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Pacing Around

HylianHylian Citizen, Mentor

I'm interested to know if anyone else paces a lot? I've done this since I was a toddler, where I get the urge to just walk/run around aimlessly. It helps me focus and is actually entertaining to do.

In my case I honestly don't know if it's more from my ADHD or ASD. Maybe a sensory thing that hyperactivity makes worse?

Comments

  • IsabellaIsabella Citizen
    edited October 2020

    Good question! I never thought that I pace, but I realised that I do. I get up and walk around aimlessly in my kitchen or all over the house when I'm stressed. I don't do it consciously. It's not like "Hey, I'm going to walk around to calm myself down!", but I've noticed that I'm often walking around for no reason, and it's always when I'm stressed or impatient. I likely get a subconscious urge of some sort.

    Likewise I can't stand still. Ever. I have to go up and down on my toes, turn in circles, take steps to the side and back, and sometimes sit down on the ground / floor even if I'm in public. I can't just stand there. It's not because I get physically uncomfortable. I just have to keep moving, if only a little.

  • HylianHylian Citizen, Mentor

    @Isabella said:
    Good question! I never thought that I pace, but I realised that I do. I get up and walk around aimlessly in my kitchen or all over the house when I'm stressed. I don't do it consciously. It's not like "Hey, I'm going to walk around to calm myself down!", but I've noticed that I'm often walking around for no reason, and it's always when I'm stressed or impatient. I likely get a subconscious urge of some sort.

    Likewise I can't stand still. Ever. I have to go up and down on my toes, turn in circles, take steps to the side and back, and sometimes sit down on the ground / floor even if I'm in public. I can't just stand there. It's not because I get physically uncomfortable. I just have to keep moving, if only a little.

    Yeah, I don't really consciously think of it. I just want to do it, so I do it. It also definitely happens more when I'm overwhelmed/excited.

    As a kid I used to never stop moving, too. Swaying from side to side, running everywhere I went, and jumping a lot. The only reason I force myself now is because other people don't like it, but I still do the swaying thing because that's just something I do a lot in general. Not moving does give my entire body a feeling I can't describe, which isn't a good feeling.

  • Save_FerrisSave_Ferris Citizen, Member

    I'm totally the opposite when at home , I have a sedatory lifestyle.

    However, if I'm out of the house , it's a different story. If I am at someone elses house I hover and barely sit down or I slightly rock ( hopefully not too noticeable ) - I used to get called out on it but now I can just say 'I have to , f**k off'

    I don't run anymore but walking always seemed too slow to me so I often ran places.

  • HylianHylian Citizen, Mentor

    @Save_Ferris said:
    I'm totally the opposite when at home , I have a sedatory lifestyle.

    However, if I'm out of the house , it's a different story. If I am at someone elses house I hover and barely sit down or I slightly rock ( hopefully not too noticeable ) - I used to get called out on it but now I can just say 'I have to , f**k off'

    I don't run anymore but walking always seemed too slow to me so I often ran places.

    Sitting down at other peoples houses feels wrong, so I also stand around. It might be the fact it's a different environment I'm not used to, so my brain is always ready to bounce on outta there.

    Walking still seems really slow, to be honest. When I'm with people I know well I sometimes run ahead.

  • I've been known to do a lot of pacing and walking in circles.

  • @Isabella said:

    Likewise I can't stand still. Ever. I have to go up and down on my toes, turn in circles, take steps to the side and back, and sometimes sit down on the ground / floor even if I'm in public. I can't just stand there. It's not because I get physically uncomfortable. I just have to keep moving, if only a little.

    I can't stand still either, I had to find forms of meditation that don't ask you to. I also sit on the floor or ground often and I fidget.

    I only pace when I'm agitated.

  • I tend to pace when I'm feeling disorganized and stressed.

  • AmityAmity Administrator, Citizen

    Pacing is usually linked to my emotional state and the situation I'm in.
    I think it helps with regulating my emotions , probably helps with putting the adrenaline to use so that I can think more clearly.
    It has a positive mind-body connection impact on me.

    High energy like anticipation, anxiety or the need to unexpectedly problem solve on a deadline seem to lead to pacing.

    As for sitting still... I cant do it, I'm constantly fidgeting, always have been.

  • verityverity Administrator, Citizen

    Pacing is related to emotion and also thinking for me. It does help me process emotion and set a rhythm for reasoning and creativity. Like my other stims.

  • I love to pace around while listening to music and daydreaming and imagining certain scenarios. I go on walks purely for this reason.

  • @Hylian said:
    I'm interested to know if anyone else paces a lot?

    I pace constantly. Drives my wife crazy I think. For me, it's to relieve anxiety.

  • Yes, I tend to pace a lot. It helps me think.

    When I worked as an electronic engineer back in the 1980's and early 1990's, I had a boss who understood that walking around can help a person think. He told me than whenever I needed to think hard about something, I was free to leave the lab for a little while and wander around the warehouse.

    Since my boyfriend moved in, I don't pace around the apartment nearly as much as I used to, because he says it drives him crazy. But I still pace around when I'm out on errands, e.g. when waiting for takeout food that I've ordered.

  • WizardryWizardry Citizen, Mentor

    I used to pace a lot in my teens, but I don't tend to do it as much anymore.

  • I pace sometimes because I want to accumulate steps. I wear a Fitbit now.

    People on the subway wonder about me...

    I also meow and howl while I pace.

  • HylianHylian Citizen, Mentor

    @kraftiekortie said:
    I pace sometimes because I want to accumulate steps. I wear a Fitbit now.

    People on the subway wonder about me...

    I also meow and howl while I pace.

    I don't think I make a lot of noise/say anything when I pace, but I meow at all my pets. I like to copy my cats sounds and they are fun to replicate. It's become a habit when I see most animals, so now I meow way too often without thinking and get weird looks. lol

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