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Goodbye for now...


Hisserdude

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Hey guys, it's been a little while since I posted here, I have some somber news to share. 

I have been dealing with some severe anxiety and depression issues for the past few months, and I kinda broke down a couple weeks ago. This hobby has unfortunately been causing me a lot more stress than happiness lately, possibly because I have too many species. It's also taken up almost all of my available time, and has prevented me from participating in any of my other hobbies or spending quality time with my family. 

So, after some soul-searching, I have decided to all but leave the hobby. :( I have gotten rid of almost all my invertebrates, and only plan to keep half a dozen species for now, (might even get rid of those though, time will tell). I will also be very minimally active here on the forums, so this is probably the last you will hear of me for a while. 

I want to give a huge thank you to everyone who's helped me along the way by supplying me with invertebrates, giving me husbandry info and advice, and those who just gave encouraging words. :) I will forever be grateful to all of you, and this forum in particular will always hold a very special place in my heart! 

Sincerely, 

-Tristan

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I've seen this happen more than a few times over the years. With inverts the workload can really creep up on you because initially each new acquisition doesn't seem like it will be much of a time sink. Eventually they start adding up, colonies reproduce and grow larger, and before you know it you are spending more time doing busywork sort of care maintenance versus actually enjoying your bugs.

I hope you are able to rekindle your love for inverts as you pair down.

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Sorry to hear this, HIsserdude - you've been one of the most helpful and knowledgeable members of this forum and certainly helped me with a few problems I had with my colonies when I started keeping roaches. I hope all goes well and that with a new balance to your life, as Krissim Klaw said, you don't completely lose your obvious love for these little creatures.

I can certainly sympathise with the time commitment - having started off with just three hissers about 18 months ago I now have thriving colonies of 6 stick insect species and 3 hisser species, all of which are reproducing like mad and eating me out of house and home as well as taking a lot of my time!

All the best and hope to see you here back again some day with a new enthusiasm!

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22 hours ago, snellos said:

like i said, you will be missed hopefully we will see a great return! 

Thanks man, I hope so too! :)

15 hours ago, Krissim Klaw said:

I've seen this happen more than a few times over the years. With inverts the workload can really creep up on you because initially each new acquisition doesn't seem like it will be much of a time sink. Eventually they start adding up, colonies reproduce and grow larger, and before you know it you are spending more time doing busywork sort of care maintenance versus actually enjoying your bugs.

I hope you are able to rekindle your love for inverts as you pair down.

Yes, this is exactly what happened to me I think, I'm really hoping once I cut my collection down my love for my bugs will be restored, and that I'll appreciate each species more. :) Thanks, I hope so too! 

11 hours ago, BlattaAnglicana said:

Sorry to hear this, HIsserdude - you've been one of the most helpful and knowledgeable members of this forum and certainly helped me with a few problems I had with my colonies when I started keeping roaches. I hope all goes well and that with a new balance to your life, as Krissim Klaw said, you don't completely lose your obvious love for these little creatures.

I can certainly sympathise with the time commitment - having started off with just three hissers about 18 months ago I now have thriving colonies of 6 stick insect species and 3 hisser species, all of which are reproducing like mad and eating me out of house and home as well as taking a lot of my time!

All the best and hope to see you here back again some day with a new enthusiasm!

I'm glad I was able to help you in some way, I wish you all the best with your hissers and stick insects! :)

Thanks, hopefully I won't be gone for too long, I'll be back one day! ;)

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You'll be missed, Hisserdude. I didn't know you for long, but you were always so helpful in answering my questions and making me feel welcome.

I have dealt with anxiety and depression for years now, and it's just awful to live with. I know the feeling of loved hobbies starting to feel like chores. Take some time to take care of yourself. Eat chocolate. Take walks. Watch MLP (I'm making my way through season 7 right now :)). The forum will still be around when you choose to return.

I wish you the best of luck!

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I raised pigeons for a decade and came to the same place. The joy of keeping them left. The thought of having them was more exciting than actually having them. 

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On 5/14/2018 at 9:21 AM, Chimera said:

You'll be missed, Hisserdude. I didn't know you for long, but you were always so helpful in answering my questions and making me feel welcome.

I have dealt with anxiety and depression for years now, and it's just awful to live with. I know the feeling of loved hobbies starting to feel like chores. Take some time to take care of yourself. Eat chocolate. Take walks. Watch MLP (I'm making my way through season 7 right now :)). The forum will still be around when you choose to return.

