Those with ADHD. What's a hobby that never gets boring?
Those who have ADHD, self diagnosed or diagnosed by a psychologist.
1. What is your hobby that never gets boring?
2. Does it help you control your thrill seeking?
I asked my SO but they were unable to think of one with the criteria "never gets boring". Hobbies tend to come and go over the course of a few weeks or months, but SO advised they usually come back to the ones that are most interesting.
Walking with a objective
For now the app off-grid is my drug
It is hard to get started but ot gets so addictive once you get in the mid game
I now walk like 20km every day
Studying - because there’s always new interesting things to learn about.
Yes - having a goal/focus helps me control my thrill-seeking (sort of). When I get bored that’s when I indulge in self-destructive sensation seeking behaviour, so having something that I can allow myself to get fixated on really does help.
Programming, anime, reading.
Try improv. Everything is new all the time by design, you want to do a good job so everyone has fun, and sometimes you perform in front of an audience.
Running. It takes a bit to get into it but it makes you tired and is pleasantly distracting, at least for me.
Cyber Security
It's like chess, but with much more complex game mechanics and it never gets boring.
Every time I'm attacked with zero days I freakin' love it. I love finding out how the exploit works, to reverse engineer it and to implement counter measurements for my network of evolutionary AI agents.
Not really diagnosed, but there are textbook definition signs there.
1. Coding.
2. I try to have my laptop with me all the time, Internet capabilities, and hopping on so I can code which helps me with my anxiety and autism.
1.) Reading and learning, not always at the same time. I just love to read, I hyperfocus right away and can get lost for pretty much unlimited time. Other hobbies have upsides and downsides, I do love games and swimming, but... there are days I'm not into that. I'm ALWAYS going to read, every single day. Fiction, non-fiction, I just love to read.
2.) If you replace "thrill" with "sensation" then I'd say... sort of? I tend to mix things, I also love music so I'll read while listening to my jazz and classical collection, and that combination really does it for me. The tiny buzzing part of my brain that would still be left when reading focuses on the music, and it's a complete experience.
I used to then combine that with snacking, but that became problematic in a HURRY.
Oh and I was diagnosed many years ago, never had a reason to believe the Rx was wrong, I'm a pretty typical case.
Walking/hiking/running outdoors. Never ever gets boring for me. After a few hours I feel a good tired.
Botany. Install iNaturalist and start researching and tagging stuff. It gets you outside more, gets you excited about places you’ve been 1000 times and gets you wondering what new thing you’ll see next. Start with anything that is flowering. Flowers are the best and easiest way to identify most plants. Seed pod and cones are the next easiest. You’ll be familiar with most of the things you’ve wondered about in a couple weeks or months and hungry for more.
For me, playing guitar. When I was grinding through problems sets in undergrad in my room, I’d have my guitar in my hand running scales or whatever to keep my hands busy. Now I do something similar while watching TV. The best teacher I had told me that his teacher told him when he started out that “the best way to get good at guitar is to watch a lot of baseball games”
1. Browsing hacker news, evidently.
2. You could say it ‘helps’ me ‘control’ my inclination to do anything else whatsoever. Piles of dishes and laundry surround me.
chess - no joke, research has shown it is one of the most effective ways to stay focused
Consuming the most random novel information that exists is I think the only one for me haha
There's no such thing sadly, at least not for me. Been looking for a hobby for several years no, nothing sticks.
The only thing that I actually continuously enjoy throughout the years is helping other people. Guess there's a lot of truth in "There is more happiness in giving than there is in receiving".
Photography.
1. It forces you outside during daylight hours when the light is the best.
2. Taking a great shot will give you a shot of that dopamine you’re gunning for.
Magic: the Gathering. I personally know dozens (hundreds, probably) of people who started playing 20+ years ago and are still playing today.
Some hobbies I've had in the past:
* Woodworking
* Piano
* Videography/video editing
* Drawing
* Martial arts
* Running
But the best advice I have for you is to accept that your interests will change, often suddenly. Try to avoid spending a large amount of money to get started in your hobby (don't buy a brand new top of the line camera, borrow an old one). Try to look for small pockets of success inside the bigger hobby so that you can think "I learned a song" instead of "I never learned piano". Try to leave your hobbies in a way that you can pick them back up again. Keep a few notes and information about what you were doing with the hobby so that if the interest strikes you can get going again quickly. If you got some tools/equipment, keep hold of it in a box/container that keeps it all together.
origami. i think it is because i am someone who would fidget by nature but learned to suppress it. when i started origami it seems like that part of me found and outlet and now it is part of me
i have been making the same origami swan for over 8 years and the repetitiveness is very calming. it has also been an amazing experience of figuring out lots of small improvements over time
Of all things, rowing. It's a way to force myself to keep a consistent exercise routine because others depend on me to show up for each session, and given that my club has active members who are decades older than myself, I expect to continue doing it for as long as I can. It's especially great in a coxed boat with an experienced cox, it feels like the microphone wire is plugged directly into your brainstem so you completely outsource your executive functioning for two hours and respond to every call without even consciously parsing it.
And if you're after an adrenaline rush, a close race can teach you a whole new meaning of maximum heart rate.
Since I don't do it as a job anymore definitely coding.
Whenever I have a weird phase, sad, hyper whatever. Coding is my outlet
1. Sadly, nothing. I crave one that is a consistent source of interest. However, I find creative writing the closest. Short stories are acheivable and finishable before my passions wane; and a new, different short story feels "fresh" enough that it tricks me into continuing. I also like that it's more possible to pick up stuff after putting it down, in some cases. However, I will still drift from it and do other things from time to time.
2. I realise I enjoy the research part of a new hobby more than the hobby and I set a timer in my calendar so that if I still feel passionate about trying something in a months time I can spend some small amount of money on starting. I have never ended up spending the money :)
Running has done great things for my mental health. The physical part almost seems secondary.
1. Sailboat racing.
2. Absolutely not.
I've never been diagnosed with ADHD but I regularly switch hobbies so I felt my comment was relevant.
One thing that stuck with me over the years is cooking.
There's an never ending stream of things to try and explore, many different cultures having a totally different approach to it so it easy to not have it becoming boring.
Since you have to eat regularly it's easy to do it regularly, and it somehow helpful in the whole social game
Music production. There is always something new to learn or play with. It can be expensive but its so rewarding to me.
+1 for music production. Endlessly diverting, and not nearly as expensive as it used to be. With a good laptop and a keyboard and a guitar or two you can accomplish stuff that was impossible 20 years ago in the most advanced studio on Earth.
Road cycling. Reasonably safe when you do it properly, but still offers enough thrills to get your juices flowing, and keeps you in great shape.
Rock climbing!
I can't find the study right now, but I remember reading an ADHD treatment efficacy study, and was surprised to see rock climbing being compared to therapy and amphetamines. It works really well!
It's a documented treatment, it's fun, gets you exercise, and allows you to solve difficult and new novel problems every week.
Lifting heavy objects and returning them to their original place. (lifting weights!)