Do I have MDD??

[Anna]

I'm 13 and I have recently found out about MDD. I think I could have it, but I am not certain. I hope someone can tell me wether I have it or not.
I daydream about 1 hour a day, though it depends on how I'm feeling and what I'm doing. In my daydream, the characters and the plot are taken out of a book, even though I've changed the plot a bit and developed the characters. I am emotionally attached to the characters, and I need them in my life.
I don't rock or pace while I daydream, but I make facial expressions and whisper, and that's starting to become a problem, because people look at me weirdly. The daydreaming isn't really interfering with my life, but I'm starting to wonder wether it could get worse.
Do you think I have MDD? Please comment!

[Alison]

Your story sounds similar to mine, although in my daydream the characters and plot are taken out of a mainstream TV show which I watch. I also change the plot and characters too, as well as making myself a member of this TV family. I fully understand what you mean by needing them in your life; I don't want to let go of this story in my mind because I like having them around :) 

I'm 37 but MDD is something I've done since I can remember. It's definitely a coping mechanism of sorts, but it's definitely not an illness. Since finding this site recently, I've felt a whole weight lifted off my shoulders. I found this site on a day where the time spent in my MDD life was starting to outweigh the time spent in my real life. It never goes away for me, but a good day is 95% real life and 5% MDD life. I always fall asleep playing my MDD story in my mind, it helps me relax and unwind.

On a bad day, I feel like I spend 95% in my MDD life, but I try really hard to reality check myself into not doing it when other people are around. I sometimes do it when I'm working (I guess it helps get rid of the boredom), but also worry that people will think I'm weird!

All MDD people seem to be really creative, so I definitely see it as a gift that only awesome people have!! :)

[Source]

It's tricky to say whether it's maladaptive or not, but it surely sounds like it's already pretty intense if you're whispering and making expressions without noticing - and with others noticing it for you.

It can get worse from your situation, but self-control is the key to keeping it in check. Other than that, I'm clueless about how people of your age should handle it.

[Anna]

Thx so much! You've helped me a lot.

[Fallen Messenger]

ah well, welcome to WM! I was about your age, maybe 12 when I joined. This website is a big help and will reassure you in your times of distress. I am pretty sure that you are just becoming maladaptive but I would like some other members to back me up just to be sure.

[Anna]

I first read the book when I was about 8 or 9, but I didn't start daydreaming about it until I reread it about a year or so ago, and I have been daydreaming more and more since then. I didn't really think it was such a problem until I came across the term 'maladaptive daydreaming' a few months ago and I realised that I was doing most of the symptoms.

[Fallen Messenger]

When I was younger, about 7, I read a book and started becoming emotionally invested in the story, such as you did. I only daydreamed for an hour or so a day, I didn't make a repetitive motion (although I sometimes do) but I did whisper and feel what my alter-ego felt. I eventually the story became completely different from the book, and then I became so immersed in the world that I daydreamed in class or any spare moment I had. I didn't sleep. So what it sounds like to me is that you have MD but it has just been 'triggered' so it wouldn't surprise me if you fell along the same path I just described. To help me understand more, when did you read that book and when did you realize you were daydreaming excessively?