# Maladaptive daydreaming (MD)- fantasy stories in your head



## human after all

Maybe if I didn't see a video I casually bumped onto on Youtube today, I would've spent my whole life not knowing what's wrong with me besides SA and depression. I thought I was the only one doing this, because no one speaks about it out of shame and it's still researched by psychologists, although you can still find some documentation online. I'm hoping I can bring this to your attention, who knows if someone has it and doesn't know, and if you have it, we can talk about it.
*Excessive daydreaming may begin as an outlet for creativity or as a method of escaping trauma or abuse. The daydreamers experience very vivid and intricate fantasies and may become emotionally attached to the characters in their fantasies or express emotions they are feeling through vocal utterances or changing facial expressions, although most keep such behavior hidden from others. People with Maladaptive Daydreaming are different from schizophrenics, they know the difference between reality and fantasy; they realize that everything they are dreaming about is a fantasy. [They simply have trouble stopping daydreaming and focusing on regular tasks.] Some also exhibit symptoms similar to Asperger's Syndrome, ADHD or OCD.

Many people have social anxiety and/or depression along with maladaptive daydreaming. A large number also find their social lives are negatively impacted by this disorder. 79% of those self-identified as having excessive daydreams had a kinesthetic repetitive movement accompany their daydreaming, such as pacing, rocking, tapping, or shaking an object. Many others also move their hands around and make facial expressions: laughing, crying, whispering, and gesturing with hands [because they are trying to impersonate the characters themselves]. Listening to music while daydreaming is common and hearing music may trigger a fantasy. A repetitive movement may be articulated to music while daydreaming. Watching a movie or reading a book, can also trigger a fantasy.

Many people have novel or movie type fantasies. They create their own world [sometimes more than one] , with characters, settings, plots, heroes, villains, friends, etc. -- they also may imagine storylines using the characters or settings from already existing works of fiction.

Some people have reported dizziness, headaches and other physical symptoms after daydreaming. [Source:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maladaptive_daydreaming].*

Now I've been having this from when I was about 5 or 6. I would rock in bed, while imagining being someone else, like impersonating the different characters my "stories" have. I would often imagine myself as being a succesful person, like a rockstar or a motivational speaker (I know right, ironically I'm the exact opposite) etc. I have episodes mostly when I go to sleep or wake up or trying to have a nap in the afternoon. That would often left me drained of energy or steal me precious sleep.

I use it as an escape for reality, as a way to cope with the fact that I have no friends and my life sucks. But it's dangerous because it steals you time energy and motivation *(you would rather daydream instead of actually do something for your benefit)* and can make you more depressed and isolated. *It's an addiction*, it can be treated like that.

A site to know more about it and find people like us:http://wildminds.ning.com/


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## WarriorGamer

I have MD as a result of my ADHD and also to escape this world


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## sir robbins

I've been in that boat for years.... I came across the term last year. Thought I was crazy but I seem strangely happy with it


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## inerameia

I also have it because of ADHD. I don't do impersonations though.


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## Frosty345

I can relate to all this. I've been doing it for years. It's actually a great way to combat boredom most of the time but it has proved to be a massive hinderance when I'm trying to concentrate on something.
It's why I make sure that I'm always around other people when trying to get some work done. It prevents me from randomly pacing around and into another room every 5 minutes.


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## melodielemon

Oh wow, this sounds exactly like me. I do this all the time.

Maybe this is the explanation for all of this:http://www.socialanxietysupport.com/forum/f33/anyone-else-talk-to-themselves-391609/


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## melodielemon

Although I do underplay it on that thread ^


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## AngelClare

I sometimes ask people about their daydreams. You would be surprised by how many people daydream. I used to think I was a little crazy because my daydreams seemed like an escape from reality. 

I have daydreams about being at press conference about some great scientific discovery I made. 

I had a neighbor who was crazy and would tell me that he's really a billionaire. I used to worry that when I got old I would become like him. I still worry about that a little so I try to cut down on the daydreaming.


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## tehuti88

I daydream throughout much of the day--mentally roleplaying my characters (I write) going about their daily lives and dramas, like a movie in my head. I used to literally/physically play out their actions myself, while listening to loud music, but I stopped doing that long ago and now just do it mentally, though I like to sometimes walk around while listening to music and all this stuff goes on in my head. I used to be able to put myself in the head of certain characters to deal with daily difficulties, but told myself this was an avoidance behavior and unlearned how to do it...I wish I'd never done that since I have no other coping mechanisms to take its place. :sigh

I don't consider it "maladaptive" in my case since 1. I have no obligations for it to interfere with, and 2. I have no chances of acquiring a social life or IRL friendships for it to interfere with. Plus sometimes I do some actual writing based on it all. :stu


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## cozynights

Wow I never thought my fantasies had a medical name. The definition of the condition describes them perfectly! I am constantly daydreaming - I have a whole self-created world inside my head where I imagine characters' lives all the time, moving along with mine, and those are characters that I truly like and care about. I am always doing faces/movements/voices while daydreaming and sometimes I create situations that leave me with headaches and a fever.
But to be honest, I don't enjoy knowing that it is an _addiction_. I don't wanna get rid of it at all. I'd be nothing without my fantasy world. My current one has been in my head for almost a year and it is with me in bad and good moments


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## KeiraA

Wow i didn't think that anyone else did this, to the extent that I do. Sometimes my little fantasy, daydreaming land is just SO MUCH better than reality, that I'll stay there for hours and hours. It's quite sad really.


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## flames25

I never knew there was a term for this.. It explains a lot. It's fun sometimes but other times it can be such a massive distraction.


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## purplefruit

This is so weird, I didn't know there was a name for it.

I have been doing this since I was really young. Using both fictional and IRL people and creating elaborate storylines with them in my head. Following their lives for years. Usually the people became famous in music or sport industry. They were always perfect.

Unfortunately it was a huge distraction because my daydreams popped up whenever my mind went idle, eg. when I was studying something boring, or if I was in class. Sometimes the daydreaming would last over an hour.

I also used to expand on thier stories when I went to bed. I still had 'organic' dreams too, but when I hit the pillow I would force myself to see my characters and continue their story.

After I graduated university I forcefully tried to stop myself and I'm mostly done with it. I have a group of characters in my head but their story has mostly disintigrated. I don't want to keep daydreaming because unfortunately it makes me feel like a weirdo.



tehuti88 said:


> I don't consider it "maladaptive" in my case since 1. I have no obligations for it to interfere with, and 2. I have no chances of acquiring a social life or IRL friendships for it to interfere with. Plus sometimes I do some actual writing based on it all. :stu


Sometimes I wish I did write, because I could create such intricate stories. But I felt too ashamed for anyone to know I was having these thoughts about other people, whether they were fictional or real


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## wrongnumber

It started in early childhood for me and it was definitely maladaptive / an addiction. I'd be thoroughly engrossed and it seemed to be the center of my life though I never used it as a coping mechanism. It was just something I couldn't help but think about and music triggered and enhanced it too. I also have strong ADHD traits and to a lesser degree OCD ones. I gradually outgrew MD in my late teens / early 20s I think due to brain development. My daydreaming has been dramatically curtailed now (with no effort), I practically have to force myself. It doesn't occur to me. It's still enjoyable but I guess not as much, and certainly isn't as entrancing or addictive as it used to be. I wonder if people with MD tend to be not very driven by external reward and are stimulated most by their mental life, therefore appearing lazy, spacey and unmotivated to others?


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## girlshateme

I've done this since I was 7. I used to bounce a ball against the wall for hours and make up characters and pretend to be them. I could probably fantasize all day. It is best when I have an iPod and am doing some sort of movement, like running or basketball. 

I hate it though. It makes me feel like I'm secretly insane and if someone saw me doing this they'd probably think I had multiple personalities or something. It definitely messes up my schedule and sense of time too, once I start sometimes I just don't stop and I end up staying up all night or wasting an entire day. Plus certain things trigger it out. I don't know what this means though, because they can be really random but they just always set me off.


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## Banzai

I have this problem real bad, mostly in the form of pacing for hours and hours. I probably have ADD or something. I've been trying desperately hard to quit it but I think I only cut down a bit during the latest exam season. Now it's the holidays, I have some vague idea of cutting down significantly/stopping completely (for the next academic year) but so far that's not happening


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## SpyNumber403

I don't know if I have it.. I do Day dream a lot. I think it did negatively affect me because it allowed me to just have so much emotionally intense experiences doing nothing. Like last night I had to clean up some garbage and I put on some latex gloves and I pretended I was some sort of assassin cleaning up a murder scene or something. I felt all the emotions of doing something intense (pride, adrenaline, intellectual stimulation, etc) but I actually have very little real experience to go w/ those emotions. This tendency has probably kept me far too happy doing nothing with my time.


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## Tink76

Okay this definately applies to me. For me it's the pacing not rocking. And yes it starte for me in pre-school. Also while listening to music, yes.

As with SA, I am very glad to give a name to this behaviour. Thanks for the link I'll look at it.


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## Parasitichipotlewrap

WHOA! I thought this was normal...well, fack! something new added to the equation, eh?

I would lay in my bed and I would always need to have something in my hand. I would create movie like themes. There would always have to be explosions and for some reason I just couldn't wrap my head around as to how much explosions I should add. Really weird. I would also do this after a movie and I would go lay in my bed, with a pen preferably, and give it my own ending or twist.

I would also do this while sitting in class. I would take my surroundings and create a sort of film in my head. All I needed was a writing utensil of some sort in order to engage into this "world" 100%. 

I was placed in special ed type classes and my teachers warned my parents of "ADHD". Although, I've always begged to differ with the teachers on the matter, since I voluntarily didn't pay close attention. Maybe my "imaginative" world would take over from me being able to learn, I am not sure. 

I don't this very often anymore. If I do, I can manage without something like a pen or pencil being in my hand. 

Music is incredible when it comes paring these two together! Especially when I am driving! ugh! it's sort of like a natural high and a quick getaway. BUT! it has to be the right song. 

I toke every now and then. I can really enhance the "fantasies" with it. 

The earliest age I can probably remember doing this would be about 7-8 years of age.

Damn, so here I am, years later. A little crushed actually, because this whole time I was thinking, and so were others, that I had such an incredible imagination. No, Harold. No it's not. It's just all part of your disease. 

Great.


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## cafune

I dealt with this more as a child. I'm not sure if I'd call it "maladaptive daydreaming" or "plan-making" because I was the main character. Sometimes real-life wasn't fulfilling enough, so I'd fantasize about going on adventures (such as exploring rain forests looking for plants with medicinal properties, etc.) or living in a different type of society (medieval) or interacting with someone I was too shy to speak to or how my future would be (moving from country to country, holding different careers [surgeon, fashion designer, professor, physicist]), etc. The possibilities were endless. They really messed with my view of and contentment with reality because nothing will probably ever match up to my imagination. Also, the line between reality and fantasy would blur. I used to think that perhaps my fantasies could become a reality one day, but that was impractical, foolish, childish, idealized thinking.

I remember, I'd try to daydream about specific events before bed, especially, so that I could get myself to continue those fantasies in my dreams (they'd feel real).

I am still triggered by watching action-adventure/fantasy films (most recently, The Hobbit) or reading science-fiction/fantasy novels.. Reality is so boring and empty in comparison. I don't know why those things resonate with me. I find that most other people are capable of watching/reading and moving on, but my mind lingers and overdoses on wistfulness.


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## popeet

^ I studied anthropology in part because I have always been interested in ethnobotany and appropriate technology (e.g. living properly on whatever land you're in) and I fantasized like you did when I was little, that I lived in a village and gathered medicines, etc. I buried things and made little altars and I wasn't really able to accept contemporary life. Seemed so profoundly empty in comparison.


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## Brilliantly Beta

Any room in this boat for one more?


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## louiselouisa

I've been daydreaming since I was around 6 too, when The Moffats still existed. But still normal for the so-called imaginative kid /s. Started from when I was 15, I developed an attachment to people that don't exist. Sometimes I thought it was not normal but I've read a lot of people has characters inside their head I thought I might be overreacted.

But I'm not sure, after reading this part 
"Many others also move their hands around and make facial expressions: laughing, crying, whispering, and gesturing with hands [because they are trying to impersonate the characters themselves]. Listening to music while daydreaming is common and hearing music may trigger a fantasy. A repetitive movement may be articulated to music while daydreaming. Watching a movie or reading a book, can also trigger a fantasy."
I got kinda scared, so it's not normal? Because it doesn't sound normal from the way it's written but I know i can totally relate to this.

But weirdly, I don't remember having any trauma or abuse... Is this dangerous or what?


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## OakMan

I fantasize being again a child and desiring to be with my childhood friends.
I suppose it could be a scape from the dark situation I am now.


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## tehuti88

louiselouisa said:


> But I'm not sure, after reading this part
> "Many others also move their hands around and make facial expressions: laughing, crying, whispering, and gesturing with hands [because they are trying to impersonate the characters themselves]. Listening to music while daydreaming is common and hearing music may trigger a fantasy. A repetitive movement may be articulated to music while daydreaming. Watching a movie or reading a book, can also trigger a fantasy."
> I got kinda scared, so it's not normal? Because it doesn't sound normal from the way it's written but I know i can totally relate to this.
> 
> *But weirdly, I don't remember having any trauma or abuse... Is this dangerous or what?*


Bold part is the same for me. I've just always had a tendency to lose myself in my imagination, as far back as I can remember; it just seems to be part of who I am. :stu

Regarding the moving around, THAT is something I figured only I did until reading this thread and some other sources...I can't engage in actively roleplaying/pretending/"dancing" my characters anymore ops so I tend to listen to music I like on headphones while walking around doing my nightly/bedtime routine, only in my head, instead of closing the blinds and making my bed etc., I'm living through a movie soundtrack of one of my stories. ;_;

When I had more time on my hands, I'd go outside and pace around and around the house and property while listening to music, for the same reason, and I'd really like time to do that more often...to me it's a bit of a relief to know I'm not the only one who does such things!


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## Dark Shines

What would be the difference between this and _normal_ day dreaming though? I've decided that excessive daydreaming is definitely a negative thing for me and I've had to develop strategies for controlling it, it's taken me months and months of hard work. It can use up a lot of my time and make me unable to concentrate and focus on things I _need_ to do, or otherwise _want_ to do.

I've always attributed this to a reflex coping mechanism for dealing with extreme isolation and intense, irreconcilable emotion. Admittedly though, some of this emotion resulted from emotional trauma caused by certain events in my past.

On the flip side of the coin though, a certain amount of daydreaming is also a critical part of the creative process if you're into creative writing.


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## tehuti88

Dark Shines said:


> What would be the difference between this and _normal_ day dreaming though?


Like the difference between shyness and social anxiety disorder, I think the difference is in terms of whether it's disruptive to quality of daily life/functioning or not. This is one reason that although I engage in the same behaviors that are considered "maladaptive daydreaming," I don't consider it maladaptive _for me personally_ since I don't have any social life or obligations for it to interfere with...



Dark Shines said:


> On the flip side of the coin though, a certain amount of daydreaming is also a critical part of the creative process if you're into creative writing.


...and that there is the other reason I consider my admittedly excessive daydreaming to be more beneficial than detrimental. :yes


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## Dark Shines

tehuti88 said:


> Like the difference between shyness and social anxiety disorder, I think the difference is in terms of whether it's disruptive to quality of daily life/functioning or not. This is one reason that although I engage in the same behaviors that are considered "maladaptive daydreaming," I don't consider it maladaptive _for me personally_ since I don't have any social life or obligations for it to interfere with...
> 
> ...and that there is the other reason I consider my admittedly excessive daydreaming to be more beneficial than detrimental. :yes


 I see. I mean I too find that day dreaming is an integral part of imaginative process, so spending hours on end developing characters or plot lines is definitely something that I consider to be constructive. But being plagued by vivid fantasies that reflect real life, or what I would prefer real life to resemble had certain things in my life not happened, that prevent me from sitting down, force me to keep getting up to pace and prevent me from concentrating on work certainly aren't.

But I do also feel that the mind needs a way to express itself socially during extended periods of isolation and I see the daydreaming almost as being a natural adaptation to extreme solitude. I don't personally know whether it would be more or less beneficial to absolutely block it out, part of me feels that if I did, I'd end up going numb or strange, well, _stranger_ anyway.:roll


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## louiselouisa

tehuti88 said:


> Bold part is the same for me. I've just always had a tendency to lose myself in my imagination, as far back as I can remember; it just seems to be part of who I am. :stu
> 
> Regarding the moving around, THAT is something I figured only I did until reading this thread and some other sources...I can't engage in actively roleplaying/pretending/"dancing" my characters anymore ops so I tend to listen to music I like on headphones while walking around doing my nightly/bedtime routine, only in my head, instead of closing the blinds and making my bed etc., I'm living through a movie soundtrack of one of my stories. ;_;
> 
> When I had more time on my hands, I'd go outside and pace around and around the house and property while listening to music, for the same reason, and I'd really like time to do that more often...to me it's a bit of a relief to know I'm not the only one who does such things!


It's actually what makes me afraid, it's like I have a hidden trauma I don't even remember... lol

So true, I've been doing this since as far as I can remember, but the attachment, pacing, and making gestures and facial expression, it started to show when I was 15. I don't actually making expression like you could caught me making funny faces in the room, alone, it's just sometimes when the fantasy is so intense, you know it can affect your expression and you know you have to refrain yourself.

I don't fantasize about myself though, but a different person... and OH YES, PACING, I always say I love to walk around my house when I'm excited but apparently it's this. lol, I don't know but it's just so funny everything makes sense now. That's just so true, when I do it it's because my mind is actively working, I get excited and giddy so I need to take a walk lol.

And the part I like is when you're deeply engaged, you're pacing, then you stub your toe and suddenly you're brought to reality and it makes you feel like a fool.. such a party pooper


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## tehuti88

louiselouisa said:


> It's actually what makes me afraid, it's like I have a hidden trauma I don't even remember... lol


I sometimes have a similar worry... ops



louiselouisa said:


> I don't fantasize about myself though, but a different person... and OH YES, PACING, I always say I love to walk around my house when I'm excited but apparently it's this. lol, I don't know but it's just so funny everything makes sense now. That's just so true, when I do it it's because my mind is actively working, I get excited and giddy so I need to take a walk lol.
> 
> And the part I like is when you're deeply engaged, you're pacing, then you stub your toe and suddenly you're brought to reality and it makes you feel like a fool.. such a party pooper


Same, I fantasize about others, never myself.

What I hate is when I'm pacing around listening to music (and imagining in my head) while getting ready for bed, and I suddenly run into one of my parents getting up to use the bathroom, and they startle me so much since I have music blaring in my ears and couldn't hear them getting up...and they probably wonder what I'm doing walking around at night with my CD player...so awkward! ;_; :lol


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## Jesuszilla

So from the limited information I gathered on maladaptive daydreaming, does this include things like daydreaming ALL THE TIME.

For example whenever I listen to music I daydream of situations
I went to see Man of Steel and even while watching I was picturing myself actually in the movie and how I'd react to everything that was going on (even though I was able to perfectly follow the movie)
Or that my daydreams are so intense that I start to act it out or talk it out. Even though I quickly catch myself and stop.
I write stories, music and stuff like that because I feel that my day dreams are so interesting that I sometimes write them down or replay them in my head like an episode re-run.

I don't stop daydreaming no matter what I do. I'm in my head 24/7. I've been hurt emotionally from some of my more intense daydreams even though its fake as hell. But it is way more lively than anything I have going on in my life


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## Berzerko

seaport said:


> I've had it since I was a kid. For me its both a useful coping mechanism and an enjoyable past time. Music is my primary trigger. Sometimes when I come home after a tedious school day, I'll be all 'awww yeeeah, time to submerge myself in some kickass daydreams'. I may be the odd one here but I honestly love it. It aids me in my creative endeavors, helps me get through anxious periods, and is an effective outlet for strong emotion. Its never been 'maladaptive' for me and I'm a little bit wary of the fact that its being perceived as something negative. It's certainly different, but its not something I would try to 'cure' myself of. When I was a kid, it helped me keep afloat of a toxic and dysfunctional home environment.


mind blown.........I DO THAT!


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## popeet

bezerk0 said:


> mind blown.........I DO THAT!


x2


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## tehuti88

Jesuszilla said:


> I write stories, music and stuff like that because I feel that my day dreams are so interesting that I sometimes write them down or replay them in my head like an episode re-run.


I often "replay" certain scenarios I've daydreamed up, over and over, just like watching an advertisement over and over and over (usually to music)...goodness. If it were a tape or a DVD it'd be worn out. ops



Jesuszilla said:


> I don't stop daydreaming no matter what I do. I'm in my head 24/7. I've been hurt emotionally from some of my more intense daydreams even though its fake as hell. *But it is way more lively than anything I have going on in my life*


Agreed...I also sometimes get upset by some of the things I daydream, such as a story scenario that doesn't bode well for one of the characters. Sometimes I cry. Jeez I'm a mush. ;_;


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## TrueAstralKnight

I probably have something like this. I'll frequently recite lines from movies, games or TV shows acting like the person all the while.


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## mfd

I don't know if what I do is _maladaptive_ or just regular daydreaming.

I do spend an inordinate amount of time in my head, but it's something I truly enjoy. I'm not just doing it to escape the real world. For as long as I can remember I've lived more in thoughts and imagination than real life.

As a child I'd draw out background pictures, then I'd draw characters and props I could cut out so I could move them around on the backgrounds and have "adventures". Nowadays I basically do the same thing, just in a more complex way by creating comics or illustrated stories.

If I'm not drawing or writing stories, I'm generally looking for references to use, or I'm writing out documents for topics like political systems, spaceship design, made-up religions, or character bios all for the purpose of using them for those comics/stories :stu

Maybe it would be considered maladaptive... I don't know. It makes me happy though.


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## ratbag

I definitely have a problem with this. I'll stop anything I'm doing to get up and pace around while I daydream. I can even spend months on a particular daydream, replaying or expanding it. Any new event, book, show or song can trigger it. I think it stems from my boring, reclusive life. Sometimes I get anxiety when I do it, too.


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## tehuti88

mfd said:


> As a child I'd draw out background pictures, then I'd draw characters and props I could cut out so I could move them around on the backgrounds and have "adventures". Nowadays I basically do the same thing, just in a more complex way by creating comics or illustrated stories.


I did that too!  Though more often I played with either stuffed animals or little plastic toy animals...they had so many adventures...

Sometimes I would record myself doing my characters' voices on audiocassette.



mfd said:


> If I'm not drawing or writing stories, I'm generally looking for references to use, or I'm writing out documents for topics like political systems, spaceship design, made-up religions, or character bios all for the purpose of using them for those comics/stories :stu


Ha, me tooooooo. I think I spend more time filling out character profiles and buying books on character development than I spend actually writing stories. :lol

Jeez, I'm all over this thread. ops



mfd said:


> Maybe it would be considered maladaptive... I don't know. It makes me happy though.


:agree


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## Jesuszilla

So can any of you "see" your fantasies. For example when I'm driving home from work I can look at the skyline and see things play out. Obviously it's not there but I can still say robots destroying the city it gets intense


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## Tom90

I seriously thought i had ADHD until i ran into this article. The description is exactly what i do my entire school day i mean my ENTIRE school day nothing else and when i get home its scary. What kind of treatment is available though?


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## tehuti88

Jesuszilla said:


> So can any of you "see" your fantasies. For example when I'm driving home from work I can look at the skyline and see things play out. Obviously it's not there but I can still say robots destroying the city it gets intense


I see it only in my head. And even there it's almost like I just feel it more than I actually see it (though I'm quite good at visualization--somebody makes a ludicrous statement, like say my dad saying our cat is graceful like a ballerina, and BAM, I have this clear mental image of my cat in a pink tutu :lol ).

I'm very poor with visualizing human faces or the faces of my characters, though...facial expressions, yes, but actual facial characteristics, no. I find this terribly frustrating, seeing as I'd love to be able to draw my characters. I'm the same way with real human faces. :| And even though I visualize, say, settings clearly in my head, I seem largely unable to translate those into artwork. Which also sucks...I have some lovely images in my head. :sigh

When I'm staring off into space and seeing things, those images don't superimpose over/interact with the reality around me; rather, I lose track of what's really in front of me and see only what's in my head (I think I commented earlier in here or another thread about how I can be staring at a TV but not seeing a thing on the screen).


