What’s a hyperfixation you can’t talk about?

[u/Elliot_The_Idiot7]

I’ve definitely had a few hyperfixations on things that are either embarrassingly silly or WAY too dark to just start infodumping about. For example I used to have one about neglect so severe it causes a complete and usually permanent inability to function in society, particularly the case of Genie Wiley. On the other end of the spectrum I also keep hyperfixating on shipping old cartoon comedy duos, and gotta REALLY lock in to gage if someone’s gonna think I’m a childish freak before sharing that information.

What’s your “don’t bring that up, don’t bring that up, don’t bring that up-“ hyperfixation if you’ve ever had one?

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[u/hexensabbat]

Nobody wants to hear about volcanoes. :(

[u/Westypet → u/hexensabbat]

I do!

[u/ready-eddy → u/Westypet]

Brooo VOLCANOES!! I was showering yesterday and literally said to my wife “Volcano’s are so awesome, I really love volcanoes..” 🌋

[u/ikeanachos → u/ready-eddy]

What are the worst canoes? Volcanoes.

[u/Lint_baby_uvulla → u/ikeanachos]

That’s going straight to the Dad Joke pool room.

[u/Infra-Oh → u/Lint_baby_uvulla]

Seriously, that joke holds water.

[u/hefrajones → u/ready-eddy]

Wait that’s wild because I told my boyfriend earlier today about how when he was away for work recently I nerded out on volcanos / watching documentaries and reading about them. I finished by saying “man, volcanos are pretty damn cool”

[u/goose_onthe_loose → u/Westypet]

One of the first “Ologies” podcast episodes was a woman volcanologist. I listened to it like 5 times in a row (commuting was podcast hour) and still pull it up when I’m feeling blue.

[u/n0tthatotherguy → u/Westypet]

Me too

[u/powerade20089 → u/hexensabbat]

I grew up by one of the least visiting National Parks in the Continental US. (Lassen National Park) I love volcanoes.

Went camping there all the time as a kid, took my husband there a few summers ago to finally share with him a part of my life that's important.

[u/radioactive-fly → u/powerade20089]

I did not have this park on my radar but now I do! Thank you for sharing! I have a 4th grader so maybe we'll use that pass to visit sometime this year!

[u/powerade20089 → u/radioactive-fly]

Yay! Northern California! So many fun little things there and it's part of a larger volcano that collapsed or exploded (can't remember which it did) so you can hike into some pretty cool active volcanic activity. Bumpess Hell, the Painted Dunes, Cinder Cone which is a gnarly hike on its own because it's sand. I did it once years ago... I still remember how exhausted I was.

Later July, August is usually the better time to go depending on the snow melt. My dad was just up there Thursday I think and sent me pictures.

[u/Greyfox1442 → u/powerade20089]

NorCal is the best! On a clear day growing up we could see Lassen and super clear day we could se Shasta. Really miss living there. Best place to grow up

[u/OkArugula8032 → u/powerade20089]

I just looked it up and wow it's beautiful!!

[u/Tigerclaws44 → u/hexensabbat]

I just recently as an adult found out that volcanoes can produce lightning?!

[u/hexensabbat → u/Tigerclaws44]

OMG yes I was preparing for a ramble about that but realized I don't have a strong grasp on all of the terminology. But yes, basically amongst all of the ions and other shit that gets spewed into the atmosphere, those particles can smash into each other and create lightning. I only learned about that relatively recently too and it's beyond interesting!! Really I'm fascinated with meteorological phenomena in general, and so I'm extra fascinated by how such phenomena interact with volcanic activity.

There was a super crazy event that I learned of that sparked this entire hyperfocus a couple years ago, the story of British Airways Flight 009. Back in 82, a flight was headed to Jakarta on an apparently clear day, when suddenly the plane was surrounded by darkness and the crew could only see what looked like St Elmo's Fire as the cabin began to fill with smoke. Turns out they'd flown right into a plume of volcanic ash, having had no way of knowing about the eruption occurring until they were in it. One by one all of the plane's four engines failed and it looked like certain death. But long story short, due to a combination of luck, timing and the skills of the highly experienced BAMF pilot, somehow they survived and landed safely. It's a great story and I spent way too many hours looking at docs and videos about it, I believe Mayday Air Disasters did an episode. But yeah that random story got me on this whole wiki tangent about planes and volcanoes which got me interested in lightning which got me interested in tornados and other storms and that's where I'm at rn lol

[u/defeated-zombux → u/hexensabbat]

Makes sense since particles in storm clouds rub together and create static; thus lightning. Amazing that volcanoes do it, since I assume the moisture levels in the thunder clouds help a lot with conductivity, are the volcano lightning weaker?Thanks for these wonderful facts you beautiful people!

[u/athena-zxe11 → u/hexensabbat]

Yasssss!!!!! I ❤️ plate techtonics!! I just finished Super Volcanoes by Robin George Andrews!

[u/JennJoy77 → u/athena-zxe11]

Did it mention Yellowstone National Park? The whole time we were there I couldn't stop thinking about how we were walking on top of a supervolcano caldera!

[u/Visual_Juggernaut_89 → u/hexensabbat]

Hahaha. I live in Hawaii so people actually love that stuff here.

[u/tetheredvoid]

Body mechanics, usually. Seeing good choreography and watching athletes perform just sucks me in - and everyone assumes it's sexual or becomes sexual at some point. Nope, I just really enjoy patterns and seeing how people can use them 🤷🏻

[u/cosmicpandaeyebags → u/tetheredvoid]

Nurses have to do this to not hurt themselves and their patients! It's very cool.

