Finding the right balance of "stim" is really important to people with Autism. Too much or too little creates a panic. Temple Grandin's Hug Machine (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hug_machine) is another good example. This was a hard concept to grasp growing up in the 80's with a severely autistic younger brother, but became clear in later years when I worked at group home. My experiences were very similar to the OP.
