What’s The Deal With Fidget Spinners?
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- Опубликовано: 24 май 2017
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Invasion of the Fidget Spinners
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Fidget spinners, and other fidgety devices, have been around for a bit but only since the end of last year have they been a bona fide craze: Forbes described these things as the “must have office toy” in December, but by this month The New York Times described them as “the Hula Hoop of Generation Z”: referencing the worldwide adolescent craze from the 1950s. And, I mean, yeah. Fair. There are 5 spinners here in an office of, like, ten people; there’s an ENTIRE RUclips ecosystem around them. In my neighborhood, which has three middle-and-high schools, the sidewalks are LITTERED with fidget spinner packaging. Global sales estimates are in the TENS OF MILLIONS. The assumed purpose of the fidget spinner is to help people, particularly students, concentrate … to give an outlet to excess energy caused by stress, or anxiety… But many teachers have been saying, actually, tool-assisted fidgeting is not an aid to concentration, but a hindrance. What I want to figure out is, how we got here - how the constellation of meanings around fidgeting, and who does it, launched a tool reportedly suited for promoting calm concentration to SENSATION status, and how THAT may feed back into how we think of fidgeting.
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00:31 MATT OX - Overwhelming (Prod. OogieMane)
• MATT OX - Overwhelmin...
1:03 5 EASY FIDGET SPINNER TRICKS FOR BEGINNERS
• 5 EASY FIDGET SPINNER ...
1:24 How To Make a HAND SPINNER, FIDGET TOY FOR FREE
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1:29 Fidget Spinners- The Newest Toy To Twirl Into Americans’ Lives - NBC Nightly News
• Fidget Spinners: The N...
1:46 MATT OX - Overwhelming (Prod. OogieMane)
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4:29 Fidget Spinner Tricks With a Professional Fidgeter
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4:41 Cartier Ad - SNL
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4:49 Hank's Take- Fidget Spinners and Cubes taking over the school yard
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8:27 FIDGET SPINNER SURPRISE CHALLENGE!!! 25 Rare Spinners Showdown!
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8:35 Binaural ASMR. Popping Bubble Wrap & Crinkling
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In art school we are allowed to draw at any point in class in any lecture. Drawing is our "fidgeting", it prevents us from falling asleep or talking out of boredom.
Of course it is also non stop drawing practice.
GuyWithAnAmazingHat If only my elementary school teachers understood that.
I can absolutely attest to how well that works. Being homeschooled for all of my life, I took in most of my high school education through videos, and having the chance to draw during them gave me the chance to take in the information they were trying to convey. Wouldn't have been able to pay attention to half as much without it.
I've had a compulsion to doodle since elementary school, and I still get chastised for it at 30. I feel like we all had this same fidget conversation fifteen years ago about ADHD and excess energy etc.
Ive read somwhere that drawing is good because you make the connotation between the specific drawibg and the part of the lesson it was drawn in, helpibg you remember what was taught.
I had a similar experience in German class. We were allowed to sit in the back and chat about whatever we wanted so long as it was in German. Those who didn't pay attention ironically became more fluent from figuring out the language and using it everyday.
I would love to hear you talk about the Wifi-enabled juicer that came out of Silicon Valley a while ago, that was one of the most hilarious bits of news I've seen in ages!
One second people are complaining about kids always being on their phone, the next second they are losing their shit over kids just playing with a toy.
Kids aren't allowed to be preoccupied apparently. It's funny to think of parents screaming, "My child isn't doing anything other than this thing that I don't understand! Help!"
Weird toys being a fad out of the blue is nothing new, anyways. Gen Y did have a yo-yo craze, back in the way.
Aren't both of those just as bad though? Is there not an equal problem that people find it impossible to just sit and not do anything for a while anymore?
I think that's what they're complaining about, it's nothing to do with whether it's a mechanical or electronic distraction.
Tell me a time when anyone other than monks chose to sit and not do anything of their own volition.
Even in the world of meditation the goal of emptying the mind is the minority, and in my opinion vastly inferior.
Yeah , it says a lot of the human condition that _not_ fidgeting might as well be enlightenment to some belief systems.
As an ADHD diagnosed adult, I've found spinners immensely helpful. My first exposure to them was through my therapist and I found myself subconsciously figuring the device out as we talked and the use of it certainly helped me open up and relax with heavier topics. While I can see them being a distraction to some in certain settings, It's my hope that as popularity spreads and things settle down, maybe classrooms in the future can integrate similar fidget devices. (Like wheels and buttons built into the edge of the desk. Can't tell you how often I found myself digging at the wood with a pen in high school)
drac116 as another adult with ADHD they don't do anything it's a marketing strategy like a Suger pill
yeah i feel the same way as zan they are just a marketing ploy
I, as someone with ADD, approve this message!
zan w works for some folk, not for others I guess. Not all meds work the same way either.
stim toys have existed for ages. not every one works for everyone. I know this one helps for me.
but the trouble is kids who just want to use them because... they're kids and want to play, and not because it actually helps with their concentration.
the school my mum works at has a rule that you're not allowed to use a spinner in class unless a teacher has given it to you.
also, been recently diagnosed with ADD myself.
I read the title in Jerry Seinfeld's voice.
Not that there's anything wrong with that!
The sea was angry that day my friends. Like a child unable to use their fidget spinner.
it's sounds great in my head
*continues in Seinfeld's voice* "...they don't fidget and they don't spin! ...well, okay, they spin."
I had an interesting conversation about these with some of my friends who are teachers or who have sat in on classrooms as part of their education major. Basically, we agreed that the spinners are a quick fix with problems on a larger structural issue with the U.S. school system which expects children to be focused all the time and makes distraction into a moral failing rather than a difficulty. The spinners can cause an additional distraction in classrooms, but what if children were allowed to leave the classroom for a short walk if they couldn't focus? Or what if we built pedal desks in more classrooms? Or what if we stopped treating education as a lecture-based one-size-fits-all thing so early on? It's a complicated issue among a million other issues in our education system.
That problem is because we treat boys as defective girls. Boys have lots of energy. I did well in school only because I was so naturally intelligent. Most boys don't have that option. We are leaving boys behind.
revcrussell I would argue that we there are gendered issues on either side when it comes to education mostly because we expect too much from girls and not enough from boys, but I think that's just one more piece of a larger puzzle. We also need to adjust for the fact that kids learn differently and at different paces. There's a million problems.
revcrussell especially considering that ADHD and autism are under diagnosed in girls, leading to difficulties down the line, I think it's reductive to say that boys are being left behind without acknowledging how complicated a problem our education system is.
ADHD and autism are not under diagnosed in girls, they just don't get those disorders as much as males. (As someone diagnosed with ADHD) I would argue ADHD doesn't actually exist as a stand-alone disorder. The symptoms are far too aligned with intelligence, stupidity, autism, or other psychiatric disorders.
revcrussell as a woman with ADHD, I think you need to do more research before I can take your point seriously.
I have fibromyalgia which is compounded upon by PTSD (of not-gonna-elaborate source) and anxiety (of not-sure-what source) so my recently acquired fidget spinner has allowed me to concentrate on things like... well, y'all's videos for instance, without also focusing on the constant, ineffable pain I am almost always experiencing. It's like my mind is a router with a limited number of "focus" ports and I can replace "pain" with "spinner" or "cube" (haven't gotten my cube yet) which has a significantly smaller energy draw. I dunno, it's a hypothesis with which I have been toying recently as to why this piece of plastic and metal has helped so much with fibromyalgia.
