Have you ever been waiting for your friend on the road and realized that you have been thinking of something entirely else for the past ten minutes? Have you ever been at work and had an excel sheet open on your laptop, but all you could think about was how much you wanted some garlic cheese momos for lunch? Or maybe when you were at a family function and the thought of a movie you recently saw just won’t leave your mind?
If you have ever found yourself in a place which is supposed to be productive but you can’t stop having thoughts about random scenes or experiences in your head, you might engage in something known as daydreaming.
What is daydreaming?
Daydreaming is a common experience for all. It is when your thoughts drift away from the current moment to any experience or object that you fantasize about. However, daydreaming is not completely bad. Sometimes, daydreaming can lead to ideas which can lead to innovations and then you can have your own EUREKA! moment. For example, Albert Einstein hadn't created his theory of relativity until he allowed his mind to wander from the actual field of mathematics. Research also suggests that controlled daydreaming plays a crucial role in shaping our cognitive abilities, creativity, and overall well-being. When we allow our minds to wander, we seem to make unexpected connections between different ideas or experiences that lead to innovations. Moreover, daydreaming helps consolidate memories in a way where it aids integration of newly acquired information into our existing knowledge structures by replaying it over and over in our heads. All this sounds fantastic right? Well the reality is that daydreaming is only healthy if it’s done in a limit. Anything which is done beyond its normal limits can disrupt our work, relationships and well being. This is also called maladaptive daydreaming.
How much daydreaming is too much?
Maladaptive daydreaming goes beyond a fleeting diversion from reality. The stories in this world of vivid imagination are so captivating and detailed that they have the power to dominate thinking. This type of daydreaming is distinct from the typical type that most individuals occasionally engage in. It can go on longer, is more dramatic, and frequently features characters or a plot that seems incredibly real. Excessive daydreaming can be seen as a form of dissociation from our true self. Dissociation is a mental state where we temporarily lose touch with reality in order to evade an unpleasant situation. When we’re not as satisfied with our current lives, we tend to think of idealized versions of ourselves and the people around us. This acts as an escape from our difficult emotions as we gain more control over the scenarios in our head.
Maladaptive daydreamers may experience bodily symptoms without even realizing it. These signals can take the form of hand gestures, facial expressions, or even internal monologues. This leads to a disruption in one’s social activities, sleep quality, work or school and can induce feelings of shame and guilt amongst people who engage in it.
Maladaptive daydreaming, although common, can occur especially with people who struggle with ADHD https://www.infiheal.com/personality-test/adhd, anxiety https://www.infiheal.com/personality-test/anxiety-test or depression https://www.infiheal.com/personality-test/depression. To know whether you might show symptoms of any of the above-mentioned mental health concerns, do consider filling out tests at https://healo.infiheal.com/tests.
What can you do about it?
Maladaptive daydreaming isn’t an official diagnosis yet and hence there is no standard treatment for it. However, that doesn’t mean that it can’t be managed. Here are some ways in which you can prevent it:
- Cognitive behavioral therapy: Maladaptive daydreaming is a way to escape our current thoughts and feelings, and there is only one approach that works best to treat maladaptive thoughts. That approach is called Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT). CBT is an effective form of psychotherapy which is mostly used to treat ADHD, OCD, anxiety, and depression. Since maladaptive daydreaming can often co-occur with the above-mentioned conditions, CBT is the most preferred form of treating maladaptive daydreaming. A CBT-based approach helps people identify why they daydream and what can be done to manage it.
- Limit triggers: Identify what triggers your daydreams. Is it a particular place? Experience? Or a specific person? Keeping track of all the times you tend to daydream in a journal can help you identify the triggers. Once you have identified them, try your best to avoid putting yourself in situations where your triggers might be active. For example, if listening to songs makes you daydream, try to reduce the time you spend listening to music or switch to genres that are less likely to trigger daydreams. Along with limiting triggers, it’s equally important to figure out why these situations or people are triggering us in the first place. Sometimes, certain past experiences with a set of people or specific situations make it harder for us to actively cope with them now, and as a result, we daydream in order to avoid facing reality. Self-awareness about our triggers will help us actively deal with them in healthier ways instead of disconnecting from reality through daydreaming.
- Use procrastination avoidance techniques: Procrastination is one of the psychological barriers and an escape mechanism that makes you put off things you intend to do. Research shows that there is a natural linkage between maladaptive daydreams and procrastination. Some might even say that maladaptive daydreams are, at some level, a form of procrastination, something that you engage in to avoid facing the realities of life or specific tasks that you have to do. Hence, procrastination avoidance techniques like setting a timer to do a specific task under a limited period of time might help. The Pomodoro technique is one way of practicing this and can be tried out at our website: https://healo.infiheal.com/pomodoro.
- Step outside of your comfort zone: The probability of us daydreaming when we are alone in the comfort of our rooms is much higher as compared to when we are surrounded by people at a cafe. Consider putting yourself in different situations where it might be inappropriate to daydream, like a public library or a public office. That way, it makes it easier for your brain to focus on your task and not get pulled into detailed scenarios in your head.
- Explore the cause: Some of us may daydream because the task at hand is something we aren’t interested in. While for others, anxiety and dissatisfaction with our current life might be underlying causes for daydreaming. It’s best to talk to a healthcare provider to explore what concealed condition is making you daydream. A great way to explore the cause is to try out the Free AI mental health therapist called “Healo” curated by a team of psychologists at Infiheal. Try this out at https://healo.infiheal.com/.
Conclusion
In conclusion, maladaptive daydreaming is a complex phenomenon that can significantly affect an individual's well-being through their work, studies, or relationships. If not treated at the right time, it can lead to more severe conditions like ADHD or psychotic disorders. Through this exploration, we have delved into the meaning of daydreaming, its types, why we daydream, the comorbidities of mental health conditions that can occur along with maladaptive daydreaming and what can be done about it. While there is still much to learn about maladaptive daydreaming, recognising its signs and looking for appropriate support through interventions and healthcare providers are crucial steps in dealing with maladaptive daydreams. Lastly, we also looked at how maladaptive daydreaming may be confused with procrastination. If you want to know more about whether your procrastination might be hindering your daily activities, take a test at https://www.infiheal.com/personality-test/procrastination-test to find out!
