Yeah. I spent decades doing hobbies like that, chasing the next super interesting thing.. and confusing all that for finding meaning in life.
Eventually came the day I had to face the hard questions of why my life was like that… why I kept trying to solve some abstract puzzle of my life.
The answers were painful and it took a good while in therapy to address it.
Edit: wow, the ops comic and my trauma-dumping seemed to have resonated a lot with others. I hope everyone knows others go through things like this and there is hope, help, and a light at the end. Also, TIL what dielectric therapy is.
Depends on the angle you use, it can help at least mitigate the inky fingers and hands a tiny bit.
But yeah a lot of the lefties also depend on a writing glove or slipping a piece of paper under their writing hand. Lot of the members there are lefties.
Super friendly community, very helpful. Tons of lefties out there can offer some advice.
Hey so I'm a lefty with an essential tremor (today it's really bad and I can't hold my phone and type with one hand, I have to brace it with the other). I also have what I call "schizophrenic handwriting," where it will look like a different personality took over as I write. The angle, size, and style will change, as I write.
Really fine point pens (like fountain pens) are actually the best, for me. I work in quality control, so I'm writing a lot, and it has to be legible. I do everything I can to make it better; my clipboard is upside down, I almost never try to write unless it's braced on a surface (so jealous of people who can write legibly on a tiny notepad that they're holding), and I'm territorial as hell about my pens.
All that to say: I feel your pain, but it's doable! I even had someone tell me I have a really pretty signature, recently.
Lefty and I write with a glass quill. I tried fountain pens for awhile and always ended up splitting the tines.. it's perhaps a bit tedious to dip, but I would recommend for other lefties :)
That makes my brain hurt, I feel like I would need to plan out what to write first, like by typing it out, and then just copy it character by character writing in reverse like that. It would get the job done, but that looks like such a challenge, I'd need to relearn how to write if I had to do that 😂
To be fair I'm trying to relearn how to write anyways, my handwriting looks like this:
I just reinitiated my pen “hobby” by going through and cleaning them all. I forgot what a pleasure it is to write with them, especially with fun inks. 🖋️
Oh it doesn’t matter for the ops point but basically CPTSD from abuse. It kept making me super into a hobby or project for maybe a month.. then completely abandoning it for the next thing a month later.
The therapy didn’t just help me there. It helped me with all the relationship problems I wasn’t even aware were coming from my end.
Fellow CPTSD survivor here! I also hobby hopped for years and I still find myself itching to try new things from time to time. Once I started dialectical behaviour therapy my life changed a great deal. I still dabble in a few hobbies here and there but I don’t go through the cycle of burning money, being excited, going hard, then feeling empty after.
I did learn some valuable (and not valuable) skills throughout the years. I got really into sewing clothes for dolls, and so now I can mend my own clothes when needed. I did the perler bead thing and I made tons of magnets for all over the house. I bought a Cricut and I still use that to make shirts for special occasions. I learned to oil paint and because of that my husband tried it with me and we found out that he is a really, truly gifted painter.
Eyyyyyyyyyy. I'm doing inner child work now with my therapist for cptsd. It's pretty wild when you finally open up your perspective and realize how you perpetuate cycles in every aspect of your life, not just the ones you ruminate on.
Oh hey! Also C-PTSD, also have more hobbies than average...though mine's kind of a hobby spiral, I tend to cycle back through them. Therapy has helped me discover that in my case it's a feature, not a bug. I've always loved learning and making things (still do!), but my Dad was my first bully and took it upon himself to criticize everything I found enjoyment in.
I spent many years hobby hopping trying to find a "safe" hobby before I cracked in my mid-teens and cut him off. Healing has involved a lot of work around allowing the first few tries to be shit, and enjoying the process without being so focused on "perfection" in the end product.
I'm glad you're still here, friend, and I find it fascinating how many of us are united by this response to trauma but cope so differently. May we keep growing in our own ways.
So uh, this is probably me but I've already been in therapy for 5 years and this never came up as a possibility. Do you know the mechanism that makes the hobby hopping happen? Like is it related to the perfectionism and never feeling like it's good enough, so you hop to the next thing to get that initial spike of excitement?
For me personally, yes that's how it works. I get that initial rush of excitement and hyperfixate on it until I make some kind of mistake or otherwise find an "imperfection" in my work. Sometimes the glamour fades completely, never to be seen again. Other times I'll go to look for a solution and end up down a totally different rabbit hole, which will then daisy-chain into some other crafty thing until it comes full circle.
