A term used to describe some or all of the following symptoms:
- Excessive daydreaming, to the point where one cannot, or has difficulties with, functioning properly in real life
- Purposeful removal of oneself from situations that interrupt, prevent or otherwise disrupt daydreaming
- Creation of various storylines within daydreams, usually filling the holes in one’s own life (arousal, feeling of purpose, heroism, a social life, etc.)
- Tiredness (often caused by preventing oneself from sleeping so there is more
time to daydream)
- Inability, or hindered ability, to maintain focus on real life scenarios in favor of daydreaming
Maladaptive Daydreaming is often associated with other, official terms, such as depression,
ADHD, PTSD, schizophrenia and more.
There is no prescription to take in order to solve maladaptive daydreaming. The best solution is to seek professional
therapy.
Therapy isn’t as
scary as it sounds; they ask what the problem is, and then
work with you to develop a solution. They
will never judge you, and have several degrees on how to deal with these kinds of situations. If therapy is not an option, alternative solutions would be to create a vent for your ideas and desires to flow into (keeping a journal, sharing ideas with
friends, achieving real life
goals, etc.).
If you searched this because you think you have maladaptive daydreaming, please
don’t ignore it. It can ruin your life.