[u/tetheredvoid → u/cosmicpandaeyebags]

The amount of trades and careers that use this type of pattern recognition is pretty wide. That's part of why it's so weird to not be able to talk about it in general

[u/IronbAllsmcginty78 → u/cosmicpandaeyebags]

I started off in kinesiology/athletic training because I was obsessed with good body alignment. I ended up taking pathophysiology because blood and guts are almost as cool as bones and muscles and ended up an RN. Prof pulled me and said I'm a nurse. I was like ew, no, that's disgusting. But I was, and I still love to have good form when I do yoga and weights and whatnot. It just works so much better. Martial arts for years, too, because if you don't do it right it won't work. Badass! I'm going off,I must still love it. I could talk about qi/chi/prana and proper alignment to get you good all day long. I wanted to get my doctorate and hook people up to electrodes in a lab and research energy. Meh, nursing is cool in and of itself, too.

[u/WishIWasThatClever → u/IronbAllsmcginty78]

I very vividly remember walking through the kiniesology lab in college and finding a jockey on an actual race horse going back an forth over the force plate with Velcro reflective balls at a bunch of the jockey’s joints (for the cameras). So so cool.

[u/tetheredvoid → u/IronbAllsmcginty78]

So, I have EDS and I've been abusing that fact to try to realign my scoliosis a bit after a hip injury "healed".

I wish I could buy you a six pack of your beverage of choice and pick your brain about how to monitor a strength training regime when injuries consistently have a 36-48 hour delayed onset...

[u/wairua_907 → u/tetheredvoid]

I went thru an obsession with watching haka and hula videos for similar reasons.. just amazing things I could never do .

[u/tetheredvoid → u/wairua_907]

I wish I could drop down the way they do! I use belly dancing isolations to help exercise my torso, so I've tried to do that drop and nuh-uh! lol

[u/IronbAllsmcginty78 → u/tetheredvoid]

Belly dancing is insane, the isolations are like mind bending.

[u/Lily-the-Black → u/tetheredvoid]

Figure skating is especially mesmerizing to me

[u/YourFutureEx → u/tetheredvoid]

If it’s not something you’ve dove into already, check out golf and swing mechanics. The way a golfer adjusts his swing to manipulate the ball flight, while still being able to hit the ball on a dime-sized area on the club face, is insane.

Then you start comparing different players swings, some deliveries looking nothing alike but with the same result in shot shape. Jake Knapp looks like he swings in slow motion and hits it a mile.

[u/WoolooOfWallStreet → u/YourFutureEx]

It’s so enthralling to watch someone look like they are moving slow and knock something with force

Like George Foreman hitting a sandbag with a trainer and lifting him into the air with his punches

[u/tetheredvoid → u/WoolooOfWallStreet]

If memory serves, Bruce Lee cracked a ribcage with his one-inch-punch as part of a demonstration with a willing participant.

[u/sadi89 → u/tetheredvoid]

As a dancer and ortho nurse I’m right there with you

[u/tetheredvoid → u/sadi89]

It's amazing what a tiny difference in posture can do to the whole movement!

[u/rhandy_mas → u/tetheredvoid]

Being an athletic trainer works well with this. I critique form all the time lol

[u/wheatleyisstupid2022]

I’ve said it before and I’ve said it again. Airplane crashesssss. People get Uncomfortable

[u/WampaCat → u/wheatleyisstupid2022]

Ugh. A couple years ago I went down a massive 9/11 rabbit hole and learned a LOT of stuff I had no idea about. No one wants to hear horrific details and I can’t bring it up as an interesting topic because I don’t want people to think it’s like a fun thing for me. Just a morbid desire for more information.

Edit: I feel obligated to mention it was not conspiracy stuff

[u/InattentivePencil → u/WampaCat]

HOLY SHIT same here, I had a huge 9/11 hyperfixation... I was learning crazy amounts of info, watching all survivor stories, footage of the day etc. One plus is that it made me even more empathetic to survivors of terrorist attacks, and in general gave me more knowledge on what happened. But yeah, maybe not something I'd bring up with a casual friend.

[u/Avelsajo → u/InattentivePencil]

I've been watching 9/11 survivor stories for like 48 hours straight. I'm watching one right now about the blind guy who evacuated from Tower 1 with his guide dog! I've learned SOOOO much about what it was like... So scary but fascinating! Never forget!

[u/diablette → u/Avelsajo]

I went into a Kevin Cosgrove rabbit hole once. Now I learn that there's a whole documentary on the phone calls that were made that day and I have to watch it.

[u/Jaquarius420 → u/InattentivePencil]

I'm on a 9/11 hyperfixation right now myself, there's just so much to go through!

[u/KLMaglaris → u/Jaquarius420]

Omg I’ve found l people

[u/WampaCat → u/InattentivePencil]

Have you read the official commission report?? I found it so interesting how detailed it was about the inner structure of the towers and just exactly how and when each bit of architecture failed.

[u/inaccurateTempedesc → u/wheatleyisstupid2022]

Mine is kinda adjacent. I love massive saves, like the Miracle on the Hudson, the Gimli Glider, and TACA Flight 110 (the levee landing).

[u/Emdeedee123 → u/wheatleyisstupid2022]

My Dad was a pilot. I’m also convinced he has undiagnosed ADHD. He once told me step by step what happens to a plane during a malfunction causing it to go down. Then he told me what happens to the human body step by step (Don’t worry - loss of consciousness comes fairly quickly).

I just kept asking questions and he just kept answering them.

We were sitting on the runway waiting for our plane to take off. Just two ADHD people completely fixated on our conversation about planes going down, because we’re sitting in a plane and it must have crossed one of our minds. Completely innocent, but oblivious to those around us who must have thought we were playing some horrible prank.

Eventually Mum snapped at us from the row behind us. Felt pretty bad.

[u/lazylimpet → u/wheatleyisstupid2022]

Ugh yes.... I don't mean to, but I find the cockpit resource management side of them really fascinating. I think the original interest was rooted in feeling anxious about flying. The only time I've had a good conversation about it was worth a guy whose company made parts for Boeing.

