How do your interests come?

[Oldlady]

Think it was a progression, read and painted and drew to achieve some peace and some quiet. Initially it was to learn, to lose or find myself in books and obliterate the actual world going on around me.

The drawing and painting was to depict somehow the way I perceived the world. The art became an obsessive, perfectionist, ego-driven show of my talent and worth. Everything I achieved during that period of my life, was so that others would value me. Hearing, oh, 'she's so talented.' Was never enough, even if someone had told me every day of my life at that point. During the early part of my life, I did all the art to show others that I was talented and not to be overlooked. Continually being directed and influenced by those around me. I garnered worth from others, not from myself. I have gone back to art, never really left it, but the art changed.

It was the same with dancing, singing, being a model for awhile. It was all about worth in other peoples eyes and free clothes . It took many years for me to realize that much of what I was really interested in, rescuing animals, plants, hunting for fossils, martial arts, cycling, were things I had done automatically all along. The interests evolved to be less about other's and more about what I actually enjoy and would feel empty without.

You are telling my story Mia! I have done so many things that other people thought were important. It took me decades to figure out what I find fulfilling.

 

[Oldlady]

My next dream project is to start a cat sanctuary.

 

[onlything]

My next dream project is to start a cat sanctuary.

Well, I know there are already 'cat caffes'. If you find trouble finding funds for a true sanctuary, maybe something like this would be easier to kick-start the whole undertaking.

 

[Oldlady]

I think we're going to be able to pull it off financially, but not for another two to three years. I'm planning to convert the garage into a sanctuary for cats that are not 'adoptable'. It would be their final home and I would care for them for the remainder of their lives.

I hope we can pull it off ... talk about fulfilling.

 

[Laura O]

I think that sometimes we try so hard to fit in that we can lose ourselves and our joy and enthusiasm for our passions. After a late life diagnosis, I feel like I am slowly excavating the girl that I was, reconnecting with my natural excitement for all sorts of unusual things. For a lot of years I was careful to moderate my enthusiasm so people wouldn't find it odd that i was obsessing over Viking grave goods or throat singing or making my own herbal medicines.

I find my joy and my interests coming back as I discard a lot of the mask I wore to try to hide in plain sight. As a girl I learned that all my social instincts were wrong and to be quiet and observe and copy others behavior to not draw bullies. It made me hesitant and led me to not trust myself. Now I am trusting myself and being myself. Oddly, this has elicited pretty positive responses as I am actually less afraid to be around others. I have let go of the idea that I have to be like them.

Authenticity is a wellspring of creativity. Revisit the things that have made you genuinely happy in the past, see if they spark something in you. Forgive yourself for the fallow periods where you haven't felt connected to what moves you. I hope you find that spark again.

 

[LadyBird84]

Sometimes I feel like the only autistic person without any special interests. (I'm not, right?) I don't really mind, except that I think it would be cool to have something to lose myself in.

 

[Nervous Rex]

All of my interests come by me picking something up and wondering, "What are all the things I can do with this?" This always leads to "If I had more, I could make [some cool, bigger thing]", which leads to me going overboard.

As a kid, it was Legos. Now I have over a thousand Bucky Balls, 7 Balls of Whacks, a dozen Rubiks Snakes, a giant bin of Googolplex toys, a Settlers of Catan set large enough to fill a dining room table, and a totally cluttered desk full of folded straws.

My son has some Plus Plus toys that he likes, but I have been forbidden from buying more "just so I can make a bigger pattern."

My daughter chides me ("DaaaaAAAaaaaaad") every time I say, "If I had more..." and I have to remind myself that as soon as I buy more to build the bigger thing, I will either find some thing to build which requires even more, or I'll run out of ideas and suddenly lose interest.

I also tend to get caught up in finding the best strategy for a game, but as soon as I "solve" a game, that game immediately becomes uninteresting to me. There are a few games that I really enjoy and so am forcing myself not to solve them, so I can continue enjoying them.

