Published on 12, July, 2020
I was talking to someone today about how I tend to focus on one thing 'obsessively' for a period of time, to the exclusion of a lot of other things, and then it changes, and I have another 'fixation'.
I found this interesting article:
https://www.bps.org.uk/psychologist/me-and-monotropism-unified-theory-autism
How does your monotropism manifest itself?
out_of_step said:I do think there's an element of comfort with monotropic thoughts. They offer certainty.
Absolutely, monotropic thoughts also provide reassurance that you can always return to your dedicated interests.
It's when the lever is pulled by an outside source - it's very uncomfortable but seems the only way I can change direction.
I do think there's an element of comfort with monotropic thoughts. They offer certainty.
Uhane said:was it refreshing and did it give you a fresh new way of coming back to your chosen activity?
Sort of - not completely.
I took one particular 'obsessive interest' with me to the shops.
Uhane said:I really enjoy thinking about this idea. It dove tails into so much of my experience and I feel validated.
That's great! The monotropism theory also validates my autistic experience too, as it is one of the only theories offering an 'inside out' perspective (namely due to the fact that it is a theory derived from autistic researchers).
https://dlcincluded.github.io/MQ/
AusomelyAutistic posted a link to this questionnaire about 8 months ago in a post he started.
I really enjoy thinking about this idea. It dove tails into so much of my experience and I feel validated.
I get that at night sometimes. I have to tell myself "You can keep thinking, doing that in a dream just as well."
Sometimes that helps.
was it refreshing and did it give you a fresh new way of coming back to your chosen activity? It does for me. An hour walking the shore break does it for me.
I am the same, as much as exigency allows, anyway. There was a post on on this site awhile back that had a link to a test for this. This article looks very interesting! Will peruse.
Homebird said:Do you also have a problem answering a question if not expecting it?
Yes I do.
If I am engrossed in something I won't hear the question - I usually need a cattle prod to emerge
However, if I'm actually listening, I always need time to answer.
Do you also have a problem answering a question if not expecting it? For me it can be as simple as, do I want another cup of tea or which cake I want. My brain has to ponder for a while to weigh up the options.
Debbie said:I'm not always a great fan of my monotropism.
Yes I understand that, it can be very difficult to change track or thought patterns once our monotropic brains are hooked on something.
It’s one of the reasons why sometimes I put daytime TV on or boring programmes as then my brain can’t find a hook or attention tunnel, which allows me to do other tasks.
It’s great that long drives help you.
I'm not always a great fan of my monotropism.
Yesterday I went for a long drive to break the pattern.
I feel I need to do that sometimes or my head takes over my life.
Absolutely! I couldn’t agree more!
Ausomely Autistic said:because when our attention is so interest based and highly focused, losing passions can be devastating and detrimental to our wellbeing. Does this resonate with anyone?
because when our attention is so interest based and highly focused, losing passions can be devastating and detrimental to our wellbeing.
Does this resonate with anyone?
Yes. When I don’t feel passion for my interests anymore then I feel I lost part of myself.
AwkwardKid said:I get that. I hate being interrupted when doing a task and try to get rid of the person who interrupted me so I can continue. Usually my wife.
As do I, being monotropic is also the reason why I find one to one interactions much more natural and meaningful than group conversations.
Currently, I have been scrolling other social media platforms on my phone for ages because I have found a monotropic ‘hook’ and switching attention tunnels to other tunnels takes effort (it’s the reason why we often experience inertia which is difficulty starting, stopping or changing tasks).
Another aspect of being monotropic is the fact that my attention is focused more intensely on a few things, which means that if I don’t do something as soon as I am interested in it I am very unlikely to come back to it. Moreover, it means that I might get bored if I am not interested in my passions for a while whereas non autistic people may develop other hobbies, my passions give me purpose in life. A good indicator of mental health changes or distress for me is if my dedicated interests no longer pull me in like a magnet, I think one of the reasons why the prevalence of depression is so high in our community is because when our attention is so interest based and highly focused, losing passions can be devastating and detrimental to our wellbeing.
You are very welcome!
I get that. I hate being interrupted when doing a task and try to get rid of the person who interrupted me so I can continue. Usually my wife.
I also binge watch stuff on you tube: wheeler dealer episode, old crimewatch episodes, train videos.
Thank you.
If you want to know more about monotropism, this website collates everything you could ever want to know:
https://monotropism.org/