alright look since people don’t seem to understand why maladaptive daydreaming is a big deal here’s a grand list of some of the reasons why.
first off: yes, you little babies, maladaptive daydreaming is often characterized by:
“snapping back” to reality
which is often followed by mild alarm and confusion like “what where am i what am i doing whats going on”
seeking emotional satisfaction in daydreams that you didn’t get from real life
it’s often developed due to childhood isolation, not having a lot of friends, having too much time to yourself as a youngling
yep also those bless-ed long car rides
being deeply comforted by music and/or alone time because it means yay daydreaming time
intricate stories that exist inside vivid imaginary worlds (called paracosms) with their own highly developed “characters” (which are called paras, and i hope you’re taking notes)
constantly looking for an “escape” so you can daydream
repetitive motions to stimulate daydreams such as swinging on a swingset, bouncing up and down, pacing, spinning, etc.
an idealized version of yourself through whose eyes you live out these daydream stories (called parames, like para-me…)
BUT!!!! but but but but but but (and this is the stuff y'all seem to constantly be forgetting/overlooking/not taking seriously) maladaptive daydreaming is also characterized by:
deep and dependent emotional attachments to paras such as intimate friends, lovers, family, and pets that don’t exist
deep guilt due to favoring paras over “real life” (called thisverse) people
a phobia that you will never be able to care about people in thisverse and will therefore be a terrible lover/spouse/parent, etc.
trancelike states where you lose time anywhere between a few minutes to several hours straight without even realizing it until you’ve returned to reality
maladaptive daydreaming steals so. much. time.
withdrawal-like effects if you don’t daydream for a long time (even a day), such as shaking, nausea, agitation, aggression, breakdowns, etc.
you don’t control your daydreams, they do whatever they want to, they are invasive, intrusive, and often unwanted
intense absorption, so when the daydream is exciting you will get an adrenaline rush and your blood gets hot and starts to rush and you sweat and breathe weird and see red and your heart rate goes up. when the daydream is depressing you will cry with real tears and your limbs actually feel heavy
it steals an incredible amount of energy
daydreams are often violent, sexual, and/or disturbing
difficulty focusing, high anxiety
paranoia caused by a feeling that you’re under observation
compulsive behavior (like, “i have to pace right now” even when your feet feel like they’re broken… I’ve often been afraid to look down because i thought i might see blood but i couldn’t stop walking even when it hurt so much that i started crying)
sleeplessness, insomnia, nightmares
suicidal thoughts and tendencies (“maybe if i die, i’ll be with my paras”, “i can’t take it anymore”)
feeling uncomfortable in your body/with your identity (i often have trouble recalling my real name because i’m so used to be my parame’s name, i avoid mirrors because i expect to see my parame’s face and it always catches me off guard)
weight loss or weight gain
appetite loss or appetite gain
dissociation and “out of body” experiences
avoidance and the death of your social life
not being able to feel anything either neg or pos about “real life” things because you’re only concerned with your paracosms
speaking the dialogue out loud or whispering, acting out daydreams
i have seriously been asked if i’m possessed when i got caught daydreaming
it is so painful and so detrimental and it makes our lives difficult, it is not “cute”, it is not “lol relatable”, it is not “creative”, and it is not “fake”
