Neophilia and “fixated interests”

[Kalinychta]

About every eighteen months I become fascinated by something. I read every book in existence about it,—any and all books available on the entire planet, I’ll find them,—dream about it, write about it, think about it, talk about it,…but then I move on to the next something, eventually. Although I never lose complete interest in things I was once enamored of, but the fire does die. This goes for relationships with people, too, particularly those with men.

I’m curious how often other autistic people’s fixated interests last—those of you who have fixated interests as defined in the DSM:

1. Highly restricted, fixated interests that are abnormal in intensity or focus (e.g, strong attachment to or preoccupation with unusual objects, excessively circumscribed or perseverative interest).

 

[717]

I also fixate but in my case is more cyclical. I revisit many of the same fixations over the years, picking them up, going really strong for some time then dropping them and then to repeat some months or years latter.

I don't do this with relationships, I get to make friends, but this is not the normal kind of friends, but more like... friends in a place, or friends with common interest.

 

[Judge]

I’m curious how often other autistic people’s fixated interests last—those of you who have fixated interests as defined in the DSM:

1. Highly restricted, fixated interests that are abnormal in intensity or focus (e.g, strong attachment to or preoccupation with unusual objects, excessively circumscribed or perseverative interest).

I became aware of my own autism at the age of 55. Having watched a program on the National Geographic Channel called "Taboo". People with unusual attractions to things like a blowup doll, the Berlin Wall or a Volkswagen Beetle. Though they didn't specify how long these people have had such feelings. Leaving me to wonder after seeing this post. Hmmmm.

The man with the blowup doll was clearly identified as also having this thing I never heard of called "Asperger's Syndrome". He was also an avid plastic modeler as I am or used to be.

Yet as I recall, the woman with a fetish about the Berlin Wall and the man in love with his Volkswagen were not mentioned as being autistic. I'm guessing they may have been, though this was back in a time when much of the science was still being researched in terms of the American Psychiatric community.

I have core (fixated) interests that have lasted for several decades. Though they ebb and flow to an extent, but are always there.

 

[Aspychata]

If an interest doesn't serve me well whether it be people or an interest , l move on. If l can revisit , l do. It's that simple for me.

 

[Crossbreed]

I fixate until I exhaust my available resources. It does not die, but it hibernates until another new piece of the puzzle comes along.

For example, I have all of the features I could ever want on my highly-programmable universal remote

, but I still tweak it when I discover new features.

 

[Neonatal RRT]

About every eighteen months I become fascinated by something. I read every book in existence about it,—any and all books available on the entire planet, I’ll find them,—dream about it, write about it, think about it, talk about it,…but then I move on to the next something, eventually. Although I never lose complete interest in things I was once enamored of, but the fire does die. This goes for relationships with people, too, particularly those with men.

I’m curious how often other autistic people’s fixated interests last—those of you who have fixated interests as defined in the DSM:

1. Highly restricted, fixated interests that are abnormal in intensity or focus (e.g, strong attachment to or preoccupation with unusual objects, excessively circumscribed or perseverative interest).

Surprisingly, perhaps, the way to avoid being hyper-fixated on one thing, is to have several special interests at the same time. It sort of masks the condition in a way that other people simply see it as someone who is "interested in everything". My experience is quite similar to yours, those "deep dives", down to the molecular level. However, once I dig into a special interest, it is often there to stay. You go through that initial phase of "learn everything there is to know" and then it exhausts itself, but once it is there, it's there, and as new information comes out, I will simply add it to the "mental library". Over time, I have acquired many special interests. It is simply a matter of how many boiling pots are on the stove at a time and which ones are on the front burners actively boiling away and which ones are on the back burners simmering. I have had some special interests that have lasted pretty much my entire life and will likely be there until the end of my days, and some, I am sure, will go through the typical phases of "high intensity", "exhaustion", and finally, somewhere in the background.

 

[Kalinychta]

Surprisingly, perhaps, the way to avoid being hyper-fixated on one thing, is to have several special interests at the same time. It sort of masks the condition in a way that other people simply see it as someone who is "interested in everything". My experience is quite similar to yours, those "deep dives", down to the molecular level. However, once I dig into a special interest, it is often there to stay. You go through that initial phase of "learn everything there is to know" and then it exhausts itself, but once it is there, it's there, and as new information comes out, I will simply add it to the "mental library". Over time, I have acquired many special interests. It is simply a matter of how many boiling pots are on the stove at a time and which ones are on the front burners actively boiling away and which ones are on the back burners simmering. I have had some special interests that have lasted pretty much my entire life and will likely be there until the end of my days, and some, I am sure, will go through the typical phases of "high intensity", "exhaustion", and finally, somewhere in the background.

If you’re able to have several special interests at a time, I don’t think you’d fit the DSM symptom re: “highly restricted, fixated interests.” If you have this symptom, there is always only one pot on the stove,—and it’s boiling over into the entire kitchen and indeed the entire house at all times. I don’t think autistic people are able to just decide to have several special interests. When I was diagnosed (and I’ve told this story before here), the behavior analyst told me about a little boy she saw who was obsessed with vacuum cleaners. He knew all about them, all about carpets, all about any and everything to do with vacuums. That’s a highly restricted, fixated interest. I think if you have more than one special interest, you just have interests full stop, just like everybody does.

