Based on your ASMR experiences…
Explain if you can stimulate or experience ASMR on command or spontaneously, include details like:
- Can you stimulate ASMR on command? If so, how do you trigger it?
- Does it ever happen spontaneously/randomly?
- Do you consider this meditation or something else?
- Do your immediate surroundings make a difference?
- How is the sensation similar or different from ASMR triggered by a video or by a real world stimulus?
Note: Sometimes self-induced ASMR is confused with self-induced frisson. If you feel chills, see your arm hairs rise up (piloerection), or experience goosebumps then you may be experiencing self-induced frisson (AKA voluntary piloerection) rather than self-induced ASMR.
- Read about frisson here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frisson
- Read about voluntary piloerection here: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6071615/
If you think you are experiencing self-induced ASMR (rather than self-induced frisson), then please do share your answers and experiences in the Comments section below.
(To return to the full list of questions on the main ‘Voices of ASMR’ page, use your back browser button or click HERE)
ASMR University 
Can you stimulate ASMR on command? If so, how do you trigger it?
Does it ever happen spontaneously/randomly?
A slight bit of both, but I’ve been able to induce the sensation at will since I was about 13 y/o. The involuntary sensation usually catches me off guard.
Do you consider this meditation or something else? Sometimes I used it as a form of meditation, but I mostly treat it as a muscle. I fear that it might up and disappear someday; so, I flex it as you would a muscle.
Do your immediate surroundings make a difference? Sometimes, there are certain situations to where the voluntary sensation is either weaker, stronger, or just not present.
How is the sensation similar or different from ASMR triggered by a video or by a real world stimulus? I do not need any stimulus whatsoever in order to induce the sensation. Most to all ASMR vids do not trigger anything so I just don’t watch them.
There does seem to be a level of breath control needed. It feels like the moment between feeling like you need to sneeze and when you actually do; then come the shivers/tingles from the base of my skull, down my spine and my back, down my arms, and just a little down my legs. It does feel great doing it, but I have found that I yawn if it do it too much or push too hard.
I have learned that I feel 2 different sensations if I focus. 1 is the feeling of expelling energy ( the initial feeling), and the other feels like I’m pulling in a little energy at a time. If I go between the 2 I yawn. I have also just been reading about a lot of related topics and read that if you focus on shorter bursts, you can prolong the sensation; though it may not be as intense. I can agree on that in that case.
I have been looking for as many answers about this as possible as I used to that it meant other things, but I am glad to have found this forum. If anyone can help or relate please let me know .
LikeLike
I mistook it for energy, chi, something esoteric for years – I have no evidence other than feelings for that claim. Even though I can get tears of joy doing it.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I mistook it for energy, chi, something esoteric for years – I have no evidence other than feelings for that claim. Even though I can get tears of joy doing it.
LikeLiked by 1 person