Maladaptive daydreaming: Burden or Bliss?

[Skylax0x0]

I know that a lot of people who have maladaptive daydreaming would love to rid the 'problem' of their minds. They don't like it. To them it's something that gets in the way of them living healthy, productive lives.

And I don't get that! I really don't. I love my 'disorder.' I don't even consider my excessive daydreaming a disorder. I like to think of it more as a gift, or maybe even just a plain old habit; almost just like not being able to stop biting your fingernails. To me, it's fun. It gives me something to do when I'm bored, somewhere to escape when I'm feeling upset. 

Also, I would really have no problem telling my parents about my daydreaming. I know most of you are nervous to explain this all to your parents, or a friend. The only reason I haven't told my parents about it is because I don't really feel the need to if that makes sense...I'm pretty sure my dad would find it really interesting, though. He's into psychology and how the human brain works and everything.

But anyways...I would love to hear your thoughts about it...Do you like your daydreaming habit? Would you be glad to see your habit disappear...?

 

Thanks!! 

[Dani]

I'm with you, I think of my daydreaming as a powerful creative tool. Sometimes it does get hard to control and it can mess up my focus, but for the most part I manage to keep enough control over it to get by, so I feel like for me the benefits are greater than the detriments. Just communicating with other DDers since I found this site has really helped me get a jold on my DDs. As long as I keep it under reasonable control, I'm happy to be a DDer. I'm happy for you that you celebrate it; so do I! ;)

[roxanne]

It is so clearly different for different people & really runs the gamut.

[taffle]

Take things in moderation. Just like a little bit of wine is good for your health, a little bit of MD might not hurt. But too much MD and it becomes a nightmare. I also started out with a little bit of MD but now it has grown into a major part of my life. I've been trying to control it recently.

MD can be a blessing or a curse depending on what you do for a career. If you are a writer or an artist, MD might be your source of inspiration for your works. We wouldn't have Harry Potter books today without Rowling's creativity. But if you are an accountant or engineer and you are trying to do some calculations but MD gets in the way, it can be very annoying.

[Wish Upon A Wish]

I know for sure some people have something like maladaptive daydreaming, compulsive fantasy, whatever, except that it's not compulsive or addictive or negative in any way. So for them, where they use DD for creativity, to alleviate boredom etc, then fine, great for them! But for the ones where it's negative, where it causes depression/anxiety, prevents a social life, prevents work being done and just wastes time, then it's almost the same as, for example, being addicted to weed. I mean, yes, they're very different, but there are similarities. You might know exactly why it's bad, exactly how it screws you and your life over, but hey, it's fun! It's so damn fun, you don't want to stop! You sound to me like one of the lucky ones, where you do fantasize, but it doesn't have a negative effect on your life, and is probably actually a positive thing.

Actually, I should've related that to red wine. A little is okay, even good, but too much, getting drunk every night, that's bad for you.

but yeah, as for me.... I like it, but it screws me over a little. I know I have control, I'd just like more, I think. If it disappeared, well, hell I would get really bored sometimes, but I'd probably be more productive. I like it, though, and it can help me get used to bad things that've happened, and I've had a character right from the start, she's my friend and I don't really want her gone, so yeah, I don't really want it to disappear, just have more control.

If I had a choice of having it as is now, or having it gone, well, I'd keep it. I have not a damn clue what it would be like without, and though it's not good, others have it worse, and I've started study now, which is a lot of fun, and I have more DD time too, so I'm not as desperate to.

Sorry, that was kind of long.

[Gina Black]

Rather great!

I dare to imagine big, and can create fun and happiness out of thin air. Like magic! I impress everyone with my ability to always smile, and my extreme imagination. Also, while DD one's brain might work faster.

Let me say MD is both the reason people think I'm a genius and the reason they think I'm an idiot!

The impact in my life is complicated: as a kid it was fun, as a teen my soul-saving escape. On the other side, I missed out my teens in a DD blur. After entering university I tried to control it, but it still felt too good to actually want MD to end. Now I'm 25 yrs old, and haven't progressed much with my life-let's say I haven't finished university yet, I've only had one bf (an ex) and don't have a real job. But still, I have one of the most calm and happy psychologies around, can have fun whenever I want to, and can be very creative and adaptive to changes. I have 1-2 selected friends as I can't keep up with many, but I can be valuable to them due to the way my brain works. Still, it's much better lately that I've started to relatively control it.

[John K]

Luna, if you look at your wording you'll notice a few things:

[1] "Maladaptive Daydreaming" is an entity, a thing.

[2] This entity is holding you back, causing you harm and misery, and responsible for bad things in your life.

[3] This entity is holding you hostage, trapping you,  has power over you and can control you.

[4] You fight this entity, tell it to go away, but it refuses.

Do you see what I am getting at here? You describe "Maladaptive Daydreaming" as if it were a person, and in doing so you can and do blame it. You blame it even despite admitting much of your situation is a result of your own choices, for example: "I lost all of my friends" "because I was never too involved in their lives". If MD is to blame, not your choices, why would you ever make better choices? If you never make better choices what else will you ever have but MD? It is the age old vicious circle of addiction.

 

 

In any case, for me MD is neither a burden nor a bliss it is a tool for fiction.

[Yi Fang Shen]

i love my gift but sometimes like everything else it is a heavy burden especially when i need to get stuff done!

[Gina Black]

Blissful burden...that describes it perfectly, indeed!