Caffeine as a Trigger

[Jon80]

Caffeine really seems to provoke my daydreaming (more directly than anything else I know.).  It seems to provide the kind of alertness and energy that both initiates and prolongs my daydreams... Anyone else notice, or NOT notice, the same thing??

[Jon80]

Music is definitely a big trigger for me too:

Especially, happy, upbeat music.... and/or the chorus lines in certain songs. For example, Bostons’ “more than a feeling” would be an excellent example of a song with a good chorus line that definitely provokes daydreaming in me. Trance-like dance songs and electronic music like that from “Daft Punk” are also good examples for me.

looking out the passengers side window is another one, its the hypnotic effect I think...

Definitely, like you say interesting things... things that spark ah-ha moment seem to spawn the daydreaming... for me articles in my field of study do this..

Strange though, I would have thought that others might have had the same reaction with caffeine as me. I mean, if daydreaming is at light drizzle, caffeine can fuel it into a storm for me...

[Will]

Here are my observations about my onset of daydreaming. I'd like to share this to see if others can relate. It seems like I'm getting some confirmation from Adriene (back in the what helps discussion).

Basically it's two statements below:

I’ve come to believe that my daydreaming is provoked and sustained by emotional impulses of excitement/exhilaration, giddy feelings of excitement and freedom that I am apparently prone to having.

The ideation and physical aspects of daydreaming continually help to sustain a constant low level of excitement with peaks of exhilaration roughly about as intense, or slightly lower, than each previous impulse.

The impulses are NOT like the dull craving one gets from having a “sweet tooth”. Rather, they are very sudden and cannot be ignored or overcome by ordinary willpower.

So, in other words, I believe my daydreaming is a kind of, impulsive / feel-good addiction... I've noticed that sometimes these feelings can seemingly happen on their own. In this case, I get the feeling first and then my mind engages and tries to keep the feeling going.

Other times my daydreaming may be stimulated by something externally or internally (by thinking and imagining). But really, I've noticed it’s not until that first surge that I'm I really "locked in".

Maybe the easiest way to see what I'm talking about is well... let yourself go into a daydream... go ahead. One time on "purpose" isn't going to be a problem right :) Start thinking about whatever your favorite scenario is... all the while keep in the back of your mind an awareness of how your are feeling... now, hyperfocus in on your emotions, just like you would on say your sense of taste if you were eating something and you were trying to identify all the ingredients hitting your taste buds. Continue on now... what happens? Well for me, I usually see an image in my mind something symbolic, as an example... I might imagine myself typing very fast... very soon after, maybe almost simultaneously; I'll feel a surge of euphoria and excitement. My daydreams are basically series of visualizations that I continually try to picture... the better I can visualize each scenario, the more "real" I can make it, and the more interesting and fun, the more intense the euphoric impulses and the longer I ultimately keep daydreaming.

I've tried to find other known disorders similar to this. Like many have said there is a lot of cross over. But from the standpoint that my daydreaming is driven by these emotionally giddy/happy/excited/impulses... It really seemed like it has a lot of elements of an impulse control disorder... If your interested, try googling it or looking on Wikipedia (below link)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Impulse_control_disorder

Please let me know your thoughts... I really would like to know what people here think because I don't know if anyone else can understand. :)

[Cordellia Amethyste Rose]

Interesting. I've got to say it's really quite different for me. For me, daydreaming is pretty constant, and there are many hours a day where I just give in & let myself do it. I feel a full range of emotions during this time & even feel physical sensations. It can also be triggered by any random interesting thing that happens. I can get an idea at any moment & go right into it. I actually can't control it very well at all.

I'll have a look at your link. I'm glad you're posting your experiences because I think that this disorder will have many different levels and types. It's important to understand them all. I think people who've had this since birth/early childhood will have different symptoms than those who start in their teens or mid-life, for example. I'm sure there will be overlap and can already tell you there's huge overlap with other disorders. I wouldn't be surprised if it's co-morbid with some as well. I think it's important to understand this from all angles & realize that we're not all going to have the exact same experience. The more info we have, the better. Keep it up. :)

Will said:

Here are my observations about my onset of daydreaming. I'd like to share this to see if others can relate. It seems like I'm getting some confirmation from Adriene (back in the what helps discussion).

Basically it's two statements below:

I’ve come to believe that my daydreaming is provoked and sustained by emotional impulses of excitement/exhilaration, giddy feelings of excitement and freedom that I am apparently prone to having.