 

[Adora]

I have interests which include doll collecting,Lego Star Wars sets,drawing and makeup but I can get bouts of depression where I unable to draw or pick a pencil up,I went two years without drawing a proper picture and I really regret it,at the moment I am building Lego and it’s the Star Wars Kessel run Millenium Falcon and Lego is one of my newer interests and been doing it for a few years,I use to be a avid reader but I too go through periods where I can’t even start a book but once I do I will read a lot,don’t worry about losing interests like I said before I went through a two year period without drawing but once I started again I felt better and while I do still battle with procrastination I do draw more than I did,sometimes something triggers off a old passion again but it happens naturally so don’t feel pressured to get it back because it will happen.

 

[aspieoutlaw89]

this may come as bizarrely weird to anyone who reads this,but the dreams of girls & women had strangely interested me,and i rarely ask them what they are like,always !

 

[Joshua the Writer]

I got my interest in technology and videogames when I was a small child. This was during the time when the internet was certainly no baby anymore, but also not where it is today. I was fascinated by the screens that I saw all around me.

I have a vague, blurred memory of me when I was around 3, 4, or 5, and I was at my grandparent's old house. Me and my two older siblings were watching my then-teenage uncle (I was born when he was around 13 or 14 years old) playing a PC game of sorts in their dining room. It looked like some kind of "god view" game. Maybe one of the older Civilization games or Sim City. I was astonished by how he could just simply click on a building and then demolish it and then instantaneously build a brand-new one in its place. It blew my toddler mind.

I was amazed by how I can see something that is happening very far away from my home as it happens by just simply looking at the big, fat, wide, grey television that my parents used to have.

I am 100% certain that my parents helped me become as interested in gaming and technology fields as I am now. The first handheld system I had was one of those LeapFrog educational systems. I am pretty sure it was given to me by my parents for Xmas or something, but I am not sure how young I was. I was astonished by how I could press a button, and what was happening on screen reacted to the button press depending on both what the button I pressed was and also what game I was playing. I was even more amazed by how each button had its own, unique functions.

When I was about 5 or 6, my parents gave me and my siblings or own, differently-colored Nintendo DS Lites. Since my birthday is earlier in the year than both my siblings, I received mine first. I was also give a copy of New Super Mario Bros with it. I was amazed not only by how it had 2 SCREENS, but also how I could touch the lower one and move stuff around that screen with a pen.

My parents also got a Nintendo Wii a year after it was first released. The motion controls and different peripherals amazed me.

I am pretty sure that there was a time when me and both my siblings all had RuneScape accounts, too. That game was great. I almost couldn't believe that the characters that were next to mine were other people in a different part of the world!

When my DS Lite broke, I bought a Nintendo 2DS shortly after, and then Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate when I turned 13 (it's rated T for Teen). That game amazed me. I absolutely adored the grindy nature of the game, and I still love that about it. It may seem way too tedious to some, but not to me. I had the patience for it. I killed Azure Rathalos yesterday, and actually figuring out how to kill it took me a while. I would say that I have around 500 hours on that game.

Also, don't get me started on Minecraft or how I have a Steam account. It'll just make this reply even longer than it is right now.

 

[JDShredds]

Rather than focus on "what" my special interests are, I'm going to comment more on the "how" as that is how the OP was phrased.

For me, the experience is much like an involuntary compulsion and obsession. Thankfully, that is usually benign in nature as its usually information gathering or talking about it incessantly in all contexts to the chagrin of others around me.

This is sort of a "thinking as I type" theory but I think I have certain categories of special interests. A few are persistent and permanent once they initiate (the "lifers"), only ebbing and flowing in intensity but always there, while others are like a red hot fire that burns for anywhere from 1 day to 2 weeks to 3 months of day and night obsession. I think the best word to describe when my special interests become particularly compelling is the word "possessed." I've experienced times where I wish I could let myself out of it and function like a "normal" person with a more balanced view of interests. I have a specific memory of playing Gran Turismo, but I was so obsessed with C4 Corvettes (one of my top special interests) that I couldn't even enjoy the other cars I like because I was so busy re-creating the history of this one particular kind of car with different modifications to match different model years. It got comically out of hand, in retrospect. Who knows how many hundreds of hours I spent in the menus alone just tinkering to create more of my special interest.