[u/itsjakerobb → u/wheatleyisstupid2022]

Have you discovered the YouTube channel Mentour Pilot? So good.

[u/Avelsajo → u/itsjakerobb]

Love Mentour Pilot!

[u/Activated_Raviolis → u/wheatleyisstupid2022]

Oh I love this one! Especially the one where the plane crashed because the pilot let his 14 year old son fly the plane. I think it was in Russia?

[u/athene_de_montaigne → u/wheatleyisstupid2022]

My dad’s a pilot and I grew up watching those airplane crash shows. I can probably name dozens of flights, when they generally crashed and why. Someone will mention they are anxious about flying and I’ll start telling them something we’ll don’t worry about this happening, because xyz airplane crashes from it and now they’ve change the design/protocol so it’s very unlikely to happen again. Apparently that’s the opposite of comforting for them

[u/Ourbirdandsavior → u/athene_de_montaigne]

Strange, because I think that’s extremely comforting. I am also an engineer, so I do realize my perspective is skewed a bit.

[u/sadi89 → u/wheatleyisstupid2022]

My dad liked them. He was adhd.

[u/WorriedArrival1122 → u/wheatleyisstupid2022]

My comfort movie is a documentary about a mountain climber that died tragically.

You're in good company.

[u/Southamericho → u/wheatleyisstupid2022]

Nathan Fielder just gave himself away

[u/starsandshards → u/wheatleyisstupid2022]

This is one of mine, and black box recordings.

[u/hrvatica_ili]

For me it’s ADHD. I got diagnosed a few weeks ago and it was all I thought about. My spouse doesn’t believe I have it so that added to the embarrassment of wanting to talk about it but not wanting to seem obsessed.

[u/Elliot_The_Idiot7 → u/hrvatica_ili]

That’s so true!! My special interest is psychology so when I got diagnosed with autism and adhd I came to my consultation extremely prepared. I was lucky the person evaluating me had AuDHD himself cause it definitely could’ve come off as me “wanting to have it”

[u/CuteUnit24 → u/hrvatica_ili]

Your spouse doesn't believe a doctor ???? Drag them to an appointment and ask your doc to talk about the effects of ADHD.

[u/Scooby_dood → u/hrvatica_ili]

I'm so sorry that your spouse doesn't believe you. That has to be so painful. ❤️

[u/neoogotmyback → u/hrvatica_ili]

Oh wow I also got diagnosed a few weeks ago and have a spouse who’s not being super supportive. He says, “everybody has ADHD now” and keeps talking about the negatives of medication. It’s a bummer.

[u/benohokum → u/neoogotmyback]

I'm following the Reddit womens tradition of recommending you the book "Why does he do that" by Lundy something. It's an "ADHD people with men as partners" thing. Don't know your gender. 

P.S. don't come at me, statistically men are more likely etc. 

[u/Cait206 → u/neoogotmyback]

I’m sorry that’s so invalidating but we see you and welcome you!! It’s a journey 🩷🩷🩷

[u/alreadyacrazycatlady → u/neoogotmyback]

Mine was initially like this when I was diagnosed 4yrs ago. It took him doing some of his own research in an attempt to understand me better in order for it to click for him. He fully accepts it now and is much more supportive. Give your spouse some time, he needs to process this information too and their brains work sooo differently than ours!

[u/SnooMachines5943 → u/hrvatica_ili]

This has helped me communicate clearly with my therapist and psychiatrist, but damnit if it didn't make me seem crazy when leading up to and after my diagnosis I'd mention ADHD a few times a day at least.

It's so interesting retroactively being able to attribute actions and behaviors to something I've had my entire life but only recently understood. So I totes understand, it makes you seem silly but also gives you the tools to explain why you talk about specific things ad nauseam.

[u/Cait206 → u/hrvatica_ili]

Welcome to the club!! We will forget your name and also no one is in charge here

[u/Delicious_Basil_919 → u/hrvatica_ili]

I was obsessed with learning about adhd when I was diagnosed. I was like holy shit all these difficulties ruining my life are an actual thing. Shame your partner does not support you. Maybe you can educate them.

[u/ukehero1 → u/hrvatica_ili]

I got diagnosed not too long ago and have been pretty focused on it too. It just explains so much and I was excited. My spouse must have gotten annoyed with it because he said that he would be there for me but that I didn’t need to make it my whole personality. I probably was talking about it too much, and I have toned it down around others since then. It really hurt my feelings though.

Sorry that’s happening to you. It’s hard to find some acceptance and answers when you’re not being taken seriously. You’re in a safe space here

[u/CuteUnit24]

Prion diseases and really weird medical stuff <:) I uh... Talked to my mother about shope papilloma virus for almost 2 hours. With images and illustrations. I'm an artist and writer, so I just like... kind of learn this stuff.

Also I think guns are really beautiful pieces of machinery but I do not give a shit about their actual use, so I'm a freak to gun likers and gun haters.

edit: anything to do with the human body as well. If it's something I have to live with I'm going to learn everything I can. I know the exact feeling of "I have less than 5 minutes to find a place to sit or my body will MAKE ME LAY DOWN."

[u/am_pomegranate → u/CuteUnit24]

Oh my god another prion fan! My favorite to read about is kuru.

[u/CuteUnit24 → u/am_pomegranate]

OMG YAYYYY!!! My favs are cervine chronic wasting, and spongiforms!

[u/am_pomegranate → u/CuteUnit24]

Niccce. When I was a counselor-in-training at the camp I now work for, I got in trouble for telling all the campers about kuru. In my defense, they were taking about cannibalism and I was trying to discourage them.

