Social Anxiety Support

askWhy · 11-05-2009, 07:52 PM

Is there anyone here who has an excessive daydreaming problem taken Naltrexone and found that their excessive daydreaming decreased substantially?

Naltrexone is not normally given to people as treatment for excessive daydreaming. In fact, as far as I know, medically, not much is known at all about excessive daydreaming period. As I have experienced, doctors really don't know how to diagnosis it. Therefore, I'm just trying to find out if someone may have "stumbled upon" this information on their own.

Personally, in my effort to find treatment for excessive daydreaming, I've run through the gauntlet (actually the gauntlet is circular and I'm continuing to run

) I've tried just about every SSRI and ADD / ADHD medicine there is. I've also done extensive neuro-psych testing that shows I do NOT have ADD, schizophrenia, dementia, or any other cognitive impairment. I do of course have mild generalized anxiety issues, and SSRI's have helped to reduce these issues for me. However, no medication I've tried seems to diminish my daydreaming. (I do notice that caffine will increase the intensity/duration of my daydreaming, so I stay decaffinated)

After talking to yet another doctor on the phone, the idea of "self regulation" came up. So I researched a a category of psychological disorders similar in nature to excessive daydreaming. Two in particular include internet addiction, and compulsive gambling, (as these) "have unique psychological properties which induce dissociation, time distortion, and instant gratification". (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interne...ction_disorder)

Looking further I noticed that these disorders are sucessfully treated with naltrexone and when I looked at the mechanism, and why naltrexone works, it made sense to me intuitively (and I felt I could extend this intuition on to excessive daydreaming as well).

Naltrexone was first used as treatment for people who were addicted to heroine. It has also was found to be useful for other addictive substances like alcohol. Even more recent, Naltrexone was found to be effective for Internet Addiction and compulsive gambling. As I experience excessive daydreaming, it feels very much like how Internet Addiction and compulive gambling is described... basically, like an addiction to something that feels good.

Therefore, it seems like Naltrexone could potentially help me and I came to this site because I know the topic has been discussed before. With that said... Does anybody have any personal experience about Naltrexone and excessive daydreaming? Any thoughts in general? I would like to test naltrexone out myself, but no doctor will give it to me on account that there is documented way to treat "excessive daydreaming" and they don't want to be be held liable for anything would be considered experiment.

Moon Calf · 11-05-2009, 08:07 PM

I didn't know daydreaming was recognized as a disorder. But, yeah, it's a problem for me as well.

askWhy · 11-06-2009, 02:58 PM

Hi Moon Calf,

In and of itself, "excessive daydreaming" or maladaptive daydreaming has NOT yet considered to be a unique disorder and therefore, of course, there is NO treatment for it. However, there are some doctors who are starting to consider that it there definitely should be a new diagnosis and treatment plan made for it. After all their are hundreds or cases on the internet of people complaining of common symptoms which are significantly different from other similar disorders out there...

Finally, as stated above, I believe that there may be good reason for there to be medical research done on the effectiveness / or non-effectiveness of a drug like Naltrexone. This is why I am extremely interested in finding out if anyone, here fits into the following category.

You see yourself as an "excessive daydreamer" who does not have ADD or you are someone for whom ADD medications did not help.
You were treated with Naltrexone, perhaps for another comorbid condition. (ex Alchololism...)
To your surprise, you found that your excessive daydreaming decreased.

Right now, it seems that the closest disorder to "excessive daydreaming / binge daydreaming" would be ADD type attention deficit disorder. In general this type of ADD, deals with people who have significant trouble maintaining attention and find their thoughts wandering off no matter how hard they "try" (behaviorly these people, are not hyperactive as they would be if they had ADHD attention deficit hyperactivity disorder).

To contrast this to excessive daydreaming / binge daydreaming... Again, rememeber this is still only a theorical term for now...

Excessive daydreaming, may or may not be mutually exclusive from ADD. For me it definitely is... The key difference between ADD and excessive daydreaming is that excessive daydreamers seem to binge on daydreaming almost as if it were a drug.

The daydreams are often elaborate and have specific themes which are either very exiting and / or meaningful to the daydreamer. The process of daydreaming elicts pleasure, euphoria, and short lived hope. Their is such an intensity, and degree of encaptivation, that time and energy quickly become drained. In effort to maintain or increase the excitedment, happiness, or pleasure an excessive daydreamer will often increase the complexity or the grandiousness of the "story" that they are playing out inside their mind. Finally, to do this kind of intensive daydreaming, excessive daydreamers need to be alone. A social setting would be far to awkward / embarrassing.

Rydan · 11-12-2009, 01:14 PM

Never been treated with any of that stuff. Interesting though. I'm strange about my daydreaming. It helps my creativity. At the same time it sometimes shows up on my face, and I have been asked what was the matter with me. I could get more done with less daydreaming and more actual doing.

Homersxchild · 11-12-2009, 02:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by askWhy

Finally, to do this kind of intensive daydreaming, excessive daydreamers need to be alone. A social setting would be far to awkward / embarrassing.

I would describe myself as an excessive daydreamer as well, my years in high school were the worst though. ^ But I don't find this to be true in all cases. In high school, surrounded by people, I would zone out and get lost in a daydream, to the point where sometimes my body would move as to that which was occuring in my daydream. Nothing overly noticeable but there none the less. (And these were not sexual dreams, so it wasn't embarressing movements.

