Loss of ability to focus?

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I am wondering if anyone else has experienced this. For most of my life I have been extremely focused on my interests, it was very easy for me to get sucked into what I was doing and just shut out everything else. But I have seen this 'ability' erode away over the last few years. As compared to 2-3 years ago I find it much more difficult to start working on a task, once I get going though I seem to stay somewhat focused... but the intensity of it just isn't there like it was when I was younger.

I think I can still get like this with music, but the problem is that it is just not nearly as productive as some of my other interests...I am not a professional musician nor am I ever going to be. My main interest has always seemed to be computer programming which kind of proved to be beneficial to me, as it has real career potential and sort of kept me going on the 'right path' for most of my life. Now I just can't seem to get into it like I used to and I don't understand why, I still read about it nearly everyday and I still have an interest... I just can't seem to translate it into to doing much actual work anymore. Maybe my interest is fading? I don't know.

I read that depression can make people lose interest in things they used to enjoy... but I've read the criteria for different kinds of depression many times and I don't really think it fits well. I generally feel pleasant/relaxed/calm most days (though shy/anxious as well), sometimes I get upset/depressed but its a pretty temporary thing and seems more like a normal emotional response to a stress. If anything, my loss of focus has made me feel more depressed, but I don't think depression has made me loss my focus? Does that make sense? I really need to be able to have the focus I used to have, it was probably the best thing I had going for me!

I feel like I'm in the same boat as you. I use to have quite a few interests--drawing, photography, web design, video games, playing the piano, biking, or hiking to name a few. However, now I just have no interest in anything. My life feels so mechanical now, filling my days with things I "need" to do rather than things I want to do--if there are any. I have a long list of things I would like to do, but I no longer have that interest to just dive right into it.

I wonder if the lack of interest has anything to do with some of the comments my elder sibling made when I was younger. She would rant to my parents that I was wasting my time with my artistic hobbies if I wasn't even going to pursue them as a career. Now I always feel guilty if I try to play a video game because of the opportunity cost associated with it.