I can’t tell you how many times I got told to stop “spazzing out” because I’d be quietly fidgeting with my pig dice in school. So that’s the term they used where I’m from.
I’m not sure of its origins in the US, but ‘spastic’ used to be the term for someone with cerebral palsy - there was a UK charity called ‘The Spastics Society’.
Over time ‘spastic’ (and the slang term ‘spaz’) began to be used as a pejorative, and was dropped from official use.
The charity rebranded to ‘Scope’ sometime in the early 90s.
I’m guessing it had the same origin here, but its connection with a disability was never widely known. It also felt more like “ditzy” than an overly negative term. Still does, to me.
I can’t tell you how many times I got told to stop “spazzing out” because I’d be quietly fidgeting with my pig dice in school. So that’s the term they used where I’m from.
And it’s considered a very offensive term in the UK, interestingly.
I’m not sure of its origins in the US, but ‘spastic’ used to be the term for someone with cerebral palsy - there was a UK charity called ‘The Spastics Society’.
Over time ‘spastic’ (and the slang term ‘spaz’) began to be used as a pejorative, and was dropped from official use.
The charity rebranded to ‘Scope’ sometime in the early 90s.
I’m guessing it had the same origin here, but its connection with a disability was never widely known. It also felt more like “ditzy” than an overly negative term. Still does, to me.