Sacha

Guys, I need your help.

In the past 5 months, I've been obsessed with guns to the point of scaring my whole family, including my own mother.
Now, I know that most edgy teens my age are all over the whole "tacticool operator phase", but I don't mean that kind of obsession. I am constantly researching information on all of the smallest details of a specific firearm, in short I'm a bloody gun nerd. (btw i'm 17)

But now, the only people I see is my mother and my grand-parents and the only thing I can talk about is guns, guns, guns!

I feel stressed as soon as I'm not working on learning more, and I can spend up to 12 hours a day doing research (oh and if you never read my previous posts, I am torn between a mossberg 500 and a sks for a first and only firearm).

and now my mother just said that she won't trust me with a gun anymore, referring to my gunaholism and she said that like she did before, I need to fight this obsession before it becomes a mental illness (did I mention that I have been diagnosed with high-level autism?)

so yeah, I hate psycologists for personal reasons and I bet some of you have experienced reject from people who are scared of guns (like most people up here, in canada), any of you have wisdom to share with me?

blsjds

This is a tough one, as there is a lot of debate right now in the US about mental illness and gun ownership (not saying you are mentally ill, but autism, in it's more severe forms, probably falls under that category). My 10 year old nephew is autistic, so I am somewhat familiar with it.

It's sounds like your obsession is more focused on learning & understanding (which the high level autism might be fueling). Would your mom be open to something like an Airsoft rifle or a pellet rifle? They are much less dangerous and function in basically the same way.

Sacha

thx for the reply, and yes I already have a co2 carbine, but I can only use it when we're out of town, because canada.

mrbb

why not look into a gun smith school and learn more about how they work and are built, if nothing else it will teach you some machine skills for other things too!

everyone can have a hobby, and not everyone will like your hobby , its life
as long as your being careful and respectful of all sides to firearms and society, I think you can end up in a good career in them if you stay interested long enough to see it thru
NOW on the mental status of you and your past, future, I cannot say really anything as I DON"T Know your history, this COULD be a limiting factor, but if all good there, nothing wrong with a strong interest in learning about guns IMO
I am sure even your country's military has need for gun smith's and or possible designers for new and improved weapons LOL as I said, there could be a career in things if you have the desire and wish to learn things and have the talent to go with it all1

Nomercy448

I suppose I've been reclassified now that Asperger's has been demoted to a ASD, but living it myself, even though you may not like to hear it, it may be wise of your mom to try to limit your "gun time" and refocus you onto other things. Part of our condition is a repetitious indulgence into one or two favored topics - which is a part of the disorder because it can be unhealthy. Instead of processing life stresses, or dealing with mental burdens (like studying for school, working on social interaction skills, developing relationships, pursuing new experiences), we'll bury ourselves into ONE topic.So it's not so much the passion for the topic is unsafe or unhealthy, it's the LACK OF PARTICIPATION OR DEVELOPMENT in other aspects of life which is the problem. I used to relate it to a weightlifter - if a weightlifter only focuses on their arms, they'll have huge arms, but their legs and back will be itty bitty. But instead of muscles, your case (or mine) will be big gun knowledge, and itty bitty social empathy.

Chill out a bit. Shooting sports and an interest in firearms history or design are perfectly healthy pursuits. But what you MIGHT need to work on, which you are not because you're spending too much time reading about guns and not enough in social interaction, is how you can communicate your hobby in a healthy, less "scary" way, and also develop your social skills to the point of NOT seeming to always revert any conversation back to guns (even though your mind might wander back to guns repeatedly during any given conversation).

It's not an easy thing to live with, but there are mechanisms to help you study social interactions to help you fast-forward that skill development, you might not otherwise naturally pick up.

GOOD OLE BOY

Are you mostly obsessed with just owning them or are you also obsessed with shooting them?The later could be dangerous if you take it to extreme levels/

Erno86

Guns are machines & tools...and you have to operate any machine safely, with the utmost responsibility and care. Has some fun plinking or target shooting, and figure on joining (if possible) an outdoor gun range. I like target shooting myself...more than I do huntin' critters for the most part.
I like being on social media...but at the moment --- I personally try to avoid participating in any computer gun games --- mainly because it doesn't really have an interest for me.