 

[Kalinychta]

I became aware of my own autism at the age of 55. Having watched a program on the National Geographic Channel called "Taboo". People with unusual attractions to things like a blowup doll, the Berlin Wall or a Volkswagen Beetle. Though they didn't specify how long these people have had such feelings. Leaving me to wonder after seeing this post. Hmmmm.

The man with the blowup doll was clearly identified as also having this thing I never heard of called "Asperger's Syndrome". He was also an avid plastic modeler as I am or used to be.

Yet as I recall, the woman with a fetish about the Berlin Wall and the man in love with his Volkswagen were not mentioned as being autistic. I'm guessing they may have been, though this was back in a time when much of the science was still being researched in terms of the American Psychiatric community.

I have core (fixated) interests that have lasted for several decades. Though they ebb and flow to an extent, but are always there.

The people with the fixations on the Berlin Wall and the Volkswagens sound much more autistic to me. Probably the blowup doll guy got more attention because his fixation had to do with sex, which sounds more like neurosis to me.

 

[Crossbreed]

If you’re able to have several special interests at a time, I don’t think you’d fit the DSM symptom re: “highly restricted, fixated interests.” If you have this symptom, there is always only one pot on the stove,—and it’s boiling over into the entire kitchen and indeed the entire house at all times. I don’t think autistic people are able to just decide to have several special interests. When I was diagnosed (and I’ve told this story before here), the behavior analyst told me about a little boy she saw who was obsessed with vacuum cleaners. He knew all about them, all about carpets, all about any and everything to do with vacuums. That’s a highly restricted, fixated interest. I think if you have more than one special interest, you just have interests full stop, just like everybody does.

One of my central interests is figure drawing, but it has spun off many tangent interests like

• figure collecting (mostly for head & face references),
• zoology (in an effort to diversify the human figures that I draw), and
• onomastics (because my figures, drawn & miniature, need fitting names...!).

And all of those have their own tangents (like miniature photography, animal taxonomy & general etymology). It is not just a rabbit hole. It is a whole rabbit warren...!

 

[Kalinychta]

One of my central interests is figure drawing, but it has spun off many tangent interests like

• figure collecting (mostly for head & face references),
• zoology (in an effort to diversify the human figures that I draw), and
• onomastics (because my figures, drawn & miniature, need fitting names...!).

And all of those have their own tangents (like miniature photography, animal taxonomy & general etymology). It is not just a rabbit hole. It is a whole rabbit warren...!

It is a rabbit hole. Tangents and general interests and multiple little things that we all enjoy are another thing. They don’t qualify as highly restricted, fixated interests abnormal in their intensity and focus.

3. Highly restricted, fixated interests that are abnormal in intensity or focus (e.g, strong attachment to or preoccupation with unusual objects, excessively circumscribed or perseverative interest).

 

[Crossbreed]

My (drawn) figures would lose their appeal (to me) if I drew them all with the same features, just like repeating the same story, painting or, even, using a narrow color palette...

 

[Kalinychta]

My (drawn) figures would lose their appeal (to me) if I drew them all with the same features, just like repeating the same story, painting or, even, using a narrow color palette...

This is just part of having an interest, though. It’s just a regular interest. It’s not a highly restricted, fixated interest abnormal in its intensity. Being obsessed with something is totally different.

 

[Crossbreed]

They don’t qualify as highly restricted, fixated interests abnormal in their intensity and focus.

Without any formal medical training, I often surprise doctors by my knowledge of human anatomy that I learned through figure drawing (though human eidonomy* would be a more accurate term).

*In simple terms, eidonomy is external anatomy, but it is greatly influenced by internal structures, like muscles & bones.

 

[Crossbreed]

Even your "vacuum" boy had an adjacent interest in carpets...

 

[Neonatal RRT]

If you’re able to have several special interests at a time, I don’t think you’d fit the DSM symptom re: “highly restricted, fixated interests.” If you have this symptom, there is always only one pot on the stove,—and it’s boiling over into the entire kitchen and indeed the entire house at all times. I don’t think autistic people are able to just decide to have several special interests. When I was diagnosed (and I’ve told this story before here), the behavior analyst told me about a little boy she saw who was obsessed with vacuum cleaners. He knew all about them, all about carpets, all about any and everything to do with vacuums. That’s a highly restricted, fixated interest. I think if you have more than one special interest, you just have interests full stop, just like everybody does.

My psychologist (who specializes in adult autism) found my experience pretty consistent with others.