A coworker of mine once told me that the nerves that feel pain are smaller than the nerves that feel touch or something along those lines so if I ever bumped something hard enough to be in pain, rubbing the painful area would lessen the pain slightly because the nerves can't process the complete info from both sensations at once. I have no idea if it's true since I never bothered looking it up (darn you laziness and forgetfulness) but since then when I occasionally hit my arms or hands on things trying to lift stuff at work I've found rubbing the inflicted area does indeed help lessen the pain if only a little. It could be a placebo effect though.
LearnDragonLanguage That sounds like a cool trick that I'll definitely try out! My rheumatologist explained to me that the nerves work a little differently in patients with fybromyalgia. I'm not sure if the size of the nerves are enlarged or if the pain nerves might lay closer to the skin, but the spinal cord, that normally inhibits most signals upward, doesn't do that in patients with fybromyalgia. All signals go to the pain center in the brain and more of them are incorrectly identified as pain.
When I was in college, I began knitting during lectures after I nodded off in the middle of note-taking. I was good enough at it to work without looking at my hands and I found I retain information better with my hands occupied. Even now when I knit I slip into a meditative state but I can't fall asleep while my hands are working.
I think the gyroscopic movement of the spinners serves a similar purpose for some.
I DO THE EXACT SAME THING! It's so great right!
Albinojackrussel I love it because I have something soft and real after all my fidgeting.
exactly
Emily Byars I'm here with both of you. When I'm in situations requiring my focus and attention, crocheting is my default. My fidget spinner has helped me a lot, too, because sometimes the crocheting or knitting draws unnecessary attention to me when I'm in meetings at work. I'm able to focus without overtaxing my concentration or finding myself bored and falling asleep.
ldyblkny you should try a shake pendant, much less conspicuous and it's virtually silent
I'm so glad you discussed autism and ADHD. As someone with both, I need things like fidget spinners (but alas, I cannot afford one), and I do get a little annoyed with the craze because it's treating these tools of stimming as toys to do cool tricks with, leading to a negative reputation and indeed the bans you discussed
Go to aliexpress.com You can get 1 for like $1 shipped.
I don't see an issue with it as a craze. It makes them cheaper to buy, and raises awareness. Also try croching if you need a fix. It's cheap, productive, and silent. But you do need both hands
5:38 well funded rambunctious geniuses who make flattened rocks filled with lightning do their bidding
'well funded' is the key. Pretty much any behavior associated with a rising wealthy class is going to gain both social weight and social backlash.
I love your phrase, "perfectly smooth ingots of glass and metal". That really speaks to me of just how incredible and yet minimalistic modern technology is. To anyone living a few centuries ago, they would look like either featureless stones or magical boxes. There is no "inherent identity" in modern devices -- they give no sense of being technologically advanced.
Modern technology looks like nothing more than icons that a stone-age civilization would carve for its religious ceremonies. To me, *that* is the pinnacle of aesthetics, the point where form and function have diverged to an infinite degree. Modern technology possesses none of the whirling gizmos and gadgets we once expected of hyperadvanced technology. We've moved past the cyberpunk age and into the alien age. Nothing is as it seems -- but it's so much more.
I wonder if there will be a backlash to this aesthetic. Its hard to get more and more stylised and glossy, and its already getting pushback (see the commentary on apples new headphones). Maybe the next big thing will be phones designed to have satisfying tactile buttons for their major functions
Thank you for bringing up the Mikka Nielsen thesis. As an adult diagnosee of ADHD, I'm tearing up slightly just reading the summary of her thesis.
When I was a kid, I spoke of it as a 'lack of depth perception' with regard to time that led to procrastination with school projects and early-morning lollygagging before school. To have this put into proper words by someone else is rocking my world.
Just wanted to shout out Baoding Balls, or Chinese Medicine Balls. According to their Wikipedia they go all the way back to the Ming Dynasty. I feel like those actually do what fidget objects actually aimed to do. Or at least, they were made and used in practice for the purposes of calming and centering a person.
As a person with anxiety, I'm glad to hear that this exists for people with problems. At the same time, as a general person, I am disgusted with its manifestation in weird 500 dollar exotic metal forms for rich gun and knife nuts to show off to each other. I feel like I can hold both ideas in my head.
Yeah I first saw these on /r/EDC before they became a fad, a subreddit basically dedicated to 20 something gun and knife nuts with too much disposable income.
If a person feels the need to drop a few hundred bucks on something, what business is it but their own? This seems very gatekeeper-y to me.
Ain't my business to stop them, sure, but if the topic comes up, I'll point out that it's tacky ass performative masculinity. Ti-Mascus Custom Forged do-you-do but it's also my right to call people on it.
Pie recipe ---> www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/847643/fidget-pie
i like pie
do you like pie?
As awesome and tasty as this recipe is, it's really a generic minced meat pie. There's 2 meats and a few plant ingredients to fill it with. Someone just decided to call it a fidget pie for no real reason.
When I saw the dog balancing a spinner on it's nose, my brain broke a little.
I think the craze has already died down as soon as the meme "Autism spinner" caught on. I'm going to be blunt here I am not going to dance around the fact that autism is considered an insult in pop culture whether we agree or not. It basically became an extension of the meme. I think besides it's association with autism is also the youtube channels that came from it as everybody tried to jump on the bandwagon. They were seen as low content quality and cash grabbing. Especially after it really blew up and the clickbaiting titles and thumbnails made the videos seem almost like spam content on RUclips. Ever since it happened the kids at my high school stopped bringing them as kids began making remarks like "ha look at that guy he has autism." In the end I think the craze ultimately ended stigmatized the toy and by extension the perception that autism is something that makes someone "lesser."
I think this depends on age range. At my high school it never got popular because of the autism meme but I don't think this exists in lower schools and lower age groups, they just see it as a cool toy
I hate people thinking autism is some kind of insult. A time ago, I didn't notice a woman in the shop and she asked me where were my manners and that my generation is in moral corruption. And I excused me explaining I am autistic, and she started to say me I should not say something so mean about myself.
And I was like "WHAT!!" When did my diagnosis become an offense to myself? I bet no dyabetic are told to not say so mean things about themselves, or other medical conditions that hapen to exist.
That's literally the one thing that's guaranteed to get under my skin on the internet. I despise that it's become synonymous with whatever the perpetrator considers stupidity. People need to realize it's simply a difference in the way the brain is wired and not a catch-all term for behavior you consider below yours.
Unfortunately it doesn't seem like it'll stop anytime soon.
TheBlenderman And even sadder is that even law holds that idea , at least here in Mexico. Legally, I am an intelectually disabled person, and it's so stupid. Even accepting it's a disability is problematic, but if it were, it would be a psycho social disability, or in a broader spectrum, mental disability, but intelectual?! Come on, people!
Yeah, we have a long way to go before the world is properly educated about neurodiversity. Looks like slow progress is being made where it really matters, though, so there is hope. I really do think people will eventually be more understanding towards it.
For me, as someone with anxiety and depression, figetting is probably the healthiest way I deal with things. With figet spinners and fidget cubes help distract me from bad thoughts, especially on bad days. The majority of my friends, who also have similar mental disorders, use them for the same reason as well. Plus, it;s pretty addicting. I would usually bite my nails until theu, pull out my hair, or scratch myself when I'm feeling awful, but figet devices allowed me to just look at something simple that was somewhat entertaining. I'm not saying it cured me, no, but it did help a lot. That's why I was devastated when my teacher banned them from her class.
