Defeating the Daydreaming Disorder | When daydreaming becomes an addiction that takes over your life

Do you find yourself having vivid, detailed daydreams frequently? So detailed that they include elaborate storylines and distinct characters? Do you sometimes catch yourself speaking aloud or performing the actions in your daydream?

If such daydreams have caused you to dissociate from reality, prevented you from carrying out daily tasks or conversations, or you slip into them unwillingly, you may suffer from Maladaptive Daydreaming.

Table of Contents

1. Psychiatric History

2. What is Maladaptive Daydreaming?

3. Causes

4. Difference from Normal Daydreaming

5. Difference from Fantasy Proneness

6. Impacts

7. MD and Other Disorders

8. Support for the Daydreamer

Psychiatric History

The discovery of maladaptive daydreaming, or MD for short, is a relatively recent event in psychiatry, and thus, the condition is not very well-known. Eli Somer, an Israeli professor of psychiatry, first coined the term in 2002, in his study Maladaptive Daydreaming: A Qualitative Inquiry. Although more discoveries about the behavior have been made since then, scientific research about MD is scarce, and Maladaptive Daydreaming is still not recognized as a standalone medical disorder in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5), although many experts call for it to be.

Because of this, it can be hard to find resources for and learn more about Maladaptive Daydreaming, as much more research is needed to fully understand the condition.

What is Maladaptive Daydreaming?

Maladaptive Daydreaming is a psychiatric condition characterized by extremely immersive, fanciful, structured, and addictive daydreaming that interferes with the individual’s real-life relationships and tasks.

Individuals who suffer from MD may experience one or more of the following:

● Have daydreams that feature elaborate plots, settings, and characters with distinct dialogue and actions. These daydreams may be so immersive that the dreamer feels as if they are in the daydream itself.

○ These daydreams may feature an idealized version of oneself and/or others, or resemble a TV show with distinct characters and plot.

● Spend long periods of time (as long as several hours) immersed in daydreams

● Feel real emotion from their daydreams, sometimes intense enough to make the individual laugh or cry

● Feel the overwhelming and compulsive desire to daydream even when the individual is supposed to be doing something else (i.e. concentrating in class, engaging in a conversation, or sleeping)

● Perform repetitive movements like physically pacing around while daydreaming

● Physically act out the actions of the characters in the daydream

● Speak aloud the dialogue or make facial expressions of the characters in the daydream

● Experience initial pleasure while daydreaming but then significant distress due to the feeling that the individual has wasted time daydreaming

Causes

Although more research needs to be done on the causes of Maladaptive Daydreaming, existing studies have concluded that individuals may develop MD as a coping mechanism to escape from unpleasant events or aspects of the real world. These can include an abusive environment, daunting real-world tasks or obstacles, boredom, loneliness, or negative feelings. MD can also exist as a coping mechanism for past trauma and social anxiety.

Difference from Normal Daydreaming

Although daydreaming is a common and normal mental activity that most people engage in, it’s important to distinguish between normal daydreaming and maladaptive daydreaming.

Normal daydreaming is not nearly as immersive or fanciful as MD is, and does not cause the significant psychological distress and functional impairment that MD does.

Maladaptive daydreamers experience an overwhelming desire to daydream, and daydream so intensely, frequently, and for such a long time that it prevents them from engaging in real-life activities and relationships.

Difference from Fantasy Proneness (FP)

Maladaptive Daydreaming is also not to be confused with Fantasy Proneness, a personality trait or disposition in which a person is heavily involved in fantasy worlds of their own creation. While this might sound like MD, Maladaptive Daydreamers are always aware that they are engaging in a daydream that is separate from their reality, while those with FP believe in parapsychological phenomena and often confuse their fantasies with reality.

Impacts

Those who suffer from Maladaptive Daydreaming have a hard time controlling their daydreams, as they offer initial pleasure and escape from reality. However, MD’s long-term effects are always negative.

Maladaptive Daydreaming can become so frequent and intense that it can take over one’s life. MD can evolve to the point where an individual will retreat to their daydreams instead of attending to their social, occupational, or academic life.

Maladaptive Daydreams are often followed by increases in negative emotions, dissociative symptoms, and/or obsessive-compulsive symptoms the same or next day.

MD and other disorders

Maladaptive Daydreaming shares many characteristics with behavioral addictions, and dissociative and obsessive-compulsive disorders.

Although there is no evidence that MD can lead to another mental disorder, MD has been found alongside depression, anxiety, PTSD, OCD, ADHD, Bipolar disorder, Borderline Personality Disorder, Dissociative Disorder, and Psychosis. However, it is not yet clear the relationship between these disorders and Maladaptive Daydreaming.

