The nitty gritty of ASMR

ASMR or Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response has been on the rise over social media platforms for the last decade. There are numerous ASMR videos on YouTube with billions of views. People have been hooked on these videos, especially the eating ASMR videos.

People are said to experience a tingling sensation on hearing the vivid sounds from the videos. This does not happen to everyone and a lot of people even feel uncomfortable while hearing them. Some people feel actual tingling or static-like sensation that usually starts from the neck and can move to other parts of the body like the spine and fingers. These sensations are the body’s response to certain stimuli like the visuals and sounds presented in the video. While the phenomenon of ASMR is extremely popular in pop culture, it is a field that has not been scientifically studied in detail. Some scientists even doubt the existence of such reactions but others might disagree. Studies found that the biggest triggers were whispering directly into the microphone, personal attention and vivid sounds like chewing loudly, long fingernails tapping or scratching, wrapping packages, etc. There is a significant difference between the opinions of people about ASMR and its effects. While studies showed that the triggering sounds could help a lot of people relax and feel rejuvenated, for some it caused anxiety and anger. 

This ASMR phenomenon has been compared with auditory and tactile synesthesia and may even overlap with frisson. Synesthesia is a health condition where two or more senses are triggered and overlap when being introduced to certain stimuli almost like in people who feel a tingling tactile sensation when listening to any ASMR video.

While researchers still need to delve deep into this field and learn more about ASMR, it has become extremely popular among teens and has become a good way to destress even for some.