I see fidget spinners more of a fad than something actually useful in my life; even though I am autistic and have ADHD. I consider a good device for fidgeting must be discreet as to not disrupt others. E.g. fidget spinners are rather large and make a small noise when spinning and thus more prone to distracting nearby people than say a small, soft eraser in one's pocket.
This is why I personally dislike fidget spinners, they're just kinda obnoxious in how they're used. I think fidget cubes solve this by being much more discreet
Also ADHD here, and I totally agree with both of the above comments. I find something like the fidget cube, or the interlocking bike-chains (link below) to serve their purpose much better. While I do appreciate the normalization of fidgeting that the spinners are bringing, I also feel like they might be misrepresenting what sorts of tools really DO help those who are on the spectrum / have anxiety.
Link to some examples of the bike-chain style fidget: www.fidgetland.com/
I think different toys that appeal to different senses work for different people . Maybe fidget spinners aren't your thing!
@Lorna An
You make a really good point about how differing sensual inputs will appeal to different people; I do enjoy the spinners, I just found they drew a TON of unwanted attention. Sort of like how clicking a pen feels nice, but really bothers the people around me. As someone who struggles with ADHD, drawing unwanted attention completely pulls my focus away from whatever I'm trying to do, and sort of defeats the whole point of the fidget toy in the first place.
I didn't mean to judge anyone who likes the spinners (because I do too!), just that I think there are a lot of "neural typical" people who find them fun for other reasons, but completely misunderstand WHY they're useful to the people they are.
While I don't have ADHD or anything of the like, I often find myself fidgeting with crap. My problem is I need constant noise or my tinnitus starts up, so I'll tap my foot or click a pen or something to produce noise and get my excess energy out. I think I might look into a fidget spinner for that then. Sounds like a perfect item for my tinnitus without being too damn annoying.
6:64 Holycrap, this is the first time I've ever seen anyone reference rocking. I've done it since I was a child and still do it, usually while listening to music. For a brief while I finally feel in sync with the world. I've found any strong sensation of motion will do.
I think some of these concerns deal with the theories on how we educate. If you look at the American school (and maybe other countries) they are very similar to an assembly line. In a model like that children are seen as passive vessels of information. As you said fidgeting has long been seen a quiet commentary on the interest in a lesson (burping, cracking knuckles, etc). Perhaps as we continue to see children more for what they are, bundles of energy with limited attention spans (for the most part) the acceptance of fidgeting is a part of life. I understand the push back from educators since this feels like another thing to distract students from school. As these kids get older they might be more accepting of fidgeting (where as today, in some circles certain fidget like actions can be seen as disrepectful), which might continue to change how we look at the need for movement in our lives (as a nod towards standing/walking desk).
Fidget spinners don't address that though. If "fidgeting" was the problem then kids would be going crazy over stress balls and fidget cubes. But there's nothing "competitive" about those items, so they're of little interest to kids.
I think the basic design could also be important. A ball or cube might not be as easy to put in your pocket for easy access. These types of spinners can fit just about anywhere so are much easier/convienent for easy access. But I get what you're saying. I think I would call it more performance oriented than competitive though.
Koosh balls, Tamagotchi, gel pens--all of those, in one way or another, were fads where the root might be in dividing attention. The last one, I particularly remember; being able to switch pen colors while in class and doodle in multiple colors helped me with focus as a grade-schooler.
never expected to see Laura sourced here :D
Whoever makes/ made the music for Idea Channel needs all the love ever
I have destroyed pencils, created dolls out of paper, ruined desks, disassembled pens, and doodled an endless stream of nonsense. I will fidget with and play with Literally ANYTHING within my reach, from the mundane like office supplies, to the downright dangerous like knives, nails, and needles.
Fidget Spinners, regardless of form, will always exist. If someone has an issue with me fidgeting with MY things, then best tape your stuff down because I will pick ALL the fuzz off your sweater and strip your headphone wires to the bare copper!!!
Penis.
Fidget Spinners are alright, the fidget spinner youtube community however is pure cancer
dxxPacmanxxb what are spinners mostly used for? for fun?
As an elementary school teacher, I can say that at least at my school they weren't banned because they are distracting for my 5th grade class, but some of the lower grades were using them as pseudo ninja stars and other ridiculous things. I'm supposed to confiscate them if I see them in my class but I let the people who use it for its actual purpose use them.
I think the idea behind them as an outlet for those who have a hard time focusing is great. I 100% get and support that.
What is annoying is the fact they are just being shoved everywhere and anywhere possible for a quick buck. In a month or so everyone will be so burnt out it'll either die off or become ironically cool and start the cycle again.
i don't understand why people are so hung up on this! it's the same as finger/nail tapping, bubble gum chewing, hair twisting, pen/pencil twirling, finger twirling and so on. it might be annoying to some but helpful to some others. i do all of those things, except fidget spinners cause i'm living in flippin' narnia and we don't have any. but trust me, i would.
also i have generalized anxiety. i will regret this comment in 3...2...1...
But why spend money to tap your fingers?
I had a similar thing, I used to bite my nails horribly, but once I bought a pocket knife I replaced the habit with trimming and cleaning my nails, it's pretty similar but somewhat more constructive.
The spinner is an object with moving parts, so it's more desirable when you're getting bored and just need to grab something to fiddle around. Certainly less harmfull than several other fidget behaviors. And having an object dedicated to such a thing means you're less likely to end up damaging other objects.
The craze might be how the spinner evokes some of the possible tricks yoyos have. And also mob mentality.
Since those things are way more expensive than I'd consider paying for I'm stuck using w/e happens to be lying around on my table, be it a pen, pendrive or usb cables.
Phelanii say hi to the ice queen for me.
I think it's pretty funny how popular these got. In a week it went from something I'd never heard of to a toy everyone has. I wonder how long it will take for them to fall back into relative obscurity.
"What's the _deal_ with fidget spinners?"
- Jerry Seinfeld, 2017
> Flattened rocks filled with lightning
Holy shit.
A lot of the discourse on fidget spinners and cubes and the like fail to mention another group of people who benefit from fidget toys: those with skin picking disorders. Having toys to keep your hands busy is one of the best ways to avoid harming my skin. While other objects can produce similar results, like rocks or bits of glass or worry stones, the popularity of fidget spinners right now makes it more acceptable to fidget with spinners or rocks or what have you.
+
I'll be getting a spinner soon for just this reason, I had taken to keeping bottom caps in my pocket lately and picking at the rubber in the inside to keep me from picking my skin but having something to keep my hands busy at all times, especially when I'm anxious, would do wonders to keep my derma under control
Thank you for an articulate and concise overview of some of the deeper attractions and benefits of fidgets!
I teach an elementary art classroom, and the only problem I have with fidget spinners is that the students aren't using them to distract their extra energy when I'm, for example, presenting something. No, that's when they talk with their friends and make distracting gestures and comments. They instead use them when they are sitting at their table with their art projects in front of them. They use them when they don't want to do the thing that they've been assigned to do. (As a note, I haven't had this problem often.)
With that in mind, I would say the problem is not in the object itself, but in how it is used. If the fidgeting object becomes the center of the person's attention, then it's no longer a fidgeting object. It's a toy, and a distraction. That's why most fidgeting objects are completely uninteresting on their own. They serve to keep a person's hands doing something, without that something being particularly interesting. For example, we have chairs that are purposely designed to wobble around easily, a great distraction for students on the autism spectrum. They can wobble around while they're sitting without putting much thought into it, but it provides stimulation at the same time. The students don't make a game of wobbling around in their chairs, because that just isn't interesting enough.
