Temple Grandin is probably the most famous autistic person living today. Her life will be chronicled on an HBO special starting in February, 2010. Among her many achievements is the development of a “squeeze machine.” Because of her autism, she resists the touch of others and doesn’t like to be hugged. But she craves the feeling of being held. When she was eighteen, during a summer vacation, she saw a herd of cattle being passed through a squeeze chute (a mechanism used to keep cattle still while a veterinarian gives them their antibiotic shots).
“Watching those cattle calm down, I knew I needed a squeeze chute of my own,” she wrote in her book Animals in Translation. When she returned home from vacation, she recruited a teacher at her high school to help her build her own squeeze chute. “I bought my own air compressor, and I used plywood boards for the V. It worked beautifully. Whenever I put myself inside my squeeze machine, I felt calmer. I still use it today.” Grandin actually provides detailed instructions for building her “squeeze machine” on her website. It is also available ready-made from the Therafin Corporation.
For more information about alternative technologies to help people with autism spectrum disorder, see Thomas Armstrong, The Power of Neurodiversity: Unleashing the Advantages of Your Differently Wired Brain (published in hardcover as Neurodiversity)
This article was brought to you by Thomas Armstrong, Ph.D. and www.institute4learning.com.
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The link to the “Therafin Corporation” doesn’t go anywhere!! I’m much older, 73, newly diagnosed with autism! I feel a great need for Temple’s “Sqeeze Machine!” I would appreciate any help in finding this device that doesn’t cost $7000!!! I saw padded version on website and even asked for a payment plan which was denied! So in essence, you need wealthy to acquire this item! I am not a carpenter! I was a Registered Nurse for many years but now I can’t find the help I need! Please advise what can be done on a fixed income? My distress needs to comfort I see worked for Temple! I never knew what was wrong with me until I saw her movie!!
Hi Sue, Sorry about the broken link (although Therafin provides a link within the broken link), but of course I see what you mean. Who can afford a $7000 machine! I have a new edition of The Power of Neurodiversity coming out in August, 2025 and here is what I wrote after describing Temple’s ”squeeze machine”:
” . . . a reader on the Internet site Redditt likes the feeling of pressure on his body but rather than a squeeze machine prefers to use common everyday items to give him that feeling of kinesthetic stimulation: ‘’ I have stuff prepared in advance for when I’m over stimulated. I put on a beanie, sleep mask, earmuffs, socks, joggers, compression shirt, and get under a weighted blanket. It feels like reaching nirvana.’’
So maybe this or a similar list of items found around the house can mimick the sensations of the squeeze machine. Even if you purchased all the stuff, it would probably cost less than $300.