How do I stop daydreaming??

Hello!

I'm Elin and I'm addicted to daydreaming, also known as "Maladaptive Daydreaming"

Daydreaming is basically my life. But it goes further then just daydreaming. I create whole fantasy worlds in my head. In my head, I'm am a very succesfull actress who won a lot of Oscars and other prizes. I have a great celeb girlfriend, have amazing friends, i'm very pretty and so on. I do this every day. I talk to myself, act like i'm a guest in talk shows. Like I'm followed by papparazi when I walk on the streets. It's all fake and sometimes it hits me that I'm just a silly not important girl without friends and that this actress in my head is all a stupid imagination.

I do this for about 2 years. I try to stop but it does not work.. I am very aware of what I'm doing. It's not that I get lost in a fantasy when I'm doing it. I know what I do.

Maybe more people deal with this or have advice, I'd love to hear your thoughts on this..

Thanks for reading

Elin

I have a fantasy world that I escape to as well. I didn't know there was a name to it. I have been going there for about thirty years. I rather not admit what it is about.

Hey kaliope thanks for your answer. Do you see it as a problem or not?

No other people...?

I am a daydreamer, and has always been that. My mind wanders a lot. But I have decided to view it to mean that I have a creative mind! Anyhow, I dont see it as interfering with my life, it is just something I sometimes do when I have the free time.
"Modern psychology has found that when your mind wanders, it's a sign of the creative process, which means you're actually giving your mind a workout. By having multiple simultaneous thoughts, your brain is strengthening your mental work space — the more mental workspace you have, the stronger your ability to mentally juggle more than one task."
"Wandering mind correlates with higher degrees of what is referred to as working memory. Cognitive scientists define this type of memory as the brain's ability to retain and recall information in the face of distractions," (according to a study by researchers from the University of Wisconsin and the Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Science.)
Well, that doesnt sound to bad to me! But of course, if it is causing a problem in terms of getting things done (chores, errrands, studying, getting to work late, socializing etc ) I guess you have to view it as a serious problem. I have also heard that people who have gone through a traumatic event choose to daydream/ create a unreal world just to escape thinking about the trauma. And then that is not healthy I guess.
I was for a period in my life living in a very unhappy situation, with very little money, a really bad job, and I also was in a very unhealthy relationship. I remember I daydreamed a lot then, and made up a happier place for myself in my mind. In the long run it only held me back from taking steps to change my situation. So I guess it can be both good and bad. I tend to think that if something is not harmful to myself or to anyone else, then why not indulge in what makes you happy!

I'm a heavy daydreamer myself, don't mind it at all, but the only thing that stops me from daydreaming is my guitar or videogames.

Thank you for your honest answer, Homeira! I think you're right, daydreaming is an escape for my troubled life. But ofcourse daydreaming is not always wrong hehe

Thank you for your answer! Do you feel like daydreaming is an escape to you?

Honestly, I can't live without daydreaming, yes, it is an escape. I'm working towards what I want to be in the future, but I can just imagine I'm already what I want to be in my daydreams.

Ah, I understand how long do you have this if I may ask?

I say, don't stop daydreaming unless it's interfering with your life. It can actually be a good thing. I recently happened upon the term for this and it was a strange Eureka moment; I'd never considered that others were doing it or that there was even a name for it.

To save me some typing :
http://forums.psychcentral.com/copin...ydreaming.html

I've always had it