Speaking specifically about fidget spinners, at first glance it seems like fidget spinners should fall into this category. All it does is spin, right? Perhaps that's the problem though. It seems to me that the main problem with fidget spinners is that they distract not just the students' hands, but their eyes too. They are fast-moving objects, which easily capture the attention of our eyes, and to keep them moving requires the use of the users hands. So I hypothesize that fidget spinners are simply an object that provides /too much/ stimulation to be called a fidgeting object. It's taking the attention of the person using them, including the senses we want focused somewhere else, on the toy.
As a substitute teacher I have seen spinners at every school I've been to lately (eight across three districts) and as a person who gesticulates constantly when he speaks, I understand the desire to keep one's hands busy. My personal outlet is drawing. I do it in meetings, over lunch, when kids have worktime, and it's not noisy or flashy (sometimes flashy, it's a good lead in when I need to identify with kids). I do not have any sort of attention disorder, but nonetheless working with my hands helps me listen better.
Currently I am a long term sub in a middle school, so I'll only speak to my time with the students I have now.
My overall experience with spinners runs along two paths. There's the one that you described in the video, when students who need to keep their hands busy use it to stay focused, as I do with drawing and thus listening better, and I have seen this work. I do not want to give any impression that it cannot or does not work.
The problem is when those who do not need the spinner for focus play with it as a toy. It then becomes a piece of entertainment that keeps students from their work. Students grab at the toy or piece of entertainment, drop it on the ground and chase it, arguments are fought and challenges are issued. This is what ends up distracting from the class. One kid has a spinner, drops it, and another grabs it with or without permission or makes a jeering remark, and suddenly the class is more attentive to their embattled peers than the lesson. Worse is when I have to put a full stop on said lesson because I have to either end the argument myself or am myself distracted too thoroughly by what the students believe is subtle banter. Admittedly I see this with any outside-world item brought into the classroom (phones, ipods, decks of cards) but what is different about spinners is that they *could* have a therapeutic effect if used by those who need it, yet oftentimes they are not.
There are also those who use it as a personal distraction. I know I'm getting into a third territory, but hear it out. When a student who is perfectly capable of listening to a presentation or lesson opts not to in order to watch their toy spin, by their actions they require me to repeat the instructions I've already given (at best) or blatantly fail to do the work, claiming they don't understand the assignment because they, by their own decision, were not listening. This detracts from their learning and I saw it day one at my recent assignment.
Now, I'm not going to call for a blanket ban, nor will I ask for a doctor's note to have a fidget in class. What I think needs to be understood about the spinners is that their effects run along a spectrum. When fidget items are used discreetly beneath a desk or in one's pocket, something I have seen for years, they are fantastic. When they are used to draw the attention of their peers at inappropriate times or used as a personal distraction because the student is bored and doesn't want to listen to vital information, then I agree that the spinner or cube or phone needs to be taken at least until the student is presented with worktime, longer if that students explicit intent with the item is to distract others.
Not sure how much I added to the conversation, but I wanted to be concise and attempt to formally put down what I think many teachers are experiencing.
P.S. Maybe not use my name if you use this in the response video? I'd super-appreciate it.
I have ADHD, and I just bought a fidget spinner earlier today, since I'm going to a conference next week, and I know I'll need something to help me concentrate and sit still, even though the subject of the conference is something that interests me.
In other words: the fidget spinner is just what people with ADHD needs, not only to concentrate, but also to not disrupt a class/lecture/whatever
(as for it's effect on people with autism, I have no idea, but I know plenty people I could ask)
I have ADHD and I find it immensely calming in both a tactile sense and also a fidget sense. I am chronically playing with stuff while I sit through class, while I watch RUclips videos and Netflix. As a teenager I found it immensely helpful to make friendship bracelets while in class, I was actually paying more attention, able to recall more information as well. While to some degree exercise works, I'm left with a wandering overworked mind.
i really love the phrase 'otherwise diminishing tactility.' mike has such a great way with words.
When I was a child I had a little pen I used to disassemble and reassemble in one hand.
It was about 5cm long, so all the parts fit discreetly within my palm without too much trouble - plus there was the added benefit of constantly having a writing implement about my person.
Hey, Mike, thank you for recommending The Philosopher Zone in the way that you did. When people say "this is awesome you should listen to it" I feel like I can't say no and I feel really bad if I don't have time to listen to it. So thanks for simply saying "I really like it and I recommend it" instead, cause it helps a lot.
The clip on the left @ 5:58 - 6:03 had me LOL for real :-)
Maybe it's just pleasing certain senses in ways normally not possible in every day life. Although I don't have one, I do intend to get one, for several reasons. First, there's the pleasant, soft white noise it produces as it spins. Then there's the spinning motion itself; regular, consistent, almost hypnotic, persistence of vision making its limbs a flickering blur. And then there's the gyroscopic feel as you pinch the center between finger and thumb and slowly rotate it around, sensing as much as feeling the centripetal forces as you twist it in space. That's what attracts me to it, anyway. I'm sure for some there's a certain degree of sport to it -- doing tricks and such, but for me, it simply provides pleasing sensations. It soothes and, in its own small way, re-centers my mind against the little moments of chaos my days sometimes otherwise consist of.
I have anxiety, and tend to panic when surrounded by a lot of people. Somehow a spinner helped me keep calm.
I really appreciate you complicating the definition of fidgeting towards the end of the video, because I do feel like the discussion around fidget spinners is a microcosm of bigger discussions around the environment that users of said fidget spinners are trying to adapt to. Such questions include:
- What is it about the way kids are being taught in school that makes them need a fidget spinner to concentrate? Are there ways to make lessons more engaging and experiential such that there are other avenues for tactile stimulation/release of excess energy?
- Why is distraction seen as such a terrible thing? (Tying into discussions around "people don't talk to each other, they're all on their phones even when in a group")
- Is the focus on constant productivity as a virtue - and the idea that the best way to be productive is to focus on one specific thing at a time 100% - actually helpful?
- Touch and tactile simulation in general - are we losing opportunities to engage with touch, especially in variety?
- Must all our energy be contained and channelled towards being productive for someone else's benefit (e.g. school or work)? Can we not have some of our energy for ourselves, to use or waste as we see fit?
- You touched on this towards the end, but: the use of tools and things for pleasure rather than as pain relief. Is that necessarily so terrible?
rarely do you make a video where I have nothing to diverge from regarding the topic, especially topics of games and play, since it's my wheelhouse.
I completely agree with both the points you made and questions you raised here. Cool to feel that kind of commeraderie.
I live in western Oklahoma and to my knowledge this is a craze yet to hit us and I honestly never heard of these until a week or two ago. Love the positive take on something that I honestly don't get. I dunno, like anything, in excess it is no bueno. Seems like a lot of kids who need to go run around and burn off some energy but I'm sure it totally has positive uses like those you mentioned. 👍
"... flattened rocks filled with lightning ..."
I've never heard a better description of integrated circuits.
"What's the Deal with Fidget Spinners?" I don't rightly know, Mr. Seinfeld. I'm still trying to understand airplane food.
