Tap, tap, tapping.
Autonomous sensory meridian response. You may have heard of this growing sensation on YouTube.
ASMR is a type of euphoric sensory experience. It’s categorized by noises that make an individual feel tingly, euphoric sensations. For most people who experience ASMR, it starts at their scalp and transitions down their neck to the shoulders and back.
Gentle Whisperer, one of the YouTube personalities to popularize ASMR, describes the sensation as goosebumps on your brain.
The main reason why I listen to videos that induce ASMR is because it takes a lot for me to fall asleep at night. I usually lie in bed for several hours before finally getting my mind to shut off and drift into a steady sleep cycle.
However, when I first started experiencing ASMR a month ago, this changed.
People who experience ASMR are triggered by different types of sounds, usually soft ones. Whispering, tapping on different materials, scraping and the sound of writing and painting are a few different sounds that could be heard in a typical ASMR video that you might come across on YouTube. Many acoustic and visual stimuli are included in these videos. Not only do the video makers enhance these sounds, they also play a role.
I listen via headphones and close my eyes. It’s relaxing to hear sounds that aren’t harsh or jarring.
I used to listen to music to try to fall asleep, but it would keep waking me up throughout the night.
I tried falling asleep to movies and documentaries, but I felt the need to pay attention to those.
ASMR, however, doesn’t require you to think or process information. It just gives you something to listen to that isn’t irritating or requires close attention.
ASMR is growing in popularity, and I definitely see why that is the case,
The term for the experience was coined in 2010 by Jennifer Allen, who worked in cybersecurity.
One of the names for this experience before ASMR was decided on was attention induced head orgasm. Seeing as that didn’t quite fit a public mold, autonomous sensory meridian response was made the winner of the official title.
Allen chose the word meridian in place of orgasm due to the fact that it doesn’t always create a sexual experience for the individual.
Many people who watch and listen to ASMR videos do so before bed as a means to fall asleep. It’s very relaxing and methodical. I would compare it to meditation.
You can use whatever methods you want to fall asleep, but if you’re having trouble, I highly recommend listening to ASMR videos.
Not only do I fall asleep quickly, I stay asleep. AMSR needs more attention brought to it because it could help many people with sleeping deficiencies.
bnbauern@indiana.edu
