#handflapping

My girlfriend and I are neurodivergent in different ways and she handflaps when she's nervous/stressed. I do it when there's anything that disrupts my baseline whether it's a large happy emotion, environmental stressor, or im thinking real hard and no thoughts are coming to this bastard brain.

Flap on, friends! 👋🏼🙌🏼👏🏼👐🏼

I am never NEVER NE-VER getting over that! stimming!!! Stimming!!! Ajksjsjjsjsjjsjsjjdjjdbdn eeeeeeyyyyyyyyyyy :)))))!!

...introductions to new coworkers that actually involved my husband telling the young Korean woman “Here, let me show you the dance of my people,” then hopping up and down while handflapping. He was immediately joined by three ecstatic kids of varying ages.  My husband is in his late thirties, and 6′3″ tall. 

The best way to stop yourself from handflapping if you want to is to distract your hands. Find something to fiddle with, or a task that will keep your hands busy. You might also find that applying pressure to your hands might make abruptly stopping feel less strange (such as sitting on your hands for a brief period, or squeezing your hands, squeezing your fingers together).You might also find it helps to concentrate on another part of your body (such as wiggling your toes).It might also help to just not think about it as something you’re actively doing. In situations where you don’t necessarily need to stop handflapping, try to just let yourself handflap and see whether you forget you’re doing it and naturally eventually stop. I handflap and I’m not often aware of the fact I’ve started or stopped (and didn’t realise I handflapped at all until someone else pointed it out to me in adulthood) so that might also help you to feel less strange about stopping.