That's not to say I don't have diverse interests. I have wildly diverse special interests. Its just that when they kick in, its turbo-charged, foot to the floor intensity, all I can think about. Finding balance in life is a comical experience for me, and something I'm still trying to find to this day. Sometimes when I structure balance into my life I just feel... out of balance. I feel my best when I just "dive in." Sadly, this can be truly impractical and make earning a living... a problem. Mid 30's and still haven't really aligned special interest and income.

 

[onlything]

Rather than focus on "what" my special interests are, I'm going to comment more on the "how" as that is how the OP was phrased.

For me, the experience is much like an involuntary compulsion and obsession. Thankfully, that is usually benign in nature as its usually information gathering or talking about it incessantly in all contexts to the chagrin of others around me.

This is sort of a "thinking as I type" theory but I think I have certain categories of special interests. A few are persistent and permanent once they initiate (the "lifers"), only ebbing and flowing in intensity but always there, while others are like a red hot fire that burns for anywhere from 1 day to 2 weeks to 3 months of day and night obsession. I think the best word to describe when my special interests become particularly compelling is the word "possessed." I've experienced times where I wish I could let myself out of it and function like a "normal" person with a more balanced view of interests. I have a specific memory of playing Gran Turismo, but I was so obsessed with C4 Corvettes (one of my top special interests) that I couldn't even enjoy the other cars I like because I was so busy re-creating the history of this one particular kind of car with different modifications to match different model years. It got comically out of hand, in retrospect. Who knows how many hundreds of hours I spent in the menus alone just tinkering to create more of my special interest.

That's not to say I don't have diverse interests. I have wildly diverse special interests. Its just that when they kick in, its turbo-charged, foot to the floor intensity, all I can think about. Finding balance in life is a comical experience for me, and something I'm still trying to find to this day. Sometimes when I structure balance into my life I just feel... out of balance. I feel my best when I just "dive in." Sadly, this can be truly impractical and make earning a living... a problem. Mid 30's and still haven't really aligned special interest and income.

Thank you for your input.

It's very similar to how I used to be, although I thrived the most during this times I was 'in the mood'(to be honest, the word 'posessed' is rather fitting). No sleep, no food, no nothing - these things just weren't important, I wanted to make, to create, to research and I don't know how many hundreds or thousands of hours I spent on some things. It wasn't always good, I could get stuck so easily on the smallest things. would start writing a thesis or a book on some topic, write half and edit it every day, then get obsessed with how exactly the rice fields are maintained because there would be a mention about these - and suddenly I would spend the next week researching nothing but rice field, different types of rice, best methods of production and use of the material, most expensive and effective methods of maintaining and all the minerals types of rice contain. I get what you mean when you say about the persistent 'lifers', as well as the short-lived stuff that would come and pass so quickly... But I loved these moments so much, no matter how hilarious it could get and how chagrined my closed ones could become when my room suddenly sprouted photos of rice saplings all over the walls.

It's not the healthiest thing in the world, not at all, but it's so enjoyable. I just want it back, at least a bit. I'm just not myself without it. More apathetic, non-excitable, much less interested in anything. Depression causes the lack of interests but the lack of interests deepens depression - it's a vicious circle. I need my interests almost like I need air to breathe and food to sustain the body.

If you wish to, I wouldn't have anything against about reading the 'what' as well. This thread is not only about 'how', although it's helpful, it's about what you guys like and love. It's surprisingly nice to just read these things and see them through your eyes if a little bit. It makes it easier to remember the good of the interests I had, not only of the bad and how they disappeared.

 

[JDShredds]

Thank you for your input.

