Do I have Maladaptive Daydreaming disorder?
Well, to start off, I’d like to make it clear that I’ve been daydreaming ever since I could remember and when I do, I usually pace around the house while listening to music and I’ve never seen what was wrong with it until I looked it up on Google for fun and it turns out that I have a mental disorder?? Which is really weird since it doesn’t really have a bad impact on my life or atleast I don’t think it does… I’ve always been introverted and comfortable with it. I have lots of friends, get really good grades in school (I’ve never gone below the top five) and I have to admit sometimes I doze off into my own wonderland while studying but then I quickly get myself back to focusing since I always set goals for myself and when I need to finish (I’m quite fast compared to some of my friends). But I’m still worried I might actually have this disorder since I have all the symptoms (I daydream ALOT without noticing) except for the whole “trauma or abuse in the past” part. I’m really worried about this and I’m thinking of telling my mom??? I dont know what to do? Please help!
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In what ways would you say that this has had a negative impact on your life? That’s where the whole “maladaptive” thing comes in. It’s only a problem if it gets in the way of normal functioning, and it sound to me like you function pretty well.
You’re fine, for one there are plenty pf daydreamer types, it is a personality trait for some, for two it is normal for teens and younger people to be daydreamers. Stop reading crap on the internet, there is a disorder for everything and yes, unless your daydreams are keeping you in your underware all day, and isolating you from interaction in the real world, you’re fine.
Dream on. lol
Welcome to Fluther.
The short answer to your question is No, you do not have maladaptive daydreaming disorder.
You may be a daydreamer, and you may even do it (by your own lights, or worse, by someone else’s) “excessively”, but as long as you’re not distressed and as long as you are or seem to be functioning well, then it’s not “maladaptive”, whatever else it may be.
The fact that you seem to do it “without thinking” could become a problem. If this turns into an involuntary or compulsive activity, then we’d be talking about a different aspect of this – and you may then have to acknowledge it as “a problem” and do something about it.
If you think that you’re daydreaming too much, whether or not you choose to remain introverted or not, then while you’re still in full control of your mind and your habits, start by changing your activities; make new habits. For now, I wouldn’t worry about it much, if at all.
Maladaptive daydreaming disorder is just daydreaming as seen by a psychologist. If psychologists didn’t exist maladaptive daydreaming disorder wouldn’t exist either. You could say it is what Einstein had, or Picasso. Daydreaming is more a gift than a disorder.
Welcome to fluther, I don’t think you have a problem.
I tend to daydream myself and my therapist told me I am fine…
You seem to function at a high level and accomplish challenging goals. Your internal thinking and self-talk can be a valuable problem-solving tool. As long as you are not disabled such that you cannot function in daily activities you just have a distinctive feature in your thinking style. It may turn out that it enables you to do something extraordinary if your thoughts and efforts and well directed towards achieving important lifetime goals.
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