Survey, important, please read

[Truthful Alibi]

Hey everyone, it's great to post on this forum again.

Last night, I received a text from my friend asking for ideas on a project for a science fair. I don't see him now as he moved 200 miles away from me two years ago, but I trust more than anyone, so I explained MD to him (and also told him that I had it). He liked the idea so we have composed a survey of eight questions below.

I would really appreciate it if you could take a few minutes to fill it in. We need at least 20 replies in order to have accurate results.

We feel that this could help earn MD some publicity and maybe even help it get recognised as a real disorder.

Please help me out and fill in this survey. Thank you.

 

1) Roughly how many hours a day do you spend daydreaming?

    a) less than 1

    b) 1-2

    c) 2-3

    d) 3-4

    e) 4-5

    f) 5-6

    g) 6-7

    h) 7-8

    i) 8+

 

2) Do you notice 'patterns' in the severity of your daydreaming (e.g. you daydream more during stressful times)? If yes, explain the cause, increase/decrease of time spent daydreaming during these periods and any other details you can think of.

 

3) What, if anything, do you find helps you focus/daydream less?

 

4) Roughly what age did you start daydreaming?

     a) 0-5

     b) 5-10

     c) 10-15

     d) 15-20

     e) 20-25

     f) 25-30

     g) 30-35

     h) 35-40

     i) 40+

 

5) What, if anything, do you think caused you to start daydreaming?

 

6) What, if anything, causes you to daydream/triggers daydreaming now?

 

7) Does anyone related to you (by blood) have or appear to have MD or a disorder similar to MD (ADD, ADHD, ASperger's/Autism, OCD for example)?

8) Is there any other information regarding you daydreaming/MD that you feel would be beneficial to this study and you would like to share?

[Luna]

1. It really depends for me. On a good day, about 2 hours. On a bad day, greater than 8 hours.

2. I daydream the most when I have nothing better to do. I daydream a lot during class, especially when the teacher is lecturing and I am bored. I also tend to daydream a lot when I am tired or sick.

3. My MDD is really severe, I actually starting self-harming to stop daydreaming. The pain and blood snaps me out of the daydream and it pulls me back to reality. I would not recommend this method to anyone though, because it just becomes another trap. Also, talking to one of my friends really helps me. She hallucinates a lot, so she kind of understands what I'm going through and she knows how to help.

4. I started when I was 10 years old.

5. I've had a pretty stressful life, with a lot of ups and downs. I have been bullied and isolated since kindergarten, and I was verbally, emotionally and sexually abused. I suffer from severe depression, suicidal tendencies, anxiety, paranoia, self harm and anorexia. I started my fantasy world to escape from all of the trauma in my life. It was supposed to be an innocent escape.

6. Music is one of my biggest triggers. Certain songs I cannot listen to without daydreaming, because I have linked them to my characters. My depression getting worse or something sad happening is also a big trigger, because I want to escape from it. Honestly, everything is a trigger at this point. It has become such a terrible addiction that it is a constant battle to stop and I'm constantly slipping back into it.

7. No.

8. This isn't a widely accepted disorder, mainly because most people think we are just overreacting. Trust me, we're not. MDD is hell, it is a nightmare that you can't wake up from. It consumes people and destroys their lives. This needs to be taken seriously, because this is a major problem.

[OhMyMagenta]

1. Honestly, it depends. On an average day, I'd say C. If the day was particularly slow/boring, it could be E.
2. I actually find it most difficult to DD when I'm stressed or upset. I need to be able to concentrate, so any disruption in my daily life causes me to be unable DD.
3. Currently, I don't feel the need to curb my DDing, as it doesn't interfere with my daily life. Back when I was in grad school however, I would use it like a reward system; if I wrote x amount of pages of a paper or read two chapters I could DD for an hour.
4. B
5. Can't recall any one thing that caused me to start. I just remember beginning to do it at a fairly young age. I've endured my fair share of trauma, but I'm not certain that's what started it.
6. What triggers me to DD is when I see a great storyline in a movie, listen to a really good song, or see one of my characters on TV or online. Also, I find myself more apt to DD when I'm having my monthly. Must be all the hormones making me emotional.
7. No one that I'm aware of in my family has any of those diagnoses. I am diagnosed with ADD Adult onset.
8. ...

[taffle]

1. a

2. I daydream more during stressful times.

3. Urgent tasks, meeting deadlines

4. 5-10 is when I had memories of my dreams. But I remember roleplaying when I was 4.

5. dramas, trying to have fun in general, aspirations that I want to achieve

6. shows, music, fiction, sometimes suffering

7. 2 family members probably have ADHD and autism, though they have never been properly diagnosed. I probably have asperger's

8. Artists, writers, playwrights, and creative people probably daydream a lot, but it's part of their job.

[angief310]

1)f

2)  Mostly no, but sometimes in stressful situations I will act out a 'perfect' scenario to deal with a problem.

3) Nothing much but if I have school work then I will focus on that (although usually end up getting distracted)

4)b

5) Nothing. I started having daydreams at the age of 6 and the amount of hours I spent doing it increased over the years, especially in secondary school. Right now I'm 18 and for the past 2 years my MD has really become a problem as I have trouble concentrating on my school work and even studying for important exams can be literally impossible. However as opposed to a lot of people with MD I am not terribly shy and never had trouble making friends as I appear to be 'normal' around them. Although it does get difficult to keep up friendships when getting lost in your fantasy world.

6) Sometimes the first thing I do after waking up is daydream so it isn't always triggered however things like films(or tv in general), books and music are the most triggering. Once I have a set scenario/fantasy in my head then these things aren't necessary to set off my MD however the ideas for these scenarios are principally taken from them.

7)No, (at least I don't think so) my auntie tends to talk to herself in front of us however it is more of reminding herself of what she has to do during the day rather than MD:) I personally have some OCD though funnily my daydreaming seems to limit it, I supect my mother could have it as well.

8)No