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I'm worried that obsessive daydreaming is affecting my social life. Can you recommend anything?translated

September 18, 2026 · 1 min read

Reader question:

Hello!

I am prone to maladaptive daydreaming. I have had this problem since I was 7 years old. I dreamed of protecting myself when my parents quarreled, when at school children considered me a “nerd” (I always had friends, but I still felt strange in the group until I moved to another school at the age of 14). Then I experienced a personal shock, and the situation worsened: I dreamed almost 24/7. I'm on better terms with reality now, but I'm worried that daydreaming is affecting my social life.

Here's how: when someone is interested in me, I begin to idealize this person and make him part of my fantasies. At the same time, I become very sensitive to manifestations of attention from this person in everything. I end up feeling abandoned when I don't like a post. If a person really loses interest in me, I feel shame. Then it seems to me that I am abnormal and do not know how to communicate with people.

The circle is closed by the fact that I imagine myself as a daring “movie heroine”, very determined and even a little scandalous, whose behavior makes everyone who has lost interest in her regret their actions.

I can't...

Source: Журнал ФОМА  ·  Read the full story →
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