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## mfd

tehuti88 said:


> Sometimes I would record myself doing my characters' voices on audiocassette.


Extortion material! 



tehuti88 said:


> Ha, me tooooooo. I think I spend more time filling out character profiles and buying books on character development than I spend actually writing stories. :lol


I probably spend more time on the planning part as well  It's almost as though the freedom disappears when it's written or drawn, because it sets _that_ course of events in stone, rather than it being left open-ended

That's kind of silly because realistically they could be rewritten or redrawn, but I never do it. It feels like it would ruin the enjoyment to change it.



Jesuszilla said:


> So can any of you "see" your fantasies. For example when I'm driving home from work I can look at the skyline and see things play out. Obviously it's not there but I can still say robots destroying the city it gets intense


I don't see it as it being there in front of me, but exactly like tehuti88 described my actual visual information will stop registering, and what I'm imagining in my head will become what I'll see.

When I'm able to get really into it I can visualize to the point of actually feeling the physical sensations, like wind, touch, or experience scents, or even sound. Sometimes my mind will even create a soundtrack alongside what I'm imagining, but I can never seem to retain the melodies. Which is a shame because some were pretty good.


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## Vashr

I daydream a lot as well, but I find it off-putting that it has negative connotations as apparent in this thread. I find it a great boon as a writer, I consider it a gift. I can imagine it being a great boon as many other types of artists and thinkers as well. Writing is my greatest passion in life, and I hope to make a living out of it. 

Like some of you(JesusZilla) my visualization ability is also highly developed, mostly from practice, but somewhat it is a natural gift for me. I find this a great boon as well. The ability to overlay visualizations over physical vision is a trait in many ancient spiritual practices that is considered the result of a high level of development.

I do suppose lack of control is another thing though, but I also do have to wonder if one would really want to have perfect control over such a gift, else random inspiration would not strike! 

An experiment for someone who wants to try it, when you are having one of these seemingly uncontrolled daydreams put a gentle focus on your physical body, at your lower abdomen, your center of gravity. See if that brings you back to full physical awareness. (It's a Buddhist and Taoist meditation technique.)


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## Jesuszilla

tehuti88 said:


> I see it only in my head. And even there it's almost like I just feel it more than I actually see it (though I'm quite good at visualization--somebody makes a ludicrous statement, like say my dad saying our cat is graceful like a ballerina, and BAM, I have this clear mental image of my cat in a pink tutu :lol ).


That's pretty cool actually.



> I'm very poor with visualizing human faces or the faces of my characters, though...facial expressions, yes, but actual facial characteristics, no. I find this terribly frustrating, seeing as I'd love to be able to draw my characters. I'm the same way with real human faces. :| And even though I visualize, say, settings clearly in my head, I seem largely unable to translate those into artwork. Which also sucks...I have some lovely images in my head. :sigh.


I have an issue drawing my characters out as well and it is frustrating as hell. I can visualize faces and emotions I just can not put it on paper. The writing part is easy drawing is not


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## cliffclavin

I definitely have this, only without specific fantasy stories or characters. But I have the intense visualizations, that I compare to the video game Zelda/Ocarina of Time 64. Very medieval in tone yet bright. Will also have sepiatone fantasies like this video.






As far as music, if I listen to Dream Theater, it puts me in a different world. One time I listened to their Six Degrees Of Inner Turbulence CD from beginning to end and had this big daydream in my head that I was in a sunny field with this woman I made up in my head and we were just sitting there enjoying the weather and atmosphere lol.

I sometimes wish I had full access to these fantasies and there was a virtual reality program that I could tap into when I felt like escaping.

I also have this intense fantasy of making love with a woman at night and going to bed with her, waking up with her the next morning with her wearing my shirt and making coffee. I suppose that's a normal fantasy, but the way it plays out in my head, it's like it's out of a movie.


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## Nightmareprincess

Does that mean acting to. 
I mean when I have time, I act out whatever "story" I have planned.
They change from time to time. They never really have an ending. I think it's a stress relief


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## Dianabolic

human after all said:


> Maybe if I didn't see a video I casually bumped onto on Youtube today, I would've spent my whole life not knowing what's wrong with me besides SA and depression. I thought I was the only one doing this, because no one speaks about it out of shame and it's still researched by psychologists, although you can still find some documentation online. I'm hoping I can bring this to your attention, who knows if someone has it and doesn't know, and if you have it, we can talk about it.
> *Excessive daydreaming may begin as an outlet for creativity or as a method of escaping trauma or abuse. The daydreamers experience very vivid and intricate fantasies and may become emotionally attached to the characters in their fantasies or express emotions they are feeling through vocal utterances or changing facial expressions, although most keep such behavior hidden from others. People with Maladaptive Daydreaming are different from schizophrenics, they know the difference between reality and fantasy; they realize that everything they are dreaming about is a fantasy. [They simply have trouble stopping daydreaming and focusing on regular tasks.] Some also exhibit symptoms similar to Asperger's Syndrome, ADHD or OCD.
> 
> Many people have social anxiety and/or depression along with maladaptive daydreaming. A large number also find their social lives are negatively impacted by this disorder. 79% of those self-identified as having excessive daydreams had a kinesthetic repetitive movement accompany their daydreaming, such as pacing, rocking, tapping, or shaking an object. Many others also move their hands around and make facial expressions: laughing, crying, whispering, and gesturing with hands [because they are trying to impersonate the characters themselves]. Listening to music while daydreaming is common and hearing music may trigger a fantasy. A repetitive movement may be articulated to music while daydreaming. Watching a movie or reading a book, can also trigger a fantasy.
> 
> Many people have novel or movie type fantasies. They create their own world [sometimes more than one] , with characters, settings, plots, heroes, villains, friends, etc. -- they also may imagine storylines using the characters or settings from already existing works of fiction.
> 
> Some people have reported dizziness, headaches and other physical symptoms after daydreaming. [Source:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maladaptive_daydreaming].*
> 
> Now I've been having this from when I was about 5 or 6. I would rock in bed, while imagining being someone else, like impersonating the different characters my "stories" have. I would often imagine myself as being a succesful person, like a rockstar or a motivational speaker (I know right, ironically I'm the exact opposite) etc. I have episodes mostly when I go to sleep or wake up or trying to have a nap in the afternoon. That would often left me drained of energy or steal me precious sleep.
> 
> I use it as an escape for reality, as a way to cope with the fact that I have no friends and my life sucks. But it's dangerous because it steals you time energy and motivation *(you would rather daydream instead of actually do something for your benefit)* and can make you more depressed and isolated. *It's an addiction*, it can be treated like that.
> 
> A site to know more about it and find people like us:http://wildminds.ning.com/


Holy **** dude you described my life to the point I'd almost think wtf are you stalking me or something. I have aspergers but I always daydreamed wa more then others with aspergers. Also I'm the quietest among my as friends. I've daydreamed my whole life infact most of the day at school I hang out alone and create these elaborate stories which I am in.


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## madein87

It started happening to me more almost out of no where these past few weeks, but I think it may have to do with me having more time on my hands since the semester ended and my brain is no longer on math equations . I think the daydreaming began for me when I was about 12. When I was 20 I started to write short stories, and wrote a book already with one of my main daydreams I would always think about!! I kind of think its cool now..but yeah hopefully I can tame it a bit, today at work I noticed I was zoning out :/


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## SunsetInMyVeins

I think that I definitely have this. I have been doing this since I was a little girl. I imagine things like I am a big musician who has tons of friends and a very exciting life. Some of the people I know in my real life are in this fantasy and some fictional people as well. I find it almost therapeutic to think about when I am in situations where I feel uncomfortable or high anxiety in. It goes away after awhile too(the fantasy) and then comes back into my mind. Certain things trigger it like songs in particularly.


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## black445

I'm jealous you guys have such vivid imagination. Icould'nt create a fantasy land if I wanted to . It's a gift.


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## RAPTOR69

human after all said:


> Maybe if I didn't see a video I casually bumped onto on Youtube today, I would've spent my whole life not knowing what's wrong with me besides SA and depression. I thought I was the only one doing this, because no one speaks about it out of shame and it's still researched by psychologists, although you can still find some documentation online. I'm hoping I can bring this to your attention, who knows if someone has it and doesn't know, and if you have it, we can talk about it.
> *Excessive daydreaming may begin as an outlet for creativity or as a method of escaping trauma or abuse. The daydreamers experience very vivid and intricate fantasies and may become emotionally attached to the characters in their fantasies or express emotions they are feeling through vocal utterances or changing facial expressions, although most keep such behavior hidden from others. People with Maladaptive Daydreaming are different from schizophrenics, they know the difference between reality and fantasy; they realize that everything they are dreaming about is a fantasy. [They simply have trouble stopping daydreaming and focusing on regular tasks.] Some also exhibit symptoms similar to Asperger's Syndrome, ADHD or OCD.
> 
> Many people have social anxiety and/or depression along with maladaptive daydreaming. A large number also find their social lives are negatively impacted by this disorder. 79% of those self-identified as having excessive daydreams had a kinesthetic repetitive movement accompany their daydreaming, such as pacing, rocking, tapping, or shaking an object. Many others also move their hands around and make facial expressions: laughing, crying, whispering, and gesturing with hands [because they are trying to impersonate the characters themselves]. Listening to music while daydreaming is common and hearing music may trigger a fantasy. A repetitive movement may be articulated to music while daydreaming. Watching a movie or reading a book, can also trigger a fantasy.
> 
> Many people have novel or movie type fantasies. They create their own world [sometimes more than one] , with characters, settings, plots, heroes, villains, friends, etc. -- they also may imagine storylines using the characters or settings from already existing works of fiction.
> 
> Some people have reported dizziness, headaches and other physical symptoms after daydreaming. [Source:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maladaptive_daydreaming].*
> 
> Now I've been having this from when I was about 5 or 6. I would rock in bed, while imagining being someone else, like impersonating the different characters my "stories" have. I would often imagine myself as being a succesful person, like a rockstar or a motivational speaker (I know right, ironically I'm the exact opposite) etc. I have episodes mostly when I go to sleep or wake up or trying to have a nap in the afternoon. That would often left me drained of energy or steal me precious sleep.
> 
> I use it as an escape for reality, as a way to cope with the fact that I have no friends and my life sucks. But it's dangerous because it steals you time energy and motivation *(you would rather daydream instead of actually do something for your benefit)* and can make you more depressed and isolated. *It's an addiction*, it can be treated like that.
> 
> A site to know more about it and find people like us:http://wildminds.ning.com/


Within the last few weeks I had a casual look around for something of me that... well... that little something that seemed a bit different than everyone else I guess. When you're so used to something that is a part of you, that doesn't really cause problems (actually this... MD.. I find is beneficial in ways), one doesn't always look for a descriptor, or indeed a solution. Even in todays world, many still shy away from 'labels'. Still facing up to something that I have known has existed since I was a child has brought me here after very limited searching. Some of the things discussed in the OP's post resonates so strongly with me that I was gobsmacks and almost embarrassed.... as if someone has watched me all these years and write a little summary of me. :b

Still it's nice to know I'm not utterly alone in the Universe. Your handle is apt 'human after all', indeed.

As I mentioned earlier, my particular symptoms can be beneficial. Goal setting. You can call much of my Daydreams 'Aspirational Daydreams'. I dream of having a better job, Better level of fitness, carrying out explicit sexual fantasies... basically dreaming about somebody I want to be or a situation I want to be in. The Daydreaming itself attaches a strong emotional element to this new somebody. They are goals and things that are realistically achievable in my dreams... not all the time, but much of the time.... and when these have in fact been achieved, the emotional attachment to the dreams and fantasy which I have, are relived.... this time at a more concious REAL level. And when it happens, the return on this dream_ investment_, if you will, is truly ecstatic.

I feel fortunate reading briefly about other's experiences... it doesn't control a huge amount of time in my life. I can stop it. And I only feel the compulsion to Daydream with music mostly and other quiet times of the day. The one thing which I don't like about it is the need to have some sort of physical activity, and the need to have ... alone time.  I try to burn this need up by running with my mp3 player. And it works a good deal but not 100%: It makes we want to have some alone time occasionally to have a little dream to myself.

Other day dreaming subjects which often come to mind are when I hear about bad situations in the News. I daydream that I'm the person relevant, and I dream that I fix whatever situation is particularly annoying on that News... like some war situation I dream that I'm the 'man in charge' and I end it, or bring justice somewhere or some other altruistic type dream.

Overall, notwithstanding the compulsive side to it, and the need for a repetitive type activity, and alone time, it hasn't been a negative part of me, personally. I would say somewhat the opposite. Allowing me to live out something in someone else's shoes helps greatly with developing my empathy. Trying to feel what the other person may think if I daydream his/her life or feelings.

I hope it has made me a better person.


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## Blight

I'm glad I saw this thread. It's nice to know that one of the things that's wrong with me has a name. Daydreaming keeps me up at night. I usually listen to music when I daydream and I have to pace. I hate that it takes up so much of my time and is such a big distraction, but its addicting.

The fact that I like my fantasies so much more than reality makes me feel ashamed. I don't really know how to fix it but I feel like I'm going to waste away the rest of my life.


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## Reckoner7

Does anyone feel (with their daydreams) that along with the escapism of it all that they find comfort in it and makes them feel better such as someone comfort eating will lift their mood for the brief time it does? 
I like day dreaming and I di it alot but I also look forward to it in a way, especially when lying in bed it makes me feel better to play myself as someone else i.e more confident.


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## Luna Sea

Reckoner7 said:


> Does anyone feel (with their daydreams) that along with the escapism of it all that they find comfort in it and makes them feel better such as someone comfort eating will lift their mood for the brief time it does?
> I like day dreaming and I di it alot but I also look forward to it in a way, especially when lying in bed it makes me feel better to play myself as someone else i.e more confident.


If it didn't make me feel better I wouldn't do it enough for it to be maladaptive, I guess. It's absolutely a relief to get a break from the boring crap of normal life by spending your time in a fantasy, but I'm sure my life wouldn't be so crappy in the first place if I didn't have daydreaming as a crutch.


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## Brilliantly Beta

I love this disorder as much as I hate it. It is both a gift and a curse for me. On one hand it makes me feel even more alienated and alone but then it is there to comfort me. I can be someone be something and have a girlfriend who won't hurt me and friends who would die for me. It's like virtually filling an empty shell I guess.


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## SapphireMeadow

First I would just like to point out to all of those who said "I had this since I was a kid..." No, you didn't. When you're a kid it's called "Pretending" and it's actually good for you. It's when you carry it over into your adult life, let it interfere with said adult life, and can't stop doing it that it becomes a problem and bad for you. well unless your a writer/artist then it works for you so it's not bad... it can still cause issues with making friends and having a social life though :/ I know because I have this problem. It doesn't really effect me adversely because I'm a cartoonist (or at least that's what I wanna be when I get out of collage) but it does take up valuable time that I could be spending doing other, slightly more impotent things. And it also interfeers with my social life because I have on occasion wanted to stay home and daydream instead of going out on the weekend, which isn't good for me.


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## Blight

^I don't understand why you disagree with those who say they have had this since they were a kid. Even as a child, you can spend so much time daydreaming in your own made up world, that it interferes with your life (i.e. school and the social/emotional bonds you should be forming.) In large enough doses, I think it begins to cause more harm than good, even as a child.


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## RAPTOR69

SapphireMeadow said:


> First I would just like to point out to all of those who said "I had this since I was a kid..." No, you didn't. When you're a kid it's called "Pretending" and it's actually good for you. It's when you carry it over into your adult life, let it interfere with said adult life, and can't stop doing it that it becomes a problem and bad for you. well unless your a writer/artist then it works for you so it's not bad... it can still cause issues with making friends and having a social life though :/ I know because I have this problem. It doesn't really effect me adversely because I'm a cartoonist (or at least that's what I wanna be when I get out of collage) but it does take up valuable time that I could be spending doing other, slightly more impotent things. And it also interfeers with my social life because I have on occasion wanted to stay home and daydream instead of going out on the weekend, which isn't good for me.


Yes, I've had it as a kid. Does every kid sit in bed sitting on there hands having repetitive motions while imagining things? Isn't this a part of the symptoms of MD for some people?


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## tehuti88

Reckoner7 said:


> Does anyone feel (with their daydreams) that along with the escapism of it all that they find comfort in it and makes them feel better such as someone comfort eating will lift their mood for the brief time it does?
> I like day dreaming and I di it alot but I also look forward to it in a way, especially when lying in bed it makes me feel better to play myself as someone else i.e more confident.


Mine doesn't make me feel better/comforted or more confident or anything, but it's definitely more interesting than dwelling in the real world or mulling over my loneliness. (I don't really "look forward" to daydreaming, since it's just automatic for me. I also don't tend to daydream about myself.)

I used to do something when I was younger--put myself in the head of a character of mine who could handle stressful situations better--and take strength from them so I could cope with things. In a limited capacity, that activity did make me feel better and more confident. Unfortunately, I convinced myself this was an unhealthy thing to do and to stop doing it, and don't know how to do it anymore.


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## Lokis Whispers

Oh my goodness, there's a name for this! This literally ruined my life as a teenager, I got so into it. I'm putting my story here so hopefully people will learn from my mistake and not also get too into it.

I hated my life as a teenager. I had SA back then and got made fun of and bullied constantly, so I started daydreaming a good life to combat my anxiety and depression. When I came home from school I would go right to my bed and lay down on my back and go into my little headworld. I'd usually act out certain things using my hands or my facial expressions without realizing it (making kissy faces and huggy hands during a romantic story, yep)

I had characters with deep intricate personalities and I'd often put them into situations with characters from my favourite shows (at the time I was just getting into anime, so it was mostly Sailor Moon and such) They'd live out whole lives, and I'd put in drama around every corner, and I would just lay there all evening and night. Sometimes I'd play music on my headphones and daydream of karaoke bars or concerts. Once the next day came, I'd put my story on pause, go to my classes thinking about nothing but what things I'd do with my characters next. I'd forgo things like dinner and homework, only to have a feast with the "family" in my head. When one story ended (usually after a month) I'd start up a new one from the beginning.

I withdrew more and more and soon I was drawing out my characters and floorplans and entire maps of planets and wound up with a set unchanging universe with a story that didn't end. One day I was sitting in class and I could hear their voices, clear as day, and soon I began to see my "friends" walking next to me and doing whatever in the physical world even when I wasn't daydreaming. I couldn't turn them off, but they would talk to me and I felt it was "better for me" since I was actually in the real world rather than daydreaming.

Soon some of my more villainous evil characters popped up and I started freaking out and unable to tell their voices apart from those around me, so I knew I had to put a stop to it before I went into full-on schizophrenia.

Long story short, I went to see a psychologist and he worked with me to help me stop daydreaming so much, and once I stopped daydreaming the visual and vocal hallucinations began to fade. Nowadays I still daydream, but I'm very careful and keep a strict time table. One hour of daydreaming either in the morning by waking up early, or at night by getting into bed early. It's my little meditation time. Most of my daydreams are short stories that last only one or two days now, I'm afraid to go for longer, and they usually involve ideas I come up with for my fanfiction for Doctor Who, Supernatural, or Sherlock :b Other times, if I've got my headphones on, it's just me flying to music or riding dinosaurs across the tundra to Bach or whatever.


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## SapphireMeadow

Blight said:


> ^I don't understand why you disagree with those who say they have had this since they were a kid. Even as a child, you can spend so much time daydreaming in your own made up world, that it interferes with your life (i.e. school and the social/emotional bonds you should be forming.) In large enough doses, I think it begins to cause more harm than good, even as a child.


Well I guess I should clarify, I don't completely disagree. I just meant that when your a kid there is a more fuzzy line when it comes to daydreaming being a problem than it is when your an adult. As an adult it's almost always a bad thing to daydream but when your a kid it's more acceptable because most people expect you to dream and pretend. However for adults daydreaming is not acceptable in most cases on a daily basis due to all their responsibilities. I can see how when taken to certain extremes it can be bad for kids too though 



RAPTOR69 said:


> Yes, I've had it as a kid. Does every kid sit in bed sitting on there hands having repetitive motions while imagining things? Isn't this a part of the symptoms of MD for some people?


No, you've got me there :/ That isn't normal but I'm not sure it's just daydreaming too much either... The definition of this MD is like aspergers with the added symptom of daydreaming too much, so it's sort of questionable to me if it's not just really imaginative people with aspergers instead of a whole new disorder... but IDK? Could be.


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## hovis

Currently exploring this topic with my therapist.

I tend to fantasize about being someone with great power who can have someone kidnapped/killed/etc or someone skilled enough to do it myself.

Along with suicide, I tend to jump to homicide as a solution to problems, especially with former relationship partners.

Made me feel good to see other people that experience similar things.


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## SapphireMeadow

hovis said:


> Currently exploring this topic with my therapist.
> 
> I tend to fantasize about being someone with great power who can have someone kidnapped/killed/etc or someone skilled enough to do it myself.


I do that too, I think it has something to do with feeling insecure and weak... or at least in my case it is. Makes you long to be in complete control and powerful enough to manipulate people to your will :/


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## mightypillow

So, excessive daydreaming is now a condition? Ugh.
And here I thought my like for daydreaming was a good way for me to cope.


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## The Truth

Wow. I've been doing this for as long as I can remember. Though it's mild compared to all the stuff I've read from people with the disorder.


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## Helemons

Wow. Okay now I know I'm not the only freak out there. I thought I was completely alone about this. But the more I keep looking into things, the more I realize there are other people like me out there. I found out a few months ago that what I though was just me being weird is actually two disorders called dermatophagia and dermatillimania. I also found out I have social anxieties and borderline disorders. I turn 16 in September. I think Im going to go to my mom about all this and ask her to take me to a doctor to see if all these new disorders are related or not

_Posted via *Topify* using iPhone/iPad_


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## SapphireMeadow

Jesuszilla said:


> So can any of you "see" your fantasies. For example when I'm driving home from work I can look at the skyline and see things play out. Obviously it's not there but I can still say robots destroying the city it gets intense


I don't visually see it with my eyes but at the same time I do see an image/movie playing out. I've never really thought this much about how I visualize things before but it's kinda weird LOL It's like my mind takes my memories and imagination; and generates a visual image of what I want to see without me actually seeing it visually... if that makes any since :um


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## The Truth

SapphireMeadow said:


> I don't visually see it with my eyes but at the same time I do see an image/movie playing out. I've never really thought this much about how I visualize things before but it's kinda weird LOL It's like my mind takes my memories and imagination; and generates a visual image of what I want to see without me actually seeing it visually... if that makes any since :um


Same thing here. It's very abstract. Almost all my thinking is.


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## Leonodas

Dear God, this explains a lot...

I created a whole world. A couple, actually. I'm fixated on one right now, one that repeats itself often. I think it's because I grew attached to those characters, those complex personalities I created. I did it all the time when I was younger, and I always believed it would fade away when I was older. 

It never did, so now I just accept it and don't tell anyone. I hope to make many of the older stories books one day.

Actually, I'm now inspired to create a thread for people to share their MD experiences. I want to hear what people think about.


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## The Truth

Leonodas said:


> Dear God, this explains a lot...
> 
> I created a whole world. A couple, actually. I'm fixated on one right now, one that repeats itself often. I think it's because I grew attached to those characters, those complex personalities I created. I did it all the time when I was younger, and I always believed it would fade away when I was older.
> 
> It never did, so now I just accept it and don't tell anyone. I hope to make many of the older stories books one day.
> 
> Actually, I'm now inspired to create a thread for people to share their MD experiences. I want to hear what people think about.


Do it. I'd like to hear the gist of your two worlds.