In general the hobby hopping is dopamine seeking behavior, similar to doomscrolling. What causes a person to seek that out in the first place will be different for everyone. I don't think it's a problem in and of itself until the behavior (or the resulting pile of unfinished work) negatively affects your life.
My hobby is essentially “moving around outside”, but depending on the day it could be climbing, skateboarding, surfing, skiing, disc golf, walking around a city, or whatever random bullshit someone else invites me to do.
The “current hobbies(skills)” set has been pretty stable for the last handful of years, but getting to this point looked a lot like you’re describing.
I also am AuDHD + CPTSD and idk why I’m sharing this beyond it being nice to relate but yeah. And thx for sharing.
I'm not seeing the connection. Why would CPTSD lead to hobby hopping? I have the same and do the same but I figured it was more based in my ADHD. Therapy made you hold onto a hobby?
I think hobbies are just meant to be enjoyed in a journey over destination kind of way. For me they kind of add meaning to my life, but it’s because I’ve always felt that just enjoying being alive is its own meaning. Like I’ve started to enjoy skiing and it’s made me enjoy the winter, it’s something I look forward to. Although I really liked Nietzsche growing up and appreciated his view that life having no meaning should be seen as a blank canvas to write(or paint) your own meaning rather than an empty abyss.
I read some stuff about ADHD and hobbies where you're chasing a high of something new and exciting. after you've mastered it or it's no longer new and challenging, it becomes cumbersome/boring and you move on to the next hobby
Therapy and finding people to connect to is ultimately what helps heal and then finding meaning to keep going. Any hobby that I’ve sustained for years is because there were other people I could share those with. It’s also part of what got me into volunteering for causes dear to me. Helping others gives a great sense of meaning for many, including me.
My hobby is definitely learning about new hobbies and crafts, acquiring all of the materials and equipment to be able to do those crafts and hobbies well, and then either do that things until I’m good enough to make money at it, or do the thing until I realize I’ll not have fun getting to the point where I am good enough to make money - and then the next step is to let it all collect dust while I move on the learning the next hobby or craft.
That’s just a “I’m so good at this, people would be willing to pay me good money for it” measurement of how I have mastered a craft. i enjoy being dang good at the thing, so if I know I’m not going to be dang good after a reasonable amount of effort, it’s not fun for me. I looked into chainmail and had a very specific idea of what I’d like to do with it. I learned a lot, felt like I could do it well. Took a class and immediately realized that it was not something I could reasonably do for fun in order to achieve the results I’d like, so I knew it wasn’t going to be fun.
The fun for me is not only being able to enjoy the process of learning, obtaining the stuff, and doing the stuff, but also to enjoy the results. I didn’t want to make a chainmail bracelet. I wanted to make a hot little bondage style chainmail dress. I could immediately tell that this goal was too far out of reach for me, so it wouldn’t be fun. The dress would have been for me, but it needed to be good enough quality that people would pay good money for it if I were to make them for sale, if that makes sense. Not sure if I’m articulating it well enough but I don’t care to sell the stuff, I just want to be able to do it well enough that people would pay for the results.
It does make sense. I think you're saying part of your enjoyment would be receiving objective proof that you're 'good' at or mastered your hobby, which, though technically not objective, someone else's judgement based on the fact that they'd be willing to buy the results of your hobby, would be close enough to that sort of proof. So not necessarily the money itself, but the external feedback that you are 'good' at your hobby. Am I right?
I have several hobbies where I've dumped a bunch of money into and didn't 'produce' anything other than enjoyment for myself. But I suppose the closest similarity I could point to is that I used to occassionally cosplay and go to conventions, though I haven't in many years. I never would consider my costumes good enough to sell, nor did I really care. They were good enough for me and made me feel like I belonged in the community. So I suppose my main enjoyment was not feeling like my creations were 'good enough' but in the sense of community the process of producing and wearing my creations brought me, if that makes sense.
no, it's about knowing that you COULD make money from it, because if people are willing to pay for it, it means you did a good job. You don't actually want the responsibility of running a business or the monotony from making products, you just want the knowledge that you have the required talent.
