Why Young People Are Self-Diagnosing With Maladaptive Daydreaming
Maladaptive daydreaming (MD) is a condition identified by Professor Eliezer Somer. This condition causes intense daydreaming that distracts a person from their real life. Experts believe it is generally a coping mechanism for trauma.
Daydreaming is a completely normal thing to do. It allows us to create our own worlds and fantasize for a moment. But when you become attached or even trapped in your daydreams, constantly prefer your fantasies over reality and replay scenarios in your head obsessively, this can become maladaptive.
MD is not a condition that young people are educated on, and so, like many other mental health issues, it is very misunderstood. This happens especially on social media, where you can easily find online charlatans. For instance, many TikTok creators share videos about how they find it difficult to fall asleep if they don’t daydream first. Although these videos are intended to be light-hearted and funny, their comments are slightly concerning. Many viewers commented to say that they were experiencing the same thing and didn’t know how to talk about it. These comments show how important it is to really teach young people about mental health.
Nowadays, ‘memes’ about maladaptive daydreaming circulate different media platforms. The problem with seeing MD ‘memes’ online and it not being taught about properly in school is that it leads to many young people self-diagnosing themselves with it and not talking to anyone who could be of actual help in real life. Not only this, but they could then become too comfortable in their situation when they see others romanticizing it.
Romanticizing mental health issues is nothing new for social media and its influencers. Those who aren’t suffering with MD will find it easy to walk away from the trend once others stop talking about it, but unfortunately, those actually struggling will continue to find it difficult to break away from their habits. Without any proper help from social media, they may never find a way to stop.
Although there is no official treatment for MD, there are many blogs that are created around MD for you to understand more about it. You can also talk to a doctor for professional assistance. Finding out what other ex-maladaptive daydreamers did to become free will also definitely help.
Although MD is something that should be discussed more so that those dealing with it feel less alone, making jokes about it strips away its importance. It is not a trend to join or follow, and this desperately needs to be taught to young people. Falsely claiming MD, anxiety, depression and other issues is self-deprecating and a waste of time. When you see others on social media not taking MD or even other mental health issues seriously, remember to tell them about how it secretly damages those who have it.
Schools fail to teach their students real mental health symptoms, and so we cannot be surprised when they turn to their devices for answers. But if what we put out there on social media about MD is false or in any way romanticizing, we are damaging young people and hindering them from becoming better.
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