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## Jesuszilla

SapphireMeadow said:


> I don't visually see it with my eyes but at the same time I do see an image/movie playing out. I've never really thought this much about how I visualize things before but it's kinda weird LOL It's like my mind takes my memories and imagination; and generates a visual image of what I want to see without me actually seeing it visually... if that makes any since :um


Makes perfect sense


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## Mersault

You could use this on some kind of art you might create  In my case writing helped me focus on my imagination when it is pleasant, and not worry about making plots when i have nothing to gain from that.


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## ThsGirlDana

Everything in that page describes me. But, I love daydreaming though, it's really fun. I was actually doing just that before i came across this thread and thought 'oh wow.' i had actually researched this awhile back just to make sure i wasn't the only one who did this because sometimes i think i do it way to much. I honestly started to describe my life as half in this reality and the other half in my head. I don't know if i have a trigger or not but, i have been doing this i swear since i can remember, probably since i was born.


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## lisac1919

If you guys think this is a lot of people to have Maladaptive daydreaming, you should go to the Wild Minds Network, they have about 3000 members who have MD. Its like a giant forum just to talk about the condition.

In my case, ive had it for as long as I can remember. My trigger is music. I basically pace around and imagine a celebrity or person I think is cool (basically someone I want to impress) in the room and they watch me as I be awesome; much awesomer than I am in real life. I put myself in situations where I can show off how perfect and interesting and beautiful I am. I can sing, play instruments, im funny, crazy, wild, hot (all the things I wish I was in real life basically)...and the celebs or whoever it is at the time are usually sitting in a corner just watching, all impressed lol. I don't actually interact with them, although sometimes I do, but they are mostly just listening and watching me while im talking or doing something with someone else (this person whom im doing things with is not usually specified). Or a big one for me is imagining im on a tv show, or im about to be interviewed and they do an extensive introduction of me before I come out on stage, while the other guest stars are amazed that they have never heard of me before. lol (i cant believe im admitting all of this). Still other times I imagine im in a montage of stuff that my friends have filmed me doing, and sometimes I'm in slow mo and stuff like that. lol When i watch youtube and someone makes a funny joke, ill pause it, pretend im my character and repeat the exact same joke and get a laugh from my celeb fixation, or if I disagree with something the youtuber said I imagine they are with me and argue with them about it lmao. Other times it could be them watching me be a really good guitar player, or singer, or bikini model, or dancer, or comedian, or being really good at a certain sport. Or sometimes ill know a language 'secretly' and when I bust it out everyone is impressed. Or ill picture im back in time with elvis Presley or marlin monroe and act out how everything has changed in the future. Also, if im mad at someone in real life my daydreams will involve me saying the comeback I wish I did or yelling at them. Or if im pissed in general ill practice speeches and rants and say them over and over till iv perfected them and there is enough emotional impact in them for me to be 'relieved'. Then of course there are the sexual day dreams...which are probably even more common for people to have. 

Sometimes if I go a couple days without daydreaming, it makes it all the more fulfilling when I finally get to do it. It really is like a high and I even experience withdrawal if I don't do it. A lot of times ill turn off all the lights (I even considered buying one of those disco ball things that light up and spin, just to enhance my experience) I guess because my mind is more stimulated when there is less external stimuli. Sometimes they are planned and some of them are just happening as I move about my daily life. Like if i'm at walmart ill pretend im super cool wearing really out there clothes and being loud and funny and everyone is noticing me; when in real life im alone, wearing a hoodie and listening to headphones hoping to avoid crowds of people. lol And at an even deeper level, my actual thoughts start off normal, and then I feel this strong urge to 'act them out'. In other words I will move my mouth and hands (if im alone obviously) as if im actually talking to someone (not anyone specifically, its more like the feeling of a presence of someone there).

But all the entertaining stuff aside, I don't think people really realize just how maladaptive this daydreaming can be. It almost always occurs in conjunction with other mental disorders. It is a distraction. Is it fulfilling a need that ought to filled with real life people and real experiences. And what are you supposed to do if you have a spouse or roommate? Just because it doesn't hurt anyone doesn't mean that it isn't an addiction. It is another way of escaping reality just like drugs/porn/tv etc. You could end up ignoring your real life. If you think about, the reason we daydream is because we feel the extreme need to be noticed, loved, accepted and approved of.


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## tehuti88

lisac1919 said:


> If you guys think this is a lot of people to have Maladaptive daydreaming, you should go to the Wild Minds Network, they have about 3000 members who have MD. Its like a giant forum just to talk about the condition.


Thank you for the forum info, looks interesting.


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## SapphireMeadow

Leonodas said:


> Dear God, this explains a lot...
> 
> I created a whole world. A couple, actually. I'm fixated on one right now, one that repeats itself often. I think it's because I grew attached to those characters, those complex personalities I created. I did it all the time when I was younger, and I always believed it would fade away when I was older.
> 
> It never did, so now I just accept it and don't tell anyone. I hope to make many of the older stories books one day.
> 
> Actually, I'm now inspired to create a thread for people to share their MD experiences. I want to hear what people think about.


Totally, do that! I'll share some of my stories and worlds XD Would be fun and make me feel better to actually have something to do with all the crap I come up with through the day!


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## arkwelder

This sounds an awful lot like Schizoid Personality Disorder, which is closely related to Avoidant Personality Disorder, which is VERY closely related to Social Anxiety Disorder.


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## SumikaDvalin

I'm a teenager, and you just described my life.. No more words needed!!


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## jcmp7754

Interesting.

Every time I listen to music, I close my eyes and either pretend I'm a superstar performing or I make up a video for it in my head lol. Other times when I'm not listening to music , but still daydreaming, I would just make up or imagine a storyline in my head and it sometimes either makes me laugh, cry or I would quietly vocalise what I'm thinking in my head. 

For me to cry about whatever storyline I'm daydreaming of though, it has to be triggered by something. Like if I get into a fight with someone and I sax hurt, I would later makeup some dramatic story in my head that never happened, where I was the victim, and then I would just cry. 


Is that considered MD or am I just a random daydreamer? Or am I just a weirdo lol


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## T Studdly

Woah! That sounds alot like my daydreaming.


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## Lily11

Being an only child I spent my childhood daydreaming and I still do in adulthood. I make facial expressions and move my hands about more so when people aren't around. I was brilliant at story writing in school because of my imagination.Yet now, thinking too much isn't healthy at all.


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## ratbag

I try to be mindful, but my daydreaming makes it very difficult. It's really bad when I just wake up.


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## TailsAlone

I do this constantly, complete with music and repetitive motions. It's one of the best coping mechanisms I have and I've done it for as long as I can remember. I don't really see it as part of my disorder though. If it is then it's the best part.


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## TheSilentWhovian

This actually explains a lot. I just thought I was plain daydreaming. People ask me what film/tv programme I saw and what it was about, or what music I'm listening to, but I cannot answer because I was daydreaming. I've never heard this term before though. I don't necessarily tap or rock, but sometimes I find myself crying, smiling or laughing without realising. Then when I do realise, I have to stop myself and tell a lie to others around me and say I was clearing my throat or something (I don't necessarily have to be on my own at the time). It makes it extremely difficult to concentrate on things as anything can trigger a daydream. Otherwise, as sir robbins says, it is okay.


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## graceshailene

I have SAD and PDD NOS with a lot of AS traits, and I started doing this exact desperate, crazy imaginative day dreaming in 7th grade when I had major depression and severe anorexia. I've recovered from those 2 now but I still do the intense escape reality day dreaming sometimes, usually when I'm feeling really lonely and unloved/rejected by a lot of people I know in real life and trapped in my life.


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## LostinMusic

I definitely daydream a lot. I don't pace or rock. Books, movies, and especially music, definitely "trigger" or help, depending on you perspective. I have been doing this for years, but I really like it. My world keeps me company if I can't sleep, am cleaning or doing something else that is mindless, or if I am waiting in a doctor's office. It is definitely an escape for me, but I don't consider it bad. I can turn it off if I need to. In fact, I can get frustrated if I want to daydream, but I can't, which does happen sometimes. I pretty much have a family saga in my head that goes from about 1880 to the 1990s. It has actually inspired me to learned a lot of history to try to keep it accurate. I have also bought a lot of music. It is very detailed.


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## SapphireMeadow

TailsAlone said:


> I do this constantly, complete with music and repetitive motions. It's one of the best coping mechanisms I have and I've done it for as long as I can remember. I don't really see it as part of my disorder though. If it is then it's the best part.


haha, I agree  If my daydreaming is a disorder, it's the one I like the best. I really like my imagination and stories I make up. Gives me something to think about other than all the crap that's going on right now in my life ^^


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## JadedJade

Daydreaming has become my life...I like pretending to be someone other than what I've become. Sometimes I almost believe I really am what I imagine, however life has a way of slapping me in the face to remind me it isn't. Sometimes I wish I could just plug into a computer, create my own world I see in my head and live throughout there.

Lately I've also been seeing and hearing things that aren't there. It's not too seriously, but it does startling me at times.


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## akvareller

Wow, I have been doing this for years! I think it began as simply 'playing pretend' as a child and having an extremely good imagination. Then it developed into a coping mechanism. I was lonely and shy as a child and lived in a stressful home. I still do it now when I need to de-stress or am becoming depressive or about to have a panic attack I just zone out and find a happy place. There are other times when I do it like sometimes when I'm going to be in a situation that brings me stress or makes me nervous I'll have some kind of story going through my head as a buffer to kind of remove myself from the situation somewhat so it does not have such a severe effect on me til I have a place to focus and process on those emotions. Or when I'm traveling or waiting in line, things can either blend in with reality or reality will just melt away and I'm suddenly in a steampunk world or at Hogwarts or I'm a mutant. 

My triggers are music, tv, film, books, people anything really. Many of the things I dream up I plan on doing over again but in real life, in actual art (when I can draw and paint!). I love doing it because I get so many fantastic ideas that the images just keep on coming and shaping and molding into scenes and stories that I don't know what to do with. So as an artist, this kind of in depth reality warping daydreaming is a minefield of ideas. It's a good thing for me. I can see how it can be a bad thing but I know the difference between fantasy and reality so it's never been a problem for me. It helps me to process emotions and to cope with reality. 

It does make me really happy though to know there's other people out there who do this too. Sometimes I feel crazy because I can't bring this up to just anyone they'll think I'm nuts or something.


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## Solani45

I do this too. When your own life is so unsatisfactory it is easy understand why you would fantasize about being someone else. I often worry about this as I fee I could become seriously disassociated from reality


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## adifferentgirl

Yes I have this although that particular 'disorder' is not so much a disorder (just another way of labelling) as it is a common symptom of long-standing depression or anxiety. Some people disassociate from their problems by creating fantasy worlds in their heads.

I've done it since I was a kid and I still do it now (age 27). I have characters in my head I'm far more attached to than real people. The reason my therapist gives me, and that rings true for me personally, is that I disassociate from everything and tend me depersonalised/derealised. I inhibit my emotions so much I'm not even aware of them and can think of traumatic incidents in my life without so much as a hint of sadness. It's like watching actors on TV, it's not really happening. Fantasising is a successful coping mechanism for children (and adults) but can become maladaptive if you rely on it. As I do, and as a lot of inhibited/disassociated people do. 

If I were you I wouldn't think of this as yet another disorder. Your real 'disorder' is that you are unable to face up to the real world for individual reasons of your own, probably linked to events and treatment in early life. I was too ill to function for large proportions of time between the ages of 13 and 25 but I'm so much better now my therapist thinks this is the end of it for me forever.

The more disorders you diagnose yourself with, the harder it seems to overcome. But actually, recovery is totally possible and this is just a symptom of one underlying problem. Speak to a therapist about it, definitely.


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## daydreamer22

I used to daydream only before bedtime, but the older I get, the more I dream in other times of the day. It is really stressing me out, because I can't focus properly on anything. However, I never thought of it as a problem until now, when it started to eat up all the time I have for studying - I should get my master's degree, but I can't study. My mind just wanders.
It took me years to actually find out that I have this disorder. I've never heard of it before, and I'm 22.


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## Karlyh

It's really awesome to know that I'm not the only one that does this!:boogie
I've been daydreaming since I was around 6, maybe even younger, and it has helped me cope with the negative things that pop up in my life. Music is the #1 MAIN trigger for my dreams, along with reading, and watching movies, because they give me so MANY ideas of things I can do in my dreams. Daydreaming has helped me cope with so many things, not only does it give me something to do, but in some ways I learn a lot about myself and my morals. Just the thought of having to go without my dreams makes me feel upset, because that's what excites me everyday of having to do the repeated things over and over, is dreaming. Because I can always count on my dreams to NEVER being normal or boring. 

So I don't see daydreaming as a hindrance, I absolutely LOVE it. 

Though it is disappointing to know that the characters you make up are not real. Well for some they could be, but they wouldn't be how YOU pictured them. :blank

I can never really dream as well as when I listen to music. And I'm beginning to think I have a music addiction, because it also helps me cope with things. Just today my phone broke, and it has my music on it, and its the only way I can listen to music, until I get home. When I learned I couldn't listen to my music, for school, and what not, I got EXTREMELY emotional, I felt like crying, and I felt angry. And as much as I don't want to I need to cut back on my music, because I ALWAYS listen to music with headphones, and I'm slowly losing my hearing. And I'm pretty sure by the time I reach 25 I'll need hearing-aids.


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## Northern Lights

tehuti88 said:


> I often "replay" certain scenarios I've daydreamed up, over and over, just like watching an advertisement over and over and over (usually to music)...goodness. If it were a tape or a DVD it'd be worn out. ops


That's me!


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## invisiblegirl82

I think for me it is a problem as I think I prefer my day dreams to real life. For example if I am with my family quite often I want to get away so I can think about my 'other' life and role pay scenarios. For me this isn't healthy and I can see why it would be viewed as an addiction.


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## dutchgirl

Oh dear, this is so me. I'm a maladaptive daydreamer for 2 years now and I hate it. I constantly create situations in my head, like i'm a moviestar, i'm in a relationship and so. It's really stupid but I just can't stop..


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## dutchgirl

Honestly, I always make up stories in my head about real people, never fake characters. Since quite a few weeks, I imagine that I'm in a relationship with a Dutch celebrity and that we are also best friends and go on vacation trips. But it's so annoying, even when I try to stop these thoughts they just come back every time. I feel pathetic. It also makes it worse when I'm listening to music. I can sit in my room for hours with music on and act like i'm a star who gives an interview. I dress up( put a dress on, high heels and stuff) to make me feel like i'm the real star in the building. I talk to myself as me and then I talk to myself in someone elses point of view. All things I imagine are things that I'm not in real. In my dream world, I'm a succesfull moviestar/singer, with a relationship, lots of friends, just a social human being. I have literally zero friends in life and no success so I guess this is how I cope.


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## Lisaep

lisac1919 said:


> If you guys think this is a lot of people to have Maladaptive daydreaming, you should go to the Wild Minds Network, they have about 3000 members who have MD. Its like a giant forum just to talk about the condition.
> 
> In my case, ive had it for as long as I can remember. My trigger is music. I basically pace around and imagine a celebrity or person I think is cool (basically someone I want to impress) in the room and they watch me as I be awesome; much awesomer than I am in real life. I put myself in situations where I can show off how perfect and interesting and beautiful I am. I can sing, play instruments, im funny, crazy, wild, hot (all the things I wish I was in real life basically)...and the celebs or whoever it is at the time are usually sitting in a corner just watching, all impressed lol. I don't actually interact with them, although sometimes I do, but they are mostly just listening and watching me while im talking or doing something with someone else (this person whom im doing things with is not usually specified). Or a big one for me is imagining im on a tv show, or im about to be interviewed and they do an extensive introduction of me before I come out on stage, while the other guest stars are amazed that they have never heard of me before. lol (i cant believe im admitting all of this). Still other times I imagine im in a montage of stuff that my friends have filmed me doing, and sometimes I'm in slow mo and stuff like that. lol When i watch youtube and someone makes a funny joke, ill pause it, pretend im my character and repeat the exact same joke and get a laugh from my celeb fixation, or if I disagree with something the youtuber said I imagine they are with me and argue with them about it lmao. Other times it could be them watching me be a really good guitar player, or singer, or bikini model, or dancer, or comedian, or being really good at a certain sport. Or sometimes ill know a language 'secretly' and when I bust it out everyone is impressed. Or ill picture im back in time with elvis Presley or marlin monroe and act out how everything has changed in the future. Also, if im mad at someone in real life my daydreams will involve me saying the comeback I wish I did or yelling at them. Or if im pissed in general ill practice speeches and rants and say them over and over till iv perfected them and there is enough emotional impact in them for me to be 'relieved'. Then of course there are the sexual day dreams...which are probably even more common for people to have.
> 
> Sometimes if I go a couple days without daydreaming, it makes it all the more fulfilling when I finally get to do it. It really is like a high and I even experience withdrawal if I don't do it. A lot of times ill turn off all the lights (I even considered buying one of those disco ball things that light up and spin, just to enhance my experience) I guess because my mind is more stimulated when there is less external stimuli. Sometimes they are planned and some of them are just happening as I move about my daily life. Like if i'm at walmart ill pretend im super cool wearing really out there clothes and being loud and funny and everyone is noticing me; when in real life im alone, wearing a hoodie and listening to headphones hoping to avoid crowds of people. lol And at an even deeper level, my actual thoughts start off normal, and then I feel this strong urge to 'act them out'. In other words I will move my mouth and hands (if im alone obviously) as if im actually talking to someone (not anyone specifically, its more like the feeling of a presence of someone there).
> 
> But all the entertaining stuff aside, I don't think people really realize just how maladaptive this daydreaming can be. It almost always occurs in conjunction with other mental disorders. It is a distraction. Is it fulfilling a need that ought to filled with real life people and real experiences. And what are you supposed to do if you have a spouse or roommate? Just because it doesn't hurt anyone doesn't mean that it isn't an addiction. It is another way of escaping reality just like drugs/porn/tv etc. You could end up ignoring your real life. If you think about, the reason we daydream is because we feel the extreme need to be noticed, loved, accepted and approved of.


I just joined this site. I had too after reading your story. This describes my experience to the t. I literally had goose bumps reading this because, minus the going back in time with the Elvis Presley, everything else is my exact md experience. I am jut discovering this MD term today. I never knew there was a name for it or even thought anyone else walking earth but me had this. I was looking for positive affirmations to help me with SAD, since I'm trying visualization or law of attraction to manifest good or perfect mental health, and I stumbled on affirmations to stop daydreaming, which was odd and I wondered if people daydreamed like I did, so i googled "stop daydreaming", and I find a link to MD and literally had tears to discover that other people were like me. It is an addiction to me. I have been living in this fantasy world since I was 9, and I'm 32 now , married with three kids. I have managed to conceal it from my husband, sine he is the main breadwinner and works all the time, but I can barely function in real life. It completely consumes when I go into my fantasy world. I can go for hours and just can't snap out of it, even when I'm tired. I'm in such a high from it that I don't want to stop. I am really trying to overcome this, so I can tend to my kids and husband, and live a more fulfilling life.


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## mcmuffinme

I have some of these features. I often adapt characters from fiction I like into stories, usually romantic cause I'm secretly into that ****. Music can, but doesn't always or even usually inspire daydreaming. It really doesn't interfere with my life in any significant way. I only really daydream when driving and when I'm trying to sleep so I won't have to go over my painfully repetitive negative thoughts. 

In middle school is when I started daydreaming, and back then it kind of could get in the way. I didn't want to be present because that was an age when I was being teased by certain peers, and I just wanted to block it out with something better than my reality. I wouldn't pay attention in class at all. I just sat at my desk thinking up stories to distract myself.


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## agent53

i am a maladaptive daydreamer...i am struggling big time..dont know what to do..


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## kameippiki

agent53, can you tell us a little more about your experiences with MD? 

As for me, I'm incredibly happy and relieved to find so many people who've experienced this. I think I've experienced this to some degree most of my life - when I was little, the repetitive motion was swinging; as I got closer to middle school, it was pacing to music. There's certainly been points in my life where it's been more maladaptive than others. Over the past couple of years, I've pulled back on it, though I still tend to daydream a lot listening to music during my commute. The daydreams themselves have varied from stories I was working on to dreams for my own life to fictional characters and scenarios. 

I've tried to find "normal" ways to adapt, thinking the daydreams came from a void - writing has always been a great outlet and something I've loved but it's become harder over the years after losing confidence in my writing. I've tried to pursue hobbies or careers I often dreamt about, but reality can be a harsh mistress!  Finally, I tried to join a local D&D group for what I thought was the roleplaying component (I did like acting in high school, before my SA got really bad), but the D&D group was...not very welcoming.


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## azureyoshi

[redacted]


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## lampshadesonfire

Wow. Another of my personality quirks turned into a medical disorder. I have been living my life in oblivion, thinking my mind was healthy and functioning as well as any other. I can relate to all of these stories. It is a habit I picked up in utero, and haven't been able to shake since, nor do I want to. No matter how low life gets, I will always have a comforting world to return to. Most of the time it is all I look forward to. Probably one of my favourite pastimes is walking with my headphones on, immersed into a fantasy dialogue of some kind. I am one of those crazy people who does impersonations, so I tend to avoid crowded places. It gets awkward whenever I pass a stranger who catches me in the midst of an expression of some kind. 

I've always thought I was living in the mind of a writer. Now I know I am just insane. Good to know I am not the only insane one walking freely, though. :teeth


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## tehuti88

It makes me rather sad how for so many people this is something that seriously disrupts their lives and causes them no end of frustration and trouble. Perhaps, if I had a life, it'd be the same for me...but I have nothing but a huge void for the daydreaming to fill up, and so I prefer to keep doing it.

Why does that make me sad?...because I *adore* chattering and prattling on about my daydreams and coming across people who do the same, but if those people are suffering, they won't feel that same enthusiasm I do about it, for obvious reasons. So even amongst other "maladaptive" daydreamers (in quotes, because for me, it's not maladaptive), I don't belong. 

I joined the maladaptive daydreaming forum some time back but haven't bothered posting yet for this very reason. I imagine I'd come across as quite insulting were I to chatter so enthusiastically and with such joy about something that is bothersome and *unwanted* for other people.


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## novalax

i just stumbled upon this, and after reading the discription im convinced i have md, i didnt even realize it. i thought i was just inclined to think more or daydream more


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## kameippiki

KellyLiterary said:


> I am one of those crazy people who does impersonations, so I tend to avoid crowded places. It gets awkward whenever I pass a stranger who catches me in the midst of an expression of some kind.
> 
> I've always thought I was living in the mind of a writer. Now I know I am just insane. Good to know I am not the only insane one walking freely, though. :teeth


Haha, I hear you about the expressions while walking! And I think if you enjoy it and it's not disruptive, there's nothing wrong with it!



tehuti88 said:


> So even amongst other "maladaptive" daydreamers (in quotes, because for me, it's not maladaptive), I don't belong.
> 
> I joined the maladaptive daydreaming forum some time back but haven't bothered posting yet for this very reason. I imagine I'd come across as quite insulting were I to chatter so enthusiastically and with such joy about something that is bothersome and *unwanted* for other people.


Perhaps what makes it unwanted or maladaptive for some of us is simply being the only person we know that does this! I know that's always been the most frustrating part for me - so I think it's great for you to share about your daydreams and what you enjoy about them. It's reassuring.


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## Bookashade

Yes i have this since i was a kid! glad i am not the only one


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## wildinthestreets

_You know I'm a dreamer ...
But my heart's of gold ... _


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## overlookingElPaso

i do this sometimes - but it's more reliving situations and changing how i would have reacted. there are some fantastical exaggerations and tangent scenarios, but i'd say i have this to an extent. it is like a high - but for me it's more like ruminating or obsessing.


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## wildinthestreets

Oh, and for my 2 cents, I believe this applies to most everybody out there, it's not anything serious. For example, I recall Quentin Tarantino giving an award speech, describing how he would listen to music and formulate elaborate scenes in his head when he was a child. The mistake is viewing this as a problem.


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## siamesedream94

*MD gave me nice legs at least....*

Since 7th grade (depressingly, 7 years ago), I've ran almost every single day on the treadmill, listening to my ipod and imagining myself as whoever was singing. I always always always fantasize about being a musician and spending time with other famous musicians. IT'S SO DAMN STUPID. And now I'm basically addicted to it. Like I have to do it everyday or I feel weird. And I've gotten a multitude of leg injuries as a result. And I run with the injuries anyways.