Support for the Daydreamer

Realizing that your daydreams are an issue is the first step to recovery, and you’ve already taken it by being here and reading about your condition. I’m proud of you. You should be, too.

Maladaptive Daydreaming, similar to a behavioral addiction, starts small but gets worse the more you indulge in it. Thus, taking steps to address your daydreaming as soon as you recognize it is crucial.

Treatment & Coping

Because research on Maladaptive Daydreaming has been scarce and is not yet recognized in the DSM-5 as a separate diagnosis, there is no specific treatment for MD.

If you believe you suffer from MD, the best thing to do is to seek professional help from a psychiatrist or therapist. Unfortunately, because of the limited research about Maladaptive Daydreaming, the professional you find may not be familiar with the condition or know how to help specifically with MD.

However, it is likely that you have other mental disorders along with MD, and therapy may help address the root cause of your daydreaming, such as the trauma, emotional distress, and anxiety that you may be trying to cope with using daydreaming. By making your reality a safer and more enjoyable place, you may feel less of a desire to retreat into your inner world and daydreams.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, or CBT, has also been shown to help Maladaptive Daydreaming.

However, we know that not everyone is able to access professional help, so below is a list of things you can do (and why they work) and free, online resources you can access to control MD.

● Practice mindfulness and meditation

Because MD often involves retreating into one’s inner world, practicing mindfulness and grounding oneself in reality can help combat MD and its negative effects like derealization and depersonalization.

● Identify your triggers

Try to find a pattern for your daydreaming. Maybe you tend to daydream when you listen to certain music or when you’re running. Maybe you tend to retreat into your inner world when your anxiety spikes up or you’re reminded of a traumatic event in your life. Identifying your triggers can be helpful in addressing the root cause and/or managing your daydreaming. Journaling can help with this.

● Keep your mind active w/ healthier activities

If you’re focused on doing things in the real world, like exercise or a hobby, you’ll have less time to spend on your daydreams.

● Get good sleep

Bad sleep causes daydreaming episodes to increase during the day.

● Support Groups

Talking to other people who share the MD experience can be extremely helpful. Listed below are some free, online communities dedicated to this purpose.

Resources & Online Communities

Maladaptive Daydreaming Discord: Online community that gives individuals who suffer from MD the opportunity to share and chat about their experiences with the condition, as well as a host of resources and advice for managing daydreaming. They have an MD Support Group that is smaller than the main server and offers regular zoom meetings for members to learn about and discuss MD.

Maladaptive Daydreaming Subreddit: Online community where sufferers of MD can post memes, questions, and rants about MD.

Maladaptive Daydreaming Center: Blog that posts MD FAQs, news, events, and more online communities that help with MD. They also link online creators and youtubers who talk about MD.

Wild Minds Network: Online Forum for Maladaptive Daydreamers.

International Consortium for Maladaptive Daydreaming Research: An informal network of scientists from across the globe and their research on MD.

I spent a day with MALADAPTIVE DAYDREAMERS - YouTube: Popular Youtuber Anthony Padilla interviews three individuals who live with MD.

Sources:

● Cirino, Erica. “Maladaptive Daydreaming: Scale, Symptoms, and Treatments.” Healthline, Healthline Media, 30 Nov. 2021, https://www.healthline.com/health/mental-health/maladaptive-daydreaming#treatments.

● PsychReel. “Fantasy Prone Personality (a Complete Guide).” PsychReel, 8 Jan. 2022, https://psychreel.com/fantasy-prone-personality/.

● Shafir, Hailey. “Maladaptive Daydreaming: Symptoms, Treatments, & How to Cope.” Choosing Therapy, 6 May 2021, https://www.choosingtherapy.com/maladaptive-daydreaming/.

● Soffer-Dudek, Nirit, and Eli Somer. “Trapped in a Daydream: Daily Elevations in Maladaptive Daydreaming Are Associated With Daily Psychopathological Symptoms.” PubMed Central, 15 May 2018, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5962718/.

● Team, HTC. “Effective Ways to Control Maladaptive Daydreaming.” How to Cure, 3 Mar. 2020, https://howtocure.com/maladaptive-daydreaming/#:~:text=What%20Can%20You%20Do%20to%20Control%20Maladaptive%20Daydreaming%3F,therapist%20who%20can%20help%20you%20develop%20more%20.

● Yuko, Elizabeth. “What Is Maladaptive Daydreaming?” Verywell Health, 9 Aug. 2021, https://www.verywellhealth.com/maladaptive-daydreaming-5194802#toc-treatments.