Unhealthy Math Addiction???

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My therapist thinks math is a waste of time and that I don't prioritize it correctly. I feel differently. I believe math is great and it's worth spending time doing if you enjoy it.

Compromise is frustrating. Dialing back math activity to less than 2 hours isn't good enough. Pushing back math to a pre-lunch reward for getting other stuff done? Nope, still not good enough. "Good enough" is making math the last thing I do during the waking hours of my day. Pushing back math to a time of day when the brain is functioning less well is stupid to me.

Addiction, to me, is where an interest gets in the way of taking care of basic needs. That's not an issue here. Job hunting, sharpening of programming skills, chores, and so on all get tended to. I even have other hobbies.

My only deficit is social interaction but I don't think math is to blame for that. I do find that factoring quadratics is less scary than the human equation. That says a lot more about my relationship with most people than it does my relationship with mathematics. Done with that rant.

Math is metaphorically "detective work" and "puzzle solving".

A challenge is presented, and my mind can become engrossed in such a challenge.

What specific aspect of math engrosses you ?

Much better than an unhealthy meth addiction. (Sorry, I had to say that. )

Anyway, if a psychologist told me math was a waste of time, I'd tell him psychology is a waste of time.

You answered your own concerns in the first line. What you think about what you do is far more important than what ANYONE else feels.

What makes his opinion so good?

As Dirty Harry once said, opinions are like a**holes. Everybody's got one!

Math is grrrrrrreat!! !

I don't like math, but based on what you describe you are not addicted, just an enthusiastic lover of it. It's a hobby or interest of yours. Your therapist obviously really hates math, probably never hung out much with math whizzes, and because of that, believes that any one who likes math has an unhealthy obsession with it. This is a kind of tunnel vision on the therapist's part. You can either accept that you and the therapist will never agree about your interest in math, and continue with him/her, or get another therapist.

It does sound like you will interact with people when you need or want to, but that your desire to is somewhat limited. That is common to those on the spectrum, including myself. I am a hermit type of person. I consider myself non social, but not anti social. However, I will interact with people when I need or want to, but like you, I don't want to that much. I wave at and talk to the neighbors when I occasionally go outside, and talk to people in the stores when I occasionally run errands, and talk to relatives when they call or come to visit, but I will never be a social butterfly. Not every one is an extrovert. Unfortunately, my father is, and labors under the mis-belief that all introverts are miserable because they are introverts, so he keeps trying to get me to become an extrovert, so I can be happy. I am in my mid 50s, and am more likely to be struck by lightning, picked up by a tornado, swept over a water fall in a flooded out, burning building, than I am to become an extrovert at my age. My being alone does not make me unhappy. I was very unhappy when I had to live with relatives. I felt much better once I was finally able to live alone. Granted, being an introvert is not what society considers the "norm", but if it works okay for you, and doesn't hurt other people, then there is nothing wrong with your being an introvert.

Although I hate math, I do recognize it's value in so many areas. We need it to pay for any thing we buy. Math got us to the Moon, and back again. It is used by surveyors, bookkeepers, and in most other fields, even in cooking. Yes, you need math in cooking, when measuring ingredients, and cooking times, and if you want to change the size of the batch, you need to recalculate how much you will need of every ingredient. So, while you don't have a math addiction, it looks like your therapist has a math phobia.

I wish I was as good in math as you are. I am really bad at it, in fact, I don't have a special interest ATM

Well I'm just glad this therapist had no say in Einstein's life (and any other scientists and mathematicians). Your passion for maths will probably be very useful.

Your therapist's thinking is narrowly y = mx + b with a touch of a negative sign (-) under a radicand. Tell him to *shove it* and carry on. Math lives and you can find a position doing so, sans the extraneous factor of your therapist.

It is possible that your therapist thinks only the select few can do, or be interested, by mathematics. It's possible he thinks you're average.
Another possibility, is that the hardest math he has done is one or two semesters of calculus. And he thinks there's nothing more beside that. So spending time on high school maths and calculus seems futile to him.
But I think what is more probable, is he wants you transfer some of your strengths toward your weaknesses. He may think you don't need to spend energies on something "futile", and you'd be better off spending your energy toward improving yourself. But I think learning mathematics is self-improvement.
Do what you feel is good to you. Your therapist is an human being, with his imperfections and qualities. But at the end of the day, he's only doing his job. Your job is to take what helps you, and rejects what's hurting you. Your therapist ought to understand that you enjoy mathematics.

All kidding aside, any therapist needs to be respectful and should never curtail any client's natural inclination or talent. The disregard that this therapist has shown is of concern. If you have addressed this with him/her already to no avail, then you might want to move on. Do not let another discourage you. Instead of a therapist, you might seek an academic advisor, yes?

Next, for my own advice: Would you consider applying for a higher degree (PhD) in mathematics? Your talent and motivation could be directed into not only a great academic career, but also for the advancement of science/technology. You have a lot to offer. And I offer you encouragement.

Therapists sometimes say the craziest things.