Do you ever go through phases with your interests?

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eggheadjr
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21 May 2014, 2:35 pm

I'd say that's pretty normal, for me anyhow. I can get really absorbed into one thing for a while.


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Kiriae
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21 May 2014, 3:08 pm

My special interests seem to have 4 stages:

1. Obsession stage

It starts instantly when I "fall in love at the first sight" to something. During this stage I can focus on the interest 24/7, waste even 19h of my 24h day on it everyday and do it over and over and over. For example if I get fascinated by a book saga I read it straight from page 1 to last page without any break, then once the book finishes I do whatever I can to get next book of this saga (fortunately I am good in finding e-books) and when I am done with all the books I return to book one and start over. No breaks other than sleep, food, bathroom (and if I have to do responsibilities I am really disturbed). I get addicted to the thing, once I stop I feel uneasy and restless till I am able to continue. It is just crazy.

It can last up to a few weeks (usually 3-7 days though), till I get filled with the first taste. For a book saga it takes 3-5 reread cycles.

2. Special interest stage

I still spend a lot of time doing things related to the thing I discovered but I am able to return to my daily life and don't feel that bad if I am not doing the thing constantly (although it still absorbs me 100% when I am busy with it).
Continuing with the book saga example - I still read the books over and over and feel the urge to start another one right after I finish the previous but I set a time for them in my daily routine and instead of spending all day reading I am able to read about 5 hours in the evening and then stop and go to sleep. But whenever I am not busy with my responsibilities and I don't read the books I surf the Internet looking for stuff related to the books, join each game touching it, look for similar creations and do all the trivia quizzes about the book just to get 100% correct answers.

This stage usually lasts a few months. I am able to reread a saga 15-20 times and check every info possible without switching to any other pastime during that time.

3. Hobby stage

I still like my interest but it doesn't hold me down anymore. I am able to do other stuffs for fun and (again, example of a book saga) I no longer feel the unbearable urge to start another reading cycle instantly after finishing one. It becomes just a pastime, like any other thing you do for fun when you are done with your responsibilities.

At times an interest in the hobby stage might return to the special interest stage, especially if I find something new about it - for example a next book of the saga comes out. But it won't return to the obsession stage.

4. Boredom stage

Not all of my interests end like this (most stick to the hobby stage as a life long interest) but it applies to some. There comes a time when I realize the thing I was doing is not funny anymore and I should find something else to fill my free time with. The boredom stage might come as soon as the "obsession crush" burns out, at the end of special interest stage or when I just grow out of the hobby. Then I start looking for another pastime. Once I find one it either starts as an obsession (and possibly becomes a special interest later) or just becomes a regular hobby without the special interest or obsession stages.



binaryodes
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21 May 2014, 6:04 pm

Kiriae wrote:
My special interests seem to have 4 stages:

1. Obsession stage

It starts instantly when I "fall in love at the first sight" to something. During this stage I can focus on the interest 24/7, waste even 19h of my 24h day on it everyday and do it over and over and over. For example if I get fascinated by a book saga I read it straight from page 1 to last page without any break, then once the book finishes I do whatever I can to get next book of this saga (fortunately I am good in finding e-books) and when I am done with all the books I return to book one and start over. No breaks other than sleep, food, bathroom (and if I have to do responsibilities I am really disturbed). I get addicted to the thing, once I stop I feel uneasy and restless till I am able to continue. It is just crazy.

It can last up to a few weeks (usually 3-7 days though), till I get filled with the first taste. For a book saga it takes 3-5 reread cycles.

2. Special interest stage

I still spend a lot of time doing things related to the thing I discovered but I am able to return to my daily life and don't feel that bad if I am not doing the thing constantly (although it still absorbs me 100% when I am busy with it).
Continuing with the book saga example - I still read the books over and over and feel the urge to start another one right after I finish the previous but I set a time for them in my daily routine and instead of spending all day reading I am able to read about 5 hours in the evening and then stop and go to sleep. But whenever I am not busy with my responsibilities and I don't read the books I surf the Internet looking for stuff related to the books, join each game touching it, look for similar creations and do all the trivia quizzes about the book just to get 100% correct answers.

This stage usually lasts a few months. I am able to reread a saga 15-20 times and check every info possible without switching to any other pastime during that time.

3. Hobby stage

I still like my interest but it doesn't hold me down anymore. I am able to do other stuffs for fun and (again, example of a book saga) I no longer feel the unbearable urge to start another reading cycle instantly after finishing one. It becomes just a pastime, like any other thing you do for fun when you are done with your responsibilities.

At times an interest in the hobby stage might return to the special interest stage, especially if I find something new about it - for example a next book of the saga comes out. But it won't return to the obsession stage.

4. Boredom stage

Not all of my interests end like this (most stick to the hobby stage as a life long interest) but it applies to some. There comes a time when I realize the thing I was doing is not funny anymore and I should find something else to fill my free time with. The boredom stage might come as soon as the "obsession crush" burns out, at the end of special interest stage or when I just grow out of the hobby. Then I start looking for another pastime. Once I find one it either starts as an obsession (and possibly becomes a special interest later) or just becomes a regular hobby without the special interest or obsession stages.



I love that. Very very detailed. I concur with the delineation too at least for me. I tend to cycle erratically. I have several special interests and they all wax and wane unpredictably. For a while (1 month) I was obsessed with Iain M Banks'culture novels. Now im a little tired of them which is distressing. However I LOVE SCI FI. Though ive only recently started reading scifi. I used to watch Space operas constantly but this has been upstaged by my obsession with cyberpunk and dystopian/utopian scifi.