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## Asaad

I might have this. Perhaps I was misdiagnosed with schizophrenia and have this instead lol. You say that these people are aware of their fantasies; and I do think I am most of the time. But I have had family, and my roommate tell me that I will just sit or stand somewhere and not do anything for a few hours. Just stare at nothing. I don't recall these episodes so I don't know if I was fantasizing or what - but I assume they are lies.


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## sapphire blue

Sorry to bump up this thread, I just wanted to say how much of a relief it was to discover this thread, it made me join this forum as I realised I wasn't alone. 

I don't even know when I started to do this, I think it was when I got to my mid - late teens and started high school and became more isolated and lonely. I definitely used it as a coping method, for sure. I daydream about being a singer all the time, music is by far my biggest trigger and as I often imagine being the person singing, so it could be a girl or a boy. Just someone who had an amazing voice and great performance skills. My characters are often fictional though, but in love with real life celebrities. 

I'm determined to stop though, sometimes it creeps up on me when I'm at work and I don't like that. I've tried to stop day dreaming the last 48hours. I'm doing okish so far, I had music on this morning and I was imaging myself as part of the girl group singing away, but I only let myself have about 3 songs before I got up and distracted myself. I feel much more lonely now I've stopped, but somehow a bit proud that I've managed not to be my main character at all for this time. I'm just trying to keep myself constantly distracted and give my mind goals to focus on and hope within time it will wear of naturally. I don't think it will be that easy, but I don't enjoy it anymore.


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## catsarecute

I do this all the time. It's bad though because instead of doing important things I'm more interested in my daydreams. I've done it since I was a little kid, I can remember from at least the age of 5. It wasn't helpful in high school because I never focused on what was being taught.


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## Sirius Pioneer

I had never heard about this before.

I am indeed and unrelenting daydreamer. Have always been.

Visualization is very powerful. To imagine is to rehearse action.

However, I find myself fantasizing too little on what I should really do, such as going to my classes.


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## Angelfire

seaport said:


> I've had it since I was a kid. For me its both a useful coping mechanism and an enjoyable past time. Music is my primary trigger.* Sometimes when I come home after a tedious school day, I'll be all awww yeeeah, time to submerge myself in some kickass daydreams'.* I may be the odd one here but I honestly love it. It aids me in my creative endeavors, helps me get through anxious periods, and is an effective outlet for strong emotion. Its never been 'maladaptive' for me and I'm a little bit wary of the fact that its being perceived as something negative. It's certainly different, but its not something I would try to 'cure' myself of. When I was a kid, it helped me keep afloat of a toxic and dysfunctional home environment.


LOL

I know...They're that good.

The main object of my fantasy is a famous actor (that I made up) who acts in wildly popular thrillers/horrors (that I enjoy daydreaming about) and has an interesting life (who's many adventures, emotions, etc. I also enjoy daydreaming about). Can't wait for him to have kids... He'll make a good dad!


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## LucyClaire

This is the subject that got me to SAS...I have just discovered the name of this, having searched for answers, not knowing how to explain the daydreaming...I am going to try and tell my therapist about it tomorrow evening...She has got close to it and I have been terrified of talking about it. I have never, ever told anyone...It started when I was 6 or 7 for me too..My problem is I can't control it, I made the decision not to drive because of it.
I have written it down in case I can't speak.


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## sapphire blue

LucyClaire said:


> This is the subject that got me to SAS...I have just discovered the name of this, having searched for answers, not knowing how to explain the daydreaming...I am going to try and tell my therapist about it tomorrow evening...She has got close to it and I have been terrified of talking about it. I have never, ever told anyone...It started when I was 6 or 7 for me too..My problem is I can't control it, I made the decision not to drive because of it.
> I have written it down in case I can't speak.


Welcome! Good luck with telling your therapist tomorrow, I hope it goes ok. If she/he gives you any tips do you mind reporting back? It might be useful for us to know any methods of controlling it.


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## LucyClaire

I have no idea what she will do with the information...seems kind of appropriate for an evening appointment on Halloween night.


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## sparrowmouse

*"Excessive daydreaming may begin as an outlet for creativity or as a method of escaping trauma or abuse. The daydreamers experience very vivid and intricate fantasies and may become emotionally attached to the characters in their fantasies or express emotions they are feeling through vocal utterances or changing facial expressions, although most keep such behavior hidden from others. People with Maladaptive Daydreaming are different from schizophrenics, they know the difference between reality and fantasy; they realize that everything they are dreaming about is a fantasy. [They simply have trouble stopping daydreaming and focusing on regular tasks.] Some also exhibit symptoms similar to Asperger's Syndrome, ADHD or OCD.*

*Many people have social anxiety and/or depression along with maladaptive daydreaming. A large number also find their social lives are negatively impacted by this disorder. 79% of those self-identified as having excessive daydreams had a kinesthetic repetitive movement accompany their daydreaming, such as pacing, rocking, tapping, or shaking an object. Many others also move their hands around and make facial expressions: laughing, crying, whispering, and gesturing with hands [because they are trying to impersonate the characters themselves]. Listening to music while daydreaming is common and hearing music may trigger a fantasy. A repetitive movement may be articulated to music while daydreaming. Watching a movie or reading a book, can also trigger a fantasy.*

*Many people have novel or movie type fantasies. They create their own world [sometimes more than one] , with characters, settings, plots, heroes, villains, friends, etc. -- they also may imagine storylines using the characters or settings from already existing works of fiction."*

This describes me to a tee. Since I was quite young (I can remember talking to Hercules and Xena... then the Blues Brothers! I'm almost ashamed, but not quite). Massive social anxiety growing up - and I was pretty lonely as an only child. Several times a day, almost every day for years, and it finally tapered off as I got into adulthood. Even better now that I'm getting treatment for SA and BP2.. no wonder they're linked.

I still have 'conversations' with real acquaintances/friends (never people I'm especially familiar with, for some reason), especially just before or just after a real social interaction with them, usually in the car on my own. If it's before I meet them, it's like 'prep' to try and calm myself down before a conversation; if it's after, it's because I haven't said something that I wanted to, or the interaction didn't go as planned & I 'rewrite' the script, as it were.

Always thought I was the only one (as everyone does, I imagine), and at 26, this is the first time I've ever admitted to it. Now I know what to call it - and I might even mention it to my psychologist!

Thank you


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## LucyClaire

My therapist was not surprised by it. I gave her a note, which she read out loud because I could not tell her any other way. I have really, really struggle with this, really thought there is something really wrong with me. She even admitted to her own daydreams...I have a long way to go with this but at least I found away to tell her because I can't control the dreaming.


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## LauraInTheSky

My day dreaming helps compensate for not following my dreams in real life.


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## KCfromKC

Thank you for posting this, it explains so much. I've been doing this for as long as I can remember and to be honest it's such a relief to know that enough other people do this that it has actually been given a name. 

I thought I was just plain crazy :eyes


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## vivibe

Wow, I had no idea this was a thing. This is the first (and probably last) time I have ever admitted this, but this describes me so well. It's gotten to the point that I will consciously choose do it in the middle of the day for a couple hours even though I have things I have to do. It takes me 2-4 hours to go to bed every night and I complain about having insomnia but deep down I know it's because I'm doing this. So it's definitely to the point that it's effecting my life in a negative way, but I don't want to stop. I am extremely emotionally attached to the characters to the point that I would get very depressed if I stopped. (it was very hard for me to type that) It just... very comforting and makes me happy, I don't know how to describe it.

I feel such strong shame over this, the shame I feel about my SA doesn't even begin to compare. There are a few things, for me at least, that I wouldn't even consider telling another person or professional even if I was getting out all my dirty secrets. This is definitely one of them. I even avoided using "daydreams" or "fantasies" in this post, because the words themselves cause me embarrassment.


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## LucyClaire

vivibe said:


> Wow, I had no idea this was a thing. This is the first (and probably last) time I have ever admitted this, but this describes me so well. It's gotten to the point that I will consciously choose do it in the middle of the day for a couple hours even though I have things I have to do. It takes me 2-4 hours to go to bed every night and I complain about having insomnia but deep down I know it's because I'm doing this. So it's definitely to the point that it's effecting my life in a negative way, but I don't want to stop. I am extremely emotionally attached to the characters to the point that I would get very depressed if I stopped. (it was very hard for me to type that) It just... very comforting and makes me happy, I don't know how to describe it.
> 
> I feel such strong shame over this, the shame I feel about my SA doesn't even begin to compare. There are a few things, for me at least, that I wouldn't even consider telling another person or professional even if I was getting out all my dirty secrets. This is definitely one of them. I even avoided using "daydreams" or "fantasies" in this post, because the words themselves cause me embarrassment.


I told two people this week, I have never spoken about it before I have had this for 34 years....I actually wrote it down and gave it to my therapist. She accepted it, wasn't surprised by it even. I told her because she was asking the right questions and I kept pushing her away, telling her that I wasn't ready, getting panicky. But I knew that I trusted her. She isn't just a therapist, she is also a medical doctor, which helps. She says it can be a reaction to isolation and trauma when we are young..in the same we others may us alcohol or drugs. And she admitted to her own daydreams..it was the most open she had even been with me. I was shaking with shame and fear.
Today I told one other person, the person that I trust the most, who got me to my therapist and actually saved my life. I used the same note. He too understood and was not surprised, I was shaking so hard too. It has been so, so painful but I feel better that two people know, the two people I trust the most. If you tell someone it has to be someone you are comfortable with and will not judge you for it.

When I was about 21, I discovered Anne of Green Gables, it is a children's book, but Anne Shirley who was an orphan and their were hints in the book about her being mistreated....She developed her own imaginary world..she was able to use it to become a writer but it started out of loneliness and childhood trauma....But I still didn't talk about until Thursday night.


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## tnhoastlfeel55

just joined this thread. 

So how does everyone here cut down on the daydreaming?


I just daydream about improving my life and prefer to think about it rather than actually do it.


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## LucyClaire

That is what I want to learn is how to cut down, so I can do things such as drive a car without fear of killing someone because my mind has wondered.


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## nataliej

Wow, I totally do this. I often daydream about being in fantastical places and meeting interesting people and animals, basically compensating for and escaping my life, it also helps me with my depression. I daydream more about places than I do about people though. And not all my daydreams are completely imaginary, lots of the places I imagine going to are inspired by real places, same with people. I also usually listen to music when i'm daydreaming.


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## Baalzebub

Daydreaming is one of the few things that makes me truly happy; I guess this is because I've accepted that life will be nothing but suffering with little pay off. I create my own little fantasy world to deal with this, but the really sad thing is that it actually fills me with rage knowing that my fantasies cannot come true.


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## Quatermass

I knew this was common among people with Avoidant Personaliy Disorder, which also happens to be my diagnosis, but I didn't know it had a name and that it was common in other disorders as well. 

I've used it for escaping an empty and boring life as well as dealing with anxiety. It was a huge problem for me in university since I would spend most of my days daydreaming rather than studying. I did fine as long as I was at university, but as soon as I got home I started daydreaming again. It even became like an automatic response to studying. As soon as I would even think of studying I went into daydream mode. It was of course a disaster for my career as a student.

I've noticed that as soon as I have to do something that induces some level of anxiety, I tend to fall into the habit of daydreaming. Most of the time I can break it, if the thing I'm doing doesn't induce too much anxiety, but it often makes me a bit late for appointments, events or anywhere I have to be at a specific time. It's really frustrating. It becomes like a pointless ritual that you have to do before you do that anxiety inducing thing.


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## lesedwards

I've always thought I was dizzy just because I didn't get sleep (even though I do).
This makes so much more sense. wow


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## wraith1407

I always done this as a kid, I didn't have a friend a lot of the time so i'd fall inside myself a lot. 
I don't do it as much now, just before I let myself fall asleep and when I've got my headphones on in public. It allows me to 'fake experience' a life i'd never have


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## Jonpt15

I was the same way lol. I was always a daydreamer/fantasizer and it happened almost everyday until I was 18. I still do it from time to time but not nearly as much and I've basically stopped.

I had 2 main worlds. They are from pieces of fiction(anime). I used the anime as the basis for my fantasy worlds and had my own character(s) and stories/history and I would watch anime cutscenes and replay them in my mind differently so that they suit my world. I used to play with a toy action figure until 16-17 that helped me enjoy these fantasy worlds but I threw it outside down the drain when I realized my behavior really wasn't normal.


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## mklettl

omg i am so happy that there are others just like me. I honestly thought I was the only one who had this problem, but after doing some web surfing i recognised that this was actually a condition and everything made sense!! my daydreaming started when i was young and has progressivly gotten worst over the years. Ive always had a very creative mind and i love to write and make up fantasies but id rather not live in them. This has benefitted my writing in many ways but has also effected my social life! I have tons of dreams about traveling and writing but i feel this is getting in the way of me forefilling those dreams. As much as i love it i also hate it as it is isolating me and making me seem weird to others. although i could say that over the past few months since i started college i am beggining to get myself out more and not having to worry about sitting at home daydreaming all day. I still have problems at night where i sit on my bed and rock back and forth while daydreaming but it isnt quite interfering with anything else. But still, I would like to go to sleep at night, concentrate at school and make more friends. As much as i dont want to, i know its time to let go and get on with life! I understand that itll be a slow process but after finally recognising what this actually is, i am aware that it is a problem for me which is the first big step. I am confident that this will eventually be left behind and i will move on to conquer my goals in life. It will be a long process but i am willing to do anything it takes to change it! :boogie


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## Ricardomg93

Oh great, now my daydreaming is a problem too :/


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## Juno1984

sapphire blue said:


> Sorry to bump up this thread, I just wanted to say how much of a relief it was to discover this thread, it made me join this forum as I realised I wasn't alone.
> 
> I don't even know when I started to do this, I think it was when I got to my mid - late teens and started high school and became more isolated and lonely. I definitely used it as a coping method, for sure. I daydream about being a singer all the time, music is by far my biggest trigger and as I often imagine being the person singing, so it could be a girl or a boy. Just someone who had an amazing voice and great performance skills. My characters are often fictional though, but in love with real life celebrities.
> 
> I'm determined to stop though, sometimes it creeps up on me when I'm at work and I don't like that. I've tried to stop day dreaming the last 48hours. I'm doing okish so far, I had music on this morning and I was imaging myself as part of the girl group singing away, but I only let myself have about 3 songs before I got up and distracted myself. I feel much more lonely now I've stopped, but somehow a bit proud that I've managed not to be my main character at all for this time. I'm just trying to keep myself constantly distracted and give my mind goals to focus on and hope within time it will wear of naturally. I don't think it will be that easy, but I don't enjoy it anymore.


This is me completely it's like your talking out of my head!


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## shycheese

Am I the only one that's upset to discover this has a name? I feel like now I have another label added to me.  Today I was so caught up in my daydreaming that I missed my stop on the metro. Thank god metro trains are only a few minutes apart.


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## JScott92

Teehee!!! This has happened to me.  Fortunately, the little subway system i use only has one line which is circular, so i just stayed on for another 30 mins. I've known for some time that it has an official name but I don't let that fact bother me. My fantasising is so detailed and elaborate that it can seem freakishly real at times.


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## tehuti88

Ricardomg93 said:


> Oh great, now my daydreaming is a problem too :/


It's only a problem if 1. it significantly interferes with things you should actually be doing, and/or 2. you perceive that it is.

My daydreaming, for me, isn't a problem; it's a gift. Thus why I find this thread so saddening, so many people wanting to get rid of this ability.  Though I do understand why they want to--because for _them_, it's not a gift, it's a problem.

ETA:



shycheese said:


> Am I the only one that's upset to discover this has a name? I feel like now I have another label added to me.  Today I was so caught up in my daydreaming that I missed my stop on the metro. Thank god metro trains are only a few minutes apart.


I'm just upset that for so many people, the thing that I consider such a gift is such a problem. :sigh


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## Ricardomg93

tehuti88 said:


> It's only a problem if 1. it significantly interferes with things you should actually be doing, and/or 2. you perceive that it is.
> 
> My daydreaming, for me, isn't a problem; it's a gift. Thus why I find this thread so saddening, so many people wanting to get rid of this ability.  Though I do understand why they want to--because for _them_, it's not a gift, it's a problem.


Yeah i think the same, i just didn't expressed everything i wanted there xD

I don't have problems with concentration and i don't think those dreams are real (though i wish some of them were...); Being able to daydream is fun, maybe for people who don't have the will to do anything it's a problem but for me is just a way create hope and motivate myself for the future, also i'm pretty sure that i'm training my brain to be more creative when i dream about crazy and unreal stuff(today a zombie apocalypse happened in my head and i saved a beautiful girl, not impossible! haha)


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## Quatermass

tehuti88 said:


> It's only a problem if 1. it significantly interferes with things you should actually be doing, and/or 2. you perceive that it is.
> 
> My daydreaming, for me, isn't a problem; it's a gift. Thus why I find this thread so saddening, so many people wanting to get rid of this ability.  Though I do understand why they want to--because for _them_, it's not a gift, it's a problem.
> 
> ETA:
> 
> I'm just upset that for so many people, the thing that I consider such a gift is such a problem. :sigh


In that case my daydreaming may not be a problem for me either, or at least not a big one. I only tend to do this when I'm at home and have nothing else to do. It may keep me occupied a little longer than it should, but I can always brake it off if I need to.

It was however a problem when I was still at university. But that wasn't like my ordinairy daydreaming, more like obsessive thoughts to calm down my anxiety. I don't know, I guess I'm a bit confused about this subject.


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## KeepItQuiet

I've been doing for the longest time and I never knew there was a name for it. I agree with everyone, I don't want another label. It helps me stay distracted from my SA sometimes. To me it seems like its a positive thing to a certain extent.


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## tehuti88

Ricardomg93 said:


> ...also i'm pretty sure that i'm training my brain to be more creative when i dream about crazy and unreal stuff(today a zombie apocalypse happened in my head and i saved a beautiful girl, not impossible! haha)


I spend much of my day as a police detective with multiple personalities investigating crimes. At least it makes for interesting stories! ops :lol



Quatermass said:


> It was however a problem when I was still at university. But that wasn't like my ordinairy daydreaming, more like *obsessive thoughts to calm down my anxiety*. I don't know, I guess I'm a bit confused about this subject.


This particular description sounds more like obsessional thinking/rumination such as that that comes with OCD, or often even with SA/other anxiety disorders. It's likely you've dealt with both that and daydreaming; I know that I have. ;_;


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## HopefulDreamer

I wonder if I have this. I love writing and I get overly attached to the characters so much that I fantasize about them during the day. I also end up spending most of my day dreaming as well. And sometimes I will write a story that involves me with my own set up friends and everything. I thought I was just addicted to writing Mary-Sue characters or something.

I've been like this since I was little, and I even continued playing fantasy games until I was 12 when most of my classmates didn't. The girls cared about fashion and make up, and the boys were noticing girls. I was still playing with stuffed animals, or playing make believe outside. My mom and sister hated and told me it was an embarrassment, so I had to stop playing but I kept writing my stories.


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## tehuti88

HopefulDreamer said:


> I wonder if I have this. *I love writing and I get overly attached to the characters so much that I fantasize about them during the day. I also end up spending most of my day dreaming as well.* And sometimes I will write a story that involves me with my own set up friends and everything. I thought I was just addicted to writing Mary-Sue characters or something.
> 
> *I've been like this since I was little, and I even continued playing fantasy games until I was 12 when most of my classmates didn't. The girls cared about fashion and make up, and the boys were noticing girls. I was still playing with stuffed animals, or playing make believe outside.* My mom and sister hated and told me it was an embarrassment, so *I had to stop playing but I kept writing my stories*.


Oh goodness, almost exactly the same for me.  Even down to the stuffed animals and playing around outside. I actually do still "make believe" most of the day, just in my head rather than "out loud." ops

It's so normal/pervasive for me that often when I sleep, I'll dream that I'm daydreaming. :lol


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## Quatermass

tehuti88 said:


> This particular description sounds more like obsessional thinking/rumination such as that that comes with OCD, or often even with SA/other anxiety disorders. It's likely you've dealt with both that and daydreaming; I know that I have. ;_;


My primary diagnosis is AvPD, but I have been considering other disorders as well. OCD is one of them, although I have to admit I have a hard time seeing how my symptoms would fit the criteria for OCD. Most of the online tests seem to focus on extreme cleanliness, extreme orderliness and other "classic" OCD symptoms, and most of that I don't really see in myself. I've also looked into GAD and I actually do recognize myself a lot in that.


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## jlscho03

HopefulDreamer said:


> I wonder if I have this. I love writing and I get overly attached to the characters so much that I fantasize about them during the day. I also end up spending most of my day dreaming as well. And sometimes I will write a story that involves me with my own set up friends and everything. I thought I was just addicted to writing Mary-Sue characters or something.
> \


Same here! A lot of the things describe me and my behaviors. During my depression, I created a "character" that was like me, in a different universe. A lot of it helped guide me through different things and I became a more spiritual person. So that links in with the depression. I'm over that part of my life, but the stories and universe have expanded with my ideas and I've written them down and am now making changes to all of them, again. I had a hard time letting fantasy go and I like daydreaming.

Although a lot of it describes me and I think about these everyday multiple times, I wouldn't say I have it. "Maladaptive" doesn't describe me. In the description, it said that most that would have this would keep it to themselves (I do) and don't tell anyone (I don't). It's not interfering with my daily life, so for me I don't consider it maladaptive. I wouldn't read too much into it personally, unless it's really affecting your daily life. A creative mind is a precious thing, nothing to get worked up over.


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## alone25

I had no idea this had a name! Everything describes me perfectly. This has been happening to me ever since like 5th grade. What happens to me usually is I daydream about people in real life but make up my own life for them (change their name, where they live) so they are based on real people. Most often it is triggered by music as well. What I do that wasn't stated by anyone is I even write stories about it. Instead of just thinking about certain scenarios I write about them to. 
Just have to idea how relieved I am to find out whats going on with me! Thank you!


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## Twerkynerples

Well, I thought it was normal to have intensely picturesque daydream sequences... Mine are often left field, that's why I call them my JD moments. Like from "Scrubs."


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## LittleEarthquakes

Oh god I've done this for so long... this is the first time I've seen an actual name for it.


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## TiredTracy

That is me. Thank you so much for that post. I've been asking about it. It's not really "daydreams" though. It is intricate story telling (my degree is in writing). Like you, I started out rocking in bed, moved on to music. The more engaged I am in the world around me, the less frequently I imagine for my own comfort (as opposed to working on a novel).

But, reality can't hold a candle to what I can dream up for myself. 

I'm really not pleased to think of it as flipping addiction. But, the good news is that no one can take it away from me. Or is that the bad news?

Anyway, thanks very much everyone. It is wonderful to not feel so alone.


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## Malexisms

Wow, this is really interesting.I can definitely relate. Also the fact that it is possibly related to asperger's syndrome makes sense too. I'm a middle child with both my siblings having asperger's syndrome, but I don't have it as far as I know. I realize the likelihood of me not having it is pretty small, so it would make sense that I would have symptoms of similar stuff. 

Anyway. I am kind of proud of my maladaptive daydreams. When I was a teenager I would focus on the dumb romantic subplot of my daydream stories, but now I focus on world building and things like that. The story takes place in a newly industrialized town full of smoke and toxic waste, where people can activate spells using their own blood. The government is trying to figure out ways to make this more feasable for use during wartime, but all they are really doing is messing up crap. Sometimes being not well adjusted makes people think of intriguing stuff.


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## TiredTracy

Hey, Malex, I save the world a lot too. :clap

In some ways, it's wonderful. My husband is envious of my ability to create that space for myself.

When I was younger, sexual fantasies wove in and out, depending on my mood (and time of month probably). But, other times, it was almost like virtual reparenting or something. The first "father figure" in my fantasies was from "Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea," and I would have been around 5. 