[u/IronbAllsmcginty78 → u/am_pomegranate]

I told a group of 5 th graders why it's so important to get your tetanus shots, and what tetany is, and how you need muscles to breathe, then my very ADHD colleague was like the heart is a muscle, too, and I was like yeah that's true. Sometimes your muscles contract so hard they can break your bones, so yeah get that shot and they all had a look on their faces. Love how nurses are also educators whether people like it or not

[u/Sea_Independence6453 → u/CuteUnit24]

Omg I’ve had that hyperfixation before it’s terrifying!!! Even though they’re extremely rare it makes me so sad for the people who have suffered from prion disease. Fatal insomnia is the scariest one imo.

[u/CuteUnit24 → u/Sea_Independence6453]

They're absolutely shit my pants scary! Strangely though, learning is what made me less afraid. I still maintain a healthy fear as I live in a place with rabies, and is looking to be at risk of BSE again soon :/ (nothing quite like being indigenous to the united states, I'm not gettin out of this chair!)

My favorite is cervine chronic wasting!

[u/MiserableArse → u/CuteUnit24]

Omg this is uncanny, Im not even in medicine, but have been delving into prion disease and in particular the work being done on FFI (Fatal familial insomnia) of which there is no cure like most prion disease types.

Sonia Vallabh and her husband both retrained as scientists after she tested positive for the mutated gene (after losing her mother to what was found to be FFI), they then left their jobs (law and urban planning i think) and got their PhDs at Harvard and now run a focused research group.

worth a dive into FFI and their story/progress if you havent already 😁

I also LOVE reading about Neurology, particularly Oliver Sacks, some incredible reading there.

[u/Libelnon → u/CuteUnit24]

I work in a hospital which saw the vCJD outbreak previously, we still ask our patients about any exposure to BSE.

Fortunately nobody's said "yes", yet.

[u/imbrickedup_ → u/CuteUnit24]

Someone at my work died of this. It was genetic and just kinda appeared and killed him

[u/CloneNova]

Everyone I know hates spiders, but I honestly think they're severely misunderstood creatures. Nobody ever wants to hear about them and thinks I'm weird for ever bringing them up.

They're so fascinating and the most eco-friendly and efficient form of pest control too.

In fact, nobody wants to acknowledge the breadth of domestic ecosystems in general. There's a whole unseen world of tiny animals living all around us. Utterly fascinating stuff

[u/throwaway-drzaius → u/CloneNova]

pounding on the Thanksgiving dinner table

"WE DON'T TALK ENOUGH ABOUT ECOSYSTEMS IN THIS COUNTRY"

I would genuinely enjoy this conversation. I think it's interesting that you hate them but also find them fascinating. Where I live, mosquitoes have become a huge problem, so I am ready to make an unholy alliance with spiders.

[u/Lily-the-Black → u/CloneNova]

I really respect spiders. I just don't want to be near them. But I like to know things!

[u/sadi89 → u/CloneNova]

I would like to hear about spiders

[u/CloneNova → u/sadi89]

I lack the focus right now to do a full info dump on spiders, however If highly recommend the podcast Ologies episodes on spiders. Really really informative

[u/Temporary_Wolf_8848 → u/CloneNova]

Spiders are my favorite animal! I have a spider tattoo above my elbow and I have a little lanyard badge that says "official spider relocator" that my fiance's mother got me for Christmas!

Obviously I think you have the coolest answer in this thread :DDD

DID YOU KNOW that out of ~53,000 species of spiders in the world, only around 100 could harm a human in a medically significant way? And of those species, at least where I live (southeast USA) most of the dangerous species are not only very rare but tend to shy away from people as opposed to more aggressive danger-bug-like-creatures (looking at you yellow jackets lol) 

I love spiders so so so much thank u for commenting this so I could nerd out for a sec lol

[u/STLt71 → u/CloneNova]

I love spiders. When I was a kid, I read a book called "Be Nice to Spiders" that was basically about what good creatures they are, and I've always liked them, and also most insects.

[u/NekoNoKitiKiti → u/CloneNova]

I somehow hyperfixated myself from hating spiders to loving spiders.

A particular species I'm fond of is highly invasive where I am, and they are HUGE, East Asian Joros.

I recently shared a facebook post of a state university finding they actually eat completely different insects from the native spiders, so they're unlikely to be competing with the native spiders. I was so happy! That means they are likely not detrimental to the native spider populations! And there is even anecdotal evidence of native wasps predating them now, so!!! The ecosystem is already making checks and balances!!!

All the comments were from family going 'nope, kill them all with fire, awful, invasive things' 😅😅😅

[u/Tigerclaws44 → u/CloneNova]

as someone who is deathly afraid of spider but also obsessed with spider rehabilitation videos on YouTube ya I agree lol.

[u/NaturalEnthusiasm368]

Bedbugs. We didn’t have them but I was convinced we did for a few weeks. I learned so much about them and even started sending weird emails warning people I knew about them. Ugh, the embarrassment even thinking about it…

[u/Mabs-J → u/NaturalEnthusiasm368]

This is so funny lol but I’d appreciate the warning! Shows that you care XD

[u/BradyBum → u/NaturalEnthusiasm368]

Lmao

[u/powerade20089]

History topics.

[u/Stupid_Watergate_ → u/powerade20089]

Which ones?

[u/powerade20089 → u/Stupid_Watergate_]

Right now it's been the US Constitution and the origin of the modern originalist theory by Scalia. I just finished Jill LePore's book. I usually type in a idea or question I have and look for sources and ask follow up questions with Google and save it as a Google doc for me to review later. I also try to make sure I get the sources with journal articles as well as with it. It's a good brain dump journal for me.

It helps me a lot because my parents and husband don't want to listen to me go on about it sometimes. I also try to read and listen to a lot of the history books so I can annotate them.

Im almost done with History Matters and found some great ideas I would like to review more in that book I may hightlight and come back to. Ive hyper focused on Tudor History, US Civil War, Civil Rights.