) But that's how lost I would become in them, they became so real and it didn't matter if there was people around me.

But I often think its a symptom of my Depersonalization disorder. So, that could also explain why I do it and probably why I wouldn't care much to get sucked into my head in a social setting... because I'm always in my head.

11-05-2009, 07:52 PM	#1 (permalink)
askWhy Status: SAS Member Join Date: Nov 2009 Gender: Male Posts: 2	Treatment for Excessive Daydreaming Is there anyone here who has an excessive daydreaming problem taken Naltrexone and found that their excessive daydreaming decreased substantially? Naltrexone is not normally given to people as treatment for excessive daydreaming. In fact, as far as I know, medically, not much is known at all about excessive daydreaming period. As I have experienced, doctors really don't know how to diagnosis it. Therefore, I'm just trying to find out if someone may have "stumbled upon" this information on their own. Personally, in my effort to find treatment for excessive daydreaming, I've run through the gauntlet (actually the gauntlet is circular and I'm continuing to run ) I've tried just about every SSRI and ADD / ADHD medicine there is. I've also done extensive neuro-psych testing that shows I do NOT have ADD, schizophrenia, dementia, or any other cognitive impairment. I do of course have mild generalized anxiety issues, and SSRI's have helped to reduce these issues for me. However, no medication I've tried seems to diminish my daydreaming. (I do notice that caffine will increase the intensity/duration of my daydreaming, so I stay decaffinated) After talking to yet another doctor on the phone, the idea of "self regulation" came up. So I researched a a category of psychological disorders similar in nature to excessive daydreaming. Two in particular include internet addiction, and compulsive gambling, (as these) "have unique psychological properties which induce dissociation, time distortion, and instant gratification". (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interne...ction_disorder) Looking further I noticed that these disorders are sucessfully treated with naltrexone and when I looked at the mechanism, and why naltrexone works, it made sense to me intuitively (and I felt I could extend this intuition on to excessive daydreaming as well). Naltrexone was first used as treatment for people who were addicted to heroine. It has also was found to be useful for other addictive substances like alcohol. Even more recent, Naltrexone was found to be effective for Internet Addiction and compulsive gambling. As I experience excessive daydreaming, it feels very much like how Internet Addiction and compulive gambling is described... basically, like an addiction to something that feels good. Therefore, it seems like Naltrexone could potentially help me and I came to this site because I know the topic has been discussed before. With that said... Does anybody have any personal experience about Naltrexone and excessive daydreaming? Any thoughts in general? I would like to test naltrexone out myself, but no doctor will give it to me on account that there is documented way to treat "excessive daydreaming" and they don't want to be be held liable for anything would be considered experiment.

11-06-2009, 02:58 PM	#3 (permalink)
askWhy Status: SAS Member Join Date: Nov 2009 Gender: Male Posts: 2	Hi Moon Calf, In and of itself, "excessive daydreaming" or maladaptive daydreaming has NOT yet considered to be a unique disorder and therefore, of course, there is NO treatment for it. However, there are some doctors who are starting to consider that it there definitely should be a new diagnosis and treatment plan made for it. After all their are hundreds or cases on the internet of people complaining of common symptoms which are significantly different from other similar disorders out there... Finally, as stated above, I believe that there may be good reason for there to be medical research done on the effectiveness / or non-effectiveness of a drug like Naltrexone. This is why I am extremely interested in finding out if anyone, here fits into the following category. You see yourself as an "excessive daydreamer" who does not have ADD or you are someone for whom ADD medications did not help. You were treated with Naltrexone, perhaps for another comorbid condition. (ex Alchololism...) To your surprise, you found that your excessive daydreaming decreased. Right now, it seems that the closest disorder to "excessive daydreaming / binge daydreaming" would be ADD type attention deficit disorder. In general this type of ADD, deals with people who have significant trouble maintaining attention and find their thoughts wandering off no matter how hard they "try" (behaviorly these people, are not hyperactive as they would be if they had ADHD attention deficit hyperactivity disorder). To contrast this to excessive daydreaming / binge daydreaming... Again, rememeber this is still only a theorical term for now... Excessive daydreaming, may or may not be mutually exclusive from ADD. For me it definitely is... The key difference between ADD and excessive daydreaming is that excessive daydreamers seem to binge on daydreaming almost as if it were a drug. The daydreams are often elaborate and have specific themes which are either very exiting and / or meaningful to the daydreamer. The process of daydreaming elicts pleasure, euphoria, and short lived hope. Their is such an intensity, and degree of encaptivation, that time and energy quickly become drained. In effort to maintain or increase the excitedment, happiness, or pleasure an excessive daydreamer will often increase the complexity or the grandiousness of the "story" that they are playing out inside their mind. Finally, to do this kind of intensive daydreaming, excessive daydreamers need to be alone. A social setting would be far to awkward / embarrassing.

11-05-2009, 08:07 PM	#2 (permalink)
Moon Calf Status: SAS Member Join Date: Oct 2009 Age: 29 Posts: 117	I didn't know daydreaming was recognized as a disorder. But, yeah, it's a problem for me as well.

11-12-2009, 01:14 PM	#4 (permalink)
Rydan Status: SAS Member Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Anywhere my mind takes me Gender: Male Posts: 14	Never been treated with any of that stuff. Interesting though. I'm strange about my daydreaming. It helps my creativity. At the same time it sometimes shows up on my face, and I have been asked what was the matter with me. I could get more done with less daydreaming and more actual doing.