I like to think that he didn't really change, but figured out the socially acceptable way to pretend that he had been "cured."
Masking is apparently at least as old as written language....
They cured him of a hobby that made him happy? Dicks!
Dude should have just become the harbor master. He'd have been the natural best pick!
Seriously. Recognize a win when it's handed to you, people.
What did they do before the invention of vehicles?
I imagine horticulture and keeping track of the raiding parties arrivals and departures was pretty big
"You can sit here until the cows come home for all I care!"
and so he did
Birdwatching.
Animal migration? Which if you think about it makes a lot of sense for a evolutionary explanation for this behavior.
The existence of night rhythm people is hypotized to be a genetic factor that a human group needs some people to guard at night to keep the fire going and everyone safe.
Having a person within your group capable of noticing and tracking patterns trough time in nature can be a huge benefit but there is little further advantages to have more/multiple people tracking the same things.
Our genetics never considered that one day we function in a mega society where most people we interact with don't even know our full name, let alone our divergent skills and personal (dis)advantages.
OK but what's the cure?
The doctor was probably like "you can think about it all you want but you got to stop talking about it dude"
"Here's some heavily addictive narcotics. Add it to your wine and drink it thrice daily."
I'm willing to bet it involved leeches.
Probably the treatment for all neurodivergent behavior before the 2000s.
Beatings.
In some places, the beatings still continue.
Leeches and a mallet to the head.
Ah yes an AIS/ADSB and Train/Plane/Boat spotting enjoyer