My dad and I both fidget like no one's business due to sensory processing disorder. My dad used to get beat by teachers for fidgeting in class with pencils because people didn't understand that he was trying to pay attention. His teachers would slap his hands in front of the class with a ruler or hit him with a switch. A couple of decades later I went to elementary school and things were a lot different. I didn't get beat by teachers but I did get harassed and yelled at by teachers as I get older. I was also bullied relentlessly for having fidgets that were prescribed to me by my occupational therapist to the point my teachers told me to keep the fidgets in my desk at all times so that they wouldn't bully me so bad. The bullying followed me into high school until I had a complete burn out because I tried to stop fidgeting altogether.
So, considering all that? I'm ecstatic to see young kids have a fun and trendy fidget toy to show off to other kids. I'm really hopeful to see a bigger turn around in how we perceive fidgeting/stimming altogether since everyone does it.
Middle school science teacher here.
Fidgeting is a really difficult issue to handle with kids, largely because the boundary between responsible physical outlets and finding an excuse to do something other pay attention to directions being given is extraordinarily difficult for many adolescents to skirt.
I found that in school, middle through college, I drew on my papers all the time. I was lucky to not be chastised for this, but I definitely had friends who were shocked when I knew what was going on in class despite having been drawing for half an hour and taking no notes. I've found that keeping my hands busy prevented my mind from wandering, but that writing notes and listening at the same time was/is difficult because composing coherent sentences requires too much attention. As a result, I have a particular soft spot for doodlers, having a number of students trying to hide their drawings while I try to reassure them that there is nothing wrong with what they're doing AS LONG AS THEY ARE ABLE TO GET THEIR WORK DONE AND LISTEN TO DIRECTIONS.
This becomes the problem.
Being asked to sit and listen for 25 minutes is tough, and for some students, unreasonable. Some kids are not neurotypical. Some don't find the topic interesting. Some kids live in really intense and traumatizing circumstances at home that I can't even begin to relate to. I make deals with students, some who are identified ADHD, some who simply seem to have the attention span of a fly, that they can get up and get water more than I would normally allow, or to stand at their desk rather than sit, or some other way to get them up and moving without being disruptive.
The problem arises when students abuse this trust. And this happens A LOT.
I have students who play with fidget spinners while they listen to me give instructions, but most of the time, they are staring at it spinning, listening to the sound it's making, trying to fend of their neighbor trying to grab it, trying to balance it on their face, experimenting with the sound it makes when lightly pressed on the desk, or some other way of interacting with it that results in not paying attention to the task at hand, whether it's listening to what I'm trying to tell them or working independently.
There are definitely students who use these opportunities responsibly, and outright bans of things like doodling in class and having fidget spinners I think is foolish. But most of the time students who are having a hard time paying attention do not start paying attention when they have a toy in hand. Most of the time the trust gets abused and most of the time I tell them they need to put it away SO THAT THEY CAN PAY ATTENTION AND WORK.
I'm always relieved to read such thought provoking discussions on such a touchy topic like neruodivercity. As much as part of me hates annoying little things (mostly for feeding meme culture,) they seem to bring more good than harm in the end.
Wow, I didn't expect to find my own video in here, lol! Thanks! 😄
Also, thanks for the great video. I recently made a video with a fidget spinner and people are going crazy in the comments. Not sure where all the hate comes from. Back when I was a kid, we all had Tamagotchis and POGs. Kids these days enjoy fidget spinners, nothing wrong with that.
Jared from Wisecrack says, "Hello."
It might be a simple comfort. My own is my scooter, like doing backflips and dumb stuff like that, and I feel naked without it like when I leave it in a friend's car for a few days by accident. Maybe these fidgeters are the same in seeking something physically stimulating where our phones and music can't quite do enough for us.
I know I missed my opportunity for the response video already, but I only caught up this weekend with my (Yargh!) content.
I teach middle school music and drama. Moreover, I work at a school specifically for kids with "non-verbal learning difficulties": various shades and flavors of dyslexia, auditory processing issues, ADHD, socio-emotional stuff, etc. Over the last few years, there's been a huge push in the study of dyslexia to not define/label it as a disability or hindrance, but rather as a potential advantage (The Dyslexic Advantage, by Brock and Fernette Eide). We do this not only to destigmatize these kids' struggle, but also to try reframe their situation as one of unexplored possibility. It is a constant and tireless quest, but one I certainly feel is worth fight for.
This video perfectly encapsulates what my experience has been with both the spinners and the kids - we have a *ton* of fidget toys in our classroom, and whenever a student advocates for one, I always tell them "Please use this as the tool it is intended to be. If I see that it is distracting you more than it is focusing you, it will come back and we'll try something else." I'd say I'm up to about a 65% success rate with that. My students (mostly) understand the difference between being handed a tool, and handed a toy.
I do think this 'reframing' of what it means to fidget is a good thing. Working at this school has made me super aware of that dichotomy that exists is most of my students - that of a restless brain/body, and an incredible, aware and perceptive and mind. We have students literally can't control their physical focus for longer than a few minutes - not because they're malicious children, but that's their non-neuro-typicalness. Those same students come back and show incredible intelligence - the ones I'm thinking of have proven to be incredible drummers, and once they're "in the zone" of a good groove, all their problems melt away, and suddenly they're rock stars. Paradox indeed. It takes a lot of patience and understanding (which many schools don't necessarily have - part of the reason for banning the spinners everywhere), but these efforts to slowly recalibrate what it means to be be non-neurotypical and publicly accommodate it without stigma - well, that's just a win for everybody. :)
Fidget spinners seem quite practical for channeling one's mental and physical activity. But ideally I don't think they're necessary. People say music helps them focus but I personally find myself not even consciously aware that I'm listening to music when I'm fully focused on a certain task. But of course, pragmatic solutions are sometimes all we have.
1) "Non-neurotypical" is a mouthful, usually it's better to say "neuroatypical" or "neurodivergent" instead, but the idea is the same.
2) As an ADHDer myself, pre-fidget toys, I used to quietly draw in my notebooks and I cannot begin to express how angry this made some of my teachers. I always found it prejudiced that my teachers would walk by all the other students loudly chatting or trading notes, just to yell at me because I was drawing. Because I was not exhibiting "typical" student behavior (chatting, playing on my phone, sleeping, etc) I ironically stood out like a sore thumb despite being quiet and purposefully not distracting anyone but myself (and ironically in the way ADHD works, better able to pay attention with my own distraction). For several of my teachers throughout the years, it took intervention from my parents to yell at the teachers in question and explain that I *was* in fact paying attention and learning despite my notes being covered in doodles. For a couple teachers, I had to take impromptu quizzes or tests to prove I was learning.
So basically, the reason this fad and the consequential bans bother me isn't so much that suddenly fidgeting is everywhere, but that, once again, ADHD and autistic stimming/fidgeting practices are being targeted mostly because they don't fall into "typical" behavior expected--not really because these things are any more distracting than anything else typical students will do when bored.
I'm just happy to have my fidget cube and see the odd looks on neurotypical's faces when I let them see it and they say "but i doesn't DO anything..." then see my neurodivergent friends' faces light up when I show them and they say "holy crap this does SO MANY THINGS!!!"
3) I think you completely glossed over the amazing topic of why even neurotypicals (especially children) enjoy fidget toys. Stim toys are practically like candy for the brain, and I'm sure there's some interesting studies on the weird feeling of peace a fidget toy can bring someone even if they were leery of using the toy at first. There's a reason for the rise in stim toys, chewables, texture boxes, and anxiety kits--and I don't think it's all from the neurodivergent community. We're tapping into some part of the brain that has been fed on twitchy legs and pen clicking for too long and offering it a feast.
