special interests are a term that has been dulled down over the years by the internet, becoming basically synonymous with hyperfixations, or even just regular intense interests. while they show some similarity, theyre also drastically different from both and are much more personal to the individual. special interests arent just interests or hobbies, theyre part of our identity.

when i talk about my special interests with allistic people i get... mixed results. either assuming its just an intense interest with no real meaning to me, or something thatll go away soon enough. they never truly get the fact that it is me. i am my special interests.

they get me through life, through my hardest moments, they are how i see the world. i see the world through the eyes of my special interests, i relate everything to them. every time i have to perform a simple task, it somehow turns into something related to my special interests. theyre personal. they are part of my identity.

when someone attacks them, says something bad or negative, it stings. it feels like a punch in the gut. i would end friendships over it, and i have. not out of lack of understanding, but because why would i want to be friends with someone who actively talks down about something i care for so much that i consider it part of me?

every autistic is different, but ive heard so many people have the same outlook on special interests. whether it be something super specific, like having a special interest on a show or movie, or something vague like a general special interest in art or cooking. it affects everything. its a comfort, its a way to get through the world and navigate it.

its not a negative experience, like many hyperfixations are. its joy. special interests are a representation of autistic joy.

i love my special interests, theyre part of me.