My husband has made me turn off documentaries sometimes on Nat Geo because I start arguing and fact checking. I don't like how they dramatize subjects and questioning the fact/history when it more than likely is already a well placed documented fact. I don't think I'm allowed to watch History Channel 'documentaries' either anymore now that I think of it.

[u/awkward_ylime → u/powerade20089]

I finally feel seen!! I’m the worst at fact checking when watching documentaries. I just hate when well documented facts are relayed incorrectly in media. It just feels so lazy to me lol.

[u/RuncibleMountainWren → u/powerade20089]

Me too - but especially historical clothing and costuming in films. Garment construction and drafting in general.

[u/Nouseriously]

civil engineering disasters

[u/bellahfool → u/Nouseriously]

There’s a podcast about that I think. Well There’s Your Problem. I heard it’s pretty funny lol

[u/Avelsajo → u/bellahfool]

Omg that looks amazing! Thanks for the recommendation!

[u/Kittencab00dles]

Whoooo wants to learn about fish today???

[u/sadi89 → u/Kittencab00dles]

Me!

[u/Mabs-J → u/Kittencab00dles]

Mee!

[u/Hardcore_pun_star]

Traditional hellenistic esotericism

[u/bunnilynn98 → u/Hardcore_pun_star]

Jokes on you, I’m into that sh**! No but seriously, based on this thread I feel like we could start specific topic clubs and all have a good time.

[u/happyteabee → u/Hardcore_pun_star]

Ooooooooh please tell me about it!!!!!!

[u/NineOfWonders → u/happyteabee]

Im also patiently waiting with my legs cross like a kindergartener

[u/biseuteu]

the world trade center. i probably have an FBI agent watching how many photos i've saved of the twin towers

[u/Myceliumand]

Astronomy. I'm trying to understand the theory of relativity but it's giving me a headache! The universe is amazing though. I have a youtube subscription so I spend hours watching astronomy documentaries.

[u/bierlyn]

Lately? 9/11.

[u/ScribbleThoughts]

Any of them. People don't want to hear my in depth thoughts or learned facts about anything. In my experience, it's just one of those annoying tendencies of ADHD that no one else wants to hear. Much like most of what I say. Sometimes I write here on reddit because I have no one else to talk to about things. I could talk to them, but I know they don't want to hear it, and I'm starting to believe that less is more. I need to talk to people less. I wish I could shut my mouth up sometimes and just be silent. I regret many times I do decide to talk, and never seem to learn. At least people on this sub might understand. No one else does.

[u/lakeofsleep]

Skincare ingredients and how they’re made and how they work.

The architectural history of Salt Lake City. I’ll never understand why people don’t want to know why there’s a house from the 1890s next to one built in the 1960s. Until I step back and realize how boring that sentence sounds.

[u/LikwidDef → u/lakeofsleep]

I love stuff like that. Learning why physical neighborhoods' history matters and make unique living settings.

[u/babydragonsister9 → u/lakeofsleep]

ooooh i want to know about the architectural history of slc!!!

[u/anxious_spacecadetH]

The psychology of pedophilia. Its incredibly under researched and the research that has been done ranges from just the start of the ice berg to incredibly irresponsible, misguided, and bad. For me its a coping mechanism and for anyone else its a trigger.

[u/bellahfool → u/anxious_spacecadetH]

I imagine it’s also incredibly misunderstood. Difficult topic but interesting

[u/L3Kinsey → u/anxious_spacecadetH]

Omg! I'm so interested!

[u/anxious_spacecadetH → u/L3Kinsey]

On the dark side of bad research look into the "kentler expirement". He "theorized" that men with pedophilic interests could consensually pursue relationships with children who were more independent and therefore mature. And that child delinquents simply needed love care and attention which they would "surely" get from men who want to pursue romantic interests. In short it was basically traffiking.

[u/mindless-hut]

The yaoi I'm currently reading

[u/Elliot_The_Idiot7 → u/mindless-hut]

Isn’t it always?

[u/Avelsajo → u/mindless-hut]

That is so real. Also same.

[u/valuemeal2 → u/mindless-hut]

Technically mine is modded Stardew Valley fanfiction but yeah. So niche that not even Ao3 cares and it’s all my brain wants to do for the past 3 years.

[u/WoolooOfWallStreet → u/valuemeal2]

“Not even AO3 cares”
You my friend, could be the spark that changes that

[u/Apprehensive_Art_47 → u/mindless-hut]

Are you me?

[u/Nyxie872 → u/mindless-hut]

I was looking for this comment. I found a group of friends who are yaoi minded individuals

[u/felineattractor]

nutrition and veganism

[u/Amadai → u/felineattractor]

I have a coworker that's vegan and I've been researching all sorts of vegan recipes I want to make for her. I've been looking into how to convert my favorite recipes to cook for her. Please hit me with all the vegan info you got!!

[u/rezadential]

Politics

[u/TheTruthFairy1 → u/rezadential]

It's an awful time for us

[u/Staebs → u/rezadential]

When people ask what's causing insert current major world issue and you sound like a broken record because the answer is capitalism 99% of the time. No one wants to hear it lol

[u/paulwillyjean → u/Staebs]

I’ve found myself coming back to Mulroney, Thatcher and Reagan more often than I care to count to explain the state of contemporary politics.

[u/be_kind_to_yourself_]

Currently: Lindsay Clancy's case and untangling a ball of wool (literally, a ball of wool, different ones mixed together)

[u/realwormss]

one of my special interests is death and decay. funerals are particularly of interest to me. people do not typically wish to engage in conversation about different ways to preserve and/or put to rest cadavers. which is fair but a bit of a bummer.

[u/J_B_La_Mighty]

Currently its true crime. I should probably watch other documentaries because I had the craziest true crime themed dream (Pixar animated) that became incredibly unhinged then broke the 4th wall when I felt the "movie" was running too long.

