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Escaping Reality To Heal: Daydreaming Your Way To Feeling Better
Escapism is the exercise of using healthy escapes to escape life and reality for a little while. This practice helps to reduce stress, to clear your mind and recharge. Daydreaming is an excellent form of a healthy escape., and has been shown to improve mental health.
It can be easy to become trapped in your reality, especially when you feel like life isn’t going quite the way you want it to. When stress and worry seem to take over, it’s a good idea to give yourself an escape from your everyday worries, even if it’s just for five minutes or so at a time. Take a look at how daydreaming can help you feel better and maybe even heal from emotional trauma.
Check out our section of articles on Gratitude, and in particular our article “The Science of Gratitude and Its Effects on the Brain“ to get a good background on how positivity can effect our brains.
Benefits Of Daydreaming
Daydreaming helps you to solve problems
Daydreaming helps to revitalize you, so you can return to life stressors and problems with a fresh outlook and a new perspective.
That Mental Break reduces stress and anxiety
Daydreaming allows you to tune out the world and escape into a sort of paradise for a while. This facilitates mental relaxation and exploration.
Daydreaming activates diverse parts of your brain
During daydreaming you use both your frontal cortex which is responsible for executive functions and also the creative part of your brain which helps the brain make new and exciting connections. The quote below informs us that positive and negative daydreams effect us in different ways, so keep your daydreams in the positive lane!
According to the Greater Good Magazine of Berkley.edu,
“Prior research suggests a wandering mind is an unhappy mind: We tend to be less happy when we’re not focused on what we’re doing. And that’s likely true, if you tend to rehash past mistakes or replay social flubs when your mind wanders, or if your mind-wandering keeps you from fulfilling your goals. Again, the content of wandering thoughts makes a big difference. For example, as one 2013 study showed, when people found their wandering thoughts more interesting, their moods actually improved while mind-wandering. Similarly, other studies have found that thinking about people you love or thinking more about your potential future than about what happened in the past produces positive results.”
Strategies To Start Daydreaming
Permit yourself to daydream. We often feel guilty for daydreaming, but it’s a good way to relax and de-stress. Make time for daydreaming. Set aside sometime each day to just let your mind wander.
Let go of expectations. Don’t try to force your daydreams to go in a certain direction. Just let them flow naturally. Be open to different types of daydreams. Some people daydream about the future, while others revisit memories from the past. Some people imagine themselves as someone else or fantasize about impossible scenarios.
Whatever type of daydream you want to explore is fine! For example, imagining yourself on vacation somewhere might help you calm down and feel more grounded in reality if you’re feeling stressed or anxious.
Ways To Use Your Imagination
Practice daydreaming about your ideal life. Let your mind wander to happy places when you need a break from reality. Use your imagination to devise solutions to problems you’re facing. Don’t waste those daydreams though. Create a vision board or goals list to help you manifest your dreams.
Visualization Techniques
What is visualization?
Visualization is the ability to create mental images of things that don’t exist in reality. It’s often used as a tool to help people achieve their goals, and a great way to escape reality and improve your mood. It is the act of imagining something in detail with all five senses. The more detail you add to the image, the better the results will be.
How can visualization make us feel positive?
Visualization can be a powerful tool for creating positive feelings. When we visualize something, we’re effectively telling our brain that it’s real. This can create a sense of excitement and anticipation that can motivate us to take action towards our goals. Additionally, visualizing ourselves achieving our goals can help boost our confidence and belief that we can succeed.
Story boards are a great way to visualize your goals. By creating a visual representation of what you want to achieve, you’re more likely to take the necessary steps to make it happen.
There are many different ways that one can use this technique, but here are some suggestions if you want to get started:
- Start sitting or lying in a comfortable position where you won’t feel disturbed or interrupted during your session.
- Next, close your eyes and relax your body from head to toe. Then, start focusing on an image or memory that you find calming. For example, imagine yourself at the beach and listening to the waves crashing as they come onto shore.
- Next, feel the sand under your toes and inhale deeply as you take in all the beautiful smells around you, like salt water mixed with sun tan lotion.
- Alternatively, you can visualize yourself walking through a garden full of fresh flowers while taking deep breaths of their aroma.
Stay Positive, Even If You Can’t Escape A Negative Situation
The power of positive thinking is often underestimated. Feeling like things will never get better when you’re stuck in a negative situation is easy. But it can make all the difference if you can find a way to stay positive, even in the darkest times.
Start by changing your mindset and attitude about what you are going through. Then, visualize yourself getting through this rough patch and imagine the bright future that awaits you on the other side. Sometimes, we need to stop trying so hard to escape reality and just daydream our way to feeling better.
It is said that we have anywhere from 12,000 to 60,000 thoughts per day. If we are not careful, a good portion of those can be negative and self-defeating. Staying positive is hard work but the benefits are worth it. Here are three tactics to employ positive thinking.
When it comes to positive thinking, there are three main tactics that you can employ: daydreams, affirmations and visualization.
Daydreams are a great way to keep your mind focused on positive thoughts. Every time you find yourself thinking negative thoughts, simply take a few minutes to daydream about something that makes you happy. This will help to refocus your thoughts and stay positive.
Affirmations are another great tool for staying positive. Every morning, take a few minutes to repeat positive affirmations to yourself in the mirror. This will help to program your mind for success and keep you motivated throughout the day.
Visualization (addressed above) is also a powerful tool for staying positive. Whenever you find yourself feeling down, take a few minutes to close your eyes and visualize yourself in a happy and successful future.
Take Breaks And Daydream
It can be easy to get caught up in the hustle and bustle of everyday life and forget to take a break. But taking breaks in order to daydream is important for your mental health! Daydreaming breaks give you time to relax and recharge, which can help you feel better overall.
Put that cellphone to good use! When you take a daydream break, check out your pictures and videos of favorite people and experiences. Think about the next time you’ll go on that awesome hike or circle the calendar for your next family get together.
What is Maladaptive Daydreaming
Maladaptive daydreaming, a mental health condition, is characterized by excessive daydreaming, often lasting for hours at a time. Maladaptive refers to an unhealthy or unfavorable attempt to deal with or adapt to a condition.
This causes people to “lose themselves” in incredibly detailed and vivid daydreams. Additionally, studies suggest that fantasizing like this could become habitual. That indicates that it’s challenging, if not impossible, to exert control over what you’re doing.
“Maladaptive daydreaming is a form of escape usually for people who experienced loneliness, trauma, and abuse—they create an elaborate inner world where they can go whenever they are in distress,” says Sam Nabil, a licensed professional counselor with Naya Clinics. “Thus, they resort to daydreaming excessively, as they prefer their fantasies to their real life.”
This problem also shares similarities with a number of other neurological and mental health issues. Maladaptive daydreaming, however, differs from these other diseases and should be recognized as a distinct problem, according to the available research.
Final Thoughts
Daydreaming is normal and can be very beneficial. Many psychologists and researchers believe it might be the best way to improve your mood, escape reality for a little while and provide a boost to your overall wellbeing!
The fact is, it’s easy to get caught up in the stresses of everyday life and forget to take care of ourselves. Sometimes, we need to take a break from everything. And what better way to do that than by daydreaming?
It is a powerful tool that can help facilitate escapism. It allows us to explore different worlds and escape the reality of our everyday lives. It is a form of self-care that can help reduce stress and anxiety. If you find yourself feeling overwhelmed or stressed, take a few minutes to relax and let your mind wander.
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