Do your special interests change? How often?

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I haven't been diagnosed with Aspergers yet but I do have severe ADHD since childhood so I'm not sure if that influences things. I've had intense special interests since childhood.

When I was a kid it started off being obsessed with big cats. I was always artistic as a kid so I would draw them, pretend to be them, read every book that I could find on them over and over, "talk" to my own cats, and so on. Then I moved on to random cartoon characters, usually one per year. I would spend every second that I had thinking about that character, daydreaming storylines, who was the voice, what else have they done, until I knew every detail that could possibly be known and would talk about it every chance I got. After that it was different Disney movies, occasionally one character in the movie. As I got older the obsessions were still just as intense but they wouldn't last as long as the next obsession would take it's place. Sometimes I would go back to a previous obsession if something new came up to peak my interest.
Now that I'm an adult I've learned to hide my obsessions and they are more practical and only last a couple weeks at a time. For example, my husband mentioned maybe getting a dog at some point, so I would immediately research everything that I could find about different breeds, where we would get the dog, which dog we were going to get, let's go take a look, guess what we are getting this dog, all before he had a chance to even agree. Or when I wanted to fix my teeth I drove my poor husband crazy showing him people who have had missing lateral incisors fixed, had successful canine substitution, who had dental implants, until he just did not want to hear anymore. Now, I'm fixated on getting a diagnosis and I'm making him take all the quizzes to compare to my results. Showing him articles. Etc etc.

Anyway, I went off topic on my own topic. My question was do your special interests stay the same for a long time or do you move quickly through them?

Yeah I can relate as I also have ADHD mixed with autism.

I have my core interests (film and animation) but I also have secondary and tertiary interests that I go back and forth to. Usually I rotate them but in no particular order and usually when it catches my interest or becomes relevant. I can become pretty hooked when fixated on something, then find myself hooked on something else entirely. It’s a weird mixture of that ADHD need for novelty and the Autistic need for stability, I guess.

My sister has a lot of micro obsessions as well but far more frequently. She isn’t autistic but she’s definitely obsessive.

I have big interests - animals, wildlife and my pets. I’m obsessed with these

Frequently visited interests - human evolution, trees, healthy living and crafts. These interests wax and wane depending upon how I feel.

Transient interests, which can be anything at all. Last month it was ballet shoes for some strange reason. This month it’s been dashcam videos. I become obsessed and watch nothing else for days and days then abruptly stop once I feel I’ve learned or seen enough.

I have big interests - animals, wildlife/the natural world and my pets. I’m obsessed with these and visit them constantly. They give meaning to my existence.

Frequently visited interests - human evolution, trees, healthy living, herbal medicine and crafts. These interests wax and wane depending upon how I feel.

Transient interests, which can be anything at all. Last month it was ballet shoes for some strange reason. This month it’s been dashcam videos. I become obsessed and watch nothing else for days and days then abruptly stop once I feel I’ve learned or seen enough. I assimilate the information and add it to my data banks. I can then draw on it in the future if required.

You're well on your way to becoming a Renaissance Person. Go with the flow.....

My special interests do change, sometimes after a few years, but sometimes I'll also get ones that only last for a week or two, or even just a day or two. I also tend to sort of rotate among my interests - once something has been a special interest, it tends to become one again at some point.

Thank you for all of your responses! I'm glad to know that rotating through interests is not that unusual. I'm wondering if by allowing myself to pursue my special interests a bit more instead of trying to hide them if that will help relieve some of my anxiety? I always feel like I am going to get in trouble for playing a video game instead of doing laundry or something.

From my own experience, I've found a good way to cope is to ask the following questions.

1) Why do I feel guilty for pursuing this?

Usually, in my case, I feel guilty because I feel like I'm not acting the way I think "a person" should.

2) Will acting like "a person" make me happier than pursuing this will?

After years of trying to act the way I felt I should be acting, I've come to realize: no. Preventing myself from doing the things I want just for the sake of keeping up appearances has always resulted in unhappiness rather than the opposite. The only person who's making me feel guilty for pursuing my interest is me.

So I've come to the conclusion that, unless the fixation reaches a point where it prevents me from routine functioning or from leaving the house, pursuing my interest is always a net positive - it makes me happy, it helps me destress, and it helps me prepare myself mentally to do the things that I actually want to do, rather than the things I think people should want to do.

Hope this helps!

You shouldn't neglect your laundry TOO much lol

No, I make sure to do the laundry at least once a week. It might take me all day to actually put it away though.