I had a particular one involving finding out that my father was NOT my real father. I decided that my mother had had an affair with a marvelously handsome mountain rancher and I was his daughter. It's a great story line, but looking back, I see some missing elements. A mother figure anywhere in any fantasy I ever had. Nada. Also, no other females around at all. Oh well - it was my fantasy and I didn't need the stinking competition.


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## Ray nichols

I started doing this when I was very young. One of the first day dreams that I can remember was I was Megaman and I was with Zero. Together we would kick the *** of all the bullies at school and we would be heroes. Back then I thought it was awesome. When I got older and was in high school, I would pace back and forth outside my church and just day dream constantly, do it at home in my room, and avoid taking the bus home from school and instead just walk home (I live 10 miles from my school so I did a lot of walking) all while listening to music.
Eventually, I just didnt need music anymore and daydream all the time. It interferes with everything I do, sometimes I cant even sleep because I'm obsessed over some fantasy. This goes in conjunction with my social anxiety. It seems that my emotions also have a strong impact on the outcome of my daydreams. If I am extremely depressed, then no matter what kind of daydream I think of, the ending is always the same and I am left heartbroken, miserable, or maybe something far worse. Therefore maladaptive daydreaming takes on a sinister form and I feel like I'm spiraling out of control and end up having series of panic attacks. And even though I have social anxiety disorder, most of my panic attacks happen when I'm alone. 

It's too bad that there is so little known about MD. But I am very happy that at least there is an answer to what I am going through. For the longest time I've felt alone and confused not knowing what was happening to me. Thought that I was going insane the more I was alone. And when I would go and try to be around friends, anxiety would kick in and I would have to go find some place to be alone.....But knowing is half the battle and now that I know know, I can set a course for myself towards recovery.


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## Morgenstern

I was *just* discussing maladaptive daydreaming the other day. Yes, I'm terrible for it, and IME it can worsen the ol' depression.


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## MidnightBlu

I didn't know there was a disorder for this. I have this.


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## CreamCheese

wow this is incredible. I never knew this was, well, a thing. 
I've probably had this since I was young. I used to imagine my life in a movie setting. But since high school, I've been creating fictional stories in my head. They usually revolve around a character who is supposed to be like me in personality, but has a different life. I thought I was just a good story teller, like I have been told I'm an excellent writer and people tell me they think I can write books (I haven't written any of my thoughts or fictional stories-I have tried before, but I really can't-everything I do write is reflections on real life topics) but the fiction stories are pretty vivid, sometimes to the point that I DO find myself mimicking facial expressions and having people ask me what I'm smiling at or stuff.


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## CreamCheese

sometimes this is an addiction-it definitely hinders my ability to concentrate. I find this most troublesome when I am reading articles that requires a lot of critical thinking. To escape, I think about these plots and sometimes I wonder if this is why it takes me so much more time to get tasks done. But at the same time, I do like them. It evades anxious thinking and loneliness lol.


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## CreamCheese

shycheese said:


> Am I the only one that's upset to discover this has a name? I feel like now I have another label added to me.  Today I was so caught up in my daydreaming that I missed my stop on the metro. Thank god metro trains are only a few minutes apart.


yea, I'm a little sad about it. I just thought it was me lmfao


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## Tinydancer20

Is this supposed to be a bad thing? I'm pretty sure introverts are the masters of daydreaming. We seek energy from within our minds rather than outside of ourselves.


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## CreamCheese

Tinydancer20 said:


> Is this supposed to be a bad thing? I'm pretty sure introverts are the masters of daydreaming. We seek energy from within our minds rather than outside of ourselves.


I wonder the same, is it really bad? I'm sure successful authors, screenwriters and moviemakers must have this too lol. 
And what about books like Harry Potter and Hunger Games? I think a huge reason why these books resonate with people is because they see themselves in that world. They see themselves as the characters.
My imagination MOSTLY has made me feel like I could write a book or a TV show or something (not that I would, but that I have a possible potential to), not that I have a problem. 
However, I wonder if others notice that these imagination/daydreams feel silly or a waste of time when one is actually busy with school or work. When I am in a public setting other than my home and busy, these daydreams feel far more sillier to me. But at home, when I am usually doing my own thing, I use it as a coping mechanism.


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## gummybunny

Thank you so much for this post! I'm happy to know that there is a medical term for this disorder; I honestly thought I was going crazy! 
After finishing college (the first time around), I would always come up with these fantasy scenarios as to what my life was going to be in 5 years. I was extremely miserable and depressed at the time and just needed an outlet to escape into the perfect world I desperately wanted to be a part of. 
I would get really into the scenes as well. There came a time when I would even fight with my imaginary characters just to stop escaping into this fantasy world and focus on making the reality better, and eventually I stopped completely.
I always thought it was a form of regression since, as a child, I would always play make-believe and dress up games.


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## Jackieismyname

I went for years not knowing what this was. I've been maladaptivr daydreaming pretty much my entire life. It started off when I was about 5 and I would watch Disney princess movies. I used to imagine the princesses reacting with each other and create scenarios In My mind. But while I was doing this there would always be some sort of accompanying movement. This most common one was spinning.i would spin for hours on end. I felt like when I spun around I could feel what the characters were thinking. It's hard to explain but it actually was a lot of fun. I have always had my own fantasy world, actually multiple fantasy worlds where I would create different scenarios with different characters. Now that I'm older, my scenarios tend to be with celebrities. I will imagine myself as a sibling or friend of a celebrity And create fantasies in my mind. I gave up spinning at 12 because I thought that there was something wrong with me. I knew it wasn't normal because I had never heard of anyone else spinning in their room for hours thinking about nonsense that didn't exist. I thought that I was weird and retarded. I've always been really quiet at school so I think that maladaptive daydreaming was a way for me to imagine myself as someone else. Now when I maladaptive daydream, instead of spinning I kind of pace around very fast and jump around a few times. Oh yeah, when I maladaptive daydream there usually has to be music, preferably a fast jumpy song. For awhile I assumed that I had some sort of autism disorder until one day I decided to google search my symptoms. Astonishingly I found this websites and realized I wasn't the only one! I was so excited when I found out that there were more people like me. I thought I was the only one in the world. Anyway I know I've kind of written a book so I will just stop here, lol.


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## metomeya

I've stopped now, but I used to pretend I had to save everyone from aliens who were invading earth. Only they looked human, but have superior technology for unique weapons and disguise. Once my friends and I got our hands on their technology we started to even the odd. But this all had to be done in secret as society still didn't know about their existence.


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## metomeya

I think it is something we've all done when we were young. Just when you stop depends on personality and necessity.


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## Asdf*456

I used to do this as a child.
But I had a brutal, brutal childhood so I guess I can sorta justify it.


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## HollaFlower

I do this a lot, it attributes my creativity for sure, but I don't see it as a separate condition. The reasoning for it in my case is not traumatic, but a world or scenic conversations or desires played out in high detail to combat low self esteem and isolation. Kind of like a delusional ego boost to a delusionally low self esteem.


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## burgerchuckie

It's one of my hobbies. It helps me battle my depression tendencies.


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## GlimmerBanjo

I started doing this in sixth grade and I still do it. It's not as extreme for me as the wikipedia article describes, but it's definitely an escape and coping mechanism. I also do it out of boredom. Sixth grade was when all my friends moved away so I'm sure that had something to do with it. That was a very lonely year.


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## BeStillMyHeart

I always did this. I would always come up with "music videos" in my head when I listen to music. When I would ride my bike, I would DD sometimes. I had a hard time focusing on school work ( still do) because of it. It wasn't severe though because I had my family to interact with. But since I moved away from the rest of my family seven years ago (when i was 10) and only live with my mom and sister, it gotten WAY worse and having SA, I dont interact with people. It gotten severe. All I do is DD about being famous coming from famous interracial parents (Im not interracial. And dont wish to be. I think it makes for a good story line. ) and who's in an off and on relationship with a guy with rich parents and a famous granddad ( he's actually a real person. I'm not gonna say his name, but if you wanna know, I can message you.) I don't know how I can stop since I been doing it since the age of 4. Probably before that and I just dont remember.


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## BeStillMyHeart

I don't know how to edit posts.

I have like 3 dreams. One above ( main one that been going on for about a year and a half now). Another about being a motivational speaker( last couple of months). And with the third one I'm a politician (four months). The second and third actually goes together. I'm 17 and 30 respectfully. I just have to fill in the years in between, but I already outlined it in my head by being a successful lawyer, graduating at the top of my law class, etc. (I sound crazy, but y'all understand). All 3 connects in some way because it involves the same guy and his family, but #2 and #3 actually flows together. 

I also DD about small things like school. And I still come up with music videos. I don't watch actual music videos because I know it would be way different and I'll be disappointed.


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## Aldon693

Hey guys I have been reading up about maladaptive daydreaming and I think I have been suffering through this for most of my life and sadly I'm very frustrated about it. There was one point in my life where all I had to do was accept reality and stop dwelling and oppsessing over how my life should had been different. Now I don't know if I really think about fantasies a lot, but I somewhat make up certain things in my head. Anyways I think I have come to realize that majority of my life has been stuck in thoughts and I never got it under control and its really frustrating to think about, because I think the best year of the my life was junior year and if I would had gotten this problem under control my life would be different today than it is now, but maybe I will tell you guys what my thoughts are, but I wanted to know does maladaptive daydreaming involve dwelling about how your life could be different, not in a fantasy, well kind of, but I just wanted to know if maladaptive daydreaming involves dwelling about who you are and how your life could be different in your own thoughts, because I'll tell you what I did the same ****, pluggin headphones into my ears and getting stuck in my thoughts for hours a day.


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## Aldon693

Aldon693 said:


> Hey guys I have been reading up about maladaptive daydreaming and I think I have been suffering through this for most of my life and sadly I'm very frustrated about it. There was one point in my life where all I had to do was accept reality and stop dwelling and oppsessing over how my life should had been different. Now I don't know if I really think about fantasies a lot, but I somewhat make up certain things in my head. Anyways I think I have come to realize that majority of my life has been stuck in thoughts and I never got it under control and its really frustrating to think about, because I think the best year of the my life was junior year and if I would had gotten this problem under control my life would be different today than it is now, but maybe I will tell you guys what my thoughts are, but I wanted to know does maladaptive daydreaming involve dwelling about how your life could be different, not in a fantasy, well kind of, but I just wanted to know if maladaptive daydreaming involves dwelling about who you are and how your life could be different in your own thoughts, because I'll tell you what I did the same ****, pluggin headphones into my ears and getting stuck in my thoughts for hours a day.


please guys I really need to talk to somebody about it!


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## BeStillMyHeart

@aldon I read different threads about this. For most people it's what you wish what your life could've been.


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## BusWithSquareWheels

KeiraA said:


> Wow i didn't think that anyone else did this, to the extent that I do. Sometimes my little fantasy, daydreaming land is just *SO MUCH better than reality, that I'll stay there for hours and hours.* It's quite sad really.


That's exactly how I feel, it's actually nice to just daydream


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## princesscreep

This is literally freaking me out. This is my entire life, only something I've never even admitted to myself and now someone is like, explaining to me all about it. When I was little I would rock back and forth quickly against car seats during car rides, my mom only mentioned maybe once or twice, I think stating it was funny or weird, idk I was young. But,this explains me even now(well not around people in any way). 
.....


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## princesscreep

princesscreep said:


> This is literally freaking me out. This is my entire life, only something I've never even admitted to myself and now someone is like, explaining to me all about it. When I was little I would rock back and forth quickly against car seats during car rides, my mom only mentioned maybe once or twice, I think stating it was funny or weird, idk I was young. But,this explains me even now(well not around people in any way).
> .....


Oh god the more I think about it the more stuff it explains about my quirks. I always run my cuticles back and forth along soft things until they fray when i'm thinking or zoning out. I bounce up and down when listening to music, imagining stories. I used to swing for hours and hours stuck playing my fantasies in my head until it got late and my mom had to yell for me.


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## ravenseldoncat

I have to pace and jump and hit the ceiling. I used to wonder when I was a kid if I would one day out grow this. A part of me wished I never did, and now it seems I still have the urge for some sort of escape through day dreaming, but I have depression and other mental blocks that prevent me from day dreaming as fluidly. To compensate, I have had to take up more disciplined reading of science fiction and fantasy novels. 

Hmmm, this is starting to make some sense...interesting.


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## princesscreep

Ray nichols said:


> I started doing this when I was very young. One of the first day dreams that I can remember was I was Megaman and I was with Zero. Together we would kick the *** of all the bullies at school and we would be heroes. Back then I thought it was awesome. When I got older and was in high school, I would pace back and forth outside my church and just day dream constantly, do it at home in my room, and avoid taking the bus home from school and instead just walk home (I live 10 miles from my school so I did a lot of walking) all while listening to music.
> Eventually, I just didnt need music anymore and daydream all the time. It interferes with everything I do, sometimes I cant even sleep because I'm obsessed over some fantasy. This goes in conjunction with my social anxiety. It seems that my emotions also have a strong impact on the outcome of my daydreams. If I am extremely depressed, then no matter what kind of daydream I think of, the ending is always the same and I am left heartbroken, miserable, or maybe something far worse. Therefore maladaptive daydreaming takes on a sinister form and I feel like I'm spiraling out of control and end up having series of panic attacks. And even though I have social anxiety disorder, most of my panic attacks happen when I'm alone.
> 
> It's too bad that there is so little known about MD. But I am very happy that at least there is an answer to what I am going through. For the longest time I've felt alone and confused not knowing what was happening to me. Thought that I was going insane the more I was alone. And when I would go and try to be around friends, anxiety would kick in and I would have to go find some place to be alone.....But knowing is half the battle and now that I know know, I can set a course for myself towards recovery.


Many of my fantasies became/are really horror related, or I'd be tortured through most of it. Sometimes I'd play trying to escape from these situations and saving friends/people I liked. Others I'd be left traumatized and alone, especially the more depressed I was. It didn't scare me so much however, I played it up to my love for horror movies ever since I watched Saw and flipped out and started crying (as opposed to just covering my eyes like I did up until that age to anything scary). (I might just be weird.)


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## StoicJester

I've been doing this ever since I was about five or so. I would put my headphones in, rock in my parents old recliner and daydream for hours. I remember catching myself doing the facial expressions or even crying. They were so vivid, but I knew they were just fantasies. When I got older, I began doing it while riding a bike or driving. I love to write and my fantasies helped me come up with some great stories. I had no idea this condition had a name. When I was a teenager I was afraid this was a symptom of schizophrenia and one day I wouldn't be able to differentiate between reality and fantasy. I haven't experienced any trauma, but I have always been considered a weird kid. My fantasies were always better than my reality, so maybe thats why I loved to escape so much. And the daydreaming brought me so much joy. Sometimes my daydreams were about me and sometimes they were about characters I created. I loved creating these worlds and watching events unfold, and then writing them down. I don't really consider it bad thing for myself, except I've spent a good portion of my life in a fantasy world. I wish I had done half the things that I daydreamed about.


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## apex02001

*I've shared this MD thread discussion to my Reddit community.*

The community is called r/MaladaptiveDreaming.

http://www.reddit.com/r/MaladaptiveDreaming/


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## pavane ivy

That is amazing, I've had this for such a long time... I had no idea there was an actual name for it. 

Music certainly triggers me. It could be why I like instrumental music so much, with no words but different sounds that let my mind escape into some sort of fantasy realm. 

I imagine myself as a villain a lot, I don't know why.


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## Agalychnis

Does anyone do the thing where you drift off, and start acting out the characters you're thinking of? Like you're sitting in class and suddenly realize you've been smiling like a lunatic for the last ten minuets?


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## Gracie97

I have Borderline Personality Disorder as well as being a chronic Maladaptive Day dreamer.


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## Nessie91

I have it too! I can never describe this to anyone...I doubt no one would understand and think I was a schizo. 

For me it's triggered by music and sometimes by movies. I get overwhelmed and lost in my thoughts, it usually lasts a few minutes and I suddenly snap back to reality when I realize how ridiculous I am.


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## Gwynevere

I have an incredibly thorough and detailed fantasy world where I'm a punisher-esque hero. It is a problem because it affects my life, sometimes I daydream about it in class and realize I missed an hour of notes, sometimes i fantasize in bed at night and can't sleep, etc.


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## scaliesmark

I've been doing this for as long as I can remember; I've got a few different fantasy worlds I drift in and out of. It's frustrating because I know it's 1 of the reasons my life's been so up and down; it's a lot easier to drift into fantasy than deal with reality. Thankfully I've gotten control of when I drift into my fantasies, its not as bad as when I was in school and spent most of my days in one of my dream worlds.


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## inthewater

I've been doing this since I was a child, and I'm in my thirties now. I daydream almost constantly. Sometimes I feel like I am in a daydream more often than I am in reality. It's more enjoyable to be in that place than to look at my real life, sadly. I've explained this to my therapist. She says that the daydreams were a good thing for me during childhood when I needed them as an escape from trauma, etc. Now, they're another hindrance because I can't get past a certain stage of my life. It's so hard to break the habit, though.


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## hoosierguy

I do this as well. It is a coping mechanism to help ease the pain of reality. I do my best to manage it and regularly remind myself that it just a fantasy and the real world is what matters.


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## sleepless in sydney

hi, first post here. a traumatic night has had me googling around about some 'disorders' i believe i have and i found about MD and AvPD

i think suffer from both and for me they are inextricably linked; in its current form - i first remember it starting when i was 15. i would listen to my favourite metal band on the walks to and from school and fantasise about being a talented guitarist/singer who fronted a popular rock band and played those songs. i would constantly replay the same scenarios in my head even when not listening to the music. this lasted until the end of high school but i still relapse occasionally. nowadays i have moved onto a collection of other fantasies just as vivid but perhaps more realistic and attainable.

in the past couple of months i've realised more and more that i've been using this as a coping mechanism to distract me from my own faults and inadequacies. my rock star fantasy wasn't just about being a rock star, it gave me the opportunity to manipulate how others saw me (i my fantasies at least) and i sought comfort and pleasure in being the centre of attention and having others perceive me as fun/cool/exciting/mature/intelligent/attractive - the exact opposite of my real self. in my fantasies i would set up scenarios where i would be having a discussion and purposely have others overhear and leave with a particular impression of me.


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## BubbleGrab

I was in a group therapy session the other day, and our leader mentioned using visualization as a positive tool for change. She related some story about a US hacker who, while imprisoned in the USSR for like 10 years, played "mental chess" in order to hone his skills. Apparently this man, after being released from prison, went on to beat the world champion. Our therapist also talked about how visualizing something pleasurable could in turn make you feel satisfied. Like visualizing eating that piece of chocolate cake would induce some of the same pleasurable feelings you feel when you actually eat something delicious.

So, my therapist was stressing the importance of visualizing success...visualizing ourselves as doing what we most want to do. Dancing. Acing a test. Wining a boxing match, etc. Whatever it is you want. Everyone else in the group was in awe at this supposed power that had just been presented to them, but I sat there wondering if this was not one of the main reasons my life had turned into what it is now. Had I found so much pleasure and satisfaction in my fantasy life that it held me back from actually pursuing real personal relationships and real life successes? I think so.

I have been creating these fantasies since I was 10 years old. I think my first fantasies involved New Kids on the Block (I've come a long way since then, I think). In my mind, I have fought through the Napoleonic Wars aboard a British ship of the line. I've been a flapper. An elf of the Woodland Realm. I've carried the one ring to Mount Doom dozens of times. I've been a folk musician. A famous writer. A roman slave. An important player in the American Revolution. An Irish rebel. I have even partied with Ratty, Mole, and Mr. Toad on the riverbank. 

How can real life live up to these fantasies? For me, it can't. Or it hasn't yet. It hasn't because I have been hiding from real experiences and real relationships with real people since I was 10 years old. I have social anxiety, depression, and OCD tendencies. I had no idea, until now, that all of this was so connected. And it all stems from fear. Fear of failing. Fear of rejection. Fear of pain. Fear of not being good enough. Fear of saying something stupid. Fear rules my life, and I am really sick of it. I guess I am having some sort of realization, I don't know. These fantasies are not enough. I deserve real experiences. I can't go back in time. I can't go to a different world. I can explore this world though. Uuggghhhh! LOL 

Probably should have just put this all in a journal or something, but hey! Why not put it out there? Maybe something good will come of it. Haven't ever posted anything before, but I guess this is what forums are for? I am trying to convince myself not to erase all of this. I am posting before I chicken out. Bye!


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## DefeatSAD

MitzenWarrior said:


> I was in a group therapy session the other day, and our leader mentioned using visualization as a positive tool for change. She related some story about a US hacker who, while imprisoned in the USSR for like 10 years, played "mental chess" in order to hone his skills. Apparently this man, after being released from prison, went on to beat the world champion. Our therapist also talked about how visualizing something pleasurable could in turn make you feel satisfied. Like visualizing eating that piece of chocolate cake would induce some of the same pleasurable feelings you feel when you actually eat something delicious.
> 
> So, my therapist was stressing the importance of visualizing success...visualizing ourselves as doing what we most want to do. Dancing. Acing a test. Wining a boxing match, etc. Whatever it is you want. Everyone else in the group was in awe at this supposed power that had just been presented to them, but I sat there wondering if this was not one of the main reasons my life had turned into what it is now. Had I found so much pleasure and satisfaction in my fantasy life that it held me back from actually pursuing real personal relationships and real life successes? I think so.
> 
> I have been creating these fantasies since I was 10 years old. I think my first fantasies involved New Kids on the Block (I've come a long way since then, I think). In my mind, I have fought through the Napoleonic Wars aboard a British ship of the line. I've been a flapper. An elf of the Woodland Realm. I've carried the one ring to Mount Doom dozens of times. I've been a folk musician. A famous writer. A roman slave. An important player in the American Revolution. An Irish rebel. I have even partied with Ratty, Mole, and Mr. Toad on the riverbank.
> 
> How can real life live up to these fantasies? For me, it can't. Or it hasn't yet. It hasn't because I have been hiding from real experiences and real relationships with real people since I was 10 years old. I have social anxiety, depression, and OCD tendencies. I had no idea, until now, that all of this was so connected. And it all stems from fear. Fear of failing. Fear of rejection. Fear of pain. Fear of not being good enough. Fear of saying something stupid. Fear rules my life, and I am really sick of it. I guess I am having some sort of realization, I don't know. These fantasies are not enough. I deserve real experiences. I can't go back in time. I can't go to a different world. I can explore this world though. Uuggghhhh! LOL
> 
> Probably should have just put this all in a journal or something, but hey! Why not put it out there? Maybe something good will come of it. Haven't ever posted anything before, but I guess this is what forums are for? I am trying to convince myself not to erase all of this. I am posting before I chicken out. Bye!


Great post!


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## chimpanzeethat

Oh god, yeah! When my anxiety/depression was at it's worse I'd pop on headphones, lie on my bed and daydream for what must have been hours at a time. I wanted to escape everything (or the complete lack of anything at all) that was going on. It makes so much sense now!

I've always had a habit of daydreaming though. Especially in school. I'd barely speak a word all day, I'd just be stuck in my head...


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## symfan

I feel so ashamed of my daydreaming habits but ... everything in my head is so much more satisfying. I mostly dream about being in relationships, or being at parties or preforming music-- things I'm too nervous to do outside of my head haha. I feel like sometimes it's good for me because daydreaming offers an escape from my anxious thoughts but I don't know if I should be "escaping" from my anxieties or facing them.... really nice to hear that I'm not alone on this one 

lol, cheers


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## GrainneR

I can definitely relate. I try not to let it interfere with schoolwork and whatnot. It helps to do those things in public, as when I daydream and fantasize, I'll sometimes speak aloud, and definitely make facial expressions and gesticulate depending on what is happening or being said in the daydream. I didn't do it really when I had a couple of friends, so for me, I feel like it's a social outlet or substitute, because I don't have a social life of any sort. I'd like to stop, and often when I'm in mid-fantasy, I'll realize that I'm doing it, and I will stop myself. I haven't gotten to the point where I can prevent it.