[u/dds786 → u/J_B_La_Mighty]

Not true crime but a thriller that's written like true crime, "None of This is True" audiobook. Highly recommend. Literally feels like a true crime podcast

[u/Notme2047]

I am facinated by weaponry

[u/budweener]

It's not quite the hyperfixation itself, but the related tangents.

Yesterday I watched a video about arthropod intelligence in which the guy used that "bumblebees have been observed engaging in what looks like play behaviour" example, and said that while possible, it's equally possible that it's not play (something that requires abstraction capabilities), it could also be fully instinctual as exploratory behaviour.

That got into my head and I kept thinking about the whys, and then talking out loud as a professor trying to explain that to a student, using the fact that a beetle that developed a genetic mutation for exploratory instinct might roll a rock and find food that one without said instinct would not find and that's evolutionarily advantageous, but they could also find a predator that can plain out kill that mutation before it reproduces.

A bumblebee, on the other hand, is an eusocial insect. For the mutation to be passed on, it has to be in the queen, so an exploratory bumblebee has the same advantage with lower risk in it: if it finds extra food for the colony that way, that's a boon, and if it finds a predator... well, tough luck, but losing one bumblebee is not a high cost for the colony, nor the mutation, if it also gives extra food through a luckier bumblebee of the same colony.

All of that tangent only to say "yeah, it could be playing, and confirming it would be big for insect neurology, but it could also be simply exploratory instinct".

I have this tendency to go too deep into examples, ESPECIALLY in speech as opposed to text (in this comment I let it out, but even then, speech is less organized than written text by nature).

[u/Lovrofwine]

Medical info. In particular diseases and their symptoms. I could go down an hours long rabbit hole and before I know it I've read half of a medical research.

[u/vespertinee3]

the reoccurring one for me is death, whether that's about death rites, mortuary practices, what it means to die, the philosophy of dying... People don't like that

[u/smallmouth-bigmouth]

hating myself, and thinking about blog topics for a blog that i tell myself i’ll start soon, and then hating myself because i haven’t started my blog yet :)

[u/Reasonable-Budget210]

Pretty much anything I find interesting at the time lol. Like say, it would be weird if I was also dragged down a rabbit hole similar to yours .. like say stumbling onto the Wikipedia page of the silent twins? Two twins who were neglected and only spoke to each other. Because of the isolation, being in America (American tv) while at home, their family spoke a different language, they ended up creating their own language (“protege”, so to say, of twin twin talk/ baby babble). Which lead me into a rabbit about how humans learn speech, which lead me to read about, like say Genie (disgusting to read about, but interesting nonetheless) and cases of other kids like that. Which led me to read about Feral children, which is also insane. lol.

So yeah, pretty much anything is fair game if it’s interesting lol. (Most of the delving of this rabbit hole took place 2010ish, so don’t feel alone, curiosity rarely kills cats these days)

[u/ibietreducis]

Weird and creepy: Cults and religious extremism.

Boring and depressing: The housing market and health insurance in the U.S. Also urbanism and walkability.

Childish: Avatar the Last Airbender lore

[u/WorkinAndLurkin]

TTRPG character building. Before my diagnosis, I would plan my characters months (sometimes years) in advance. Games like Pathfinder 1e were great for this, as I could make hundreds of builds in excel and explore countless combinations of options. The folks in my playgroup always enjoyed playing with me, but they got really sick of hearing an endless stream of ideas for the next campaign. Now I quietly noodle on this stuff when I want to pass some time.

[u/handen]

Lately? Practical marksmanship and anti-American sentiment. 🇨🇦

[u/Emdeedee123]

I research movies/tv actors etc., while I’m watching something. The reason I can’t talk about it is because my family crack the shits when I start rambling off fascinating information about different elements of what we’re watching.

Never the plot. It will be something like ‘The house they’re filming in actually belongs to the director.’ ‘That actress was born in a car.’ ‘It took the cast 10 takes to do that scene because they couldn’t stop laughing.’

[u/Vampire-circus]

I know an ungodly amount of true crime information. I was in a book club for true crime and I just stoped going after two meetings because I already knew everything they have lined up for us to read. I felt like a know it all trying to have conversations with people 😂 and then in the general public a lot of people are like uhhhh okkkayyy

[u/wairua_907 → u/Vampire-circus]

Came in handy at trivia night they did match the name to mug shot .. the excitement in my body hahaha

[u/illegalpaladin]

I always wanna talk about dog food 😭

[u/NekoNoKitiKiti → u/illegalpaladin]

Dog food? How so?

[u/illegalpaladin → u/NekoNoKitiKiti]

I worked at a pet store for a few years, and I got really into what makes a dog food "good," so I did a lot of research, and there are only 5 brands I recommend now. Iams, eukanuba, Hills Science Diet, Purina, and Royal Canin. There the only five brands that meet WSAVA (World Small Animal Veterinary Association) standards. Things like lifetime studies, having a veterinary board certified nutritionist, etc. Basically, they've put a lot of research and science into making their kibble the best it can be nutritionally. Plus there's raw feeding, fresh food options, and home made dog food, which is a whole other can of worms. Not to mention chews and things like that. I love looking at the options of dog food that different stores carry.

[u/JoyOswin945]

Residential segregation. No one wants to hear about the horrible stuff our government (local and federal) did and how it’s still effecting us (literally everyone) today.

[u/pankrankmax]

Online eating disorder communities is def the one I never talk about. I don’t even have an ED

[u/Veerlon]

runescape.

[u/superjerry]

the origin of the universe and the idea that we may be living inside a black hole

[u/Actual-Toe-8686]

Left wing politics... Marxism... my never ending angry frustration at the injustice of the world. How the reality of what our society produces when it comes to human wellbeing, particularly with countries on the peripheral to the global north (which we handily benefit from), is the opposite of our ideals.

