By Nadine Moedt (The Cascade) – Email
Print Edition: October 29, 2014
Last semester I had an instructor whose lectures put me to sleep. Something in her manner of speaking — her soft, almost whispery voice, the way she tapped her nails on her desk — made me feel relaxed to the point of a pleasant sleepiness.
You may have experienced a similar phenomenon when getting a haircut, visiting the eye doctor, or even watching classic Bob Ross painting tutorials on PBS.
A burgeoning online community seeks this very calming sensation, commonly known as autonomous sensory meridian response (ASMR). A simple YouTube search for “ASMR” brings about thousands of role-playing videos; suit-fitting sessions done in a whisper, hair appointments, eyebrow tweezing (why anyone would want to roleplay that is beyond me), facials, doctor appointments, chess tutorials, or simply people with lisping, lilting voices talking earnestly to a camera.
What induces ASMR is very individual; common stimuli include things like soft, accented voices, light brushing, and tapping nails. Responses vary individually as well, and often include sleepiness, relaxation, and tingling of the spine and scalp.
It’s unknown exactly what causes ASMR. Steven Novella, an assistant professor of neuroscience at the Yale University School of Medicine, suggested to Time that ASMR could be a “mini seizure.” Seizures can be triggered by many different stimuli and can be a pleasurable experience.
People use the videos to alleviate the distress of anxiety issues and insomnia. While ASMR is a very individual experience, it has created a huge online community; its Reddit page has over 60,000 subscribers. Its online presence is unique, with users requesting specific stimuli and others responding with attempts to satisfy their ASMR needs and achieve a calmed state.
I found one that suited my preferred stimuli criteria by a woman memorably named Heather Feather. The sounds of ice clinking in a glass, whispering, brushing, and humming were cleverly incorporated into a makeover scenario. Using headphones allows for a binaural sound that makes the roleplay feel very authentic.
Another popular channel, named ASMR requests, features a soft-spoken woman who visits a thrift shop in search of “tingly items.” She shows viewers each find, gently running her nails over the texture of the object while softly describing how much she found it for and what purposes it might serve.
While I felt self-conscious for much of the video, once I got over my “is-this-weird?” reservations, I found it to be a relaxing experience. I found that it was impossible to fall asleep during the video because of the computer light, but the videos served to distract me from the stress that would normally keep me awake.
So the next time you have difficulty getting to sleep, want to soothe some bottled-up anxiety, or just want a unique sort of brain wind-down, experiment with your ASMR preferences. Some recommended channels include Heather Feather and ASMRrequests, as well as MassageASMR and Springbok ASMR, though the possibilities are almost endless.