It's very similar to how I used to be, although I thrived the most during this times I was 'in the mood'(to be honest, the word 'posessed' is rather fitting). No sleep, no food, no nothing - these things just weren't important, I wanted to make, to create, to research and I don't know how many hundreds or thousands of hours I spent on some things. It wasn't always good, I could get stuck so easily on the smallest things. would start writing a thesis or a book on some topic, write half and edit it every day, then get obsessed with how exactly the rice fields are maintained because there would be a mention about these - and suddenly I would spend the next week researching nothing but rice field, different types of rice, best methods of production and use of the material, most expensive and effective methods of maintaining and all the minerals types of rice contain. I get what you mean when you say about the persistent 'lifers', as well as the short-lived stuff that would come and pass so quickly... But I loved these moments so much, no matter how hilarious it could get and how chagrined my closed ones could become when my room suddenly sprouted photos of rice saplings all over the walls.

It's not the healthiest thing in the world, not at all, but it's so enjoyable. I just want it back, at least a bit. I'm just not myself without it. More apathetic, non-excitable, much less interested in anything. Depression causes the lack of interests but the lack of interests deepens depression - it's a vicious circle. I need my interests almost like I need air to breathe and food to sustain the body.

If you wish to, I wouldn't have anything against about reading the 'what' as well. This thread is not only about 'how', although it's helpful, it's about what you guys like and love. It's surprisingly nice to just read these things and see them through your eyes if a little bit. It makes it easier to remember the good of the interests I had, not only of the bad and how they disappeared.

Well first of all, I definitely identify with the depression part. I recently have been trying to dig myself out of I suppose what one could call a "micro-depression" when I realized I wasn't enjoying anything, was staying in bed longer, and just stopped caring about a lot. Apathy and nihilism taking hold, two things I do not wish upon myself or anyone else. I can't say I'm entirely out of it. What I miss is the energy.

Since you asked, my biggest "lifer" special interests are music and cars. If I can find a way to make my living in either of those fields I would be doing myself a favor (my "calling" is definitely in music, and only recently, now in my mid-30's, have I given myself "permission" to pursue it as more than hobby - in part thanks to finally admitting to myself my marriage is done). With cars, it started with my dad getting me into American muscle cars growing up and I eventually got into all kinds of cars, but especially Corvettes/Camaros. I wouldn't say I have any great skills in the field, and my knowledge is kind of random in a very Aspie/Autie way (I could spout off random facts such as factory RPO codes for C4 Corvettes for example).

I've been possessed by many, many things over the years. Bass fishing is making a return (that's a near-lifer, too). Video games such as Starcraft, Minecraft, Diablo, Gran Turismo (and other racing sims), Resident Evil... I can become completely and uttering absorbed into them. I honestly don't play much in the way of new games. In a way, I'm very special-interest in the way I get into video games. I go 100% and don't like change... so I stick to what I know I love. Speaking of those games.. I actually built the town of Tristram (from Diablo 1) in Minecraft. That was before I knew I was on the spectrum, yet when i did it I sensed there was something different about me (and had a friend say "Why would anyone ever do that?" All I could think was, 'Why WOULDN'T anyone ever do that?" lol)

I've also had short spurts of obsession into fitness (like nutrition and training principles down to the finest details), varying sciences but especially astrophysics. Also philosophy, astrology (as I was growing up and was raised around it... so I became the little mystical Astro-scholar of the home), psychoanalysis (particularly Jungian), personality typology, personal development, animals (sometimes its cats, or birds, or fish... whatever strikes me at a given time). Beer brewing at one brief time. I find the American southwest deserts to be fascinating as well (I live there).

My cousin fondly endeared me by saying "You know what I love about you? When you get into something, you get into it."

Oh, and just to fit the stereotype, I do in fact have fascination with weather and meteorology. I don't find weather to be small talk. You wanna talk weather? Let's talk weather. lol

 

[Illkurok]

I currently don't have many interests at all outside of Star Wars, but that interest came at a very young age because I was fascinated with my uncles Darth Vader poster he had in his living room proudly displayed.

I started to ask him questions and my descent into madness *cough* I mean the wonderful universe of Star Wars began.