Maladaptive Daydreaming

Let's talk about maladaptive daydreaming. What it is, what it isn’t, and how we can overcome the urge to stay in our daydreams all the time. For years I have believed maladaptive daydreaming to be a form of dissociation, but it could also be added to the DSM as its own diagnosis since it does have its own set of unique symptoms. Either way, at this time maladaptive daydreaming isn’t listed in the DSM as a diagnosable mental illness. The closest diagnosis would be DPDR or depersonalization/ derealization disorder. This is the diagnosis given to those of us who struggle with dissociation, and just for clarity know that depersonalization is when we feel out of our body like we are watching ourselves from above or in a haze and derealization is when we feel separated from our environment and it can feel like we are in a dream or like everything around us isn’t real. These experiences are really common, it’s estimated that half of all adults have had at least one episode of DPDR! 50%! That’s a lot of people, so know that you are not alone!

Also, it’s important to mention that in 2016 four researchers put together the Maladaptive Daydreaming Scale or the MDS. This is a 14 item self-reported scale, meaning that you the patient answers 14 questions based on your own maladaptive daydreaming experience. The MDS focuses on the content of our daydreams, how intense the urge to continue daydreaming is, how much it impairs our ability to function in our lives, and the benefits and costs of our daydreaming. I am not personally familiar with this scale, but I have linked the research article in the description if you want to learn more about it.

When it comes to maladaptive daydreaming it isn’t just feeling out of body or environment. We can create very intense and detailed daydreams with plots, characters, and very life-like issues and storylines. Some people will get the...

Impulse log: https://selfinjury.com/resources/how-...
Research article mentioned: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26707...


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