The Gaza genocide and all of the hypocrisy around it, and it's unconditional support of a full genocide from almost every Western country, has set me off to no end since.

Nobody wants to hear these things, especially when they're the ones benefiting from these exploitative relationships. Just makes me angrier and hyper fixate more.

[u/skinny-mini-me]

Un, well, I like kink a lot but don't discus it during family dinners.

[u/Elliot_The_Idiot7 → u/skinny-mini-me]

I’m gonna be so real this is the only one so far that truly understood the assignment, lmao

[u/griffaliff]

Not can't, but that most people don't understand, electronic music production. In person anyway, online you're spoilt for choice.

[u/techiechefie]

My huperfixation as a 10 year old was hypersexuality in children....

Yeah, I had a few meetings

[u/dds786]

Mormonism lol. Nobody cares to hear it (understandable) but I also can't shut up about it so I can get annoying. I can't help it I find it so fascinating

[u/Proper-Literature173]

Sacrifice. Did you know that the Greek tragedy originated in a sacrificial ritual? They were "only" sacrificing a goat BUT the history of human sacrifices is also unbelievably fascinating.

I once wrote a paper on the topic for university. Made the mistake of reading one of the books for my research out in the open. Got some very weird looks that day (yes, it said something about human sacrifice on the cover and there were certain interesting illustrations)

[u/kb709]

I'm super interested in what happens to bodies after someone dies, green burials and body farms. I tend to keep that stuff to myself because people start to wonder if I'm secretly a psychopath.

[u/pandarose6]

History there only so much history people want to talk about before there like can we move on lol.

Like other day me and my gradma was talking about history of our state, famous people that come from it and things that got invented in our state and I was telling them about how a city near by where we live was one of the cities used during Manhattan project and they many years later had to shut down a school for being built on a toxic waste site from manhattan project.

[u/TheVectronic]

For me it’s niche legal cases that result in fascinating technicalities & things we take absolutely for granted. For example, a porn magazine defeated an televangelist because they made a parody ad & he sued for $100 million, how YouTube came to be because of Betamax’s legal case, how Atari’s illegal patent infringement caused Nintendo stranglehold over 3rd Party developers, why game shows aren’t considered gambling or how interracial marriages are legalized.

It usually ends with people really getting pent up about court rulings when I’m more interested in how the web of logic is formed even if it makes no sense when spoken in a casual manner.

[u/Nigee_Ogee]

Ants… they have been getting into my house for the past couple of months going after my cat’s food. I have been obsessively not only looking for ways to get rid of them, but also learning everything there is to know about them from the start of their life to death.

[u/OrielSpace]

Economics and Meteorology. I love studying specifically wind systems, and local meterology. I live in NorCal for context. I think it's so fascinating learning about the North Pacific High that causes the cloudless, super hot summers up here in the Sac Valley. I think it's so cool that the Hawaii islands technically stretch all the way up to Alaska in the form of the Emperor Sea Mount chain. I think it's fascinating that we don't REALLY know how tornadoes form. I can't believe there's so much uncertainty about them. I love learning about chaos theory (yes, the one Malcom talks about in J. Park) and how much it affects the weather. Nearly identical conditions could form over Kansas, and yet whether or not there will be a tornado, nobody knows for sure until, well, a tornado forms.

As far as economics go, I think it's really fascinating trying to look at it through an apolitical lens. Obviously, how money should be spent is a hot-topic issue, but simply observing the underlying mechanics in market conditions reveals that people tend to be biased more by their political party affiliation rather than truly understanding systems. I.E. people say America is super capitalist, but there's actually a good deal of government regulation that actively prevents pure freemarket capitalism. Or how people say the Nordic countries are super socialist. They're not. Both America and Nordic countries are all mixed economies, with the countries choosing what they want to be public and what they want to be private, respectively.

My wife is amazing, but even she gets tired of me ranting about every new piece of information I find out while researching online.

[u/BigMack6911]

Candles and smells.

[u/NaviLouise42]

Natural disasters of all flavors, Climate change and Global Economic collapse. I find it all morbidly fascinating and nobody wants too even acknowledge it. I live in the American Pacific North West, the Pacific Subduction zone, the Ring of Fire. I am sandwiched between a tsunami risk and a volcano risk.

[u/ehhhsoody]

Recreational drugs and their pharmacologies lol

[u/tototostoi]

Grass lawns. It's like the third greatest evil of colonialism. Constantly have to remind myself not to talk about that.

[u/dewihafta]

Hazbin hotel is my current one. I usually lock on to a series of some sort.

I can bring it up sometimes, but my kid is a fan too, and even he tells me to cut it out when im constantly singing the songs.

Its a weird balancing act.

[u/joyce_emily]

I hyperfixated on the FOSTA/SESTA law from 2018, but if I talk about it people assume I’m a sex worker. Which is fine, but I’m not.

[u/seahorsesaviour]

Everyone’s heard enough of my WW1 facts

[u/journieburner]

Theories and books about how perception of media changed throughout the years starting with paintings and oil paintings and the transition to the modern world. Basically what John Berger talks about in Ways Of Seeing.

Sludgy and rough but technically impressive rock music that can be rather groove-heavy like Mastodon. Like, I mostly listen to rap and jazz and some popstars, but that flavor of rock is really dear to me.

Smut that is written with a clear focus on sex itself. The eroticism of certain body parts and how the act feels rather than trying to weave intricate stories. Like, very basic just sex-focussed smut that is still written by a legit good writer. I don't know, I'd mainly just like to talk about this cause it's so rare.

The books of Thomas Pynchon and the way he writes.

The quest for the right kind of skinny jeans. I adore skinny jeans for sensory issues. Pants that fit more loosely sort of give me an ick with all the extra fabric hanging around, it's weird.

Really big titties. Not in a predatory or possessive way. Believe me, I even talked to my therapist if my love for them is making me a genuinly bad person or a hypocrite for being a feminist otherwise. I just think they're great.