Keep in mind, that there is a pediatric bias in the DSM. When a parent brings their child to see the child psychologist, the child certainly may have only 1 special interest, simply by virtue of his short life experience. So, I wouldn't necessarily interpret the DSM to suggest that there will be 1, and only 1, special interest that sucks up all of a person's thoughts, dreams, money, etc. for a lifetime, and that's it. In my experience, autistics, in general, are "out-of-the-box", inquisitive people, who make connections between one topic and another. The example of the vacuum and carpet mentioned above. One special interest may then tie into another, or a new life experience may suddenly trigger another, and the previous interest(s) which were dominant, are still there, but the new one takes on dominance. Over say, 30, 50, 70 years, there may have been several "highly restricted, fixated interests" that would seem, by neurotypical standards, to be quite obsessive. Neurotypicals are more likely to have hobbies and interests, but rarely do they take those deep, deep dives like we do. It's a matter of degree. At what point does a passing interest become an obsession? I generally do not have "passing interests". I fully commit. I have a difficult time sleeping. I am nearly 60, so when I say I have several special interests, I mean it. My mind is an absolute storm. If my wife had any idea what is running through my head, all the time, she would think I was insane.

This is how we become annoying "know-it-alls".

 

[Kalinychta]

My psychologist (who specializes in adult autism) found my experience pretty consistent with others.

Keep in mind, that there is a pediatric bias in the DSM. When a parent brings their child to see the child psychologist, the child certainly may have only 1 special interest, simply by virtue of his short life experience. So, I wouldn't necessarily interpret the DSM to suggest that there will be 1, and only 1, special interest that sucks up all of a person's thoughts, dreams, money, etc. for a lifetime, and that's it. In my experience, autistics, in general, are "out-of-the-box", inquisitive people, who make connections between one topic and another. The example of the vacuum and carpet mentioned above. One special interest may then tie into another, or a new life experience may suddenly trigger another, and the previous interest(s) which were dominant, are still there, but the new one takes on dominance. Over say, 30, 50, 70 years, there may have been several "highly restricted, fixated interests" that would seem, by neurotypical standards, to be quite obsessive. Neurotypicals are more likely to have hobbies and interests, but rarely do they take those deep, deep dives like we do. I am nearly 60, so when I say I have several special interests, I mean it. My mind is an absolute storm. If my wife had any idea what is running through my head, all the time, she would think I was insane.

This is how we become annoying "know-it-alls".

“Highly restricted, fixated interests that are abnormal in intensity or focus”…
Restricted. Fixated. Abnormal in intensity or focus. Honestly I don’t think there’s anything to interpret here. Either you have a “highly restricted, fixated interest abnormal in intensity or focus” or you don’t. I’m not trying to be argumentative. I just think that this part of the DSM is very clear. People who really have restricted, fixated interests abnormal in intensity are very much distinct from people who have a few hobbies that they’re really into and focused on.

Most of the people who have changed the world are “neurotypicals” (sorry, I hate that word),…they totally do take deep dives. I guess just not in the same way that “neurodiverse” people do.

 

[Neonatal RRT]

“Highly restricted, fixated interests that are abnormal in intensity or focus”…
Restricted. Fixated. Abnormal in intensity or focus. Honestly I don’t think there’s anything to interpret here. Either you have a “highly restricted, fixated interest abnormal in intensity or focus” or you don’t. I’m not trying to be argumentative. I just think that this part of the DSM is very clear. People who really have restricted, fixated interests abnormal in intensity are very much distinct from people who have a few hobbies that they’re really into and focused on.

Most of the people who have changed the world are “neurotypicals” (sorry, I hate that word),…they totally do take deep dives. I guess just not in the same way that “neurodiverse” people do.

I might suggest not having black and white thinking here, or at least, not misinterpret what is said versus what it means in the real world. Given the vast amount of neurodiversity, even within the autism community, I would suggest there is quite a bit to interpret here. My psychologist found my behavior consistent with adult autism, so I might lean on that more.

Even within the context of pediatric autism, a 2022 Australian study of over 1800 individuals found that the average number of "restricted interests" were 7 and those that were classified as "intense restricted interests" were 2.

Within the context of adult autism, as my life experience would suggest, the pediatric data seems to be consistent with mine.

Do some hunting around in the scientific literature on the topic, and they all appear to be consistent with the message that autistic individuals can have more than one special or restricted, even intensely restricted interest at a time.

Special interest (autism) - Wikipedia.

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/aur.2863

 

[Judge]

The people with the fixations on the Berlin Wall and the Volkswagens sound much more autistic to me. Probably the blowup doll guy got more attention because his fixation had to do with sex, which sounds more like neurosis to me.

The irony of the show was that they specifically stated the guy with the doll was diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome. Something that was never stated or implied with the other two. Go figure.

I still recall how a former mod used to discuss whether the title character of the film "Lars and the Real Girl" was autistic as well. A story line that may have paralleled the guy with the doll. I don't recall the film itself actually mentioning autism. Though it certainly generated discussion of the possibilities.

Lars and the Real Girl - Wikipedia

 

[JayD210]

I myself become fixated on new interests, but many of my older ones I’ve known for a lifetime are still present. Some fell away because of this or that but not many. My list of current interests is much broader than it used to be. Some of them have become an asset for the work I do.

 

[RemyZee]

I've had the same interest for around 12 years, with other interests doing the ebb and flow thing. At times when I've lost an interest it has been very depressing, but finding a new obsession feels kind of like falling in love: thinking about the interest constantly, deep happiness, going without sleep, lose my appetite because it makes me so happy to discover something like that. In fact I'm almost Ashamed to say that it's even more exciting than falling in love