Help! I need advice!

[The1andonlyAbber]

I haven't told anyone I have Maladaptive Daydreaming disorder except for my one of my 2 best friends who I've known since I was 7 (I'm 14 so that means I've known her for half my life). I need advice about telling my parents I have MDD. I didn't want to tell them until MDD was officially recognized as a disorder, but I was thinking that maybe they'd be more likely to believe it was real if it was a self-identifying thing instead of a "label cooked up by psychiatrists who just want money" (what do you think?). I'm worried they won't believe me because a.) they might not believe its a real thing and b.) I used to be a total hypochondriac (I would always look up a disorder, see that I had 2 of the symptoms, then tell everyone I had it. I don't do that anymore and I know for sure that I really have Maladaptive Daydreaming, but still...). I haven't told my other best friend for those same reasons, by the way. Oh, and I think my dad might have this too (he's always talking about his imaginary island and daydreaming about being in a cabin in the forest, and they're saying this might run in the family), so he probably thinks it's normal.

Even if I did get my parents to believe me, I'm worried about what might happen next. My parents are very overprotective (it's probably one reason I have this) and would make me "get help", which probably wouldn't go so well. The medical system where I live is really stupid, when I severely dislocated my knee it took us hours to get a doctor and he didn't seem to know what he was doing--imagine trying to get treatment for an obscure mental disorder!

There's also other things I have to worry about. My parents know a bit about my imaginary friends and fantasy world. My dad just shrugs this off as part of an imaginative "role playing game" we play together, but I think he is starting to get suspicious about how in-depth the world is and how I always know what will happen next. I know for a fact my mom is starting to get concerned about it. I'm worried they'll figure out something's wrong with me on their own. And as for my dad, I don't want to scare/disappoint him, because telling him I have MDD will mean telling him the role playing game (which is one of the main ways we spend time together) is nothing but a byproduct of a mental disorder (the game WAS my idea, after all) and possibly also telling him he might have the disorder too.

I'm terribly sorry this was so long. Thank you so much for reading all of it! PLEASE leave a comment, I need some advice!

[Cordellia Amethyste Rose]

Well, I recommend printing out the articles done on MD and starting there.  Be sure to tell them this has been studied by real doctors who believe in it.  Be prepared to explain what this is and how it affects you.  Remember, YOU'RE the expert.  Mention that there are thousands of people talking about this online.  You can show them this site, if you think it will help.  I didn't find out about it until I was an adult, so I'm afraid I don't know from experience how this will go.  We're here to support you, though, and I wish you all the best.  

[debbie downer]

hi. you remind me a lot of myself when i first found out about MD. i'm a junior in high school, and i found out about MD from yahoo answers when i was in 8th grade. MD was something i had been dealing with since i was 9.

at first, i was scared it was going to be a hypochondria-type thing just like you did where i thought i had it but i really didn't, but 3 years later, it hasn't changed and i'm still on here every day. i'm going to tell you my story and i hope it somehow helps you.

i have overprotective parents too. i remember within a week of finding out about MD, my mom caught me pacing and told me to stop, and i just burst into tears and told her everything without even thinking about it. she didn't understand it and called a therapist right away. i still see a therapist every week, but now it's for MD as well as other reasons. i've only mentioned MD to my mom once or twice since then, because whenever i talk about it she starts crying and tells me that she's scared for me and my mental health. but she's well aware that i still have it because she always tells me to stop pacing, and she knows that i write down my daydreams because my therapist told her. also, the first time i told my mom about MD, i begged and begged her not to tell my dad, and she promised that she wouldn't. i didn't find out until 2 years later that she told him that night and that he knew everything.

i know what you mean about not wanting to get therapy. chances are, if you go to a therapist, they'll have never heard of MD because it's not an official thing yet. my therapist had never heard of it. it's still good to have someone to talk to about it, though.

my advice: tell your parents. you said they're already concerned, so they deserve to know. if they're overprotective about it like mine were, it's only because they care about you. tell your dad, but make it really really clear that you're not trying to tell him that he has the disorder too, you're just saying that you know you have it. and don't be afraid of therapy.

sorry if this was too long. please feel free to message me for anything if you want to talk. good luck. (:

[The1andonlyAbber]

Thanks for your advice. I think I might want to wait a little longer to tell my parents, though--I'm going to need to work up a lot of courage!