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## blacknight112

human after all said:


> Maybe if I didn't see a video I casually bumped onto on Youtube today, I would've spent my whole life not knowing what's wrong with me besides SA and depression. I thought I was the only one doing this, because no one speaks about it out of shame and it's still researched by psychologists, although you can still find some documentation online. I'm hoping I can bring this to your attention, who knows if someone has it and doesn't know, and if you have it, we can talk about it.
> *Excessive daydreaming may begin as an outlet for creativity or as a method of escaping trauma or abuse. The daydreamers experience very vivid and intricate fantasies and may become emotionally attached to the characters in their fantasies or express emotions they are feeling through vocal utterances or changing facial expressions, although most keep such behavior hidden from others. People with Maladaptive Daydreaming are different from schizophrenics, they know the difference between reality and fantasy; they realize that everything they are dreaming about is a fantasy. [They simply have trouble stopping daydreaming and focusing on regular tasks.] Some also exhibit symptoms similar to Asperger's Syndrome, ADHD or OCD.
> 
> Many people have social anxiety and/or depression along with maladaptive daydreaming. A large number also find their social lives are negatively impacted by this disorder. 79% of those self-identified as having excessive daydreams had a kinesthetic repetitive movement accompany their daydreaming, such as pacing, rocking, tapping, or shaking an object. Many others also move their hands around and make facial expressions: laughing, crying, whispering, and gesturing with hands [because they are trying to impersonate the characters themselves]. Listening to music while daydreaming is common and hearing music may trigger a fantasy. A repetitive movement may be articulated to music while daydreaming. Watching a movie or reading a book, can also trigger a fantasy.
> 
> Many people have novel or movie type fantasies. They create their own world [sometimes more than one] , with characters, settings, plots, heroes, villains, friends, etc. -- they also may imagine storylines using the characters or settings from already existing works of fiction.
> 
> Some people have reported dizziness, headaches and other physical symptoms after daydreaming. [Source:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maladaptive_daydreaming].*
> 
> Now I've been having this from when I was about 5 or 6. I would rock in bed, while imagining being someone else, like impersonating the different characters my "stories" have. I would often imagine myself as being a succesful person, like a rockstar or a motivational speaker (I know right, ironically I'm the exact opposite) etc. I have episodes mostly when I go to sleep or wake up or trying to have a nap in the afternoon. That would often left me drained of energy or steal me precious sleep.
> 
> I use it as an escape for reality, as a way to cope with the fact that I have no friends and my life sucks. But it's dangerous because it steals you time energy and motivation *(you would rather daydream instead of actually do something for your benefit)* and can make you more depressed and isolated. *It's an addiction*, it can be treated like that.
> 
> A site to know more about it and find people like us:http://wildminds.ning.com/


Sounds just like me and wanted it to stop!


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## Owl Eyes

I'm one of those weirdos who sit there smiling and making random hand motions until I catch myself thanks to this excessive daydreaming habit. I also accidently say conversations I'm having in a daydream under my breath.

It makes me feel less alone knowing this is an actual thing though :0


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## mellowyellow321

Thank you for taking the time to contribute that information. It is really helpful.


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## Baalzebub

Clarity's polar bear said:


> I'm getting a bit bored of mine, at least I think it fits the bill. I always imagine the same sort of stories to music and refine them over and over. Some of the stuff seems too important to me. It's like it's intertwined with my life goals and sometimes I feel as if I shouldn't have made some of it. I miss some people in my life and places and I feel like I'm mired in it somewhat. I really ought to either get trying harder to get who I want and where I want to be or find some new daydreams. It feels stale I guess. But it also feels like nothing could be more right for me. I want those things a lot. It also feels silly in the face of stressful things in life.


This is happening to me as well. My daydreams are getting stale and repetitive too. I just do the same thing over and over again. Since I've never had a girlfriend, I have no idea what the hell to do with my love interests. I just switch some minor details and repeat.


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## TheWanderer88

Hi I'm new, and wanted to speak to all like me, I've read about MDD and mine seemed to have developed from when I was 3, I made friends with 8 yr old named Victor he was abused by his home, didnt feed him much and locked him out of his house, I remeber i tried looking for him and be there for him when he needed help, then one day I come over to the park where all kids I know played at , and they all said "get away from us, we dont like you, you freak!, and victor was the one that started it, and so every kid in my area ive known ran away from me every time i get near them.
And it wasnt them through 6th to the end of middle school ive been made fun of.

For being different!!


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## missmirah02

*OMG*



cozynights said:


> Wow I never thought my fantasies had a medical name. The definition of the condition describes them perfectly! I am constantly daydreaming - I have a whole self-created world inside my head where I imagine characters' lives all the time, moving along with mine, and those are characters that I truly like and care about. I am always doing faces/movements/voices while daydreaming and sometimes I create situations that leave me with headaches and a fever.
> But to be honest, I don't enjoy knowing that it is an _addiction_. I don't wanna get rid of it at all. I'd be nothing without my fantasy world. My current one has been in my head for almost a year and it is with me in bad and good moments


OMG YES this is exactly how I feel! I love all the characters,but they interfere with my life! I need to stop but I dont want to!:b


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## HarryStanluv25

I have had several dreams where it felt entire plots and stories were taking place. Things my dream self said I have to remember so I can write about them in books in real life. But I never remember anything when I wake up. It's frustrating because they are so vivid and real in the dream. Entire songs are sung and I wish I remembered them because they were pretty cool songs in the dream. Why can't I have such bursts of imagination in my conscious state??


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## StressedOutMe

I didn't want to make a new thread for this specific thing..

Today I was daydreaming so bad that I ran a red light and almost t-boned someone. Thankfully, they saw me coming and didn't move forward. I have no idea how I missed that. It was kinda scary.


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## DeafBoy36

Yeah I do it all the time as a coping mechanism. I daydream a lot and I pace back and forth. It helps release my anxiety. I thought I was alone till a friend on SAS here pointed out about this and he does this too….. I guess it's a common thing for anxiety sufferers to release tension. WE all have to release anxiety, somehow, so this makes complete sense.


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## Katx

Hi, I'm sorta new here and I just saw this and I knew I had to post something! I have had Maladaptive Daydreaming Disorder for as long as I can remember (I'm 15 almost 16). Nowadays it's the only interesting thing in my life. It's a great way to kill time. I have made up my own fantasy world but it has a realistic touch to it. My daydreaming world is as if you were watching a teen drama show and of course I'm the protagonist, lol. Sorry if I sound too enthusiastic, I'm writing this at 7 am and I haven't slept all night because I've been letting my self esteem problems get to me. Okay, I don't know why I'm saying this, I'm pretty sure no one will care anyways, but I just thought that I would share that I have MDD too.


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## twinpeas

I've been struggling a lot with my MD lately. I have been dealing with a messy breakup, which was only temporary at first, but now seems to be a permanent thing (still not entirely sure, but I'm not getting my hopes up). Anyway, it's a much longer story than I'm willing to put the effort into writing out right now. My daydreams are kind of incorporated into my everyday life, and they're really realistic. My ex has been in my daydreams constantly. I just picture conversations with him. I picture myself reciting poems to him and crying in front of him. It's ridiculous, I know. I've been miserable, and I want to start trying to move on, but I can't seem to get him out of my daydreams. I try to catch myself and stop it, but it just happens involuntarily. It's been a major struggle for me, and I'm really afraid I'll never get him out of my head, even a year or two from now. It really scares me. I need to be able to move on.


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## Dark Light

I day dream a lot, all kinds of fantasies, especially when I listen to music. I think my brain use it as a coping mechanism.


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## megatheriidae

Wow... I thought this was one of the things I did that was actually semi-normal... I guess not. I have had this for as long as I can remember. I would occupy my body, like I would get a soccer ball and kick it against a wall or something (because I like soccer) and while doing this I would make up my own fantasies and become somebody else in my mind. I also make facial expressions while doing this, and occasionally I'll even gesture too. I don't like going anywhere because if I have an idea of some sort of fantasy in my mind, that's all I'll want to do that day.


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## DeafBoy36

I don't really think this is wrong at all. It's just a COPING mechanism we all use. Nothing more, nothing less. I used to be ashamed, now I know it' just a coping mechanism. so there's no stigma to it for me anymore. So I do it whenever I need to release anxiety/tension. So I do it a lot.


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## twinpeas

DeafBoy36 said:


> I don't really think this is wrong at all. It's just a COPING mechanism we all use. Nothing more, nothing less. I used to be ashamed, now I know it' just a coping mechanism. so there's no stigma to it for me anymore. So I do it whenever I need to release anxiety/tension. So I do it a lot.


That's very true, and I think if it helps people cope with different emotions or situations then that's definitely a good thing. But on the other hand, for some of us it becomes more of a burden than anything. Sure, I use it as a coping mechanism, but so much so that I have found myself unable to move on with my life from certain situations (and people). I hope this doesn't sound like I'm trying to pick a fight or anything. I just wanted to point that out because although it can be a nice anxiety reliever or coping aid that nobody should be ashamed to use, we can't forget that it does hurt people too.


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## Andre

I dont worry about it anymore. It is no longer a disorder. It can feel sad when it replaces life but its worth it when there isnt a cause to engage.


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## LittleMerlin

I have exactly this thing. When I feel lonely and bored, I turn myself off the world and just 'project' myself into my own fantasy environment with different characters and events which suit me, mostly to escape and imagine living other life (sometimes it inspires me to write stories which I later abandon). Kinda like in BSG and Caprica. Except the fact that it doesn't feel so real and it brings only a brief relief and later more disappointment. Music also helps to reach that state, depending on my mood, if that's more happy or melancholic.


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## 7th.Streeter

Hmm..I don't think I have MR, as an artist isn't normal to picture your character in your mind's eye along with their personality? Also, slot of people daydream or think abt something funny and laugh at it... how's that any different?


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## Plum

Are there MD 'suffers' who are successful at their place of work or school. I have MD and I'm wondering whether I can ever really become a success in the real world.


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## DeafBoy36

Plum said:


> Are there MD 'suffers' who are successful at their place of work or school. I have MD and I'm wondering whether I can ever really become a success in the real world.


Yep, I'm a teacher and am only 2 weeks away from earning a masters degree. So yes you can be successful and have MD. The key is balance.


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## Plum

Can someone with MD ever become successful in the professional world?


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## Plum

Thanks DeafBoy. I Just saw your reply after asking my question again. Congratulations by the way. There is hope yet


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## Mattxu

Yep thats me. Bad thing is that i can't enter my dreamworld


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## Charlieisnotcool

OMG! I do stuff like this! Now I'm scared!!


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## schen5

This is so true! I noticed my social anxiety began to spike a few years ago when I turned to epic philosophical and fantastical daydreaming triggered by a TV show or music to escape my own misery.


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## ioancristian

At first when i read about maladaptive daydreaming(a few years ago) i didn't believe it...it was exactly one of the problems i have had since i was little. I tried throughout my life to tell my family about it, but nobody seemed to listen, everybody was telling me that it's ok to fantasize. But they never understood what i was trying to say... 

The best advice i can give you all(from my experience) is to stay as active as possible(and i don't mean social relations or going out, but, in my case, learning/reading stuff you like i.e. history, science, things like this that can be "studied"). In my case, the biggest trigger is music, but damn...sometimes i listen on purpose to go into my daydreams (every time i am frustrated/stressed)...i can't help it...But this happens as i said only when i am frustrated. 
Also video games help in my case(even if they are a waste of time)...they don't seem to be such a trigger(on the contrary...sometimes they relax me when i am stressed), but as i read on internet, they should be avoided.

Also jogging helps a lot. I highly recommend it. Beyond the many benefits it has on health, it's a perfect way to daydream without feeling guilty that you are wasting time. I know the goal would be not to daydream at all, but for me that is not possible...i sometimes really need to daydream, and jogging gives me an opportunity to daydream without feeling guilty.


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## ioancristian

Fleece said:


> I have this to an extreme degree. I probably spend a massive portion of every day just pacing around aimlessly, imagining myself as some obscure character. Makes me feel like a complete lunatic. I'm thinking of taking notes every time I find myself daydreaming, so that I can see how many different things I imagine each day.


No...you're not a complete lunatic, you have to stop thinking like this. This is about your mind's way of coping with life. It's a coping mechanism. It's not productive, but it's there with a reason...maybe many of us would have become lunatics if it didn't exist.


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## Houstontexas

*Hereditary?*

I've been having random, impulsive daydreams while pacing/twiddling fingers/holding objects since I was at least 3. I'm 14 now and I never do it in public, I try to be around people as much as possible. I've always looked at it as an addiction until now. I was just wondering if you can inherit this? My grandma used to do this all the time, but she couldn't distinguish her day dreams from reality and was a schizophrenic. I'm definitely not a schizophrenic, I can clearly distinguish day dreams from real events and unless I told you you could never tell I struggle with this. I was also wondering if anyone has had this and overcame it/became cured? Thanks so much it feels great I'm not alone in this


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## ioancristian

Houstontexas said:


> I've been having random, impulsive daydreams while pacing/twiddling fingers/holding objects since I was at least 3. I'm 14 now and I never do it in public, I try to be around people as much as possible. I've always looked at it as an addiction until now. I was just wondering if you can inherit this? My grandma used to do this all the time, but she couldn't distinguish her day dreams from reality and was a schizophrenic. I'm definitely not a schizophrenic, I can clearly distinguish day dreams from real events and unless I told you you could never tell I struggle with this. I was also wondering if anyone has had this and overcame it/became cured? Thanks so much it feels great I'm not alone in this


Maladaptive daydreaming has been first described in 2009, it is not even considered a real disease yet. It may even be just the side effect/symptom of other conditions(SA, OCD, AvPD, traumatic event). 
But, maybe there is a genetic component to it(as with many many other diseases, including SA or OCD). Also, if you grandma had schizophrenia, that's a completely different disease, which has nothing to do with MD.

There isn't a cure for it, but there is this website with modalities to reduce the daydreaming: http://daydreamingdisorder.webs.com/possibletreatments.htm


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## GrainneR

My day dreams have been getting worse, and more frequent. I try to catch myself during them, but sometimes it's so hard.


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## taharqa

Wow, I never knew that this sort of thing happened to other people too! I always thought I was the weird one. Maybe I am, but I'm pretty much ok with that.

My only problem is that my daydreams get in the way of things like homework and other responsibilities that I have. I don't _mind_ the daydreaming, I just wish I could control when I have them better.


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## iDreamedaDream

This is the topic that led me here from a google search and the only reason I joined initially. I had never heard of MD and seriously thought that if I told a doctor what i was doing (pacing, talking to imaginary people, gestures, laughing at conversations that i was seemingly having with myself, etc) that they would put me in a white gown and lock me up in a padded room. 
So thank you to everyone who is sharing their stories&#8230;. knowing that I am not alone, eases the pain a little.

My MD does not involve fictitious characters. It always involves someone who was in my life at a certain point. The thing which made me research this, was that every time i walked into the dining room there were boys i used to go to school with, sitting around waiting with school readers. In my fantasy land, I am their teacher and I always bring them donuts while I read the first chapter and then make them read one sentence each around the table.
They think i'm cool because i brought them food. LOL.
I used to play it all out and my daughter has caught me a few times. At first i felt ashamed, but coming to understand it as a 'coping mechanism' which some of you have mentioned, makes total sense.

I felt this was hindering a lot of things in my life, no matter how happy I was when i was in the "zone" because it made me feel worse when i snapped out of it (knowing it wasn't reality.) Now i don't even look at the dining table. Of course, there are times when other random "triggers" get set off and I can't resist the urge to role play&#8230; I still feel crappy afterward but the satisfaction i get "during" is often times worth it.

I think for me, MD stems from certain regrets. When my brain is subconsciously pre-occupied with all the things i should have done, all the things i should have said, all the things i could have been&#8230;. that's when it takes hold and I'm forced to play everything out in my "ideal" world how it _should_ have been.


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## Elad

TIL i'm probably a maladaptive daydreamer


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## Ariesintrovert

Yes, I have this as well. My whole family thinks I'm crazy because I pace back and forth, up and down the hallways while I listen to music. I'm not exactly sure when it started, probably around 8th or 9th grade. I really wish I could stop doing.. My daydreaming has come to a point where I would rather stay inside than go out with friends. It is also one of the reason why I am afraid to drive. I fear that one day I'm going to start daydreaming while I'm driving and hit something or someone.


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## heliotropicDissonance

I visualize intimacy between two fictional beings so much I've deprived myself of any proper capability to try and find it for myself. It feels really good - until the fantasy is over and then I realize I'm still hidden away in my bedroom like a crab. Then, not so much. I just feel isolated all over again, but it's one of my most powerful coping tools.


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## pondhockey

Wow, this is amazing to be able to share personally about Maladaptive Daydreaming--I ran across the Wikipedia explanation about a year ago. I notice that I am more susceptible to daydreaming after going through traumatic events, or periods where I have been deeply affected by my Social Anxiety. It started when I was about 6 after an experience that shattered my sister's and my sense of safety and trust. We were walking down the street to our house, when a man grabbed my sister from behind with a small knife and pulled her up a driveway and into some bushes--just for his own amusement. After that our routines' were affected to a large degree--from not being able to walk to school (3 blocks) by my self, to not being able to use public restrooms alone. I remember I withdrew from the my friends who all played carefree on our dead-end street, as parents watched over from steps and porches in the evening. I would withdrawal and imagine a conversation with a friend from my street in my room instead of actually going out into the transformed and unsafe environment of our street, and having the conversation for real. 
It worsened a bit in high school as my Social Anxiety and the "awkwardness of being a teenager" made me afraid of my peers. I never lost the sense of fear that consumed me as a result of that day even though time had passed, so I would listen to the kids having conversations about things that interested me a lot, then later kind reenact it later, with my participation added. It was definitely something I recognized as a coping mechanism. I don't do it as much anymore unless I am having a super bad time with Social Anxiety and haven't had any interaction/conversations with people outside of my family in a few days. It's a coping mechanism for the mind--so I don't beat myself up about it, especially after realizing exactly when it began. There was no trauma counseling for children in the 80's, my sister and I simply got up and went to school the next day with our nerves completely frayed/shot. I am glad to know that I am not alone in having this type of coping mechanism. Before I knew the attached to it, I was a bit concerned.


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## ioancristian

pondhockey said:


> Wow, I notice that I am more susceptible to daydreaming after going through traumatic events, or periods where I have been deeply affected by my Social Anxiety. It started when I was about 6 after an experience that shattered my sister's and my sense of safety and trust. We were walking down the street to our house, when a man grabbed my sister from behind with a small knife and pulled her up a driveway and into some bushes--just for his own amusement. After that our routines' were affected to a large degree--from not being able to walk to school (3 blocks) by my self, to not being able to use public restrooms alone. .


You have an interesting story. I don't know exactly what caused my daydreaming, i just know i have it since i was very little. Can't say though what triggered it...
I too have worsen daydreaming after bad and stressful days, so it really must be some kind of coping mechanism.


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## pondhockey

ioancristian said:


> You have an interesting story. I don't know exactly what caused my daydreaming, i just know i have it since i was very little. Can't say though what triggered it...
> I too have worsen daydreaming after bad and stressful days, so it really must be some kind of coping mechanism.


It is kind of fascinating to a certain degree how the mind develops a coping mechanism in deep times of stress. I don't view it as completely unhealthy when I let my mind wander at the end of the day. Most of the time it's based on a conversation that I had with someone during the day, and wish maybe I had been able to add something interesting, or when it comes to one of my quick-witted friends, I kind of replay the conversation and try to think of something clever/funny to say. I feel comfortable with this, unless I get to wound up thinking about stuff and can't sleep.
Also I think with most kids they feel comfortable in engaging in role-playing/fantasy acting. It's great to see my nephew using his imagination to create some kind of quest for him and his little buddies. You can see the excitement on their faces as they let their mind wonder and pretend to be super-heros, army guys, etc. I'm not sure if maybe to much time alone or maybe childhood depression can be linked to the this type of coping mechanism. I think if a small child is going through stress of their parents' divorce (for example), they may not find a way to verbalize or cope with the emotional stress, and this would give them an outlet for to meet any unmet emotional needs. The combination of creative play being enjoyable and a significant emotional stress, would definitely make MD a way of escaping mentally from that type of situation, as they start to possibly image a more perfect family dynamic. I'm surprised this isn't more commonly addressed especially in the realm of child psychology.


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## Dre12

Plum said:


> Can someone with MD ever become successful in the professional world?


I think that it would depend on what you call the 'professional world'. It is not uncommon to hear of authors that are 'recluses'. I would imagine that many of them suffer from similar issues to us and that MD can be channeled into writing great fiction. I have, or indulge in, MD and have already written the narratives for about four books in my head. It is just that I am unsure if I have the talent to write these books in a skilled and appealing prose.

If you are talking about the professional world as being commerce, law and so on then I think that it would definitely be an hindrance. More so because MD is seemingly symptomatic of other disorders that affect social aptitude, which is often a crucial skill to be successful in that world.


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## ioancristian

pondhockey said:


> I think if a small child is going through stress of their parents' divorce (for example), they may not find a way to verbalize or cope with the emotional stress, and this would give them an outlet for to meet any unmet emotional needs. The combination of creative play being enjoyable and a significant emotional stress, would definitely make MD a way of escaping mentally from that type of situation, as they start to possibly image a more perfect family dynamic. I'm surprised this isn't more commonly addressed especially in the realm of child psychology.


Yes...i was thinking of something very similar. It doesn't necessarily have to be a traumatic event that triggers MD, but probably an unpleasant childhood.


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## heliotropicDissonance

Dre12 said:


> I think that it would depend on what you call the 'professional world'. It is not uncommon to hear of authors that are 'recluses'. I would imagine that many of them suffer from similar issues to us and that MD can be channeled into writing great fiction. I have, or indulge in, MD and have already written the narratives for about four books in my head. It is just that I am unsure if I have the talent to write these books in a skilled and appealing prose.
> 
> If you are talking about the professional world as being commerce, law and so on then I think that it would definitely be an hindrance. More so because MD is seemingly symptomatic of other disorders that affect social aptitude, which is often a crucial skill to be successful in that world.


does being social have to be a requirement to succeed? can't i just be a hermit for the rest of my days, i think it's easier.


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## Dre12

heliotropicDissonance said:


> does being social have to be a requirement to succeed? can't i just be a hermit for the rest of my days, i think it's easier.


It is easier but most people find being a hermit a life reducing experience with a definite negative value.

You can be successful in other fields whilst being a hermit but many 'professional' fields require a great deal of human interaction.


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## Steveo1979

I've had MD for as long as I can remember. I just heard the term MD on here. I thought I was the only person that did this. I researched it online many times and did not find anything. All the doctors ans social workers I have talked to over the years did not know what I was talking about. Im glad to have found all this information Thanks


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## DeafBoy36

same…. glad to know that i'm not alone till another SAS friend pointed it out to me that he also does it. I was like whoa…I do it the same thing….


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## Kimmi25

I have a damn tattoo related to my fantasy world. Ridiculous now. I only realized how maladaptive fantasy-land is recently. I have no friends because I can just make them up in MY imagination. It means you're not getting a realistic view of other people when you do socialize because you're used to reflections of YOU as a conversational partner. This sets up expectations for interactions with others that are unrealistic, ie: you are the center of your world, other people don't view you like this. Bad


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## ioancristian

Kimmi25 said:


> It means you're not getting a realistic view of other people when you do socialize because you're used to reflections of YOU as a conversational partner.


That is so true. Never saw MD from this point of view. Maybe MD really is some sort of defense mechanism. If someone had bad experiences with socializing, then he/she starts to "create" is own relationships. And by doing this, he doesn't need to socialize as much, because he has his own "comfort zone", and all this is like a vicious circle.


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## Kimmi25

ioancristian said:


> That is so true. Never saw MD from this point of view. Maybe MD really is some sort of defense mechanism. If someone had bad experiences with socializing, then he/she starts to "create" is own relationships. And by doing this, he doesn't need to socialize as much, because he has his own "comfort zone", and all this is like a vicious circle.


That's what I believe it is, a comfort zone. It's something that is rewarding because you're relaxed and in control...but imagine telling people you do this. I took it too far when I was stoned out of my mind and began to make associations to things that weren't realistic, aka delusional behavior. I thought I was dating a rockstar lol. So scary. I caution anyone against falling into fantasy-land because it detriments your mental well-being, and puts you behind in terms of forging ACTUAL lasting relationships.