I wish you the best of luck!

Thanks, glad I was able to be of help to you! ☺️

Sorry to hear that, it is quite an awful condition. ? I'm hoping cutting my collection down to 10 species at most will really help me out, I've already gotten rid of most of my invertebrates now and I do feel a lot better already. Haha thanks man, will do! ? (I'm watching season 8 myself, it's been a really good one already IMO! ?).

On 5/14/2018 at 5:01 PM, Matttoadman said:

I raised pigeons for a decade and came to the same place. The joy of keeping them left. The thought of having them was more exciting than actually having them. 

Exactly, I've been getting more excited about buying new species and saying I have them, than I have about actually keeping them. ? Now that I only have a few species left I'm already starting to appreciate them each way more. ?

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Yah man, no doubt.  When things are good we can afford some extra indulgences in hobbies, when things go south I kind of wonder what the heck I am doing.  I think a lot has to do with dopamine.  When you hit crisis time, the dopamine reward for something that was interesting, like a few new species, just doesn't show up (or not enough to make a dent in the void of dopamine that the crisis presents).  Its not priority anyway, unless it happens to be your job.  You're good at the hobby, have taught many others so that's and awesome experience.  You can leave completely and come back later and I'm sure everyone will get you restarted with what ever you want  ;)  C ya around bro!

#RoachThugs4Life

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23 hours ago, Marlon said:

Yah man, no doubt.  When things are good we can afford some extra indulgences in hobbies, when things go south I kind of wonder what the heck I am doing.  I think a lot has to do with dopamine.  When you hit crisis time, the dopamine reward for something that was interesting, like a few new species, just doesn't show up (or not enough to make a dent in the void of dopamine that the crisis presents).  Its not priority anyway, unless it happens to be your job.  You're good at the hobby, have taught many others so that's and awesome experience.  You can leave completely and come back later and I'm sure everyone will get you restarted with what ever you want  ;)  C ya around bro!

#RoachThugs4Life

That is true, and with a collection as big as mine was, it felt like there was always at least one species undergoing a crisis of some sort, so it never felt like I had a real break from troubleshooting. :(

Thanks man, I'll be back I'm sure, so see you around! ;) 

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2 hours ago, Tleilaxu said:

Hopefully you get back before I get restarted in the hobby. Good luck.

Thanks man, hopefully I will! :)

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Set up some lovely display tanks for your favorites and take it easy. It’s hard to enjoy something in cloudy Rubbermaid containers. 

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Hey Man, it's not an issue - it's just Time :)

I've lost and sold my collections repeatedly, 'cause of wives, children, army services, long-time errands etc., etc.. 

Then I've returned :) - and beasts have returned, too - some new, some old, but inevitably.

Now I'm 47, my elder children're 23 and 22, my young daughter is 2, and 5 yrs ago I've brought a termites colony from a trip to Vietnam :) 

And now I've half of a room tightly packed with enclosures :)

 

So - it's smth like Midi-chlorians in your blood :) - if you have it, you can't deal without all this bugmatters :)

 

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  • 2 months later...

I remember when I took a break between marriages. I still had a couple bugs and I still worked on my insect photography and website, but it really took things down a few notches. I had my bugs in a storage unit for a long time. Lost a lot of things due to lack of time to get over there. Phyllium hausleithneri and P. siccifolium, to name just a few. I remember Orin saying I was the only person that ever came back. I didn't really realize I was ever gone, but I did what I had to do and I got back to what I loved when it was time. Do the same and you can count on the forum to be here when you return. I assume those Simandoa I sent you earlier this year made the cut. ;)  Too bad you don't live one state to the left. I'm hiring in September. Take care, man!

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  • 2 months later...

Thank you all for the kind words and encouragement, I really appreciate it! :) I regret to inform you all though that I have gotten rid of my collection and am leaving the hobby completely now. 

I tried just cutting my collection size down, but it appears I burnt myself out, I've lost my passion for keeping live invertebrates completely. :(I still love invertebrates, but I'd rather just look at pictures or observe them in their natural habitat than raise them myself. Maybe I'll get back into the hobby a few years down the line, who knows, but for now I think it's best if I take some time away from the hobby completely. 

Thank you everyone for all the help, kind words, and of course roaches you've provided me with over the years, this forum and everyone on it will always hold a special place in my heart! :D

Goodbye, and keep on roaching! 

-Tristan

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