People cutting soap, writing on paper with an old-fashioned pen, carving wood, opening packages… they don't seem like particularly interesting activities, but a strange combination of visuals and sounds has allowed them to take YouTube, Instagram, and the rest of the world by storm. social networks. Welcome to ASMR, short for "Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response," an experience whose description varies greatly from person to person.
If you spend a few minutes scrolling through profiles on Instagram, chances are you'll come across some very strange things, including short clips of people cutting and chopping soap. The first thing that comes to mind is "why", but in reality the aim is to record the entire visual and sound aspect of the process. The color of the soap, the noise of its package when it is opened, the small blows of the knife on the wooden board, and more. Now, soap is not a mandatory thing. Other users and youtubers are doing the same with food, wood, cloth, brushes, scissors... the list goes on. At the same time, we also found podcasts of people speaking in a very soft voice, and I say “podcasts” because some videos are easily over 40 minutes long. What's going on?
The official term is ASMR, Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response. That title doesn't tell us much, and when we look to those who experience it for an explanation, things get a little more complicated. Some speak of a tickling in the head, which sometimes manifests itself in the neck and shoulders, down the back and to the extremities. A kind of very slight "current", which relaxes and causes pleasure. A large number of ASMR videos have been prepared with the aim of helping other people to sleep. Do you remember our recommendation of sounds to sleep? Background rain noise and thunder are a very popular form of ASMR.
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From a technical point of view, ASMR content is divided into two categories: intentional and unintentional. Instagrammers cutting things fall into the first category, while something as simple as a person cooking without saying a word can turn into inadvertent ASMR. However, chopped soap is just the tip of the iceberg. The more elaborate videos reproduce role-playing games focused on personal attention, in such a way that they simulate actions such as washing and cutting hair, or painting nails. Personally... ASMR doesn't work for me, and at bedtime I need silence and darkness, but be sure to try it. It might surprise you.
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