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Post by wonderland on Jun 14, 2020 20:16:00 GMT
 My name is Gwen, I'm a 22F. I just found out about Maladaptive dreaming, but I've been experiencing it since I was a kid. Ever since I could remember I would always daydream in my head, especially when I was listening to music or dancing. It's kind of like my life was moving along in a fog, with brief moments of clarity. I always thought I had a terrible memory growing up because I could never remember anything: street names, conversations, choreography etc. When I went off to college I was able to control it; I studied acting at a BFA program, and the curriculum is built on getting students to be focused, present, and in tune with their feelings. It was like the fog had lifted. I was able to concentrate and retain information, which was great! I realized that I had lived most of my life detached from the present, and it was terrifying. For four years I didn't slip back into it, and I told myself that if i ever did, the signs that it had gotten bad again were if: I had trouble sleeping because I was daydreaming, or if I caught myself laughing out loud to an imaginary scenario, or if I caught myself slipping into a daydream while in a conversation. Towards the end of my senior year I felt myself slipping back, and I tried so hard to remain present. I've had some pretty major changes in my life recently and unexpectedly due to COVID, and I feel completely submerged again. I decided to research it finally to see what I was experiencing, and stumbled upon this group! |
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Post by katie on Jun 14, 2020 23:04:17 GMT
Hi! My name is Gwen, I'm a 22F. I just found out about Maladaptive dreaming, but I've been experiencing it since I was a kid. Ever since I could remember I would always daydream in my head, especially when I was listening to music or dancing. It's kind of like my life was moving along in a fog, with brief moments of clarity. I always thought I had a terrible memory growing up because I could never remember anything: street names, conversations, choreography etc. When I went off to college I was able to control it; I studied acting at a BFA program, and the curriculum is built on getting students to be focused, present, and in tune with their feelings. It was like the fog had lifted. I was able to concentrate and retain information, which was great! I realized that I had lived most of my life detached from the present, and it was terrifying. For four years I didn't slip back into it, and I told myself that if i ever did, the signs that it had gotten bad again were if: I had trouble sleeping because I was daydreaming, or if I caught myself laughing out loud to an imaginary scenario, or if I caught myself slipping into a daydream while in a conversation. Towards the end of my senior year I felt myself slipping back, and I tried so hard to remain present. I've had some pretty major changes in my life recently and unexpectedly due to COVID, and I feel completely submerged again. I decided to research it finally to see what I was experiencing, and stumbled upon this group! Hi and welcome to daydream in blue glad you joined us we can relate to you with your experience when you daydream and the difficulties it creates. I am sorry it has you feeling overwhelmed in this way. Take you time in looking around and relating to us daydreamers. It's a good feeling when you know your not alone and have support with learning knowledge around maladptive daydreaming and advice that we can give each other along the way. |
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Post by Sam on Jun 15, 2020 0:15:16 GMT
Welcome to the forum, Gwen!
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Post by alvi on Jun 15, 2020 16:11:17 GMT
Welcome to the forum!
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Post by poppy on Jun 15, 2020 19:48:38 GMT
Hello, I'm Poppy, I am a 19F. I am new to Maladaptive dreaming, but I have also experienced this since I was a child. At this point in my life, I feel I am only able to control the dreaming when I am not engaging in conversation. When I was a kid, I would uncontrollably talk to myself, make faces, laugh, or pace around the house and my mom would look at me funny. Now that I am older, I can control my facial expressions, my laughter,and pacing, and my body movements while in the presence of people, while yet still dreaming. But when I am home alone, it is another reality. I laugh, I cry, I make faces, and I literally can pace my home for minutes to one to two hours. It is to the point that I can not study for one hour straight without dreaming, I can not pay attention in class fully, I can read a whole page in a book while dreaming and not even remember what I read, and I loose track of hours. I remember one day I was alone in my dorm for hours, I dreamed to the point that I did not even realize that time shifted from day to night. Has anyone sought out professional help for this? I want to, but I am too embarassed becasue I do not think this condition is widely accepted by the psych. community (therapist, researchers, etc...). And does anyone have triggers? Mine is music.
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Post by Sam on Jun 15, 2020 23:04:30 GMT
Hello, I'm Poppy, I am a 19F. I am new to Maladaptive dreaming, but I have also experienced this since I was a child. At this point in my life, I feel I am only able to control the dreaming when I am not engaging in conversation. When I was a kid, I would uncontrollably talk to myself, make faces, laugh, or pace around the house and my mom would look at me funny. Now that I am older, I can control my facial expressions, my laughter,and pacing, and my body movements while in the presence of people, while yet still dreaming. But when I am home alone, it is another reality. I laugh, I cry, I make faces, and I literally can pace my home for minutes to one to two hours. It is to the point that I can not study for one hour straight without dreaming, I can not pay attention in class fully, I can read a whole page in a book while dreaming and not even remember what I read, and I loose track of hours. I remember one day I was alone in my dorm for hours, I dreamed to the point that I did not even realize that time shifted from day to night. Has anyone sought out professional help for this? I want to, but I am too embarassed becasue I do not think this condition is widely accepted by the psych. community (therapist, researchers, etc...). And does anyone have triggers? Mine is music. A few of us have talked to therapists about our MD. Overall, I would say the response has been neutral to positive. They usually don't have any idea what you're talking about, so you might have to explain what it is. They might be more able and willing to help if you explain that its an unhealthy coping mechanism (like self harm)/behavioral addiction (like gambling). We all have triggers and there's actually a thread around here somewhere about what triggers we have. Music is a common one, as are strong emotions and media consumption like TV, books, or movies. |
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My name is Gwen, I'm a 22F. I just found out about Maladaptive dreaming, but I've been experiencing it since I was a kid. Ever since I could remember I would always daydream in my head, especially when I was listening to music or dancing. It's kind of like my life was moving along in a fog, with brief moments of clarity. I always thought I had a terrible memory growing up because I could never remember anything: street names, conversations, choreography etc. When I went off to college I was able to control it; I studied acting at a BFA program, and the curriculum is built on getting students to be focused, present, and in tune with their feelings. It was like the fog had lifted. I was able to concentrate and retain information, which was great! I realized that I had lived most of my life detached from the present, and it was terrifying. For four years I didn't slip back into it, and I told myself that if i ever did, the signs that it had gotten bad again were if: I had trouble sleeping because I was daydreaming, or if I caught myself laughing out loud to an imaginary scenario, or if I caught myself slipping into a daydream while in a conversation. Towards the end of my senior year I felt myself slipping back, and I tried so hard to remain present. I've had some pretty major changes in my life recently and unexpectedly due to COVID, and I feel completely submerged again. I decided to research it finally to see what I was experiencing, and stumbled upon this group! 
