Bored? ASMR Just May Scratch That Itch!
by James Pickard
Hi all! James here. It’s been awhile, good to write to you again! I came across a strange video (well, strange to me anyways) one day while researching other venues. So, I thought that I would take a few moments out of my busy schedule to check it out.
One thing led to another and I ended up doing a little research on the concept of what is call a “brain-gasm”. I thought how bizarre and intriguing and maybe you’ll find an interest in what has apparently been on the rage since 2009. Obviously, I just found out this month.
What is ASMR? Let’s start first with the acronym and then we’ll get to the meat and potatoes of it. So “ASMR” stands for Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response.
Autonomous = feelings from within; Sensory = self explanatory; Meridian = suggests peak, orgasm, also refers to as energy pathways from Chinese medicine perspective. Finally, Response = referring to not a constant state or presence.
What??? To break it down in laymen’s terms it means a tingling sensation that begins in the scalp, moves down you neck into your back and possibly throughout your entire body.
You know that sensation when you get all goose pimply because either your girlfriend or boyfriend softly blows on the back of you neck or when its dark out and you get those chills running up and down your spine because of that unnatural feeling of a presence that sets you on edge. Well, the ASMRtist’s have over 13 million videos on YouTub e and that was in 2018. These videos consist of all manners of “triggers” that will send you into a euphoric bliss – or so they claim.
These triggers are a conglomeration of whispering, chewing gum, brushing hair, tapping fingers, sounds from a hair dryer, to more elaborate role-playing style like eye beams and librarians to name but a few.
Heck, there’s chatter about Bob Ross being the first one to debut this trend, not to mention top brands like Pepsi, Dove chocolate and KFC making ASMR commercials. Even the National Sleep Foundation is jumping on board saying “even though ASMR doesn’t work for everyone, these video and audio clips can stimulate relaxation before bedtime, which can help you overcome insomnia.”
In the words of Gomer PYLE “Well, I’ll be!” I have provided a few links to get you started if you would like to investigate this phenomenon for yourself.
sleep.org https://www.sleep.org/what-is-asmr
Bob Ross https://discoverasmr.com/what-is-asmr-bob-ross-asmr/
ASMR inspired commercials https://asmruniversity.com/2016/07/07/kfc-asmr-commercial/
How ASMRE became a sensation https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/04/magazine/how-asmr-videos-became-a-sensation-youtube.html