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How to deal with ANHEDONIA with regard to science

Q: When I was in 10th class I was very curious about science and was very sharp minded but now I am in 11th science and I have lost my curious self and I am distracted. I need my curious self back . How can I get my scientist brain back? Please help.

Q: Earlier I was very interested in science but now I lost my interest in the subject. How could you maintain your interest in science for so many years? Please let me know your secret.

Krishna: "How could you maintain your interest in science for so many years"?

Do you know that even my colleagues ask me this question? :)

I fell in love with science when I was in school and what my friends and colleagues feel is amazing is that my love for the subject is increasing day by day after all these years of hard work. I still want to do more and more of it, every moment of my life. I can never part with it and never lose interest in it!

When even scientists and professors of science are facing this problem, I don't blame ordinary people at all when they tell me they are losing their interest.

Why do people lose interest in something in the first place? There is a specific word to describe this: anhedonia

The term anhedonia is used to describe the inability to feel pleasure and a disinterest in activities that previously brought positive feelings.

Some psychologists say this is a mental disorder ( depression, mainly - but anxiety, stress, bipolar disorder, substance use can also cause this). But It is also important to note that loss of interest is not necessarily linked to a mental disorder. It can also be caused by things such as overwork, relationship problems, boring (as opposed to interested) activities, difficulties faced in pursuing something, social isolation, other distractions, or just plain feeling stuck in a rut. This can create a cycle from which it's hard to break free.

And this can happen at all ages and with all people.

The reasons could be (and how I am insulating myself against them):

1. Your actual purpose is different, not love for the subject. Some have other goals, not just learning science, like earning a good job or a promotion. Or getting a seat in engineering or medicine. When they achieve these things, they lose interest in the subject.

Job or promotion was never my goal. Earning knowledge and learning science are my only goals.

2. Unable to overcome the difficulties encountered while learning something. Science is a complex and a bit difficult subject. It demands your undivided attention. If you can't give it your full concentration, it becomes difficult to learn it and sustain your interest forever.

I invite difficulties and challenges. I want to test myself at every step. Proving myself gives me a thrill. I feel if I can't compete with the best and win, my life is a big waste!

Recently I did an online course in sci-com conducted by Nature group of journals. We had to give a 'test' once every fifteen minutes during the course. You had to be as attentive in the last hour as you were in the first hour of the session. Otherwise you would be unable to answer the two questions in two minutes time given. And when I passed out of this course with flying colours, I was thrilled to the core.

3. Something else taking priority. A boy I know was interested in science when he was in intermediate (12th). Then he fell in love with one of his class-mates and this distracted him and now he is interested in only the girl, not in science.

My first and last priority is science and knowledge derived from it. Nothing else matters to me. I mercilessly demolish everything else from my world.

4. Finding something more easy and 'rewarding and profitable' (I will explain why I put these things in inverted commas: because science too is rewarding) . An actor told me he was pursuing engineering when he got an offer to act in a film. He thought acting was easy. He also thought he could earn more as an actor than as an engineer! So he shifted to acting.

Learning something new every moment of my life is 'highly rewarding' to my mind. Other things don't thrill me as much as science learning does. This is because I realized science and only science is the basis of this universe, our existence, our lives and everything else here. Other things are just illusionary.

5. Depression and stress: If you can't achieve good results or get good marks, you feel that science is not suitable for you. You try to avoid it.

Because of my high motivation, I always achieved good results and top most ranks. I never felt depressed because of this.

6. Your surroundings: If other people in your circle are not interested in science, naturally your mind will be conditioned to follow them. That is why I make everybody around me follow science by telling interesting stories about it. Instead of me losing interest, I make others gain interest in it. I am securing my future in this way!

7. Allowing yourself to be with people who are not motivated themselves, who are not interested in the subject. These people will influence you in some way. Stay away from such people.

I compare myself with the best minds in the world. I always want to be with the best brains. Substandardness doesn't appeal to me. When you try to compete with the topmost people in the subject, your interest never dwindles.

8. People say overwork will make you lose interest. But I always 'overwork'. When you love what you are doing, you never feel you are overburdened. So I never feel it.

Well, these are my secrets. Different people will have different reasons for losing interest. You have to find out what is yours. Then try to solve the problems yourself. We can only give advice and tell our stories. It is you and only you who can really rescue yourself.

How to deal with ANHEDONIA with regard to science

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