Imagination as Escape?

I wasn't sure where to put this. Sorry in advance if this is the wrong place.

So first some background. I'm a loner (severe social anxiety+depression) and have been largely isolated for years; I don't have any friends. I'm essentially a NEET. I only ever leave the house to run errands for my parents. I just don't have a life. So I generally dislike myself and my life. But I've also got a pretty good imagination and have always been kind of creative.

Often I come up with elaborate stories like "alternate timelines" to my own life. Usually I pick a point in my past and think about what I really wanted to happen, and rewrite my own history, as fiction of course. I'm an insomniac so I often brainstorm when I'm laying awake with nothing else to do. And sometimes I write them out. I've got several fairly long documents with these stories. Sometimes I get intensely focused on them, and it's like I live vicariously through them. I kind of ignore "real life" and focus entirely on my fictional reality.

I love the power of imagination; I can do or be anything. So I kind of escape into these alternate realities that I create in my head. I'm just wondering if maybe it's really a sign of schizoid tendencies or something. I dunno. Maybe it's just a pathetic quirk, or a weird coping mechanism.

Does anyone else do this? Or might it indicate some problem?

Hi, I tend to this a lot too.
Now keep in mind that I (nor you) have been officially diagnosed but I found the term Maladaptive Daydreaming to be most fitting for me.

I don't know too much about it myself as once I discovered what I was doing wasn't "normal" and I decided I rather not know too much. Don't do that, its unhealthy really.

What I have picked up is though that generally in these realities people usually make themselves a hero of some sort.

On top of that certain types of media such as music, TV, movies, stories, etc. heavily influence these realities and how you shape them.

I hope this is somewhat helpful to you. If its becoming a real problem please get help.

Good luck friend

I've done this since as long as I can remember but I think I always knew that it wasn't normal, which is why I was reluctant to share it with anyone.

After reading about Maladaptive Daydreaming, everything is finally starting to make sense. In my case, I was daydreaming to escape reality after experiencing a childhood trauma. It explains why my daydreams always had the same theme.

I wonder if your imaginations developed as a result of many years of isolation. It could also be a result of mental illness but only a psychiatrist can confirm that. I hope you can figure out the source of it soon. ️

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