A very easy mental calculation I use is this, if you would be mortified to tell someone about what you've done/are doing, it is probably the wrong thing to be doing..so...don't do it!
Imagine telling a potential friend that you have a fantasy land inside your mind, and that all your 'real' friends are imaginary..


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## Ann75

I never thought other people experience this thing too. But it's really good to know I'm not alone. I also daydream daily, I like to do it while listening to music and pacing around my room. I would like to let go of this habit, but it's really hard.
I'm thinking about moving to a dorm. That way I could rarely be alone and I could meet a lot of people and socialize more. I guess, it will be hard, because I'm not a social type - of course. I think being around people often, living my life and trying to be as happy as possible could help me fight this disorder. 
But I'm afraid it could get worse. It would be a radical change in my life, and I'm not sure if it would help my MD to get better or not.
What do you guys think of this? Have you ever tried anything this radical to avoid daydreams?


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## ioancristian

Ann75 said:


> I never thought other people experience this thing too. But it's really good to know I'm not alone. I also daydream daily, I like to do it while listening to music and pacing around my room. I would like to let go of this habit, but it's really hard.
> I'm thinking about moving to a dorm. That way I could rarely be alone and I could meet a lot of people and socialize more. I guess, it will be hard, because I'm not a social type - of course. I think being around people often, living my life and trying to be as happy as possible could help me fight this disorder.
> But I'm afraid it could get worse. It would be a radical change in my life, and I'm not sure if it would help my MD to get better or not.
> What do you guys think of this? Have you ever tried anything this radical to avoid daydreams?


No. My therapist told me that radical changing your life usually gets things worse. You have to let your mind adapt to a new lifestyle step by step.


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## Ann75

ioancristian said:


> No. My therapist told me that radical changing your life usually gets things worse. You have to let your mind adapt to a new lifestyle step by step.


Thank you for your reply! That's not so good, because I have to move in next month. Maybe I could try to let go of my daydreamings day by day, but I don't know if it would work out in these few weeks. I guess, I could find some time to daydream later too, but I'm not sure. I will be busy with studying, and I will be surrounded by other people really often. I feel that this situation could help me socialize more and daydream less, but maybe your therapist is right, and I shouldn't make this radical change. I just don't want to miss out university because of this.


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## Anwel

I'm freaking out: THIS IS ME! 
Hello everyone! I'm new at the forum , and I joined specifically because of this issue. (please forgive me for my horrible and sucking english hahah) 
I daydream as I can remember... and here comes the interesting part: it is always concerning romantic themes. At the age 9 years old I had an imaginary boyfriend (it was a cartoon lol), and today I like to dream all day with my true love ... the worst is that I give them a "true face" (eg. my crush) and I think situations we're together and fell in love :b. The problem is that my mind confuses the "avatar" (to put it in some way), with the imaginary personality I gave to the person, and for a long time I was really in love with "this" person ... First was a guy at my school, then the friend of my cousin and today a guy that I met who I find him very handsome. So I don't know how to control it :um. Yes I know, I have to separate the real person (eg. my crush that I hardly know) with the one who created in my mind ... but I still suffer, I suffer a lot for not being with him, even that is not the "real" him. AGGHHH! my mind so confused... Just yestarday I thought in all this and discovered that I was doing this unconsciously... I have 22 years old, never been in a relationship :afr. I just want to STOP IT, is so frustrating, much more when I "fall in love" for people that I don't know. 
Also I like to dream with my perfect life, is not a fantasy world, on the contrary, they're simple day-day situations, with real people, but more cooler hahah, like if I was popular, more outgoing, a better student etc.
I want to stop them :mum.
Cheer up for all you ppl hating this!


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## Anwel

Anwel said:


> I'm freaking out: THIS IS ME!
> Hello everyone! I'm new at the forum , and I joined specifically because of this issue. (please forgive me for my horrible and sucking english hahah)
> I daydream as I can remember... and here comes the interesting part: it is always concerning romantic themes. At the age 9 years old I had an imaginary boyfriend (it was a cartoon lol), and today I like to dream all day with my true love ... the worst is that I give them a "true face" (eg. my crush) and I think situations we're together and fell in love :b. The problem is that my mind confuses the "avatar" (to put it in some way), with the imaginary personality I gave to the person, and for a long time I was really in love with "this" person ... First was a guy at my school, then the friend of my cousin and today a guy that I met who I find him very handsome. So I don't know how to control it :um. Yes I know, I have to separate the real person (eg. my crush that I hardly know) with the one who created in my mind ... but I still suffer, I suffer a lot for not being with him, even that is not the "real" him. AGGHHH! my mind so confused... Just yestarday I thought in all this and discovered that I was doing this unconsciously... I have 22 years old, never been in a relationship :afr. I just want to STOP IT, is so frustrating, much more when I "fall in love" for people that I don't know.
> Also I like to dream with my perfect life, is not a fantasy world, on the contrary, they're simple day-day situations, with real people, but more cooler hahah, like if I was popular, more outgoing, a better student etc.
> I want to stop them :mum.
> Cheer up for all you ppl hating this!


Oh and I don't have SA ops, but I suffer from GAD... :cry.


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## Blarg

I don't think my daydreaming is particularly severe enough to be classed as maladaptive, but I sure do daydream a lot to escape from my quite lonely reality. I daydream of moving to various across the country (and occasionally world!), making close friends and just generally being happy. Like I said it isn't a severe problem, I just consider it a nice escape.


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## ravenseldoncat

I wish I had the escape these days. I can't day dream anymore, my brain won't release the dopamine or whatever it is, that gratifies my day dreaming. I don't know why.

Do you think medication impacts this?


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## UFO

I have elaborate fantasies all the time. Usually an idea will pop into my head for an art project, and ill write about it in detail, imagining it being finished and shown in a gallery. I imagine what I will say in interviews too, articulating my concept in my head over and over until it feels perfect. I have literally hundreds of these notes. When I look back at them, I can still see what I imagined. Unfortunately, there's very little I have started.

I'm left with nothing but my fantasies. No one knows about my notes or my ideas. I spend so much time in my fantasies that I never accomplish anything. My life has no purpose.


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## Blarg

Unlike some people in this thread I don't actually want to get of my daydreams. As long as you're still aware that it's not reality, I find them a great release.


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## FXiles

This is 100% me. My daydreaming is very severe. I've pretty much lived in my head since I was 14. I really need to stop, or at least reduce my daydreaming significally.. but I don't know where to start. :/


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## teenage wildlife

I'll daydream frequently; it usually involves me pacing around in my room, or just sitting down and staring into space. I'll do it for awhile until I snap back to normal. I know it's not really good for me, but I can't help it much.


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## NiamhB

I'm so glad to have found this thread, I thought I was the only person who did this.


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## resting

*Possible treatment?*

I have found that Vinpocetine works wonders for my excessive daydreaming. I used to do it for hours and hours, but I've found that 30-50 mg of Vinpocetine, taken with breakfast in the morning, cuts down on the number of daydreams and their duration.

My dad tried it out, he has similar problems, but he noticed his anxiety worsened at 30 mg, whereas I've had nothing but positive effects. We both started at 10 mg, then worked our way up to our respective doses.

I searched for years to find something to help my daydreaming, and honestly, this is one of the only one's that's worked significantly. Lion's mane mushroom, and ginko biloba (taken cautiously) seemed to help a little bit, though, but Vinpocetine is by far the best I've found.


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## vanilla90

I do this ALL THE TIME. Like, I imagine almost entire moveis of myself in my head. A million different scenarios. I like it, it stops me from being bored on trains and stuff. But is it bad? Is it something I should be worried about? I am a very creative person


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## WanderingMind001

I think this was my 1st disorder. Then came in minor OCD-I was still messy though, so the obsessive part was other things-depression, and lastly general anxiety disorder. I can't quite remember what drove me to staying in my fantasy worlds, but I know for sure the stuff I watched and played further affirmed that fantasy life is what I liked over reality. I would come up with my own alternate lives/egos but I would also pretend I had a part in movies,books,etc. I didn't realize I was putting my life into a s***hole doing this until it was too late, which was junior year. At that time I was seriously throwing tantrums over the choices I made in life...but at the same time I couldn't find excuses to change because I was bored with the real world and refused to be a part of it...


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## bornofbrosiris

I do this, with pacing while listening to music. It takes up a lot of my time. Thanks for posting this. Only my family knows - I'll spread this along to them!


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## Satoni

I've definitely been a maladaptive daydreamer for as long as I can remember, even before I recognised I had Social Anxiety, and yet I didn't realise it was a recognised condition until recently- nice to find other people have it too. 

I tend imagine a lot of fantasy televisions shows where I was the lead character and combined it with whatever tv show or video game I was into- as a child I was the class leader in your typical Nickelodeon/Disney Channel sitcom; as a teenager it was the the girl with magical earth powers in a dark action show; as a student, the socially awkward student dealing with friends and relationships at Uni...basically I took my mundane self out of reality and make myself the actor and director of your own fantasy fate.

I daydreamed so much as a kid that I would move all over the place trying to live out the daydreams in my head. As an adult I can control it better now and leave the daydreaming until I'm in bed or alone at home. As people said, as long as you remember to dissociate your fantasies from reality I don't think there's anything seriously wrong with it.


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## Lish3rs

I like to think of myself as the main character too. I daydream so much you'd think I'd be able to write fantasy novels or something. But alas, writer's block. I think most of the daydreaming stems from me wanting to accomplish more than I currently am or wishing for more recognition. It kinda shows you that it's best to find a healthy balance between seeking unrealistic validation and just doing what you want to do to get to where you want to be.


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## Samram

In my case, there's not really any desire to escape reality - I love my life - but it just makes things interesting in the same way a movie or book does. I tend to create story lines which can be heavily influenced by the media I've been exposed to around the time of the daydreaming. 

I do it multiple times a day, especially with music playing, as the music pretty much sets the scene in a way. I look at it like creating a film with my own characters that can do what I want, or sometimes it's more like a montage haha. I also tend to catch myself rocking back and forth when I have these daydreams, and occasionally empathising emotionally with the characters or talking their lines out loud when no one's around. That being said though, they're normally pretty short occurrences and don't hinder my day all that much at all. 

Either way, It's a relief to find out I'm not the only one!


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## spiritedaway

Wow, I'm really glad to find out there's an actual name for this and that other people are affected by it also. I thought I was the only one. Usually I'll spend at least a couple hours a day, day dreaming of so many different things. I almost always have to be listening to music and start pacing around my house. Geez... I thought there was something super wrong with me and that I'm a freak. I never usually act out any of my fantasies though, only pacing. It's usually the worst when it's late at night, when I'm in the car or if I'm home alone. I'm pretty sure mine was caused with my extreme boredom with life and severe depression issues considering I didn't start doing this until only a couple years ago.


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## Quatermass

I'd say daydreaming is a bit like masturbation: Everyone does it, few people talk about it, most people are a bit ashamed of it, but as long as it doesn't interfere with your life, there's nothing wrong with it.


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## the struggle

defiantly makes me feel better to know that I am not alone in this. out of embarrassment i will refrain from describing anything, but MD is defiantly a problem in my life.


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## nominal

*I know this disorder well*

I have noticed some misconceptions about MD here and I advise you guys to check out the official descriptiona nd also check out the website wildminds

And if you have any questions about it ask me : D

by the way mine is largely music - based. It is like I have a stereo on repeat in my head constantly. Im going to ask my psychiatrist for medication for it (but I may not be specific because I feel sa about it - which is just more BS shame about mental illness ... as if it makes me inferior ... as if Im a ****ing performance and in no way alive and natural WTF)

PS am I allowed to swear? I'm new and have noticed a lot of people banned and dont want to get banned myself


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## MDismylife

Maladaptive daydreaming is new to me. I've been doing it for years, but knowing that there are other people who do this as well makes me a little more at ease. I thought that I was crazy and had mental issues for doing it. But it's really just an escape for me. Not everyone does it due to trauma, people do it for boredom, an escape, or because they aren't happy with their life in reality. Which is my problem. Of course wasting hours of your day may seem like a good idea because fantasies we create in our minds will always be better than reality no matter what. I'm getting older and I've been trying to quit daydreaming. It really does take a toll on your social life. I'd daydream for hours and hours. An hour minute daydream would feel like five minutes. When I realized that it got to the point where I would wake up daydreaming and go to sleep daydreaming. The most I've daydreamed was 23 hours straight. Music is a BIG trigger in my daydreaming. I like to imagine myself as this other girl. Her life was so perfect and she was very pretty. I'd daydream that I'm her and that she was a really popular and fit girl and I'd basically try to connect her life with my dream life in my fantasies. It was very unhealthy at first, but it's just an escape for me now. I try not to daydream for certain hours. But I'm not gonna stop because it makes me happy. I daydream for maybe an hour during week days because I have school. But weekends are my cheat days where I can daydream for a few hours at a time. I try to keep myself occupied with other things and people so I don't go back to my old habits of daydreaming the day away.


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## Lonely libertine

Yes, I do.

I daydreamed about being a prince somewhere in the universe.
I had a wife, but she was missing. And so, I try to figure out what's going on.
Eventually, I found out that my wife was sent to the "earth-hell"(I consider earth as a place to punish people in my story) by someone.
Once I found out that, I followed her to the so-called "earth-hell".
That's why I am here now

Anyway, there are lots of twist in my "story" and I can't type the whole story out


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## Tybay

Wow, I didn't know this had a name!
I've been doing this since I was a child. I always saw it as my own personal game, acting like the characters in all my fantasies. Specially since none of my friends seemed to find any entertainment in the game when I suggested it. I used to rock in my bed a lot during those fantasies and had favourite music/movies that'd adapt to them. Whenever I listenend to that music or watched certain scenes, I became extremely energetic and had the urge to jump and run around to what I was imagining. I kept that behaviour until my late teens... hell, shin splints were very common in me because of all that reckless jumping.

Now I only do it when I'm on the bus going to work or at the gym. It's more like something to kill unavoidable moments of boredom. Music is still a very powerful trigger and it still gives me an overload of energy and I feel like I need to get up from wherever I am and run and jump like a monkey on crack XD


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## slyfox

Sounds like what I have. I'm always daydreaming. I have fantasy stories that I work on in my head and I also try to plan stuff live improving at art and how to manage my time better(too bad I don't put these plans into action  ). Not so much anymore, but I used to throw something in the air(ball, etc) while daydreaming fantasy stories. I also make sword sounds, swinging actions, etc sometimes while daydreaming fantasy stories. I don't do this around anyone else, including my girlfriend. To be honest if I had more room and was alone I'd probably act things out even more :blush By other people's standards I am very immature for my age. 

I'm not very good at coming up with names, so I only name a few characters. I'd have tons of stories for writing if I was better at grammar and was better with naming places and people. Either way, I'm mostly wanting to focus on art at this time. 

The most dangerous thing I probably do is daydreaming while driving. I don't believe it has caused close calls with accidents but it has caused me to forget to make turns, etc. Caused some trouble when I was an auto parts delivery driver. I'd drive almost all the way back to the warehouse and then remember I skipped a delivery and have to go back :doh


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## AWIP

I have this problem and I despise it greatly.
I would like just once to get through a full day without going off on some wild imaginary adventure in my mind!!!
:mum:mum:mum:mum:mum:mum


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## DeafBoy36

I talked to my psychiatrist about this and asked if it's normal. He said it's not but he said as long as it makes you feel more calm and feel better from anxiety, he sees nothing wrong about it. "Normal" people don't do it, but for us, it's just a coping mechanism that may seems to be not "normal" but really it's normal for us…..I'm at peace with it now. I do it whenever I feel like I need it.


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## KatatonicPlanet

For me, my whole life is a day dream. I can sit in my room for 6 hours or more just knocked out of it day dreaming. A lot of it is about sexual fantasies of a dominant, strong, patriarchal man being my husband and kissing me and telling me how much he loves me. We have fights, make up sex (lol) and I am his submissive in a BDSM relationship. Then we have a baby boy and I name him after my husband. 

Meanwhile, real life, I'm a 17 year old girl from a single sex school and a virgin waiting until marriage… 

I want love! I want romance! But it (and MD) is destroying me at the same time.


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## 3r10n

Yes, i'm also doing this.
Usually when i'm lying in my bed at night, listening to music.
I don't try to impersonate anyting, nor do i give them names, since i use "real" people in them, but it does affect my mood. mostly positive though.
I didn't expect it to have a name. I Thought i was just being childish when i did it.
I don't know what's causing it in my case though. Maybe loneliness, maybe trauma, maybe both. I just know that i do it, and that i like doing it, so as long as i don't do it all day long, i don't really see a problem in it.


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## Charlieisnotcool

DeafBoy36 said:


> I talked to my psychiatrist about this and asked if it's normal. He said it's not but he said as long as it makes you feel more calm and feel better from anxiety, he sees nothing wrong about it. "Normal" people don't do it, but for us, it's just a coping mechanism that may seems to be not "normal" but really it's normal for us&#8230;..I'm at peace with it now. I do it whenever I feel like I need it.


Yeah that's the problem....we're not normal!


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## M0rbid

Charlieisnotcool said:


> Yeah that's the problem....we're not normal!


According to experts, no one is normal.


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## CreamCheese

Baalzebub said:


> This is happening to me as well. My daydreams are getting stale and repetitive too. I just do the same thing over and over again. Since I've never had a girlfriend, I have no idea what the hell to do with my love interests. I just switch some minor details and repeat.


yea this has been happening to me too. Maybe more so ever since I graduated college. Idk, when you're a college student you hope that other people around you are just as excited to make friends and meet new people hoping it's more of a reality. Now, I just feel like I don't have a chance of that and am not sure how I'm gonna meet people. I keep thinking about some kid I knew in HS lately, and the last time I met him was 7 years ago. Idk how we would ever get to know each other now. He's prolly not gonna even b interested in me lmfao.


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## CreamCheese

DeafBoy36 said:


> I talked to my psychiatrist about this and asked if it's normal. He said it's not but he said as long as it makes you feel more calm and feel better from anxiety, he sees nothing wrong about it. "Normal" people don't do it, but for us, it's just a coping mechanism that may seems to be not "normal" but really it's normal for us&#8230;..I'm at peace with it now. I do it whenever I feel like I need it.


yea that's weird he said it's not normal w/e that means, clearly on this page it seems like it happens to a lot more people than I thought. I thought it was just me.


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## Lonelyguy111

Very true and so important.

Since I have been largely a loner all my life, I have indulged in fantasy worlds in my mind to cover up my horrible lonely and nightmarish life. In your mind you can live the way you want to live and it can become excessive to the point where you deny reality and live almost exclusively in a fantasy world.

I came to realize that I was in effect daydreaming by spending entirely too much time on the internet where you have contact with people and you can ready about everything to escape the world and live in your mind which is like daydreaming.


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## social worker

Until today, I had no idea there was even a term for this...apparently more common than I thought...I've been doing this for decades, literally, it keeps my anxiety down. Like a wall between depressing reality and my perfect fantasy world. When some life event brings the wall down, I have a panic attack and want to retreat back into my daydreams...however, I just started working w/ an ACT therapist who's really big into being "in the moment" and "present". Sounds great but I feel like a fish on the sand and my anxiety and insomnia have really gotten worse. He says this will get better if I practice the ACT principles.


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## Mowgli

Oh my gosh!I always thought something is seriously wrong with me, because I have been doing this excessive daydreaming for years!Now I see that I am not the only one. I noticed that I would always start daydreaming when I felt very alone or bored.I even remember how I started it.I was 13. My favourite TV show was cancelled and I had no closure.So in my mind I would shape a new story and introduce new characters.I would start pacing or lying on bed....Now I am 22.It is always like a movie or a drama in my head inspired partly by books and movies in particular.I noticed that in all fantasies were and are about love stories in particular. In real life I have been always more of a loner and I am good at hiding my own feeling.I still have low self esteem and felt somehow often very lonely or misunderstood, but I never talk about it though...The thing that irritates me about my daydreams is that they are straining my eyes.The way I daydream changed. It is like sleeping with open eyes.I am fully aware that they are not dreams, but I would just walk through the street and..dream.And see and at the same time not see.It's hard to explain.It's kind of like sleepwalking,but being aware of it.Before it wasn't like that.And it only happens when I am by myself...


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## rayvonne

I'm glad to know I'm not the only one with these fantasies. I use mine as an escape from reality, creating my own where I can control everything. I have a tendency to make them as realistic as possible, which unfortunately makes it difficult for me to tell what's actually real.
My daydreams started out as just a fun pastime, but after a while they started to become obsessive (I also have OCD). I came to the point where I couldn't stop daydreaming no matter how hard I tried. My fantasy that I'd created was starting to torment me. They weren't fun dreams anymore but tempting thoughts that pulled me away from reality for hours or days at a time. Whenever something in reality hit me, like if somebody mentioned something that had happened to the actual person of one I had been fantasizing about, it was like being smacked in the face by reality. Oftentimes I'll become depressed after this happens and have even had suicidal thoughts.
I realize this is MD to the extreme, but it is comforting to know I'm not the only one who sometimes prefers fantasy over reality.


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## illage2

Everyday I keep imagining myself in different situations, sort of like daydreaming I suppose.


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## SunshineSam218

I thought I was alone doing this but I usually daydream about people actually being friends with me and I'm actually going places and not being stuck in my house. I'm such a loner that I actually daydream about me getting out of the house more often; that's how depressed I am. I just wish I had friends around where I live but sadly I don't.


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## Zxcvbnm987

I've been doing this for as long as I can remember, it's a nice escape from reality. I usually daydream as myself in a world from a tv show or movie. I do it every night before I go to sleep, It makes me feel less anxious.


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## green20ghouls

Been living in a fantasy world since I was 10. For about 14 years. It's desperate attempt to escape the real world. Sometimes, I think the daydreaming helps keep me on this planet. It is a defence mechanism and if I didn't have it...who knows where I would be..


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## green20ghouls

Does anyone else get sucked into movies or tv shows and then imagine the characters on the shows being your friends? That's why I get so into TV series and movies.


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## pantonals

Holy crap, this definitely describes me. Once my life started to go downhill as a child, I would fall into intense daydreams where I would create scenarios and essentially a different life. I still do the same thing to this day. I get too lost in my thoughts and I feel an emotional connection to my thoughts. I also tend to fidget or tremble while I daydream, a habit that is caused by my anxiety.


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## Balkan3421

I've been a daydreamer since I can remember. 

There's no better way of killing boredom in school... 
As I grew up, daydreaming stopped being something I spend 5 hours a day for. It's still here, and I still go in my world when I want to. It can be a great outlet for anger and aggression.


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## sleepingviolinist

I've had this since I was 10 or 11, maybe even before. Never knew the term for it.

I thought it was something everyone did. Are there people who don't have this problem?

I remember vividly laying on the couch for hours and daydreaming about fantasy scenarios. I would be lost inside my own thoughts.
I don't do that anymore. But it is instantly triggered when I am moving around or listening to music. Sitting/laying still not so much. 


I really wish it would stop ... it's so disruptive.


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## mjkittredge

wow that describes me perfectly, I didn't know what it was called or that anyone else was like this


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## shrinkingviolet218

OMW!! You just described my daydreaming problem perfectly! Its such relief to know that I'm not stupid or crazy. And that I'm not alone. I really appreciate you posting this!



.


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## sadreamer

Well that's definitely my case...In addition to this, sometimes I have moments of dissociation, i pretend that they are not my parents and that one is not my house.
I know it's quite bad but i can't stop it. Daydreaming saves me from disperation


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## Genos

i didn't know there was a name for it o_o i've been doing it since i was very young. i always need some kind of moment though, whether it's being in a vehicle or pacing. i don't always need music but i feel like it's easier to indulge when there is.


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## lovableplatypus

I remember when I was younger I had trouble getting out of bed because of this. And sadly, going to bed was the best part of the day because of this. And, sometimes even in the middle of the day would I go in bed to daydream. But always in bed. I couldn't relax that way anywhere else. My daydreaming started when I was about 10 years old. Knowing that after school I could go home and daydream cheered me up. And if I didn't daydream in daytime, I was always waiting for evening to come, and went to bed early just to dream.