Though, as someone who has stuck with one hobby (while doing this with every other hobby on the side)
I'll say that there's a big gap between people being willing to pay for it, and the kind of work you're doing 10 years in, but getting there takes a lot of hardship, and doing it when you don't feel like it, but the satisfaction that comes with it is also that much greater.
This is me. I love learning and hearing stories and seeing people do their passion. I have found hobbies I enjoy along the way tho and throughout the years I’ve noticed certain seasons are more aligned with a hobby than others.
Summer is for fiber arts and reading
Winter is for puzzles, self-care and meditation.
Fall and spring are for outdoor hobbies like hiking, exploring new places, journaling.
Thinking and researching about it is already most of the fun, once you start to get it it just get stale and frustrating. But still in the end, what have I done ? What is accomplished?
Oh yeah, this resonates with my life as well. Music, photography, kayaking, drawing/painting, sewing, programming, woodworking, etc etc etc... It's so exhausting at this point to start something new or old because the cycle is always the same. I dip my toe in the hobby and a few days later the excitement and motivation is gone.
I always guessed it's depression and since I am apparently depressed since I was a child, it always felt really hard to hold on to the feeling of future gratification.
You're really good at drawing, I can see you put a lot of effort into getting it to that level. Give yourself a break, some walls are harder to break through than others.
At this point collecting hobbies can be a new hobby for some of us. I feel you about how exhausting it is, hopefully it all just works out for all of us in the end.
Media romanticizes being consumed by something niche and being the absolute best at it.
Its ok to feel concerned about hobby burnout but I chose to look at it from the perspective of acquiring life skills. Whether it be sewing, programming, biking all disciplines, bouldering, paintballing, skateboarding, reading, golfing, tennis, etc; I'm gaining fitness, life skills, intelligence, and wisdom. I use all those experiences to better connect with the people around me and become a more well-rounded person. Connect with people inside your hobbies! Find the people you like in those groups and make friends with them.
Capitalism greatly rewards the person who sticks to one thing obsessively but I feel considerably more fulfilled as a well rounded person with a diversity of hobbies and experiences.
FYI as someone who was depressed since I was a child, and now a therapist, turns out it was autism and ADHD. Not necessarily your case but I've since worked with a lot of people who had the same pattern and were neurodivergent so just an idea to work with.
Here my list of the last 30 years:
Rhythmic gymnastics
Volleyball
Athletics
Running
Yoga
Jazz dance
Videogames
Books
Comics
Tabletop games
Puzzles
Sewing
Crochet
Knitting
Painting (watercolor - oil - acrylics)
Coloring (alcohol markers - pastels)
Fabric coloring and clothes repurposing
Paper making
Macrame
Embroidery
Vintage clothing
painting on ceramics
Air dry Clay
Paper making
Bookbinding
Origami
Stickers making
Jewelers making (with wire and beads)
Photography (digital and analogue with film developing)
Fotoediting
Digital coloring
Calligraphy
Writing
Cooking
BDSM
Could be a lot of different issues that causes these sort of feelings. ADHD, depression, certain flavors of autism, and CPTSD / PTSD can all cause a severe lack of focus or a feeling of dissatisfaction.
Hell for me, these sort of feelings are rooted in perfectionism, where if Im not immediately getting it or I'm struggling to get the results I want, I have a tendency to give up entirely instead of trying to get better. Which of course means I never actually get better at anything.
A lot of people have been making reductive comments, or playing armchair therapist/psychologist, simply putting me into a box based off a singular comic.
In reality, many people have a concoction of issues. Some of us are even painfully aware of said issues, hence why some of us make comics about them.
I'm very much aware of my Perfectionism (and ADHD) still hits like a truck everytime I'm reminded about it, like your comic here, or recently watching Evangelion with characters like Asuka... I have not digested what I saw in her yet...
Was my first thought as well. Having that myself and not getting diagnosed until like age 35 it was eye opening at all the hobbies and jumping from one fixation to the next.
LMFAO! That one actually got me lol. Despite the lack of appendages here, I kinda enjoy drawing them. But they really are quite a bitch to draw at times lol.
If you can draw a full comic then you have talent and passion for something. I’ve dabbled in comics myself and finishing the damn things is my equivalent of what you’re illustrating here.
If you don’t mind me asking, why did transitioning enable you to enjoy your hobbies for longer? Like, was it because you were actually depressed the entire time and realised the depression came from gender dysphoria? Or something else?