I was once in a class being giving a lesson whilst a group of students were talking about there fidget spinners and spinning them
I get the need for these things. I once lost a work experience placement in a school because the teacher who was supposed to be looking after me left me alone with half the class (illegal with my qualification level) and when the class was over I started rocking in the teachers lounge. She said she didn't want me their acting 'crazy'. And there were kids with their own neurodiversities in that class.
I have the following items to play with in my office:
1. small heavy die-cast car
2. miniature peg-in-hole checkers set
3. ebony-wood string bass mute (from my orchestra days, just a very satisfying object to hold)
4. 3 foot ash-wood pole (for fencing/martial arts drills)
5. 3 foot steel pipe (for fencing/martial arts drills)
6. a french 1801 naval cutlass (sharp)
I also only type on a mechanical gaming keyboard with very clicky keys. The tactile feedback of a mechanical keyboard has the effect of motivating me to produce more written work.
I was a musician who used to tap incessantly in class when I was of school age. So if kids say this helps them focus on their work, yes, I totally get it.
As someone who has ADHD and owns a fidget cube, the original kickstarter one, I actually have found it very useful in keeping other distractions away when watching TV or something. This especially applies to my go to before the cube, my phone, which would take me further out of the TV experience.
This is perfect. The number of people (teachers especially) I've seen complaining about fidget spinners reminds me of the number of disapproving looks I got for doodling in class (and practically all the rest of the time). Quiet fidgeting is not a marker of boredom, and if you expect students with ADHD, anxiety, autism, etc to sit still and look more like they're paying attention then you will make their problems harder to manage and disrupt their education.
7:17 *Heavy turian breathing*
I need a gif of Garrus with fidget spinners spinning in both hands and a flashing text saying #calibrate on it xD
could not stop the fidgeting while watching this.
Some people are talking here about how fidget spinners aren't for them, but most people have barely even scratched the surface of possible fidget items. Just off the top of my head: there's chewing-safe pendants. Inflatable bumpy seat cushions. Stretchy bands you put between the two front legs of your chair so you can bounce your heels against them. Little tubes or mazes with a marble inside that you can squeeze back and forth. Even fidget jewelry with discreet moving parts, for formal occasions.
If you are a fidgety type of person you probably already play with your headphone cords and do things other than writing with your pencils and pens. Along this line, you can also repurpose many things that weren't specifically made for fidgeting with, such as lanyards, zippers (though you should probably buy a sewing zipper from the store rather than using the ones on your clothes), keychains, rosaries, scent/aromatherapy items, ankle weights, or rings.
The concept of fidgeting is one that I have been deeply familiar with for my entire life. However, it wasn't until I started knitting that I realized how useful it could be as an aid to not only concentration, but also memory.
While regular old fidgeting (finger tapping, toe tapping, rocking, etc) can help me focus, the effect is increased if I am fidgeting with something that is productive. It only works if I have something very simple and repetitive -- i.e. not lace or color knitting or anything that requires counting or changing -- and which I can continue to work on even if I look away from it.
The memory piece is the most interesting. If I was working on a scarf while listening to an audiobook, the next time I pick up that scarf to work on it, it triggers the memory of what was happening in the story while I was knitting that project -- like the conversation between the Count of Monte Cristo and Madame de Villefort about how to get away with poisoning someone. I have a sweater which I worked on while attending a teacher training about inclusion, and when I wear it, it makes me think of different strategies I can use in my classroom.
While my example is knitting, because that's what I do, it's a thing that works for any kind of "productive" fidgeting.
Not really the point of this video, but maybe helpful to some people who are not so neurotypical.
I love the analogy with hula hoops and fidget spinners, it just feels right
as someone who is on the spectrum and in high school had way too much anxiety. I would literally sit in class and be messing with silly putty in my left hand while taking notes because it help kept me focused and calm. My wonderful other half backed the cube on kickstarter as a present for me. It did wonders when I had to deal with extended family for my brother's college graduation lunch.
Mike at "Shaking hips? Well I never!"
Will you make an episode on ASMR? It's presence one youtube has only grown and diversified in so many interesting ways. The fact that there is a spinner ASMR I think supports this.
There's a complicated and difficult balance to reach. I'm a teacher, and I have definitely seen children (ADHD or ASD) who some kind of fidget object has helped. Rather than jiggling up and down, or shifting around constantly, one girl was much more able to sit through assemblies (and other times when we needed stillness), if she had a toy (slime or a tangle toy) in her lap.
However there are also students ( ADHD, ASD or neurotypical) who use fidget spinners as a distraction. They're so focused on the object they miss the discussion. Rather than helping them centre excess energy, it can draw them away from their focus.
I don't have many lecture style lessons, but when I do, I encourage students with an abundance of jitters to doodle on the page of their book and take notes. Doodling has been shown to help retention of information, and it doesn't distract other students. I take it case by case. I haven't banned spinners in my classroom, but I remove them when they are disturbing other students work.
Additionally, around the normalisation of ASD and ADHD our school has a heavy focus on 'inclusion' as a value. We've never had big issues with neurotypical students 'not getting' the ticks of our ASD students. Last year I had a boy who liked to pace during class, so the desks were far enough forward he could do his thing up the back. The other kids got it was a coping mechanism for him, and would head back to him to pair up for group discussions or small groups. This year I have a year 8 boy (A) who tried to stab another (boy B) with a pencil. When we spoke to him about it (and enacted a consequence, because you don't stab people) we discovered that boy A thought boy B didn't like fish, (one of his special interests). Boy B was surprised to hear this, he likes seahorses. They're not best buddies, or some movie crap like that, but boy B knowing that boy A sees the world differently, and then chatting to boy A about their shared interests has helped prevent more stabbings.
Having a culture of awareness, (everyone with ASD is so different form the next!) and inclusion is much bigger in the scope of acceptance than the spinner's visibility.
I just know somebody somewhere is getting two itches scratched by this fidget spinner craze. Firstly, by having their need for fidgeting quenched and secondly, by collecting thousands of them.
I'm so happy Donna was in this video! ♡♡
I have dyslexia and used to cross stitch in class to fidget. At one point that evolved into crocheting. I can tell you that most of my teachers did not care as I was the only one in class doing it and was still engaged vocally. The only teacher that ever asked me to stop was my professor in my Teaching Students with Disabilities class. I found that to be fine irony.
I thought fidget spinning was a dumb trend, but then I got mine. I felt the spin, I felt it on my finger, I felt the rush of a good spin. It changed me. I got my spinner ironically, but I was wrong.
Its amazing, I'm smarter, more productive, more focused at work, a simple task is done much faster.
Outsiders dont get it, they dont get us. I'm not saying were better but were more open minded and probably smarter.
I love this community, and I love this way of life.
Yeup. My husband got a cube to help with his anxiety. He tends to destroy things when he's anxious or frustrated. He got a cube, and it's really helped him stay cool and calm. He's really grateful for it.
Liked for the "2600: the hackers quarterly". Tshirt. I love reading 2600. It has some Great ideas and articles in it sometimes.
I'm 33, I have 2 spinners, and I find them to be hugely beneficial 90% of the time.
I suffer from a myriad of anxiety disorders, and sitting idle for too long can trigger panic attacks. Having something to do with my hands while I'm thinking through an engineering problem, designing something, working through writer's block, reading, editing video, or even just relaxing and shutting off my brain has been an ever-present need for me... fidget spinners (and a stack of small neodymium magnets) fill that need.
