Worried about daughter's new obsession

Hello, I’m new!

I’m Mum of a  gorgeous teenage daughter who was diagnosed Aspergers when she was 14 , she's now 17, following an eating problem. I often thought she was before she was diagnosed, from a very young age I knew she had certain difficulties, that she might be on the autism spectrum and overall she received very good care, has recovered from her eating disorder and is on the whole doing very well. I’m glad we were listened to.

The reason I’ve joined this forum is because I’m a bit worried. The reason being my daughter has always had seemingly random obsessions (some make her happy, and some, like her issues with food, don’t) and recently her focus seems to be, and I don’t know where she got this from, on HIV/Aids. She is very indignant about how people treat people with HIV and about the wrong beliefs people have on how it can be passed on. Of course it’s good for her to be aware of these things, I’m all for people educating themselves for the sake of their health and the health of others, and it’s good she knows things now about a very stigmatized illness and therefore if she comes across someone in her life who is effected she is unlikely to be iignorant and insensitive as some people unfortunately might be. The only issue I have is that I don’t know where this has come from and I think it’s a rather unhealthy thing for someone to be intensely focussed on, but when she becomes obsessed there’s not a lot  anyone  can do – is this a common sort of thing? Does anyone have any advice, or can throw any  light on where this might have sprung from?Any advice would be so appreciated.

Thank you,

YetAnotherMummy

Parents
  • Obsessions can bring great joy and happiness, not just anxiety. People with Aspergers don't tend to derive happiness from socialising, so spend more time alone, preoccupied with their own interests. There is nothing wrong with this, and unless the obsession is causing more anxiety than comfort, or it is dangerous, I think having an interest is good; it is far better than having no interest, which could lead to depression.

    When I was a teenager I was obsessed with babies and child development. I read parenting magazines (Mother and Baby, Practical Parenting, Pregnancy and Birth etc) from cover to cover, and watched kids TV, like the Teletubbies and Tweenies!. Yes, this obsession was strange for a 15 year old girl, but it made me happy, although it did get a bit out of hand when I took to following people with babies through the high-street.

    I was also obsessed with the actress Kate Winslet, and got really interested in babies only once she had a child. I watched every single film she was ever in, and this all began with my Titanic obsession.

    Now, age 26, I am no longer interested in the above, and my interests are more varied, although I still enjoy learning facts, and get very interested in certain subjects from time to time. My last big obsession was psychoanalysis, and this obsession ended a couple of years ago.

Reply
  • Obsessions can bring great joy and happiness, not just anxiety. People with Aspergers don't tend to derive happiness from socialising, so spend more time alone, preoccupied with their own interests. There is nothing wrong with this, and unless the obsession is causing more anxiety than comfort, or it is dangerous, I think having an interest is good; it is far better than having no interest, which could lead to depression.

    When I was a teenager I was obsessed with babies and child development. I read parenting magazines (Mother and Baby, Practical Parenting, Pregnancy and Birth etc) from cover to cover, and watched kids TV, like the Teletubbies and Tweenies!. Yes, this obsession was strange for a 15 year old girl, but it made me happy, although it did get a bit out of hand when I took to following people with babies through the high-street.

    I was also obsessed with the actress Kate Winslet, and got really interested in babies only once she had a child. I watched every single film she was ever in, and this all began with my Titanic obsession.

    Now, age 26, I am no longer interested in the above, and my interests are more varied, although I still enjoy learning facts, and get very interested in certain subjects from time to time. My last big obsession was psychoanalysis, and this obsession ended a couple of years ago.

Children
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