The ideation and physical aspects of daydreaming continually help to sustain a constant low level of excitement with peaks of exhilaration roughly about as intense, or slightly lower, than each previous impulse.

The impulses are NOT like the dull craving one gets from having a “sweet tooth”. Rather, they are very sudden and cannot be ignored or overcome by ordinary willpower.

So, in other words, I believe my daydreaming is a kind of, impulsive / feel-good addiction... I've noticed that sometimes these feelings can seemingly happen on their own. In this case, I get the feeling first and then my mind engages and tries to keep the feeling going.

Other times my daydreaming may be stimulated by something externally or internally (by thinking and imagining). But really, I've noticed it’s not until that first surge that I'm I really "locked in".

Maybe the easiest way to see what I'm talking about is well... let yourself go into a daydream... go ahead. One time on "purpose" isn't going to be a problem right :) Start thinking about whatever your favorite scenario is... all the while keep in the back of your mind an awareness of how your are feeling... now, hyperfocus in on your emotions, just like you would on say your sense of taste if you were eating something and you were trying to identify all the ingredients hitting your taste buds. Continue on now... what happens? Well for me, I usually see an image in my mind something symbolic, as an example... I might imagine myself typing very fast... very soon after, maybe almost simultaneously; I'll feel a surge of euphoria and excitement. My daydreams are basically series of visualizations that I continually try to picture... the better I can visualize each scenario, the more "real" I can make it, and the more interesting and fun, the more intense the euphoric impulses and the longer I ultimately keep daydreaming.

I've tried to find other known disorders similar to this. Like many have said there is a lot of cross over. But from the standpoint that my daydreaming is driven by these emotionally giddy/happy/excited/impulses... It really seemed like it has a lot of elements of an impulse control disorder... If your interested, try googling it or looking on Wikipedia (below link)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Impulse_control_disorder

Please let me know your thoughts... I really would like to know what people here think because I don't know if anyone else can understand. :)

[Alice Bassett]

Years ago I had a cup of coffee or tea at McDonald's and I noticed my mind immediately daydreaming out of control. I've tried to stop the coffee/tea habit ever since. The problem is, our whole society is based on a coffee and donut culture. Almost everyone has a cup of Joe in the morning and if you work in an office, there is coffee every day. So what I've done, in socially pressured coffee drinking, is to get a half cup of decaf and ad water and eat something along with it, to reduce the percentage of caffeine.
From looking at this site (and thank you Cordellia for this site, by the way); everyone's dreams and style of daydreaming is different. Manifestations of depression and OCD will also differ from person to person. So the things that trigger daydreaming are different.
I dream all day, unless I'm reading or studying. As soon as I wake up in the morning, and constantly throughout the whole day. It's frustrating because I know if I put half as much creativity into my real life as I do in my dreams, I'd have a fulfilling and rich life. But I feel like my life is like a neglected garden full of weeds. I really like it when I have productive days, but those days are not as numerous as I'd like them to be.

[Will]

Thank you so much for your input. It's nice to know that caffeine causes this kind of daydreaming in someone else. If you are comfortable sharing, can you please describe your experiences when you have high amounts of caffeine? Does it affect your feeling states the same way as me...?

For example, like many non-excessive-daydreamers (lets just call these people "normal" for short) Caffeine makes me more alert, energetic, and kind of jumpy and nervous as well. However, unlike "normal" people, as explained above, caffeine also increases the frequency and the intensity of impulse-like feelings of excitement, happiness, freedom, or euphoria. I believe its these feelings which really initiate and prolong my daydreaming ...

Would you say caffeine affects you in a similar way?

Alice Farll said:

Years ago I had a cup of coffee or tea at McDonald's and I noticed my mind immediately daydreaming out of control.

[kira way]

caffeine is oe of those things I crave like crazy. I have very little willpower to it. I've only recently started to notice it. I use to drink 2 to 3 large cans of 'power drinks'. Luckly I stop drinking those however I haven't been able to stop coffee and/or other energy shots.

I think I'm going to start keeping track of how much caffeine I consume in one day. Then start to ween myself off it.

[Wish Upon A Wish]

I have never noticed that, but maybe I'll try to start having water at dinner, and pour my glass early so Mum doesn't question me haha

I may start trying to keep track of it, too, but I only really have the occasional cup of tea, and cheap coke or lemonade at dinner, so maybe there's not much point.

Quite an interesting thing to notice, though.