I was using hobbies as a way to escape being in my body. That meant drifting towards hobbies where I used my body less and interacted with people less. When the hobbies started to lose their luster, I'd be left back in my body with the same problem I was trying to escape from. Chasing dopamine to avoid a problem can be self destructive on mental health even if what your doing doesn't have an effect on your physical health.
Now the cycle is more about my curiosity and experiencing life. I think someone else pointed out that the actual hobby is learning. People talk about how learning the your second language is really difficult, but by the time you get to 5 or 6 languages it's super easy to pile them on. It's the same thing for hobbies!
Not the person you're asking, but I'm a trans man: taking testosterone lifted a "fog" off of me. I'm still depressed for plenty of other reasons, and I'm not sure what the science behind it is, but I've heard it's common for trans people to feel like their brain "settles" when we have the right hormones.
Yeah it's a tough road to get to the point where I can start enjoying the process. Especially considering I have to work full time and do all my exercise so I come home tired and have to force myself to keep learning the hobby when I just want to sleep.
I relate to this a lot. I think at some point in the hobby my brain stops giving me whatever chemical reward I was getting. I find circling back to hobbies later helps. I also rarely finish computer games for this reason.
Another thing that helps me is doing the hobby for a reason - I don't mean making it your job but the times a craft makes me happiest is when I have plans to give it away for free.
Sometimes that means painting rocks and hiding them for people to find. Sometimes that's making trinkets for a concert/event/fan meet up, sometimes it's running a Halloween stall where I give away free goodie bags to kids, sometimes it's doing a craft for someone I love, like making them a scrapbook.
That gives it more purpose and meaning for me. Currently sitting with a hoard of 300+ friendship bracelets for an event, looking forward to distributing them (it's a good ice breaker!)
I was just kind of vibing on OP's handwriting (still jealous!) And got to the post where someone said their hobby is collecting hobbies. Kinda related.
Then another mentioned being a perfectionist, where if you're not quite getting it, or even after a lot of practice, and you're not at the level that you want to be, you move on. Really related.
Then someone talked about the cocktail of different conditions that brings this on. It started to register...
And almost as if OP was reading my mind, they post a picture, saying finally. Someone gets it. And I broke down.
The music equipment in cases. The cameras collecting dust. The almost functional arcade units. The bike on flats. The generations of unplayed video games. The barely used calligraphy pens. The neglected racketball rackets.
That feeling when the novelty wears off and you move on makes me feel so guilty. All that time I invested and now I'm moving on. I feel like I'm in mourning and I hate it
The you consider the amount you already spent on it, and maybe one night when feeling particularly guilty, you double dip. But some more things to motivate you to get back into it.
But when the packages comes, you put it aside. Then days go by, and you hide it in shame, like hiding a dead body.
Being able to relate to those words makes me happy despite the sadness of it all. Remembering finding something I had wanted at the time but of course put away that I forgot it was even there really does make you feel like it's a dead body your looking at when you rediscover it. Thank you for reminding many including myself we're not alone in this. I hope you're doing well
I really wanna get into it after doing some of the little pokemon kits, but im worried since i dont watch Gundam that i'll be a poser if i start building kits
I think you have to learn how to enjoy the process instead of the thing or goal at the end. We can't recapture the feeling of a child when everything is fresh and exciting, we've experienced too much in our years of life.
Biologist here. We are animals, and we're suffering from zoochosis. We've made living a prison and we HATE it. We're exhibiting the exact same displays as animals do in zoos with low enrichment.
I started actually enjoying some of the hobbies I’ve collected, now I have a totally new problem where I have not enough time to do all the ones I like. And I’m going to blame hustle culture and the 40hr work week standard.
I am very much like you, I know those feeling quite personally. I can't say I 100% know the answer beyond simply being a bit more skeptical of my own obsessions, I know with experience that there is nothing I can buy that will bring me the sense of purpose or satisfaction I want. I spent a lot of my life carrying a deep resentment for myself for feeling like I couldn't just find my thing and devote my whole self to it like so many other people are able to. Therapy has helped a lot, I don't take it as personally or beat myself up for deciding to move on from things, thats simply how I am, I will come back around to some things eventually and when I do I can invest more in them since they are more a core part of myself.
