Autonomous sensory meridian response (ASMR)

Autonomous sensory meridian response (ASMR) is a physical experience that involves feeling a tingling sensation on the skin that moves from the scalp down to the neck and upper spine. This tingling sensation is normally experienced as a pleasant feeling. It is most often triggered by visual or auditory stimuli. Those who experience it have reported feelings of relaxation and euphoria. ASMR is often referred to as a sensory phenomenon much like synesthesia, which involves involuntary sensory or cognitive reactions to specific stimuli. In some cases, ASMR co-occurs with synesthesia. Some common triggers of ASMR include whispers, crisp sounds, slow movements, and attention control. Researchers believe that ASMR holds potential therapeutic benefits for individuals with depression, anxiety, and chronic pain.

Background

Before it was given an official name, ASMR was being discussed on online discussion boards as early as 2007. The term autonomous sensory meridian response was coined in 2010 by a New York woman named Jennifer Allen. Allen found herself experiencing a very specific physical response to certain audio and visual cues. She described feeling a tingling sensation when she heard certain sounds or visualized certain images. She searched the internet for information about what she was feeling but could not find anything. Allen spent a decade trying to understand the sensations she experienced until she eventually stumbled upon an internet forum thread titled “Weird sensation feels good” on a website called Steady Health. The thread contained posts from multiple people describing the same experience. One poster discussed feeling a sensation akin to fingers crawling up their back that were triggered by random events such as being read a story.

Allen began participating in the thread and eventually organized a Facebook group to discuss the phenomenon. She then decided to come up with a term the group could use to refer to the experience. Allen decided to create a clinical sounding term free of personal meaning and settled on autonomous sensory meridian response, ASMR for short. The term quickly caught on with the online community and the news media as the trend grew larger.

In the years that followed, ASMR grew into an internet sensation. Thousands of websites and blogs dedicated to ASMR content sprung up. The phenomenon also inspired millions of YouTube videos in which vloggers posted videos of various audio and visual stimuli. This growth in popularity caught the attention of the academic community, and soon scientists began to seriously study the phenomenon. Psychologists, biologists, and neuroscientists grew more and more curious about how ASMR affected the brain. Though research into ASMR only produced a few peer-reviewed papers throughout the 2010s, continued interest in the phenomenon is inspiring more researchers to examine its effects. A 2015 peer-reviewed paper called for an examination of ASMR as it related to symptoms of depression and chronic pain. A number of people who engage in ASMR have reported the phenomenon helps them with sleep issues as well as anxiety, depression, and panic attacks.

Overview

ASMR causes a person to feel a tingling sensation in their head and neck with this feeling sometimes extending down through their arms and legs. The sensation is described as relaxing and pleasurable for most that experience it, with some people referring to ASMR sensations as “brain orgasms.” The tingling sensation is comparable to getting the “chills,” a response that often happens when a person hears a moving piece of music. However, the difference between ASMR tingling and the chills is that chills occur throughout the whole body, whereas ASMR is mainly restricted to the head and neck and possibly the limbs. ASMR is also known to occur in waves rather than as a continuous sensation.

ASMR has several specific triggers that can include sounds, smells, sights, and textures. Each person responds to different triggers, but many of these triggers share common characteristics. Many common triggers involve quiet, recurring movements or sounds. Some examples of common ASMR triggers include:

• Falling rain
• Whispering voices
• Brushing hair
• Folding towels
• Light tapping noises
• Slow movements of the hands
• Flipping pages of books or magazines
• Crisp sounds, like crunchy candy wrappers or biting into a pickle

People have also described feeling this sensation when undergoing certain activities that require attention to their bodies, such as receiving a medical exam or getting a haircut.

Researchers have begun examining the therapeutic potential ASMR may afford individuals who intentionally engage in such exercises. ASMR users have reported feeling relaxed after watching or listening to ASMR content. Many have also reported that ASMR helps them sleep. One study found that the majority of ASMR users liked to watch videos of ASMR triggers before going to bed because it helped them fall asleep. This study also examined how ASMR affects a person’s mood. Another survey found that a number of people who routinely trigger their ASMR did so because it helped them with symptoms of depression. However, this anti-depressant effect was temporary and only lasts a few hours after the tingling sensation began. Some scientists believe ASMR has the potential to treat other health issues such as stress, anxiety, insomnia, and panic disorders.

A 2018 study examined people’s brain activity while watching ASMR videos inside an MRI scanner. This was the first study to use brain imaging to examine ASMR effects. The study found the regions of the brain most active when people were experiencing ASMR tingling sensations was the nucleus accumbens, medial prefrontal cortex, insula, and secondary somatosensory cortex. These same regions were also highly active during experiences of social bonding and musical chills.

Bibliography

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Etchells, Pete. “ASMR and ‘Head Orgasms’: What’s The Science behind It?” Guardian, 8 Jan. 2016, www.theguardian.com/science/head-quarters/2016/jan/08/asmr-and-head-orgasms-whats-the-science-behind-it. Accessed 3 June 2019.

Kirkland, Justin. “ASMR Is About to Have a Huge Super Bowl Moment. Here’s What You Should Know.” Esquire, 3 Feb. 2019, www.esquire.com/entertainment/tv/a26081634/what-is-asmr-autonomous-sensory-meridian-response/. Accessed 3 June 2019.

Lochte, Bryson C., et al. “An FMRI Investigation of the Neural Correlates Underlying the Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response (ASMR).” BioImpacts, vol. 8, no. 4, 2018, pp. 295-304.

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“What Is ASMR?” ASMR University,2014, asmruniversity.com/about-asmr/what-is-asmr/. Accessed 3 June 2019.

“What Is Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response?” WebMD, 2 Sept. 2017, www.webmd.com/brain/autonomous-sensory-meridian-response. Accessed 3 June 2019.