Before spinners, I had an assortment of Snapple caps that I'd click, a CV joint that I'd repeatedly disassemble/reassemble, a small Altoids tin that I'd pop open and close, an old mouse trap that had a delightful creak when I flexed it open, and an old camera lens filter case that had a latch and small brass button... they were all noisy, and drove people crazy. The spinner makes almost no noise, and provides lots of tactile feedback with little effort, and I find it to be incredibly soothing.
After the craze blows over, and all the normal people move on to the next thing; I'll still be spinning quietly while I work.
I can only hope that grade school physics teachers and/or other kids are having as big a field day as I am with these things. the axis of rotation, the centripetal force, friction, ball bearings, moment of inertia. there's at least a month worth of in-class demonstrations, lectures, and projects.
I'm a teacher with ADD and I've found it very helpful with marking and other such tasks. I think it will take the place of munching while listening lectures as well. As for students there is definitely a sub set that find them helpful when they are able to have the will power to use them with 5% of their focus instead of 90%. My class rule is that if anyone is focusing on anything other than what they should be, that that is a problem needing a solution. So kids playing with them as toys and watching them spin have them put away. Those spinning them loudly are asked to switch to flicking, etc. This has worked well enough, but it's definitely a way that kids that don't need it feel they can sneak a toy into class. Perhaps those with special education plans should be exempt from bans when they are using them to focus on something else.
I never considered myself anxious or a "fidgeter" but one thing I (and many of my peers) seem to do is pull out my phone at every idle moment, distracting me from whatever else I'm doing (usually watching a video). When my friend got me a spinner as a gift I was amazed at how readily I replaced my phone with my spinner as my go-to idleness-avoider. It's made me more engaged with the content I consume and less prone to suppliment interesting videos with distracting (although dank) facebook memes.
If you tend to reach for your phone whenever your hands aren't doing anything I highly recommend getting a spinner.
The Simpsons predicted the cube fidget in that dream he had when he was going thru financial trouble :-O
I actually work at one of the few places in my greater metropolitan area that sells fidget spinners (and cubes), and always has some in stock. I have had kids, adults, teenager, grandparents, friends buying for friends, family buying for family, and a few strangers buying for kids whose parents think it's a "dumb fad." I have had people telling me about it helping them refocus for stress, anxiety, quitting smoking, and homework, and others talking about it as a physical therapy aid for people in casts, seniors losing function in their fingers, and a broken shoulder. I own one myself, and it helps me with anxiety and motion sickness on public transit, and at home. Both my younger brothers are on spectrum; for one it works, and the other is uninterested. And that is something people often forget when they discuss autism: it IS a spectrum, and what happens for one, will not happen for another.
Part of the adult fuss against (and it is 99% adults who rail against spinners) is a rage against the acceptability of all things that were not as accepted when they were children. Being different is much more acceptable in this time than it was for the Boomers or Gen X, and there is a certain amount of envy against that, illustrated by the plaintive cry of, "In my day. . ." Being allowed to fidget is relatively new, because it IS seen as rude: a sign that the person in authority is not being given the attention they feel they are entitled to. The acceptance that certain people MUST fidget to release nervous energy can be seen as a sign of the degradation of old social mores, and there are few things that get a certain subset of the older population up in arms as much as a sense of loss of social control.
Another issue is that many companies are marketing the spinners as PURELY toys, rather than the aid they were invented to be (which my store did not, initially). Therefore teachers and principals(and generally not special education teachers or behavioral therapists), see the spinners as an interrupting fad, rather than a tool. Kids often do not get shown how to use them properly as a study aid either- since most videos focus on "upgrading" spinners into dangerous displays, and showing off tricks and sounds and styles (shades of un-boxing videos). I teach every child who comes through to use them with one hand, and remind them to seek permission to take them outside their home and put their name on it. [I have been a nanny for twenty years, there are some things I just gotta do.]
A primary school teacher here, I fidget on occasion and see no negative to fidgeting if it isn't a distraction to others' learning i.e. banging pencils on desk is a no, slime under the desk is fine.
We had the issue that these toys were brought into class as a "help" for pupils who do not need assistance in stopping distraction. The pupils spoke of parents buying the items, saying it is good for their child and allowing the use of them in my and other teachers classes without discussion. The fidget spinners on occasion flashed, were sparkly or thick weighing a couple of hundred grams. Flashing objects are distractions for others as are sparkles. The heavy weights are an issue for pupils who tend to throw items especially at others. Then came the issue of how pupils used them. I allowed the items if they were under the desk as they used them. This is to avoid disturbing the lesson. Within 2 minutes pupils often tried to do tricks with the spinners as they were working, showing off their amazing skills.
These toys may be helpful, relaxing and fun but if not used in a manner that is productive and non-distractive then they have no place in a normal classroom. Sitting with slime or fidgeting with a pencil or even just playing with your fingers is calming enough for most pupils in the classroom.
We teachers enjoy the fidget spinners that we confiscate until the end of the day. We however do not sit and play with them so that we don't distract the class.
As someone with both autism and ADHD, I will say that having things like fidget cubes or spinners available and acceptable is a relief in a way I can't explain to someone who doesn't crave stimming like I do. Most of the time, I feel disconnected from my body, like I'm floating inside my brain and peeking out at the world, and the only things that really get through are jarring, like disruptive noises or bright lights. Fidgeting helps to anchor me in my body and connect me with the world. When I don't have access to fidget toys, I fidget in ways that hurt me without being able to stop - I bend my fingers and crack my knuckles until they're sore, or pick at my skin enough to bleed.
I do have some apprehensions. I'm someone with Celiac Disease, meaning I can't eat gluten. In the past decade or so, it's become much easier to find gluten-free food, but part of the reason is a rise in people going "gluten-free" as a diet or just because they think it's healthier. Because of this, sometimes when I tell people what I need to eat, the response is along the lines of "oh, you're one of those people", and I don't get taken seriously. Gluten-free food is also much more expensive, often because it's "all-natural", being marketed toward the people who just believe it's healthier, not the ones for whom it's a necessity. This background makes me wary of the craze surrounding fidget toys, for fear that the people who really need them will be lumped in with the people who just like them, and any backlash will make life harder for us.
I guess the best remedy for this is awareness, so I just want to say I'm really happy to see you talking about the experiences of people like me to a wider audience. Thank you!
So I am an Adult that works in Technology at the Fortune 1 Company aka Walmart. I was as of 5 years ago now diagnosed as Autistic in addition to the ADD diagnosis. Fidgeting is something I've done so naturally I don't realize I'm doing it and for most of my life I've felt required to manage and keep in check these tendencies. Now with my Autism diagnosis I realize the root of my need to fidget (stem) and how for me it helps me deal with stressful situations. Upon this realization I had to weight the level of conformity with societal norms that has to some extent allowed me to be successful in work and social life with the fact that this is such an unnatural path for me that it limits and exhausts me. To give an example a Birthday Part is a largely stressful event as I don't know what to expect going in and there will be lots of small talk demand. On one hand I can enjoy the party and make those around me comfortable but go home drained for days and possibly need to leave early or I can stem (fidget) make people around me uncomfortable but be more comfortable and less stressed and drained at the end of things. There is at the end of the day no win-win so long as everyone I know keep their views that fidgeting/steming is unnatural and something that should make them uncomfortable. At times I want to stem more not because I need to as much as I feel like in a way I can self-advocate in ways others I know can't and if I can buck decades of nero-typical compliance I'm actually doing others a service. That said once you've reached a certain level going backward almost feels like regression on one hand and defiance for defiance sack on the other neither of which in my very logic driven mindset seem like proper paths forward either. I do fear that fidgeting devices are already in adult circles becoming taboo. Heck for years now playing with PlayDo at work is already in that place and now I think more tools I've considered are going to be even more taboo and I've not even had a chance to use them yet. (My parents were supposed to get the Fidget Cube for me for Christmas and the order go messed up.) And now I'm going to stop typing because I realize I'm over sharing another annoying Autistic trait I've been told.
