[Lucas]

The Preferences and Application Support folders, in your library folder, are used by your applications to keep information. This is information for use by the application, generally, not like your documents, which you probably save in your documents folder. The caches folder keeps information for quick access for applications.

Sometimes information kept in those folders can be written incorrectly and cause problems.

If you move them out of their normal folders, the applications will create new files. You may notice that your applications may not remember that you have a license (!) and may not remember your view settings, but if you move them back into place that should all be restored. Your caches folder the applications themselves can rebuild. But DON’T trash your preferences and application support - you may want to try putting some of them back later.

Keep in mind that trying to refresh your preferences is a good step only if it is likely that the problem is in your home folder, and not in your computer system as a whole. So I would check whether the problem still happens if you are working in a new user account first. If the problem still occurs, then moving your preferences probably will not fix it and would be a waste of time.

This does sound like a somewhat serious issue. Make sure that you have a good backup and consider the possibility that you may have to bring your computer to an expert.