It sort of dawned on me recently that my enjoyment of some of my old hobbies or interests has decreased substantially.
That doesn’t mean I don’t enjoy anything; on the contrary. Some of my old activities I still find very enjoyable and I think I’m finding new ones to be enjoyable, too.
But it’s still sort of a weird feeling.
As an example: I purchased a new graphics card because I’ve always wanted to have a good one and play some video games that actually use it and have stunning graphics.
But I’m playing some of these games and I don’t know that I care that much. It’s hard for me to get into them. I don’t know if it’s just the fact that they are new and there’s lots to learn, or if I just am not interested in that sort of thing anymore.
I am much more interested in active, physical activities though. Playing disc golf, hiking, biking, etc. are all things that I’m very interested in.
Also, most things I’m interested in now are social. Even with gaming, I’ve tried to keep that as a social activity and I do enjoy that aspect of it.
I’ve also come to enjoy reading more. Perhaps because I’ve started actually reading fiction, and mostly in Spanish which feels very rewarding.
But the idea of binge-watching a show is not that appealing to me, but staying in and reading is.
And actually that’s one of the big categories that has appealed to me less-and-less: entertainment like movies and TV. I don’t know, they just don’t have that appeal to me anymore. I try to get into them but I’m almost always disappointed, even when watching movies I know I like.
I think it’s all… Fine though. The things I am liking more of are things that are all healthy for me and benefit both my happiness and long-term health, both mental and physical.
The things I’m losing interest in… Don’t.
So it all seems kind of strange and new, but I guess I should really just embrace it because it’s all good.
I’m not sure how much of it is just me getting older, or possibly it’s coming along with all the other healthy things I’ve been doing like sleeping better, eating right, not drinking, etc.
It’s hard to say, but it will be interesting to see how it changes going forward.
I think there are a few things going on here that I didn’t know at the time. My enjoyment of EVERYTHING was diminished, not just the ones mentioned.
The main factor was depression.
However, I think that an overreliance on short-form distractions also sort of fried my brain and caused problems.
One additional theory I have is that physical activity is almost as effective at substances like alcohol at successfully repressing tough feelings and insecurities, allowing you to feel good and enjoy things more. Obviously it’s much healthier, but you can see how it could also become addictive for some people just like any other substances.