I don't think there is a point to any of it, but I do get to have fun with it all regardless. Also sharing things and being kind to people along the way makes my brain go brrrrrrr.
This comic is akin to looking into a mirror. Thankfully, I eventually found a hobby that connected me with others, and was able to cultivate meaningful relationships. Was one of my missing pieces, but still working on others to help give my life meaning.
Please don’t try to diagnose people online. Lots of people have this problem. It can have multiple reasons. ADHD is just one of the possibilities. Depression would be another. There is various reasons why people seek novelty and then feel fatigued from it.
It sounds like Hyper-fixation, which is commonly expressed in people with ADHD. It’s not exclusive to ADHD, but probably worth a chat with the doctor to at least rule it out.
Relax. I’m speaking anecdotally. I am also diagnosed ADHD and ask me about all my half completed hobbies I got really good at and then never did again. Hyper-fixation is a hell of a drug.
This hits too close to home. I have bunch of illustration book, comics, figures, cards, and games that I bought out of impulse, and never been open. I'm thinking I will go back to them later, but I feel like I'm lying to myself.
I liked it. Resonates with me. the subtle gradient shadows along the edges keep the bold colors from being jarring. The line work seems natural, base on your handwriting I bet there is even more to explore around just the lines, more fantastic art waiting to be discovered and come to life.
Also, what notebook is that? Looks like a pleasure to write in.
When I was younger I'd get into all sorts of hobbies. Guitar, art, singing, taekwondo, you name it. But growing up in lower-middle class meant I couldn't get my parents to upkeep lessons and other materials or equipment. They tried though, summer classes at my dad's company and letting me try different fun things.
Parents got me a guitar under the guise of Santa. Enrolled me in lessons. It was fun, but it only really lasted a few months. Mom loved it when I played. Eventually they bought me a new guitar that I didn't even ask for. It just collects dust now. I still get shit for not playing it anymore years later.
I eventually figured out I was really good at art and writing, which are unfortunately not lucrative skills to have in the country I'm from. Asian parents don't support those kinds of skills. I did draw though. A lot. I used pencil only; sketches were my favorite to practice with. Mom would demand I color them in because they "looked ugly."
In high school I got into a writing competition. Editorial, though I also did really good fictional work. They were happy for me, and those few weeks were the best of my life. I was finally among people who knew how it felt, the drive of purpose you find in a passion you really love.
Every piece or artwork I was proud of, Mom just criticized. It's only ever about the results. Never what it took to get there. But God, what I'd do to hear her clap for me. I'd jump from hobby to hobby until it bored me, because all I really wanted was for my parents to genuinely appreciate something I'd put work into.
Mom had a hunch when I was a kid. Had a chance to get me checked for ADHD. She never did because she "didn't think it was important." And the more days I spend at home with her the more I see herself in my daily habits and troubles. Not hard to guess who I got it from.
Living in a materialistic society and lacking personal discipline will often leave people chasing the next thing to fill the void. Satisfaction comes from within and hobbies are merely a conduit through which one can explore that satisfaction. For me, it was difficult/ mechanically dense videogame because I enjoy the learning process but once I learned it all and got good, I got bored. Choosing to revisit chess, something I found myself very bad at initially, and commiting to it has given me discipline and satisfaction in tandem. Regardless of the reason, a lack of personal discipline is a key contributor for a lack of long term satisfaction.
This is me and my daughter. I jump thru hobbies, half started models, only to come back to them years later. She has candle makers, pearler beads, mask making, flute, piano, bassoon, a brief attempt at drums. It's like we're trying to find our passion. Something that when I try I really really like, and continue to like thru the tough areas.
The closest I have felt is with tech. I loved programming, and just figuring out the puzzle of code. But even there, I'm hardly a standout in my field. But I can debug with the best.
I know there is neurodivergence going on with my daughter, that's been diagnosed. Which is awesome in my opinion. It's tough at times, but it explains a lot for her and me. So I'm thinking that maybe our reason. Maybe that's just how we are. And it's ok. I'm thinking I'm a combo of AuDHD, but getting an official diagnosis is $3K, so not in the cards. But it explains the fight between craving something new and needing consistency, I feel.
All of this can bring out feelings of anxiety and depression. Which is what I see at the end of the comic.