The cycling tends to be affected by energy levels too. At the moment my energy levels are through the floor which means that I have very little energy to pursue my interests and they seem to cycle pretty quickly


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wblastyn
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22 May 2014, 5:06 am

I get obsessed with TV shows. While its airing I'll constantly read about it online and it'll be all I think about for ages. Then once the show finishes the obsession vanishes and it bores me. I usually go through a period of feeling "lost" until I find my new obsession.



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22 May 2014, 10:08 am

I do go through a lot of phases but slightly longer than a week! I was obsessed with gothic cathedrals, in particular Notre Dame when I was about 7 or 8 years old. I was and still am obsessed with warning signs and warning diagrams. I like to read all of the warning signs wherever I am.
Some of my past obsessions I can remember are:
-fire extinguishers
-security cameras
-cells
-looped videos
-serial killers
-poisonous plants/mushrooms and the idea that if someone touches one they WILL die
-cats
-Metal Gear Solid 2 (Xbox game)



kraftiekortie
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22 May 2014, 10:11 am

LOL...I used to be obsessed with the Notre Dame college football team.

Cathedrals are great things to be obsessed with; so much goes into the construction of them. So much different sorts of art are applied as well. You could spend days learning about one cathedral.



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22 May 2014, 10:40 am

kraftiekortie wrote:
LOL...I used to be obsessed with the Notre Dame college football team.

Cathedrals are great things to be obsessed with; so much goes into the construction of them. So much different sorts of art are applied as well. You could spend days learning about one cathedral.



I used to memorise the front of Notre Dame the cathedral and I could draw it out of my head. As a keen artist I really do appreciate the art in gothic/medieval architecture. In fact, I would of taken history as a subject at school if only they solely based it on the middle ages. :)



RetroGamer87
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22 May 2014, 11:53 am

Me too. I never really lose my past interests. They just sort of go on the back burner. I don't feel obsession is a bad thing for me because it's the only way I ever energy to do anything. Sometimes I'll start something and then want to start something else when I'm in the middle of the first thing but I have to finish it first. Starting things seems like more fun than finishing things. Whatever I do, I must not start playing Civilization again. I can deal with other games but for me Civilization is more addictive than crack flavoured Pringles.



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22 May 2014, 12:21 pm

RetroGamer87 wrote:
Me too. I never really lose my past interests. They just sort of go on the back burner. .


That's exactly what it's like for me. My special interests sometimes come back out to the front, especially in situations when two or more of my special interests overlap. For example, I collect buisness cards and I also love Braille. Just yesturday my mom found a buisness card that has Braille on it, so naturally I am super excited about it.

I also get interested in Braille again whenever I spot a mistake in a Braille sign, which unfortunately happens a lot.



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22 May 2014, 1:51 pm

Sometimes my interests change, right now these are Victoria II and Pirates of the Caribbean. When I have interest in some kind of computer game, I am playing it whole day, nothing else. But interest in games change quite often, it is usually 3-5 times a month. I have been listening to Pirates of the Caribbean music about two weeks and it will last most likely two more weeks by then all 4 movies are over in TV.



ashkent
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22 May 2014, 2:28 pm

Yes, this is exactly what it is like for me, and am a little relieved I am not alone with this (the notion of ASD/AS being pretty new to me).

There always seems to be something that occupies my every waking thought to the point it interferes with my daily life. I'll research and read and watch and learn and do like a sponge. And then I'll wake up one day and said interest won't even enter my mind. Then, oh look- something new!

I try to think back to how it manifested itself before the Internet, and I remember being a kid and wanting something new (Sega Mega Drive for example; sorry, Sega Genesis for the Americans) and I'd sit for hours and hours just looking at a picture of it in a home shopping catalogue. :lol:


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CJH123
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22 May 2014, 6:06 pm

I Have something that Im always interested in, in general such a video games, computer tech, the latest gadget etc. But I will focus on on thing in particular at a time like a game then move on to another game or something else. However some always remain like my interest for girls haha if you can call that one.



Transyl
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22 Jun 2014, 1:22 pm

As a kid I played games much more and found it generally more satisfying. Now I play games less frequently. However I listen to video game reviews, game commentaries and other voiced gaming opinions. As well as checking up on game news.

With music it's sort of a similar story. There was a time when I'd look for new bands, play through whole albums, etc. Now I mostly listen to songs I've already found. Sometimes I'll listen to the same song for hours. Again, my interest didn't die out. It just expressed itself differently.

Horror has kind of been a recurring theme as far as movies and shows go. As a kid I watched Goosebumps (also read them) and Are You Afraid Of The Dark. Then as a teenager it was Buffy & Angel. Bit older I watched Tales From The Crypt. At which point I started watching tons of horror movies.

For me interests might change shape but they're not gone. Maybe they sleep for a bit before resurfacing.



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22 Jun 2014, 4:21 pm

I do this all of the time. For a long while, I was obsessed with Loki and Tom Hiddleston. I still consider it as a special interest because at times, I'll occasionally end up going back to him every now and then. I think that special interests very depending on the situation or something. I do go through a phase like you had explained in the OP though. My obsessions usually only last for about a week, and then I have to find something else to obsess over.



FautheralLoather
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23 Jun 2014, 10:23 am

I don't even know what my obsession is and I am trying to find out what it is, I wish It would come out sooner or later but it seems that time is not allowing me to do so.



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23 Jun 2014, 2:25 pm

I will listen to a new album, and nothing else for months on end. Then I will never listen to it again. Video games are different. There is Halo...and everything else. Everything else is just used to fill the void until I can play Halo again...which at the moment is not until November, when they re-release the Halo saga for Xbox One (I was never able to get a 360).

But there will be (as others have said) areas of my interests that shift. For a long time I cataloged every single shot of espresso I ordered. Even created a website for it. But after a while, I lost interest in it - but espresso is still one of my interests. And I am meticulous in the manner in which I prepare it each morning (to go along with my two boiled eggs).