It's not easy to describe but here goes. If I'm doing something for someone (the dishes, cooking a meal, tidying up, decorating a Xmas tree) and they don't know I'm doing it, then I hear them approaching (keys in the front door, the sound of someone getting out of bed upstairs) and I get a huge panicky feeling because if they discover me before I've finished it and they:
1 - Thank me 2 - Don't approve of what I've done 3 - Try to help me 4 - Change what I'm trying to do like "Oh thanks but there's a better table cloth in the cupboard. Here lemme get it" 5 - Try to correct what I'm doing
I will lose all motivation and feel immediately depressed cos I missed the big dopamine hit of going "Tadaaa".
I wonder if there's a term for that situation?
11 Comments
tetrachromacy@lemmy.world · 44 pts · 196d
How bout this one: The dishes are dirty after a meal. After you eat, you stand up from your table to go do the dishes unprompted. As soon as you stand up, someone else asks you "Hey, can you do the dishes while you're up?". Immediately, you are annoyed and become resentful and don't want to do the dishes... that you were on your way to do already. Sound familiar?
mrcleanup@lemmy.world · 11 pts · 196d
Not if you say it like that!
slacktoid@lemmy.ml · 10 pts · 196d
Don't call me out like that dude!
aksdb@lemmy.world · 6 pts · 195d
Oh yeah. Good to know I am not alone with this.
naught@sh.itjust.works · 29 pts · 196d
Check out Pathological Demand Avoidance (PDA). Could be related
Plus ADHD fucks up ur ability to muster the energy/intention to do tasks, especially ones you don't want to do already. If I am asked to do something I already intended on doing, it saps the energy from me too.
bridgeenjoyer@sh.itjust.works · 14 pts · 195d
Damn, that's ADHD? I thought it was trauma from controlling parents
scrollo@lemmy.world · 9 pts · 196d
Dopamine seeking?
Novamdomum@fedia.io · 12 pts · 196d
Oh definitely. In fact it's maybe dopamine hoarding so I get to experience it all in one go? But I've had that panicky feeling of being discovered before I finish a positive task forever.
paraphrand@lemmy.world · 8 pts · 196d
You just described something I’ve always experienced.
astropenguin5@lemmy.world · 5 pts · 196d
Idk what to call it either but I also definitely do that lol
pineapple@lemmy.ml · 3 pts · 191d
Dang I do that too! I never realised that was adhd related. Like whenever someone comes home and I'm doing something aside from doing something that is "normal" like work or being on my computer I rush back to my chair and pretend like I was never doing it, I don't even know why it's like I don't want people to see me doing nice things for some reason?