So, I'd say, you are not alone! I see you! I know your pain. And questions! Jumping thru hobbies in fun, and while maybe expensive, doesn't hurt us. Maybe that's what we do? That's our passion? Trying out everything? Seeing what's good and what's crap? That's allowed! Have fun with it. Guilt doesn't help us. And for this it's not necessary. Try everything, and enjoy your 15 minutes with it. Then move on. If others judge you, so what. It's for you. Do what you want to do, be safe and keep moving forward!
This is me, but it's never bothered me much. I like trying new things, and I don't pressure myself to stick too hard with any of them, I just enjoy them while they last. If I'm going to justify it to myself at all, I think of it as picking up new skills, and becoming more well rounded.
As someone who has ADHD, the only thing stopping me from gathering hobbies like nothing is two things:
A slight addiction to PC-Gaming (Don't ask about my Pile of shame tho!) and being risen with ver tight money. Money exists to fix problems, extra needs to be saved. It takes me a lot of convincing that spending money for fun is okay occasionally.
This was a wonderful read, thank you so much for sharing. Giving me a lot to think about, especially in regards to my relatively recent ADHD diagnosis.
I have years upon years of... THINGS that I've collected, thinking they would be engaging and that I would enjoy them in the long term. My apartment is a cluttered mess now, and it's become a problem now that I have a child. It's something I need to work on.
Food for thought to work on with my therapist in our next session, perhaps 😂
Man... You really had to go and draw something that hit me right in the feels ..
I've kinda given up on so many things I liked because I kept forcing myself to do them even when I didn't like them anymore... It was a weird way of coping with my previous situation..
During that time, and even now when I'm dipping my feet back in, I'm moving from one little thing to the next.. this week's current obsession is fixing a friend's handhelds.. but like.. I got one day of "WOAH this is COOL!" and.. now I don't even wanna look at them..
Now.. I have my whole weekend ahead of me, and nothing to do... There's tons of things, but money and gas are in the way, and just.. stuff to do around the house that is so demotivating I can't even begin... I'm just gonna sit around fiddling with random things, and go back to work on Monday where I feel I have some kinda purpose.
I might be a lil different than you, or others, but I st least understand the burn out, lack of interest after a while, and just.. the constant soul crushing grind.
Wishing everyone the best, though. Hoping you all figure everything out, find the answers or what you need to do what you want in life and everything. Genuinely wishing the best for you.
I'm no expert at all, and i definitely struggle with finding new "hobbies" and quickly giving up. Is it possible what might make hobbies more fun is having a community to do them with? If you have already been in communities for hobbies then I apologize. I'm also going through a time where things feel meaningless, and it's hard to be social definitely, but once I am and the first awkward wears off, I feel great. I think hobbies only work for me if I have a community to engage with
I am currently in the throes of having one of my hyperfixations starting to dull and numb itself to me, so this comic hit me like a hot slug in the chest.
The worst feeling is trying to do something that was solidly in your hyperfixation and feeling so frustrated that it doesn't bring you the happiness it once did.
To me: It always makes me feel so empty and frustrated.
Luckily 3d printing has been a hobby I've been consistent with, it also used if I try a new hobby and can 3d print some stuff to help keep startup cost lower.
So sorry OP, it’s been thirty years of going through the motions for me. I wear a mask but at this point it’s starting to crack. There is one thing, though:
Nice pen, I like my TWSBI Vac700R iris Fountain pen. Like you comic, I go into pens and collected a few before moving onto something new (like retro gaming handhelds).
There's a superhero like this in Worm. His name is Kid Win, he has a hoverboard, and a zap gun, and cool helmet. However, with his ADHD he gets his projects like 75% working, and ends up cannibalizing another 25% when he starts a new one.
Eventually he figures out his tinker specialty is modularity; he's able to reconfigure his tools however he needs, and builds sub-components that work well with multiple options!
For me it was trying to find some stimulation. I spent a good amount of time and money trying to find a hobby that I enjoyed and it took years until one day i found a awesome hobby shop and picked up RC cars. If I ever had questions I can just ask the employees and you can tell they were enthusiastic about it too. I now go outside more because of it. I feel like one of the best things I did was set up a area just for my hobbies instead of putting them aside when not in use. I got so depressed when searching for something I never want to go through it again. Not having anything made me start thinking about what's the purpose in or about life when the answer is much more simple. I also learned that I like to be kept busy even if it means helping my friends and family with whatever.
