what's going on. So, if jumping works for you and you're ok with doing it, I would say that you've found a successful strategy. If it's causing you a problem and you still have the need for that input, you could look into other ways to get that sensation that might work better. But I wouldn't recommend you deny yourself that necessary input - it will just make you miserable and that's not useful.

Now, if you want to give some perspective to others who think that's not a good strategy - Kaelen doesn't jump... he crashes. We'll be walking along and he'll just dump himself on the ground. Or he'll climb onto the couch and free fall onto the floor. That's not a successful strategy - he could get hurt. So I might borrow your jumping idea and see if he takes to that. Plus, as Peg pointed out - I get to jump with him then and that's always lots of fun! :)

[Aspigander]

Peg,
You're probably right. It's just that, during the Mother's Day episode, while I was on the deck next to the grill jumping, my mom said something like: "Why don't you just go pace in the yard or something?" And remember, she doesn't like it when I pace.

Nikabee,
Wow, yeah, jumping would be better than crashing/free falling.

As for why you feel the need to do it - it could be sensory thing. The impact on your joints when you land could be a sensation that you need and so you jump to get that. Remember how I talked about proprioception last night? That could be what's going on.

You know, that's interesting, about the sensory thing, because while I think I might have some sensory issues, I've always thought it was pretty mild because I don't ever recall sensory being the cause of meltdown. Perhaps an under sensitive thing instead of oversensitive?

I do remember you mentioning the proprioception thing. You had said it had to do with the ability to do things like close your eyes and touch your nose, which I did immediately upon reading your post about it, and had no trouble finding my nose whatsoever. Do you think it still might be a proprioception thing?

[tgrimes]

Peglem,
You know, I think I might be a little horrified to see someone join in.


Really? Even if I enjoyed doing it with you? I think adults give up way to many simple pleasures by growing up. I think if it works for you and its not hurting anyone, who cares what it looks like? Allie has taught me some useful things.

Oh, come one Aspie, pegs is right! Here:

S- A- F-E-T- Y-
Safe, jump!
deet deet deet deet deet deet deet deet deet deet deet deet deet deet deet deet...
We can jump if we want to,
We can leave your friends behind,
'Cause your friends don't jump and if they don't jump
Well they're no friends of mine
I say, we can go where we want to
A place where they will never find
And we can act like we come from out of this world
Leave the real one far behind
And we can jump

here you can fill in the rest: http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=safety+dance+lyrics&aq=2&oq=safety :D

[Nikabee]

You had said it had to do with the ability to do things like close your eyes and touch your nose, which I did immediately upon reading your post about it, and had no trouble finding my nose whatsoever.

No, that was just an example of what the proprioceptive sense does for you - some people have a hard time understanding it because it's not an 'outward' sense that we all learn about in school (like hearing and seeing, etc).

The interesting thing about sensory issues is that they can change throughout the day, week, month, etc. Sometimes you are regulated and everything is fine, other times there is too much stimulation and other times there isn't enough. So, it's very tricky to diagnose or say for sure if there's an issue and it's also very hard for someone to describe what they are feeling. Only you can say how you are feeling and sometimes the best strategy is just to try something out and see if it works. The nice thing for you is that you're an adult so you can decide for yourself if you feel better or not. It's a lot harder for parents (especially if their kid isn't verbal) to always know if it's helping or hurting.

Of course, it might not be a sensory thing either - it could just be as you said - that you have a lot of nervous energy to work off. It's really very different for each person. But it wouldn't hurt to try a few sensory tools and see how they make you feel.

If money's and issue (who doesn't have money issues, these days?), there are some 'everyday objects' that you can use or somethings can be covered by insurance. For Kaelen, we use regular ankle weights (like you get for exercising) and I sewed rocks into a vest to make it not only heavy, but also bumpy (he likes that). Another mom that I know made bags of sand and sewed those into clothes. So, there's lots of things you can do that don't cost a lot.

But the bottom line regarding the topic for this post is that jumping is a successful strategy and you only need to change it if you want to. I think it's far more crippling to always worry about what other people will think about our behavior than to just do what makes us happy (as long as it doesn't hurt anyone, of course!).

[peglem]

Oh, come one Aspie, pegs is right! Here:

S- A- F-E-T- Y-
Safe, jump!
deet deet deet deet deet deet deet deet deet deet deet deet deet deet deet deet...
We can jump if we want to,
We can leave your friends behind,
'Cause your friends don't jump and if they don't jump
Well they're no friends of mine
I say, we can go where we want to
A place where they will never find
And we can act like we come from out of this world
Leave the real one far behind
And we can jump

here you can fill in the rest: http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=safety+dance+lyrics&aq=2&oq=safety :D

That's great! Then we can both jump and sing in public....people might look at us strange, but they'd know we were having fun!

[Nikabee]

S- A- F-E-T- Y-
Safe, jump!
:D lol And we always jumped when they played Safety Dance! (Wait, did we just age ourselves? hee hee)

[tgrimes]

:D lol And we always jumped when they played Safety Dance! (Wait, did we just age ourselves? hee hee)

Yeah we did, aspigander will be needing to look up the tune! Been meaning to say I love the name you gave your son, Kaelen, is it? Who picked that out?One of my sons is Gatlin, sometimes people pronounce it Gaitlin. :)

[Nikabee]

Ooooh, I like Gatlin too!