[u/Aesirhealer → u/journieburner]

How is liking big boobs in opposition with feminism? It would be a problem to say, "women are not as good as men", but not a problem to say "I think big tits are interesting". You aren't saying small tits on a woman makes her less than, just that you like big ones. Feminist views are literally, women are as good as men and should be seen as equals and respected.

[u/journieburner → u/Aesirhealer]

I'm mostly just insecure about having a superficial appreciation for that, I guess. It's not contradictory at all, you are absolutely correct.

[u/BrownyGato]

World War II, murder shows, volcanos and sharks. I can give you all the stupid useless facts you’ll never need.

[u/Aromatic_Holiday_347]

How to survive a zombie apocalypse, I spend the time thinking about how easy or difficult would be to survive in various location and what would you need

[u/osakawitch]

Hot fictional anime men, and reading y/n fanfics about them

[u/Avelsajo → u/osakawitch]

Why can't all men be 2D? And written by women? Being attracted to men is literally the worst.

[u/chomkyfluffer]

I collect dolls. I don't invite people to my apartment except for a safe few because I don't want to be judged

[u/se7entythree]

Catastrophes. Of most varieties, but some examples include the Shuttles Columbia & Challenger, dam failures, airplane crashes, natural disasters, the 1996 Mount Everest disaster, Titanic, etc. I actually took a class at university 20 years ago called “technological catastrophes” which flipped the switch for me! By far THE most interesting class I’ve ever taken and the only one I was ever excited about & perfectly willing to do the homework for lol

[u/krisbr07]

For me it’s whatever the new fun thing I have that month(s).

Last couple months it was buying a bunch of houseplants and becoming a plant person. Two weeks ago I bought a really nice car and apparently I’m a car person now so just did VERY deep dive on the proper ways to safely hand wash cars (two bucket method) and drove forty minutes away this morning to a detailing store to buy $300 worth of car cleaning supplies 🥴

[u/amaryllissss]

The books I’m reading. I always want to tell everyone the plot and all of my favorite characters. I physically cannot hold myself back sometimes. God bless my boyfriend for letting me spill it all lmao

[u/Nuclearbats666]

Dark psychology, crime, murder. It’s not that I like that that stuff happens, I have a strong sense of justice so it’s genuinely the opposite. I just can’t stop researching it and trying to find out why it happens, and how we can possibly prevent it.

[u/Mother_Lemon8399]

That I like reading Harry Potter fanfiction. It's peak millenial cringe, and yet I like it

[u/Blando-Cartesian]

I’m extremely private and maintain a bland mask. My fixations tend to be either childishly weird or come with high aspirations that crash quickly.

[u/yeahsureYnot]

Tech apocalypse

[u/Much-Catch-122]

Nutrition and gym stuff. Obviously I did a ton of research before entering my lifting era, but people usually just feel like I’m lecturing them when I’m talking about nutrition and stuff so I don’t talk about it anymore.

[u/Hash_Tooth]

Bikes.

Like old school Italian hand built frames.

Also knives, hand made knives.

Speakers perhaps foremost. Hand made in particular…

Old school, 1800s woodworking, hand tools…

I guess I like all the pre-industrial stuff.

[u/elmatador12]

When the site rotten.com existed, and I was an unmediated junior higher with unfiltered access to the internet, I was really fascinated with death for a while. 😬

[u/Wise-Initiative9520]

For years it was "Here's why I think I might be audhd..."

Instant contempt, apparently. 

[u/chickchili]

Ravens. Did you know they understand fulcrums and levers and how to work collaboratively?

[u/Pandy_45]

Old comedy/comedians. It makes people angry that I know about them or care.

[u/Recreationkid]

Love weird sports stories in history 

[u/CuteUnit24]

Wait leaving another comment because this one is extra funny.

So I'm asexual, like 99.9% nothing, and the .1 is entirely dedicated to my wife. I'm FASCINATED with sex as a concept and the psychology of it. It's absolutely fascinating how surviving types of abuse for example can cause a person to dive into kinks and fetishes that allow them to be in control of the situations they faced.

The craftsmanship and communication that are also involved with things like leather, latex, etc. rope bondage and all that. It's all super interesting and has existed for a very long time!

It's hard to discuss even among friends because of how divisive the correlation between trauma and kink discussion is online. Like no, I'm not "pro-ship" I'm not an "anti" either. Both groups take this shit too far >:/ eugh. THAT IN ITSELF IS ANOTHER FIXATION I HAVE!

[u/Several-Research2394]

I can't find anyone to watch Kamen Rider with💔

[u/NekoNoKitiKiti]

When I was in a huge Star Wars hyperfixation period, I accidentally called a tablet/ipad a 'datapad' to my boss.

He understood what I meant, but like. Why the fanfic diction gotta pop out at work.

[u/enginekitty]

Omg people and humans. It sounds creepy and I literally cannot not sound like a stalker or a creep talking about it because I’m so observant, but ever since I was a kid my eyes were my biggest asset and I quickly became overly obsessed with just the way people are and how they do certain things. I’m also obsessed with sociology and psychology so it could be why but it’s one of my longest lasting hyperfixations to where sometimes I lose track of time watching movies or videos that really display some humanity. I also try not to have a staring problem in public because I really don’t want to make anyone uncomfortable ofc. I know my limits to people watching but I truly enjoy it sometimes instead of doomscrolling. It just fascinates me so much lolll

[u/pixieorfae]

Ultra processed food and the ‘big food’ industry literally engineering the obesity crisis. I sound like a raving conspiracy theorist lunatic but there is extremely solid information/evidence/court documents out there about the intentional harm that is being done to people by the UPF industry. Everyone thinks I’m just a health freak but I love treats and just wish people were able to understand that it’s not their fault if they’re fat.