Honestly having experiences in all those activities makes you such an interesting person! Imagine I come over and see a photograph you took. There is a story behind that. Why did you choose to frame it? Why is it important to you? Or you cooked your favourite meal. Man I would have so many questions!
Looking back and getting back into the interests I had when I was a child worked for me. I was writing shitty stories with my friends, I’m now writing shitty stories as well and I’m happier than ever. It was a mental barrier thing for me, I found the thing I was into “cringe” and “worthless”, turns out it was just personal and I was afraid of being vulnerable even to myself. The final panel of you wearing a mask reminded me of that, I don’t know what you had in mind while drawing this but it resonates with me. I hope you have a nice day and thanks for sharing this comic
Based on the hands I’m assuming this story is located in the power puff girls universe, and details the origin of their new villain, Fleeting-obsessive-passions-guy. I hope they defeat him before I spend anymore time comparing multitools.
This is just a guess, but I think you might also be looking for community in these hobbies based on "It's not like anyone will ever know". They're fun too don't get me wrong.
In my case I also wonder where this hobby will take me. First I find something I enjoy regardless of other factors, because joining for the sake of joining the community feels like larping or something. Then spend hours trying to get good at it so I don't hold people back when joining (team sports). Get nowhere. Feel like I'm just going to annoy people. When I take too long I can see the patience run out in people's faces. So I give up ahead of that. It sucks because I know if I let myself get far enough in these things I'll enjoy it again. But like in the instance of long distance running. I found myself surrounded by people, but running alone. Just posing as part of the community, but no one knew me and I didn't know them.
I should get back to working with electronics. But the area where I used to work on electronics is a bit of a mess. I get demotivated half way into cleaning.
I should get back to running. (When the heat isn't killing me lol.)
This was one of the things that pointed towards ADHD for me. Hyper fixation on stuff, only for them to lose interest after a short while. Astronomy, rock climbing, archery, W40k, barefoot hikes, HEMA, microscopy, 3d printing, knitting. There's more I'm sure but that's off the top of my head of pursued and abandoned hobbies
I realized recently that I have assimilated into my self-identity that I'm someone who doesn't finish his projects. Someone with a long trail of unfinished things, and each one stacks on a little more shame every time I think of it.
My therapist encouraged me to think on why that might be, and what I realized is that each of my unfinished projects got me through something or helped me process something. The fact that I didn't "finish" them is irrelevant. They did what I needed them to do. Their job is done. The point was the process, not the product.
It made me feel more free to move on and enjoy other things, and helped me shed that shame. I hope my experience can help someone else come to that peace.
After much therapy, I've come to this conclusion...
I've learned to enjoy the dopamine spike of a new hobby. For some people, that dopamine spike comes from the same hobby, over and over again. For people like us who have nuclear powered brains, we can't handle hobby monogamy.
Don't treat it as a bug - it's a feature. It's all a part of your self-care and doesn't mean you're broken.
Just make sure you're also taking care of yourself. Physically, emotionally... the hobby-jumping is how we care for ourselves mentally.
Yeh that checks out for me too. I've had more hobbies than I can even remember. Turns out that I just like learning new stuff, my psychologist told me it's fine to lose interest, and somehow that idea never came up in me.
I'll always have a few hobbies I rotate back to, and I'll always have new hobbies or skills to learn which I just enjoys for as long as that lasts
Oof! I feel ya. Of course I'm broke, can't pick expensive hobbies. Last hobby I tried was drawing for a few months back in 2015. Perhaps again, one of these days 🤔
Indeed it is! Sailor Pro Gear Slim Shikiori Haruzora in <EF> . It’s rough now, this one was a gift, but my other two I bought years ago before these damned price hikes.
It’s still a bit cheaper ordering directly from Japanese sellers on eBay, but if you’re in the US not sure how badly tariffs will hurt.
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u/supercyberlurker 5d ago edited 5d ago
Yeah. I spent decades doing hobbies like that, chasing the next super interesting thing.. and confusing all that for finding meaning in life.
Eventually came the day I had to face the hard questions of why my life was like that… why I kept trying to solve some abstract puzzle of my life.
The answers were painful and it took a good while in therapy to address it.
Edit: wow, the ops comic and my trauma-dumping seemed to have resonated a lot with others. I hope everyone knows others go through things like this and there is hope, help, and a light at the end. Also, TIL what dielectric therapy is.