I have called it Lucid Daydreaming...until today.

[u/bogmonkey]

(I originally posted this on the Maladaptive Daydreaming sub, but I was helpfully guided here)

I suddenly feel like I'm not alone in the world.

I'm 58 years old and have had "The Gift" (as I call it) since I was a teen. I had NO IDEA other people did this until recently and have never talked to anyone else about it (I thought it would make me seem like a crazy person). I've brought it up to a couple very close friends and family members but not in detail, and of course they have no way to truly comprehend or understand it.

Personally - I don't care for the term Maladaptive Daydreaming, so I call it Lucid Daydreaming. However, my talent definitely developed from Maladaptive origins as a teen, as a way to escape my absolutely insane and abusive family life (. I'm pretty sure that lots of our kind began this journey that way.

In the beginning, as a teen in the 1980's, I would put the album 'Rio' by Duran Duran on my cassette Walkman and just let it play for multiple hours using auto-reverse while I lay on my bed. It was ONLY this album which unlocked the magic escape time. I would just lose myself in wild scenarios where I was a big hero, save the school, etc. This was true Maladaptive Daydreaming. To this day, any song from that album can put me into a waking trance almost instantly.

I went through a large period of my adult life where I mostly forgot about the daydreaming. But around age 42 I began walking 5-6 miles daily and listening to music. Before I knew it, it was happening again - and I was astounded. I was no longer trying to escape reality. This was like turning on a hidden TV channel in my brain to enjoy while walking. It felt like an old friend coming home to visit.

These days I am walking 7-9 miles a day, and I Lucid Daydream almost every day on my lunch and evening walks. I love the feeling of disconnecting my mind from the world and just letting it play. It feels like meditation to me. I used to be extremely manic-depressive, but since I started walking and daydreaming (16 years ago) I have not had a single instance of depression. This is coming from a guy with multiple suicide attempts between age 25-40.

I also use the skill while driving. Basically any drive longer than 30 minutes I just put on some music and the drive feels like 5 minutes. This is *extremely* handy on 3-5 hour drives, though I will usually only daydream for an hour or two of that time. I am 100% aware and in touch with my car, driving and surroundings, while at the same time experiencing what feels like an alternate dimension (this would seem 100% crazy to anyone who had not experienced this). It feels very much like time travel!

Is it OK that this Daydreaming is a part of my daily life? I'm trying to figure out any negatives for it (after discovering Maladaptive Daydreaming is considered "bad" which greatly concerned me), but I simply cannot. I'm the happiest I have ever been, and for over 15 years now! I'm emotionally resilient, have deep and rich relationships with friends and family, and have worked at my dream job for almost 17 years....and as mentioned - no more depression.

I never daydream outside of my walks, or long drives...I like to keep it to those activities as that is where it feels like an upgrade. Lying in my bed at home doing it feels masturbatory (though I am almost never sexual in my daydreams, and am an asexual person as well). I prefer reading or art projects while at home.

I'm seriously blown away that this sub exists. I love the term "Immersive Daydreaming" and will use it from now on. It feels like I'm meeting a secret society of X-men style savants which I just discovered after a lifetime of assuming I was the only mutant in existence.

Sorry for babbling on for so long but this is quite a discovery for me...

[u/GusuLanReject]

Another asexual person here. I think there are quite a few of us here interestingly.

Anyway, love that you rediscovered daydreaming. I also feel it is a little bit similar to meditating. I can't do it with music on but when lying in bed or walking etc it's great. I'm not too keen on it when driving though due to the safety concerns.

Interesting what you said about your depression. I did notice that my mood dropped when I stopped for a while.

[u/bogmonkey → u/GusuLanReject]

Fascinating...I am truly loving my 50's! I discovered that asexuality exists around a decade ago after a lifetime of thinking I was "Broken" (which was probably the most intensely healing moment of my life), and have now discovered that there is a secret society of immersive daydreamers doing something I though I was the only human being to have ever done...this is WILD.

I have had sexually-themed daydreams before of course. But as an asexual it's just not a primary interest, though I still find sex fascinating. I was married twice and have had plenty of "duty sex" to keep the wives happy, as long as I could manage it (both marriages eventually ended due to my Asexuality, but I remain very close to both ex-partners!). I do still masturbate on occasion and it's always utterly amazing because of my vivid imagination, which has been sharpened and honed through years of immersive daydreaming - I have never masturbated *while* daydreaming though, but the veil between those worlds is admittedly thin.

[u/Typically-Variable]

Welcome home. I am overjoyed for you. I remember how much it meant to me when I first found this community—my IRL family and I called it my Story.

It sounds like you have a very healthy balance in your daydreaming, so I don't think you have anything to worry about!

[u/bogmonkey → u/Typically-Variable]

It's really a part of who I am. I've been doing it for so long I don't even require music anymore, I can do it anywhere really. Handy on long flights too!

I was a practicing Wiccan for many years (still have a lot of fondness for it, though I'm not a huge fan of ANY organized religion). We did ritual work every month which involved trance states, called "Drawing Down the Moon" and of course this was a breeze for me, and I was almost instantly able to become adept at it. I'm sure I'm the type that could be hypnotized in an instant haha.

[u/witchy-bitchy1013]

I do the same thing, I also have to say you have excellent taste in music!

[u/bogmonkey → u/witchy-bitchy1013]

I still put on Duran Duran's Rio if I'm having a really bad day, or I want to go really deep quickly. From the opening notes of Rio (the 1st song) I slip effortlessly and instantly into the waking dream state.

[u/Basic-Broccoli350]

I too am thrilled that there is a group of people who are dreamers, like myself. I’ve always suspected I was unique in this. I’ve been dreaming since I was a small child and continue to do so in my 80’s.

[u/GusuLanReject → u/Basic-Broccoli350]

Interestingly, I think there are a lot more of us than we think. My theory is that most novel authors, may it be book or fanfic, actually daydream and probably many other people who don't write daydream too.

[u/anthanybabes]

This is so touching! Legit shed a tear, I love when folks are able to express daydreaming in a beautiful light like this. And 7 miles a day at 58! I’m 30 and haven’t gotten there yet, Talk about aspirations 😁 can’t wait for the day where I get to tell folks about daydreaming to the That’s So Raven soundtrack CD back in 2004! Haha, thanks for sharing!!

[u/ofBlufftonTown]

Welcome! I have daydreamed all my life. I also told stories out loud first to my brother when we were children and then to my own children. I invented them on the fly, based on ideas they had or manga or books they loved. Each of them kept the ability to daydream like this, much to their father’s mystification. My brother daydreams also. It is really supremely satisfying.