As someone with ADD, I have always figetted, even at relatively calm times. When I was young, I would tap my fingers on the desk at school or bounce my leg. In high school I learned how to twirl a pencil or pen between my fingers. now that I am adult, working in a call center for customer service, my fidget spinner seems to "prepare" me for my next call, which could be bad. There just seems to be something about the act that calms and focuses me. The term "Release Valve" seems very appropriate.
I really wish there was some more extensive research on this matter. From my experience as a teacher, the fidget spinner doesn't really make distracted kids more focused. It just gives them a new distraction, mostly because they want to do the tricks with the thing, not just spin it. Maybe those clicker boxes wouldn't pose this problem, but I have yet to see one of those in the classroom.
I think there's definitely something to the notion that we all want to appear like we've got so much going on between our ears that we have to somehow express it physically. But I think that sort of subconscious motivation is probably more for the adults that are into the craze. But I imagine that a big part of why many (including most of the kids) are into the trend is because other members of their friend group find it important. Thinking back to things like the "Not soap, radio" experiment, we shouldn't underestimate how influential group pressures are in starting/maintaining social trends.
I am 38 years old, and I am using a fidget spinner at work to help me stop reflexively picking up my cell phone and getting distracted by reddit/twitter/Facebook. I sell cars, and instead of looking at my phone and missing a customer, I can keep my eyes up instead of being distracted and missing a potential sell.
What's the deal with spinners sounds like the start of a Seinfeld joke.
If it wasn't for the internet I wouldn't even know these things existed, I have yet to run into one in real life.
As somebody with ADHD, I understand where the argument is being made. On the other hand, you didn't address (hardly at all) that anxiety has been seeing a rapid resurgence. I grew up in rural towns most of my life until I entered public school in 4th grade, and it wasn't until I got my hands on my first iPhone in 8th grade until I started exhibiting symptoms. Numerous, and I mean numerous, studies have shown that the very device I'm writing this with seeps with anxiety-causing stimuli, from the way how social networking applications work to how app developers try to keep users invested in their games, and there is a weird dynamic going on with it. For instance, I went to a dinner with my track team last night, and aside from the adults, I was the only one not on my phone (one part to how I was raised, secondly to the fact that I've been training myself to not rely on it). Everyone else was Snapchatting, instagram-ing, etc., and these are the same people that have and use these spinners. Another theory that I have, and I know that I'm overreaching a bit on this one, is that we have gotten to the point in our culture where we have been so desensitized and product-reliant that literally anything could become a hit like the spinners. Remember Kendamas? Hover boards? Any touchscreen device? There isn't an absolute need for any of these things, but they only serve the purpose of emptying wallets and making anyone who doesn't get one to fall behind. Before these fidget-whatevers we tapped toes and fingers, before hover boards we had much more reliable bicycles, and we used to have landlines or mail to communicate for people. Everything now is just a rebranding of something before, but just with a little pizazz and a price tag.
I would absolutely love to have a good conversation over this
I think humans are naturally "fidgety" beings, but more than ADHD I have always related it to more of a compulsory behaviour, something that just feels good to you and if you don't do it then something feels off. I always find myself playing with my phone or the tv remote, taking the lid off and putting it back on, throwing it gently into the air and catching it or even spinning it, but we all do something like that. You shimmy your leg when you're anxious, you play with your pen when you're bored in class, you make a doodle to distract yourself, playing with your hair or even double checking to see if you closed the door on your way out. I've met people that can only raise the volume of their TV in increments of 5 and this is all "fidgety" behaviour to me, but that doesn't mean that you use it exclusively to relieve your ADHD because most of these people that I've met can concentrate normally in a classroom and live their lives normally.
Fidgety behaviour in this sense is just a way for us to feel more comfortable in an environment that doesn't suit us quite well, or maybe just a way for us to relieve any anxieties that we're carrying in that moment. Fidget spinners may be frowned upon, but that doesn't mean that we aren't a fidgety society in general, it just means that we DON'T want to be seen as anxious people in front of others because it makes us appear weak or distracted, so in this sense, complaining about fidget spinners is probably a means of projecting our insecurities to other people. Fidgeting is a natural human behaviour and that doesn't mean that we all suffer from ADHD, it just means that we are a species of anxiety and that we need a way for us to relieve the stress of our daily lives.
Francisco Valadez so most people that use them don't have adhd or anxiety or autism? and just use them for fun?
My little cube has helped me calm down from a full panic attack without getting up and pacing or (more dangerously) leaving my apartment and not stop walking until I am too tired to get back. It has also helped focus my thoughts and even calmed down my Tourette's tics. I guess I should mention that I have been diagnosed with depression, ADHD, anxiety, OCD, bipolar disorder, and Tourette's syndrome (and probably something else that I am forgetting). I am 98% sure that I don't land on the Autism spectrum, but some doctors have suspected that I might.
When I first heard of the cube, I thought it sounded like some hack's attempt to cash in on the struggles of neurodivergent people. Then I got more and more testaments to its usefulness and wanted to try it myself. I was given a mini fidget cube as a gift, and now I never leave my dorm without it. Its ability to distract my overactive or panicked mind is unparalleled.
I am glad that these tools are popular enough to be available to people like me, especially young children who are still learning how to deal with their differences. HOWEVER, I hate this idea that they are nothing more than a "toy craze" vehemently. Schools are BANNING these life-changing tools because way too many neurotypical asshats are acting like they have the right to distract class by playing with a tool they don't need. It is NOT our differences that make neurodivergent people's lives hard; it's how the neurotypical society treats us and our culture.
My frustration is that people are always telling those of us with ADHD and Autism to sit still and focus without tools we need. Now that cognitively average people are using said tools as toys it's totally acceptable. What message does that send to those who actually need the tool?
That the hegemony of the neurotypical hivemind needs to be ended asap.
As a person with ADD, I struggled a lot with fidgeting and daydreaming in school. I doodled and did other things (such as rubbing my pencil or biting my nails) to help cope with school. Part of me wishes that I could have had the fidget spinner in class, but to be honest I don't think it would have helped me personally.
It may really help other people, but my eyes are almost uncontrollably drawn to moving things, which was one of my biggest problems in class ( I had a teacher in 9th grade that moved her arms so much when she talked that I never heard a word she said. I was mesmerized by the movement). So if any of my classmates had this toy, I never would have been able to focus.
My brother designed a fidget toy (not like the regular spinners, though it does move on itself) that I then 3D printed after I was fiddling with another thing he printed. I personally use it to keep my hands busy to avoid touching my face and exacerbating my acne.
"Kids are not paying attention to any of my lessons. It must be the kids fault in some way. Or maybe a toy."
-Every teacher I ever haf
And here I am, twirling a plain old pen.