Do you like the sound of a golden zipper as it eases open a leather Louis Vuitton suitcase? What about the feeling of a cool string of Tasaki pearls hitting your palm, the pearls lightly tapping against each other? Does the sound of an Hermès Kelly bag clipping shut send shivers down your spine? If you answered yes to any of the above, then you were probably experiencing ASMR, or an autonomous sensory meridian response. This phenomenon occurs when people see things or hear noises that trigger a physically satisfying response. ASMR videos can feature anything from a person whispering into a microphone or tapping lightly on a keyboard to make-up applications or a meal being prepared and edited together with gratifying precision, with ASMR influencers racking up millions of views and likes online.
While there are still few studies about the science behind ASMR, researchers from Shenandoah University in Virginia used brain scans to discover that ASMR activated regions associated with reward, triggering oxytocin and dopamine, two hormones that aid relaxation..
