Maladaptive daydreaming involves highly structured daydreams or fantasies that can be difficult to manage. Maladaptive daydreaming (MD) is a recently identified clinical condition: . The SCIMD enables doctors to elicit answers that will help assess whether youre experiencing maladaptive daydreaming. In one study, almost half the sample was unemployed and over a quarter of the sample had attempted suicide at least once (Soffer-Dudek & Somer, 2018). The National Center for Biotechnology Information advances science and health by providing access to biomedical and genomic information. Intricate dramas, romances, and tragedies are tempting for MDers to enter, just as a good Netflix series may be for most people. ADHD behaviors are often misperceived as disrespectful, lazy, careless, self-absorbed, or rude. While psychotic episodes can be disorienting or confronting for people, the daydreaming experience is usually pleasant. I have always been very shy. Although I am tempted to diagnose myself with this suggested malady, I remain very conscious of the fact that I am a functional, productive person, whereas our studies have shown that maladaptive daydreamers (MDers) are suffering immensely. Maladaptive daydreaming as a new form of behavioral addiction. Outside the doctors office however, the situation is very different; it has been 14 years since Eli Somers first study of dissociating behaviour in the form of an addiction to daydreaming, and the discovery of this phenomenon has inspired blogs, support groups, Facebook pages, YouTube channels, and Wild Minds Network a support website dedicated to maladaptive daydreaming. Read our full, National Library of Medicine, Biotech Information. They try not to because they realise they're addicted and it's a problem for them, but they enjoy it.". A new article in the Journal of Clinical Psychology (Theodor-Katz et al., 2022) recommends adding "maladaptive daydreaming" to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders ( DSM . You may want to get the help you need to deal with this condition. Maladaptive daydreaming shares features with behavioral addictions, such as addiction to internet gaming or alcohol. Except if you crave something to an excessive extent. It affected him in some way they dont want to hear about the problem (Somer, Somer, & Jopp, 2016, pp. MedlinePlus: National Library of Medicine (US). Development and validation of the Maladaptive Daydreaming Scale (MDS). Maladaptive daydreamers engage in elaborate fantasy worlds for hours on end at the expense of important life goals and functioning. Bershtling, O. D., & Somer, E. (2018). With research revealing that as many as one in 40 people may experience these problems, it seems increasingly likely that maladaptive daydreaming will soon be formally recognised as a psychiatric disorder. Key points. Maladaptive daydreaming usually occurs as a coping mechanism in response to trauma, abuse or loneliness. Somer E. (2018). A person rates the severity and frequency of their symptoms, answering questions like: There is more than one proposed MDS reported in the literature.
