Do you escape into daydreaming/fantasy?

[Orwell20]

I'm not talking about escaping into books or films or video games. I mean imagining an alternative life in which you are young or happy or a rock star...or whatever. I have recurring fantasies about leaving home when I was young, going to some beautiful old university and studying classics. I also have recurrent fantasies about being a famous novelist/graphic artist (a bit like Alan Moore) and going on book tours, etc.

These fantasies can grow very elaborate and detailed, to the point where I even imagine the weather (usually snow or spring sunshine), the people I'd meet, and so on.

[Mr. Nobody]

when I was young I did fantasise from time to time, I think it helped me feel a bit better in the short-term whenever I was particularly down.

although it seems quite negative and illusory, I think imagination can sometimes help to get you out of a difficult thought -pattern or an intensely negative one?

imagination can be a useful tool for helping you develop a plan for where you want to be in a few years time, for example.
or you can use imagination to help you see what changes you could make in your life,. even something as simple as a new colour scheme in your house?

authors, artists and musicians for example, all use their imagination as a creative tool to great effect, so it's not something negative necessarily.

[limey123]

Sadly, I don't/can't as I have zero imagination.

[Sisyphus]

All the time. It is my number one avoidance technique.

[neilm]

Ive always done this since I was a tiny child, I always thought most if not everyone else did, at least some of the time.

Dont see it as being particularly linked to SA/Anxiety etc, either (at least not in my case). Ime just the sort of person who has an active (and sometimes overactive) imagination

Seems fairly harmless really....

[Consolida]

I did when I was years younger but not anymore. I found that the more time I spent fantasising about some alternative lifestyle the more dissatisfied I'd become with real life. For me, it's better to focus on what is possible than fill my head with things that will never be.

[hellotiger]

I think I did it a lot more when I was younger but I still do it now. Right before bed I’ll create a scenario where I’m completely badass epic, spy, ninja, demon slayer, whatever and people think I’m so cool. I don’t dream about it but it’s something that helps me disconnect from the day and go to sleep. I also daydream during certain songs. Mostly just that I’m the one singing them and I’m awesome but sometimes I’m swishing my hair and stuff is blowing up behind me.
Whatever it is going on there’s always someone there to see how rad I am, it’s hilarious because irl I’d hate the attention.

[Tonkin]

I have one for when I'm trying to fall asleep. It can be a good way to switch off, although sometimes it can get a bit elaborate.

Mainly it involves me winning the lottery and not having to work but then sometimes I get hung up on how much I'd like or need to win. Not too much that I'm mega rich but just enough to buy a nice house and retire, but then I start thinking about other things I could spend it on, how would I invest it until I needed it, would I still need a pension, etc, and it gets a bit stressful!

[Tembo]

Yes all the time. In fact I’ve had a continuous storyline happening for about 15 years, with various characters. Bizarrely, I now rarely feature in this fantasy world of mine

I used to think it was quite sad that I have this fantasy world happening, however it is probably quite common, especially amongst creative people and authors etc. And probably a positive thing, although I do worry I think about it too much to distract from my real life.

[Tonkin]

Turns out there an extreme version of this

https://www.healthline.com/health/me...aming#symptoms

[sophie123]

All my life I don't remember most of growing up because I was mostly in dreamland, I call it anxiety land lol

[girlinterrupted]

Any time I get the chance.

[Toxic]

When I was younger I did. I had much more of an imagination. I used to have some epic dreams.

Nowadays I can't really do any of that - I can only get lost in media (mostly games) or sleep with youtube playing - if I'm left to my own devices my head just thinks of a ton of negative things and I end up laying there freaking out about..everything.

[Sunrise]

I have fantasies where I'm a socially capable person who people like and respect, something which I find impossible in reality.

What's strange is how I can think it in my head but can't transfer any of it into the real world. I don't understand how I can imagine these things but not actually do it? I guess it's because my imagination is just brain impulses and I don't really process any practical solutions to my problems. It's all just completely imagined. It's an idea of something rather than something I can practically do.

I think I prefer living in a fantasy world now. In reality I come across as a pretty pathetic specimen. If living in fantasy is the only way of not being like that then I think it's a very positive thing.

The only problem I find is when I end up inadvertantly talking about my fantasy life when trying to describe my actual life to real people. I actually have done this and it's probably why I'm seen as such an oddball.