Maladaptive daydreaming

Maladaptive daydreaming, also known as excessive daydreaming, is a proposed diagnosis of a disordered form of dissociative absorption associated with excessive fantasy. It can result in distress, can replace human interaction and may interfere with normal functioning such as social life or work.[1] Maladaptive daydreaming is not a widely recognised diagnosis, and is not found in any major diagnostic manual of psychiatry or medicine.[2] The person who coined the term is University of Haifa Professor Eli Somer.[1] Somer's definition of the condition is “extensive fantasy activity that replaces human interaction and/or interferes with academic, interpersonal, or vocational functioning.”[1] There has been limited research outside of Somer's.

Range of daydreaming

Many human experiences range between the normal and the abnormal. Daydreaming, a form of normal dissociation associated with absorption, is a highly prevalent mental activity experienced by almost everyone.[3]

Some individuals reportedly possess the ability to daydream so vividly that they experience a sense of presence in the imagined environment.[1] This experience is reported to be extremely rewarding to the extent that some of those who experience it develop a compulsion to repeat it that it has been described as an addiction.[4][5][6]

Somer has proposed "stimuli" for maladaptive daydreams that may relate to specific locations. The main proposed symptom is extremely vivid fantasies with "story-like features", such as the daydream's characters, plots and settings.[7]

Somer has argued that maladaptive daydreaming is not a form of psychosis.[7]

Online support

Whilst maladaptive daydreaming is not a recognized psychiatric disorder, it has spawned online and real-world support groups since Somer first reported the proposed disorder in 2002.[8]

Research

Maladaptive daydreaming is currently studied by a consortium of researchers from diverse countries including the USA, Poland, Switzerland and Israel.[9][5][10]

See also

References
  1. Somer, Eli (Fall 2002). "Maladaptive Daydreaming: A Qualitative Inquiry" (PDF).
  2. "DSM-5". www.psychiatry.org. Retrieved 2020-07-17.
  3. Singer, J. L. (1966) Daydreaming. New York, NY: Random House
  4. Somer, E.; Somer, L.; Jopp, S.D. (9 June 2016). "Parallel lives: A phenomenological study of the lived experience of maladaptive daydreaming". Journal of Trauma & Dissociation. 17 (5): 561–576. doi:10.1080/15299732.2016.1160463. PMID 26943233. S2CID 970330.
  5. Bigelsen, J., J.; Schupak, C. (December 2011). "Compulsive fantasy: Proposed evidence of an under-reported syndrome through a systematic study of 90 self-identified non-normative fantasizers". Consciousness and Cognition. 20 (4): 1634–1648. doi:10.1016/j.concog.2011.08.013. PMID 21959201. S2CID 206954778.
  6. Pietkiewicz, I.J.; Nęcki, S.; Bańbura, A,; Tomalski, R. (August 2018). "Maladaptive daydreaming as a new form of behavioral addiction". Journal of Behavioral Addictions. 7 (3): 838–843. doi:10.1556/2006.7.2018.95. PMC 6426361. PMID 30238787.CS1 maint: extra punctuation (link)
  7. "Maladaptive Daydreaming: Scale, Symptoms, and Treatments". 2017-04-26.
  8. Bershtling, O., & Somer, E. (27 August 2018). "The Micro-Politics of a New Mental Condition: Legitimization in Maladaptive Daydreamers' Discourse". The Qualitative Report.CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  9. "Maladaptive Daydreaming Publications". The International Consortium for Maladaptive Daydreaming Research (ICMDR).
  10. Bigelse, Jayne; Lehrfeld, Jonathan M.; Jopp, Daniela S.; Somer, Eli (May 2016). "Maladaptive daydreaming: Evidence for an under-researched mental health disorder". Consciousness and Cognition. 42: 254–266. doi:10.1016/j.concog.2016.03.017. PMID 27082138. S2CID 4838048.
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