ASMR and the interpreter

2020-12-23T15:37:00.005-08:00

We know, we know: it's been a hard year and we haven't posted much in 2020, but we are wrapping up the year with some posts that we hope you find useful. If you've never heard of ASMR and you are an interpreter/translator/hard-working linguist/work in any other profession, you are in for a treat. We are aware this ASMR thing sounds quite esoteric, but hear us out and try it if you'd like so you know what all the buzz is about. Just to define the acronym: ASMR stands for autonomous sensory meridian response and the best we can do to describe it is that it's a form of meditation/relaxation that includes a tingling sensation that's very, very relaxing. It's one of those things you just have to try out for yourself. Once we did, we were hooked. Dagy read about ASMR for the first time in a major Austrian newspaper a few months ago. We were a bit skeptical at first, but Dagy tried one of the YouTube channels that was recommended in the article, and could absolutely feel the relaxing effects immediately. Judy also jumped on the bandwagon and now we both listen to a few ASMR videos before going to sleep every single night. It really does work for us (meaning we can feel the "tingling" sensation ASMR is supposed to evoke), and turns out ASMR is quite the phenomenon these days. Basically, ASMR involves so-called brain triggers in the form of gentle sounds (tapping, etc.), gentle whispering, or a combination of both.

We've recommended ASMR to many friends and colleagues, and one dear friend used it the night before the written portion of the FCICE (federal court interpreter certification examination), and she loved it -- and she passed! She is now also addicted and she says it's absolutely our fault, and we are happy to take the blame for this healthy addiction. Some has asked us why it wouldn't be good to just listen to the sounds of nature (available on many apps such as Calm), and while we love those, too, ASMR is a bit different and almost feels like hypnosis (in a good way, we promise). We've gone down the YouTube rabbit hole quite a bit, and have also discovered Reiki sessions (Reiki Heiling Hope is a good one), but we prefer ASMR. Here are two of our favorite ASMR channels: TingTing and Gentle Whispering. There are hundreds of others out there for you to discover. Enjoy and you are welcome!

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ASMR and the interpreter