Is it a common thing that in these fantasies things were never perfect? There was a lot of physical and mental violence, a lot of loneliness too. (The bad things always happened to me or whoever person/character I was dreaming to be). It gave me some twisted good feeling, the kind of feeling I've only recognized about two years ago from now (when I was 19). This good feeling that I got from my abusive daydreams was the same feeling as when I was talking to a boy I liked and he said something sweet to me. This feeling in your chest, so warm and exciting. After that, I never understood why I've always had this same good feeling when I am daydreaming of completely opposite things. Anyone has similar experiences? This feeling was always the main reason I wanted to daydream in the first place. It's amazing when I feel it but later I've started thinking whether these violent daydreams are good for you or not. This is a very interesting topic.


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## Joe

i think i do this but i dont get attached to characters, i jut have similar fantasies for a few weeks


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## Dawn1029

So for about 2 years I've been experiencing this. I never knew it was an actual disorder. I thought daydreaming was something everyone does and that I just did it more frequently. But I realized that I created an intricate story revolving around me. I thought of things that would happen and even came to believe them at one point. Later on, I realized that it wasn't real but i still have those moments. These characters i create are people that i care more about than my own family. And when i daydream, i stay as still as a statue but i make facial expressions and find a random body part slightly twitch. This may a disorder and I'm not proud to have it but when i daydream, i feel like my characters will accept me for me and anything i do. In the real world, i barely speak to anyone. I don't know. I guess i don't want to change.


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## slowlyimproving

human after all;1064191217
Now I've been having this from when I was about 5 or 6. I would rock in bed said:


> (you would rather daydream instead of actually do something for your benefit)[/B] and can make you more depressed and isolated. *It's an addiction*, it can be treated like that.


Do it all the time! It's the only sanctuary I have from life but I also need to stop.


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## meltedcheese

I use it as a coping mechanism. When i feel so emotionally drained or depressed or anxious MAD just solves it just like that.
The problem is though, even when I don't need it and I feel fine I just can't stop doing it. Its like an addiction people here said. I hate it for this, it destroys my productivity. I cannot complete goals or build any skills because MAD just gets in the way.  

Don't get me wrong, i don't to destroy it completely. I love world building and writing stories and its a good pastime, but I would rather have a more beneficial pasttime... I have never been addicted to anything before e.g caffiene, smoking etc. So i Don't know how to get it under control :l Its a good thing this website exists. I want to get help for this 

But I do love to ask people about their fantasy worlds tho. Its incredible that we can come up with such things. xDDDD


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## meltedcheese

Banzai said:


> I have this problem real bad, mostly in the form of pacing for hours and hours. I probably have ADD or something. I've been trying desperately hard to quit it but I think I only cut down a bit during the latest exam season. Now it's the holidays, I have some vague idea of cutting down significantly/stopping completely (for the next academic year) but so far that's not happening


I feel yah D: I would pace for hours and hours in my room when Im actually supposed to study omg. 
I have a month and a half to study 3 subjects, I haven't even started. I originally had 6months. Good luck to you! I hope all is working out better for you now


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## VegetableMan

I'm 29 years old right now and I've been doing this since I was a kid. I used to lay down for hours and just listen to music or play on a swing with my walkman turned on. I never came up with any actual stories, it was more like imagining myself being somebody else, someone from a film or a comic book. 

I still tend to imagine I'm someone else, I used to imagine myself e.g. as a rockstar, a highly successful writer, currently I sometimes daydream that I'm a detective - don't ask me why, I have no idea. Other times I simply imagine I'm my, only surrounded by friends and having a great time or having a better job etc.

I think that MD is in my case linked with my mixed anxiety/depressive disorder, I used to go therapy and take antidepressants. Currently I'm not doing both, but I don't think I'm much better.


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## dark2spine3

This could be applied to me, alter ego and all. The new best friends. You can use it to your advantage sometimes by imagining yourself as who or what you want to be while in uncomfortable situations.


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## thekitten

Am I the only one who can't remember my characteristics of my characters and I write all of them? I have written two big notebooks (and a lot of paper). They are full of the names of my unreal friends. I always change things and always add or change something to their appearance and personality so that I know what to daydream about and how to enjoy it in my dream world. I know it is strange, but that's the truth. Am I the only one who does this?


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## zomb

I like to write and come up with stories and characters etc. So i get some of these. But i woukdnt say i have MD.


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## samseta

As a kid I could space-out into a daydream anytime. A teacher actually called my mother to ask if there was something wrong with me. (There was a lot wrong) I probably did it frequently because I was a social reject with no friends. ..just toxic parents. I felt like I deserved to be rejected.

Anyway, I still call up the usual daydreams when I am bored. One good thing it does is it keeps me from reliving long past family confrontations which dredge up seething anger. Hate and anger side effects are pretty damaging. 
Daydreaming prevents a spiral downward making my depression a lot worse. A bad depression day is the ultimate reduction of even the worth of life itself. Meh...


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## kinsey

I don't think this is necessarily a bad thing. The original article makes it sounds like it is bad for your life. Maybe in extreme cases but not necessarily so. I have a world in my head with tons of characters places conventions, a lot of google notebooks full of the story. But I only think about it like an hour a day, so it doesn't necessarily mean it has negative effects. I actually find that it actually helps me relax to take my mind somewhere else, I love thinking about how these characters talk to eachother, and it actually feels like I'm part of something and help me express my feelings. I do recognize making faces but that isn't necessarily bad. I feel like this gives this thing a bad name while it might actually help people.


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## thinkstoomuch101

i don't know..

i think it might be helpful, career-wise if you're a novelist, or movie director, script/screen writer, etc. You know, the creative arts..

but as for dealing with just plain old reality, it's like a drug. Very addictive. And it makes it harder to deal with life. Why?

Because when i stay in "fantasy" for long periods of time, and reality "hits" me, i'm not 'ready' for it, nor am i wiling to "handle it".. I become more irritated, annoyed, and not "willing to deal".. especially when it comes to work.

In my fantasies - i don't have to work. And if i do? Well, it certainly isn't anything like the real world. Certainly doesn't "feel" like it anyway.

In most of my fantasies - i'm rich, so i don't HAVE to work.

It's like coming down off of a high. It's not as volatile as cocaine, but i'm sure a lot of you guys know where i'm coming from.. it's kind of like hitting a wall?


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## Aaran

*It's taken over my life.*

Due to my social anxiety I haven't left the house in years and even before that I only ventured outside every couple of weeks for an hour or two.

It started a couple of years ago, I was reading Harry Potter before going to bed. I couldn't sleep so I began to imagine what I would be like in Hogwarts. So this went on for a couple of nights but it didn't feel enough. I began to imagine myself in a different body and this carried on for about a week.

I began to watch a show called Teen Wolf and as I was watching I was inventing the version of me I would be thinking about that night.

Fast forward a couple of months from there and the obsession had become a hobby. All day I'd compile pictures of celebrities and such that I could imagine myself as. I spent days watching back to back episodes of shows so I could make my imaginings of it more rounded.

There was a gap in TV shows and I grew temporarily bored of the scenarios I'd stacked up so I went about making up families, friends, enemies, teachers, employers etc and soon developed several different families that I could day dream about.

The list has kept growing and growing and now I don't just think about them before bed, When I wake up I day dream, I'll stare blankly at the wall or TV for hours in a world of my own.

Is this a bad thing? Is it healthy? And if not how do I stop?


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## JohnDoe26

Aaran said:


> Due to my social anxiety I haven't left the house in years and even before that I only ventured outside every couple of weeks for an hour or two.
> 
> It started a couple of years ago, I was reading Harry Potter before going to bed. I couldn't sleep so I began to imagine what I would be like in Hogwarts. So this went on for a couple of nights but it didn't feel enough. I began to imagine myself in a different body and this carried on for about a week.
> 
> I began to watch a show called Teen Wolf and as I was watching I was inventing the version of me I would be thinking about that night.
> 
> Fast forward a couple of months from there and the obsession had become a hobby. All day I'd compile pictures of celebrities and such that I could imagine myself as. I spent days watching back to back episodes of shows so I could make my imaginings of it more rounded.
> 
> There was a gap in TV shows and I grew temporarily bored of the scenarios I'd stacked up so I went about making up families, friends, enemies, teachers, employers etc and soon developed several different families that I could day dream about.
> 
> The list has kept growing and growing and now I don't just think about them before bed, When I wake up I day dream, I'll stare blankly at the wall or TV for hours in a world of my own.
> 
> Is this a bad thing? Is it healthy? And if not how do I stop?


Wow, I do the _exact_ same thing. I day dream about movies, TV shows, and books I read, imagining different plots with me in them (as one of the characters, or as a different character added to the plot) lol.

If you don't mind me asking, how old are you and how long have you been agoraphobic? I'm in my 30s. I can go for weeks at a time not leaving my house, and I've only just started to get help since last year.


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## rachelrachel

Frosty345 said:


> I can relate to all this. I've been doing it for years. It's actually a great way to combat boredom most of the time but it has proved to be a massive hinderance when I'm trying to concentrate on something.
> It's why I make sure that I'm always around other people when trying to get some work done. It prevents me from randomly pacing around and into another room every 5 minutes.


I know what you mean. I study better with other people around too like at a library although then i face the problem of feeling selfconscious because i know that other people can see me and that someone somewere might be watching me, observing my behaviour.


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## rachelrachel

thinkstoomuch101 said:


> i don't know..
> 
> i think it might be helpful, career-wise if you're a novelist, or movie director, script/screen writer, etc. You know, the creative arts..
> 
> but as for dealing with just plain old reality, it's like a drug. Very addictive. And it makes it harder to deal with life. Why?
> 
> Because when i stay in "fantasy" for long periods of time, and reality "hits" me, i'm not 'ready' for it, nor am i wiling to "handle it".. I become more irritated, annoyed, and not "willing to deal".. especially when it comes to work.
> 
> In my fantasies - i don't have to work. And if i do? Well, it certainly isn't anything like the real world. Certainly doesn't "feel" like it anyway.
> 
> In most of my fantasies - i'm rich, so i don't HAVE to work.
> 
> It's like coming down off of a high. It's not as volatile as cocaine, but i'm sure a lot of you guys know where i'm coming from.. it's kind of like hitting a wall?


You said something very interesting here. Maybe the whole appeal in daydreaming for people with social anxiety lies in the fact that unlike reality, in a fantasy you don't have to work so hard when things dont happen exactly as you i imagined them. Something like that although i cant get deeper with it to really express what i am getting at. Anyone else able to?


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## rachelrachel

VegetableMan said:


> I'm 29 years old right now and I've been doing this since I was a kid. I used to lay down for hours and just listen to music or play on a swing with my walkman turned on. I never came up with any actual stories, it was more like imagining myself being somebody else, someone from a film or a comic book.
> 
> I still tend to imagine I'm someone else, I used to imagine myself e.g. as a rockstar, a highly successful writer, currently I sometimes daydream that I'm a detective - don't ask me why, I have no idea. Other times I simply imagine I'm my, only surrounded by friends and having a great time or having a better job etc.
> 
> I think that MD is in my case linked with my mixed anxiety/depressive disorder, I used to go therapy and take antidepressants. Currently I'm not doing both, but I don't think I'm much better.


I had a period when i sunk in to a fantasy world i would spend all day daydreaming about because i would rather be in that world then the real world. It was during a time when i was really isolated from physical illness which my mother decided to make worse for me by opening all the windows (for some reason) and my ocd flared up and i had just moved on to a new high school from my two previous school where i had experienced bullying and treated badly by the school itself.


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## TheGuardian

Totally me, i found this out while google searching about a year ago. I daydream first thing when i wake up/go to bed/outdoors & music definitely triggers it. I wish i would stop, i feel like it's taking me away from reality too much. Even though day dreaming makes me happy and i think saved me from getting depressed or more down about my SA over the past 5-8 years i am starting to get tired of it since i am older now. I feel like a child when i think about it, my day dreams are totally unrealistic. It's definitely a way for people to escape from problems in their life but if you do it too much & too long it can cause issues. I think if i got out more and did more i would stop.


To the whole imaging i'm someone else, i think we do that because we don't like who we are right now so we daydream about the person we wish to be. I daydream about being someone whose almost opposite of who i am


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## SkeletonLife

Daydreams are the most common form of escapism we have without resorting to illegal substances. Its a double edged sword, though, as it can really keep you from participating in reality. When waking life is tragic and devoid of any joy, dream states are a savior. This is why meditation is an important therapy for me and my anxiety. If you focus on another reality enough, your body slowly succumbs to the sense of security that it creates and your breathing and heart rate will fall to normal levels.


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## rm123

I've been doing this ever since I was a little girl, around 3 or 4 years old. Started off imagining different personalities for characters in a cartoon, now those characters have totally stayed and grew with me my entire life. I don't mind tho, I love my daydreams
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Tarkan

I suffer from daydreaming. When I was a kid it was more than now, but anyways, it makes my life harder.
Fantasies about being a powerful knight when i was a kid, then fantasies about dating girls when I grew up.


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## Ampata

I only learned here that MD was a thing. I've been doing it since the onset of puberty. I'd always dream myself into fantasy worlds and characters that had what I always wanted: great friends, relationships with realities, they're loved and amazing. When teens fantasize about celebs it's considered a normal phase but for me it never stopped. Since I have no lovelife that's my only source of happiness knowing I can dream myself into whatever makes me happy. I started writing fanfiction with a passion. It's very detailed and people love it. But I enjoy it just as much: I'd read my own stories and emotionally transport myself into this situation again. I'd pick and choose the story according to my mood, much like you choose your outfit in the morning or what to eat for lunch. Sometimes when I love a song I play the video clip and imagine myself into it, like being the female model in it or whatever. Songs evoke stories in me. Up until a while ago I seriously thought I was the only weirdo to do that but it's actually a med. condition, wow.


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## VeryLoco

Anyone else felt a lot of shame about this? I did all these weird gestures with my hands plus sounds and was always afraid someone would find me and think im weird/crazy/retarded/autistic/etc.


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## goldiron

yea, it gives you headache. I don't how someone can fit all that


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## Kaspara

I do this... I dont have a physical habit connected to it though.. But I do daydream about the same stories over and over, and its usually about me, only in more interesting scenarios.. I dont think I could have survived my teens without it, and when I do it as an adult its more for fun than anything... 

I think its the same thing people do with video games, escaping and feeling a sense of accomplishment. I dont play any myself, so I'll allow myself some daydreaming sometimes


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## Lensa

This has been part of my life for as long as I can remember. I love it and it doesn't really interfere with my day to day life, it doesn't impair my functioning. I believe it to have been caused by my SA, I couldn't socialize and generally couldn't live the life that I wanted so I just did so in my head. One thing I do hate is the realization after a nice MD sesh that everything I daydreamed is not and will never be my reality, that realization always hurts like a *****.

Also I've noticed that I never ever daydream in first person point of view, it's always in third person as if I'm watching a movie but the subject is myself albeit a completely different version of myself. I mean the whole MD situation is odd but I find that part extra odd.


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## mukut

I am a 26-year old man staying in India. Since teenage, i have been experiencing fantasy-proneness.
Details of the nature of my fantasies are given below--

a) I am a big enthusiast of sports, especially Cricket, tennis and football. But, have never pursued them seriously as i lacked ability. Its now around 15 years or so that i have constructed a fantasy world in my mind where i visualise myself as a top international cricketer/ a top tennis player/ a top footballer.
I play imaginary match-situations in my mind and create fantasy performances in which i, the top player, gives superlative performances and emerges victorious.
I even go to the extent of giving press conferences in my fantasy world.
I keep on doing shadow practising too, while playing those imaginary match-situations in my mind.

b) I know i am a capable person, but, in real life, i have nothing to show for that. Maybe thats why, i have created a fantasy world in which i revisit some critical moments in my social life -- moments in which i could have proved myself yet didnt have courage /confidence to do so-- and re-play them in a way such that i perform heroic tasks and earn adulation of one and all.

The reason why i seek to end this maladaptive daydreaming is its taking too much of my time and hampering my studies. Often it happens that i sit down for my studies but after 10 minutes,i leave studying and enter my fantasy world.

Lastly, i want to share that i have a habit of talking to myself while playing out my fantasy. But, its not a loud talk, its soundless.

Moreover, i feel that this disorder of mine has strengthened my power of imagination. Therefore, i want to utilise this to become an author of fictional stories/novels.

But, thats for later. Now, i have to become an Indian Civil Servant. But, i wont become that by living in a world of fantasy.

So, please help.


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## JustThisGuy

Lensa said:


> This has been part of my life for as long as I can remember. I love it and it doesn't really interfere with my day to day life, it doesn't impair my functioning. I believe it to have been caused by my SA, I couldn't socialize and generally couldn't live the life that I wanted so I just did so in my head. *One thing I do hate is the realization after a nice MD sesh that everything I daydreamed is not and will never be my reality, that realization always hurts like a *****.*
> 
> Also I've noticed that I never ever daydream in first person point of view, it's always in third person as if I'm watching a movie but the subject is myself albeit a completely different version of myself. I mean the whole MD situation is odd but I find that part extra odd.


I hate that. You fall out of it and it's alarming sometimes. You feel cheated.

I also am third person, come to think of it. It's odd that I've never noticed that before.


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## The Doc44

I never thought that this was an actual thing, though I always wondered if other people had daydreams at the intense levels I do/have. I usually find myself doing this with stories revolving myself being either Iron Man or Davy Jones from Pirates of the Caribbean, since I seem to daydream about being unable to die often. Very interesting.


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## c0dex

*new here*

so i only just found this by accident and i honestly just wept. Ive been daydreaming for what i class as obsessively for a while now and i was a little terrified that i was going mad. I spend maybe 6+ hours a day daydreaming, it fills up all my time. All i've done recently is lie in bed listening to music Im supposed to be revising for my exams but to be honest i think in my mind i've just given up. For a while i wanted to believe i was depressed or something because i needed an explanation as to why this was happening to me. To be honest its like a weight lifted off me. I not sure if anyone else gets this buts up until now its been like my body's numb- Im not sure if this makes sense- but when Im daydreaming I just feel warm and it feels kinda like a barrier or something around me. This sounds a little weird i know i just wondered if anyone else feels something similar.


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## breezspice

*Just realized it*

Only just found out what's this thing i have two days ago. I have almost all those symptoms, i pace around while daydreaming, books and movies and music trigger MD, and i could lose a few hours daydreaming daily, i act it out, they are very very vivid, although they don't affect me while i am out or with people, i almost always procrastinate any work just so i can daydream, its like an addiction. i read its supposed to be a result of trauma or abuse, and i have experienced neither. Well i know my parents aren't good parents, we have huge misunderstanding and miscommunication issues, sometimes i feel like i grew up somewhere alone and they just weren't there and i don't know how to hold a conversation with them. (i am 17 f). Anyhow, that's the only reason i could think of that might make me do that. 
I have so many different scenarios, some are dreams about changing somethings in my life, and sometimes i dream i am a character in a book and i manipulate the story a bit.
It gets in the way of my school work and i was hoping i could put it under control before my senior year as i need to focus on my studying to be able to get in the college i want.
Its a huge pleasure knowing i am not alone.Thanks.


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## zarasmith

Wow. I have this so bad that for about the past 2 years I've been considering acting. ACTING, when I can't even talk to people in real life. I've become so obsessed with pretending I'm different people I've thought about moving to LA to try to get an agent. Somehow I rationalized it in my head by thinking I would take a lot of xanax before all of my auditions. 
In my head I pretend that I am a character in a movie, and when I'm alone I will recite their lines that I memorized from watching the film a million times. So embarrassing. 

This is literally the only passion I have in life, my fantasies lmao.


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## VeryLoco

Anyone think this might have sparked your SA? I used to do this alot as a kid, sometimes in front of my siblings but I just didnt care at the time nor thought it was weird. They didnt make fun of me, but seemed pretty weirded out by it, so I just started doing it in private, now with the underlying fear someone would be watching or hearing me, till one day I just stopped. I remember when I hit puberty I was very worried they would tell all their friends that their brother is a weirdo, this never happened tho as far as I know...


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## 2Milk

Theres a name for this? 

I think daydreaming is a perfect way to cope with depression, if I'm not going to be happy irl I might aswell just daydream my life away. Sure beats killing myself.


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## jxoxo

i never thought i would have this. it all started when i saw sharkboy and lava girl when they mentioned something about learning how to daydream. i was curious how they can daydream so i learned it til it became a habit. i used to do it only when i'm about to sleep but it's been getting worse esp. when i've been out of school for two years now. every time someone talks to me, my mind just wanders away and don't hear 90% of what the they're saying. it's a big problem especially when my work involves customers. it makes me feel like i can't learn anything either bcos i can't focus


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## FlowerLover

I have maladaptive daydreaming too. I am so happy I'm not alone. I pace back and forth every night for as long as up to 8 hours. I've done this my whole life and it actually helps me solve problems or give me hope in the real world. If I didn't have my fantasies I don't think I could have lived as long as I have.


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## the misanthrope

That happens to me a lot,I can be watching television, when I start daydreaming, seemingly against my will, when I come to I find that time has gone by that I can't remember, I remember the day dream but nothing else.
I ended up in special Ed because in my desire to escape from school I would collapse in on myself, and live in a daydream.


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## sad1231234

Doesnt seem like too bad of a way to spend your life actually


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## Mr A

Yup this is me. I used it to compensate for my crappy, lackluster life and lack of social attachments.


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## TreadStonE

Wow I'm speechless I can't believe it, this is a real thing. 

Your descriptions are spot on for at least 80%.
I don't have "pacing back and forth", I'd just sitting there or laying down, staring blankly into my monitor, or making faces and muttering the words (soundless) that my character is saying, and I'd "snap" out of it when occasionally I got "too loud", embarrassed with myself, and then continue with the story.
Not quite sure what triggers it but I can listen to music, yt videos, or twitch stream, and my mind would wander off to this character again while video or the streamer's voice keep playing in the background, unrelated at all.

Its extremely cringy and embarrassing to type this but..
Currently I'm imagining this cute asian girl with short hair, who's somehow a successful pro gamer and streamer. Started her story about 3yrs ago, somehow modeled her after a cartoon/comic artist on yt that I found years ago. This character is blending in with real life happenings and internet people that I'm a fan of and watch regularly. 
I imagine she'd befriend A, B, C person because they're part of this and that group, or have similar opinions on some things (REAL world events), like if I see a tweet by them my mind starts to wander off thinking "she'd reply with something like this because her personality is X and she'd disagree with this". And then She'd dislike F, G person because they have conflicting personalities/humor. 

But I understand 100% she's NOT me, this is just fantasy and I'm not trying to be her or anything like that. 
And I'm kind of her cameraman/scriptwriter and viewer at the same time. 
Its embarrassing/cringed me out so much to even admit this, but it gives me nice feelings in my head to imagine that if somehow this person exist in real world. And rooting for her to overcome adversaries (that I myself "wrote" for her) gives me satisfaction.

Its quite scary to think I might have to leave behind this story and stop daydreaming completely if I want to be normal again. Even now I wonder if there's a way that I can function like a normal, real person again without "giving her up".

Sorry for messy english, please help T__T


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## Jeezee079

I thought this was normal and everyone did it... and that they could just focus better than me. I can associate with almost everything that is said, like the pacing and talking to yourself. I tend to do it when everything is quiet, which is a problem in exams. I quess I'll have to try to stop, especially as I got worse grades than last year  that being said, I think it's really fun to do! I've done it scone I was a little girl. I'd usually do it after watching a TV show or a film, I'd pretend I was part of that world and imagine interactions with the characters and influence the plot for fun. I guess it's also a way of coping in stressful or boring situations? For example, in a class I don't like I'll daydream to pass the time, and if the teacher calls on me I'll definitely go off on a fantasy to distract my self from being put on the spot. I'd also daydream whenever my parents were arguing and pretend I was someone else who had enough power and control to rise above the situation.


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