What if my child's stimming disturbs the rest of my family?

Sometimes, stimming is really hard on the people around your child. It can be overwhelming and dysregulating to family members.

While stimming shouldn’t be discouraged or met with judgment unless it leads to harm, it can sometimes take a toll on others. This is an example of competing (or conflicting) access needs, where the needs of someone with a disability to make a situation accessible and comfortable can create friction with the needs of other people, both with and without disabilities.

One way to stay well-regulated as parents and for other children in the household is to carve out time to decompress and self-regulate. You don’t want to shame your child about it, but you can take a break. For children who require consistent supervision, their special interests can be used to do some parallel play. You can also try noise-canceling headphones or a noise reduction app for loud verbal stims.

For more information, see our full article Should You Stop Your Child's Stimming? What Parents Need to Know.