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Anyone else have this relationship with their obsessions?

narriose

New Member
So the very big 3 in my life right now are, space, drawing and writing. While I am extremely obsessed with space, the other two are a bit different for me? I've always liked space but recently I've went on an info binge and its gotten to an intense point which I can say this is definitely a powerful special interest. However with art and writing, its something I've done since almost day 1 of being alive and it honestly does not feel like an obsession but more like I guess a bodily function? Like breathing or eating like not feeling any particular love or hate for it just feeling terrible when I'm not allowed to do that for a large portion of the day. Is that even an interest then? Like if im drawing something I like I feel excited about the thing I'm drawing, but in general it feels like I'm speaking to someone rather than "doing a hobby i enjoy" Does anyone else have something like that?
 
When I was working, my best moments were when what I was doing were like a living function, rather than plodding and tapping away at it from the outside - but one has to persevere at the latter as well I think. Likewise one needs both, in one's hobbies. The same, in one's emotions, and in all other walks.

As to "not being allowed" for hours at a time, I taught myself to be happy about recent immersions in it and the likelihood of more opportunities not far ahead; and meantime trying to see if there are interesting aspects to the immediate challenge.

My workplace coach taught me to "chunk things down", this can be applied in several ways:

- spatially, if I have to break a task off I leave it in such fashion that I can immediately comprehend where I left off so that I can resume efficiently;

- I get more done by multi tasking by doing a chunk of one thing for 10 minutes * or so and then a chunk of the next thing for 10 minutes * or so, and so on and do the rounds of the tasks in turn, and I soon get a glow of achievement while enjoying the variety.

I try to get better value out of my strong intuiting and sensing side by developing my analytical and "big logic" side. My universe is full of thousands of capacious cubby-holes for all the different interesting feelings, ideas, memories, meanings of words, prospects, etc etc. That way I can relate more appropriately to all the kinds of realities: past, present, future, concrete, abstract etc.

This helps me be objective and at ease with what could otherwise overwhelm me. I am yet another case in point, on a par with everybody else. In childhood I was well on the way to growing in balance, until mainly the wrong kinds of exam pressure in my mid teens overtook me.

Initiative taking vs. perseveration are a whole bunch of topics in themselves. I have to sort my relationship with my emotions to make this work properly.

[ * at work, this would be longer; but I could more rapidly alternate "micro chunks" within a "chunk" ]
 
Yeah, pretty much the same here. I've got 4 interests: video games, board games, twisty puzzles, and recently started making rather wobbly art, and if I'm not doing one of those four things, chances are I'm in that sort of listless state.

Due to physical issues, every now and then I'll have a day or two in which I cant really do any of these things because my arm flares up, and then.... uuugh.

I dont think a lasting interest is something where you are feeling like "OMG TOTALLY IN LOVE WITH THIS" at all times... even for NTs, that's likely not how it works. You're gonna have your times when it's exciting, times when it's like "eh, better do this part again" and other times when it's like "WhY caNt I dRaW ThIS CirCle!?!??" followed by punching the wall, or maybe that bit is just me.
 
So the very big 3 in my life right now are, space, drawing and writing. While I am extremely obsessed with space, the other two are a bit different for me? I've always liked space but recently I've went on an info binge and its gotten to an intense point which I can say this is definitely a powerful special interest. However with art and writing, its something I've done since almost day 1 of being alive and it honestly does not feel like an obsession but more like I guess a bodily function? Like breathing or eating like not feeling any particular love or hate for it just feeling terrible when I'm not allowed to do that for a large portion of the day. Is that even an interest then? Like if im drawing something I like I feel excited about the thing I'm drawing, but in general it feels like I'm speaking to someone rather than "doing a hobby i enjoy" Does anyone else have something like that?
OK, so write and illustrate a story about space. Don't just soak up knowledge; that does nobody any good. Use it to share your passion.

When something resonates, go with it. When it happens to me, the outside world fades away and my problems cease to exist. For a while, anyway.
 
... it feels like I'm speaking to someone ...
I know what Shamar means, but when I'm absorbing knowledge I feel like I'm dialoguing with the wonderful world around me, because it is speaking to me. Your aesthetics are part of that wonderful world. Thus, whatever stage we're at, reading, doing some groundwork, publishing: all part of our good gift. personally I've been less of a finisher, so far: an area that needs strengthening in me so thank you Shamar too. I've not been continuing the dialogue enough. I long for collaborators. Members of several classes at my college met and we translated foreign poems, verse by verse, for fun and we used to dovetail the best phrases or lines when we met.
 
Narriose and everybody, do you know this book:

Dark Matter And The Dinosaurs by Lisa Randall (sounds like one of the more abstruse late 1970s rock bands) she's from Harvard, it was pubd. in 2015

978-1-847-92306-6

It's got the Oort cloud in it. A very sensible, vivid, marvellously well explained bunch of mainstream and far-reaching information. I extremely highly recommend.

A favourite cartoon subject I keep seeing is a munching herbivore craning its neck at whatever that is in the sky.
 

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