It's actually a funny story about how we named him, but it's also very long! lol The short of it is: Hubby has a family tradition that you always name the first son after the grandfather. I was soooo desparate to not offend them but I also didn't want my son named Karlow! lol Besides, there are already 2 of them in the family. So, I found a Gaelic name (my family's Irish and Scottish) that has the same meaning, "mighty warrior." It appeased the family and, looking back, I think it's sorta fitting. :D He's had his fair share of battles to face. Plus, he just doesn't look like a "Karlow!" lol

[Aspigander]

Nikabee, Peg, and Tgrimes,
Couldn't find any info on when that song (which I've never heard of), but I'm guessing it is now safe to call you a trio of old fogies. (Of course, I'd better be careful, as I mentioned in another thread I listen to Gordon Lightfoot, and most people who say that are of the older generation, and I definitely do NOT qualify for that. lol)

Nikabee,
I think when I get the urge to jump, if I can catch myself before I do (sometimes I can, sometimes I give it no thought), to pause before jumping and pay attention to how my body is feeling, then do the same after the jumping session. That might help in getting to the bottom of what's going on.

The more time I spend on this forum, the more lightbulb moments of "aha! so that's what it was!" I have, but also the more I sometimes have moments where I wonder if what I thought was the reason behind some of my issues might not be exactly as I thought. Does that make sense?

[Nikabee]

Makes perfect sense. And I love this forum for that same reason. We all get to share our experiences/knowledge and someone else can learn from it.

If you CAN catch yourself just before, and pay attention to your body - that's an excellent idea to help you understand what's going on. If you're really serious about figuring it out, it might help to keep a daily log or journal about what's going on throughout your day and when that urge happens. It is a bit time consuming, but it's helped me figure out some things about Kaelen. We've discovered some things are triggers that I wouldn't have imagined would be.

And btw ~ I prefer 'old fart' to 'old fogie.' LOL

[Aspigander]

Nikabee,
Well then! Old fart it is! I'd thought of that, actually, but decided on fogie for some reason.

Today I haven't been able to catch myself before jumping. If I have I've just sat back down because, well, jumping just seems like something I shouldn't do at my age. But since often I can't catch myself before (I think it's often an unconscious thing and I start jumping before I consciously think about it), sometimes I've been checking myself just to see how I'm feeling. I've yet to feel the energy I thought was causing me to jump before. Once I am consciously aware of the jumping (usually right away, I think it's just something unconscious that initiates it), I try to check myself and don't feel any energy today. I'm pretty sure I've felt energetic in the past. Now I'm really not sure.

[Nikabee]

Yeah, I can understand the difficulty with the strategy. That was why I said that IF you can.... lol. It sounds to me like it's totally unconscious. Once you're aware of the urge... well, you're aware of it and can control if you want to. Does that sound right?

It's sort of like when I grind my teeth (a real problem I have). The dentist gave me a bite splint to wear at night and I asked if I should wear it during the day too because I catch myself grinding my teeth then also. She said, "well, when you catch yourself grinding, try to stop." HEL-LO! If I've caught myself, I HAVE stopped! lol But who knows how long I had been grinding away before I realized it?

Seriously though, I really don't think the jumping is such a bad thing that you have work so hard to change it. I still maintain that it's a successful strategy and if the rest of the world doesn't like it and doesn't get it... well, tell them to kiss your butt! :) (ok, not really... that *would* be socially inappropriate! hee hee)

[Aspigander]

Okay, now this is interesting. See what, if anything, you make of this.

I think it's getting more conscious because I'm trying to be aware, and I know that standing up with no other purpose (i.e. standing up when I don't need to, such as to go to the bathroom or get something to eat, for example) usually means I'm about to jump. So I'd stand up, check myself, sit back down and not jump. I tried to be very aware of what I was feeling while not allowing myself to jump. I was NOT feeling much energy when I first checked myself and even right when I sat back down (but obviously had the urge to jump as, like I said, that's generally why I stand up if I'm not standing up to go somewhere). I got, I don't know that I'd say energy. I really don't know what word to put to it. Sort of...I don't know. Energy probably is the best way I can describe it but I don't think it's accurate. I want to say not well grounded though I don't know if that's accurate either. So then I let myself jump. I started to feel what could be considered energy while I was jumping. When I sat back down I didn't have so much the feeling that was building while I was suppressing.

Any ideas?

[roadracer]

I think it is stored up energy, did you start excercising yet??? You were going to dig out that bike? Believe me, you spend some time on that everyday and I dont think you will be doing the jumping as much (or maybe not at all)

[roadracer]

I really believe you should try the exercise before you try any anxiety meds. I am telling you that it will help, how much depends, but I know it will help. You may be able to skip the meds if you excercise regularly

[Nikabee]

If you felt a feeling of energy AFTER you jumped, I'd guess that you're needing some sort of input. If you can set time aside especially to get that sensory input, you might see the 'urge' to jump lessen.

btw~ RR has a great suggestion. Exercise is an excellent way to get proprioceptive input. Anything using your muscles and tendons will give you that input, in addition to the 'sensory tools.' We do a lot of 'heavy work' therapy here with Kaelen, which serves the same purpose without calling it 'exercise.' (that's a dirty word to him! lol) I have a watering can that is really much bigger than it needs to be do the job, but it's pretty heavy. He has to water the plants on the deck before school everyday and when he gets home. (we have some soggy looking plants out there!)

Working the muscles in your mouth helps too... that's why people might chew on their pens while they are taking a test, for example. For Kaelen, we have him suck yogurt through a straw - which is much harder than it sounds! lol But he think's it 'cool' and it makes yogurt portable for us so it works!

Just some ideas! :)

[Aspigander]

Oh yeah, that's right, the stationary bike. I kinda forgot about that. I just went into the bedroom to see if I could move stuff around and unbury it and make some semblance of a path to it, and I think I got some exercise in just doing that. lol I think I've got it to where I can actually use it now.