Daydreaming is a series of pleasant thoughts that distract a person attention from the present. We all have been victims of daydreaming since we were little kids. We still like to daydream whenever we get time because during this process we think about all the things we desire.
It is a state between waking and sleeping where we have the ability to think rationally and logically. Freudian psychologists postulate that daydreams are a result of repressed instincts just like our night dreams. Our daydreams are quite vivid and pleasurable. Daydreaming can take about a minute to as long as you want. Any person can daydream for as long as they wish but we will suggest to not give yourself completely in daydreaming as it can also be bad. Do you think daydreaming can be bad? Is daydreaming a good thing?
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We will discuss if daydreaming is good or bad later but there are a few interesting facts about daydreaming that we thought you would like to know. Here are some of them.
#1. We day dream less as we grow older. When we are young, we fantasize about our future more but as we grow up the amount of time we spend daydreaming decreases because we are somewhat close to reality.
#2. When we daydream, we often forget what we were doing. Daydreaming is a fantasy world we create which makes us forget our real life for the time. It is like an escape from reality.
#3. Daydreaming affects our brain. When a person daydreams, the other parts of the brain gets turned off. There are two major parts – analytic and empathetic. Analytic is responsible for logic and reasoning while empathetically is responsible for emotions. When we solve a complex issue, our empathetic part of the brain turns off. But when we daydream both the parts tend to turn each other off.
#4. Our brain controls our daydreams and not our mind. Though the mind is an abstract term, it is related to the brain. The structure of our brain changes when our mind learns something new and that change in the brain structure determine our daydreams.
#5. Daydreaming makes us creative. When we imagine things, our brain acquires information from areas that were out of reach.
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Now that we have known some interesting facts about daydreaming let us consider the negative effects of daydreaming.
#1. You Lose Focus
When you daydream for too long, you lose focus on the things you that are important for you. Daydreaming at work can make you less productive. The more time you will spend daydreaming, the less you will work. And it is not that your focus from work will be lost only when you are daydreaming but also when you have stopped. Daydreaming is a pleasurable activity and we often get distracted by something that gives us joy.
#2. Mental Health Is Affected
Not all the people daydream about something that gives them joy. Some people daydream about things that give them pain. A lot of people are masochists who seek pleasure in their sorrows and pain. A person who is suicidal, they may daydream about life after death or how can they die. Daydreaming about death will enforce their decision to die which should not happen. Daydreaming, in this case, is harmful.
#3. Expectations
When you daydream about something you cannot achieve, then you are giving fire to your expectations. If you cannot achieve your desired goal and if it is far away from your reach, then you should control daydreaming. Very often we daydream about things we cannot have because we feel that at least we can think about them and seek the pleasure from the thought of having it but when we turn back to reality, we are disappointed. We are disappointed because we still cannot have it. Daydreaming can make you expect unnecessarily which is harmful to a lot of people who cannot handle the disappointment well.
While those were the negative consequences, let's explore the positives of daydreaming!
#1. Relaxed Mind
Daydreaming relaxes your mind. When you daydream, you are actually taking a break from the stressful work, and therefore all your tensions are released during that time. You stay fresh and renewed after you have a daydream. Often, our minds need a little break from the work to complete that work efficiently. When you return from a break, you are able to work faster with a fresh mind and ideas. Sometimes work can exhaust us to the point that it stops us from working any longer so daydream if you want to free your mind.
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#2. Conflict Resolver
Daydreaming is the visualization of the things that we want to achieve or something that has happened already, but you wanted it differently. So when you daydream about a certain conflict, you will have answers through visualization. You will imagine the possible ways of resolving the conflicts, and after you are done daydreaming, you have a solution in your mind to resolve the conflict. You will visualize various scenarios and how you will react to them, which will then prepare you for future worst case scenario.
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#3. Relationships
When you daydream about someone special in your life, you understand their importance and value in your life. Daydreaming about spending time with them can make your relationship with that person healthier as you will be keen on meeting them after you have dreamt of them. You may daydream about the times you were together which makes you happy and you will realize how much you love them. This way you will also realize that how much time you have been away. If there is a friend that has been away from you for long you will try to catch up with them and thus it will strengthen your relationship even more.
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#4. Encouragement
Daydream will keep you motivated to work towards your goal. When you daydream about the goals you want to achieve, then you will work harder for it. Your daydreams will encourage you to take a step and achieve success. When you daydream about a goal, you think about how that goal will give you immense happiness and how it will change your life. These emotions will help you feel better about your decisions and goals. When you feel good about them, you will have a stronger desire to achieve them.
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#5. Positivity
When you daydream about things you want to achieve, it gives you positive vibes to compete for it. You become positive about the idea and positivity will lead to ultimate success. It is a proven fact that when we think about something that we want to have in our lives every day we always get it. So think positively, and everything will fall right in its place. You start looking at things from a positive perspective. No negative comments about you or your work affect you anymore because you are confident about your decision. Daydreaming about your goals and the direction will help you make a better decision, and a better decision will give best results.
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#6. Memory
Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Science and the University of Wisconsin conducted research that proved daydreaming can enhance memory. When a person daydreams, s/he recalls previous incidents and memory. This improves the ability to recall previous memories as daydreaming emphasizes our memory.
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#7. Ability To Reflect
When a person daydreams they are thinking about everything has happened in their day, so this gives them an opportunity to reflect on their life and their life decisions. Daydreaming gives the person an insight into his/her life. Once you have recollected all that has happened, you can start assessing it. You can assess yourself. You can think about the qualities you need to have and the vices you need to get rid of. You can contemplate about your work conditions, your relationships. Once you know the situation perfectly you can find solutions to change them.
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#8. Creativity
We have discussed in the interesting facts about daydreaming section that it makes a person creative. When you leave everything you are working on, and you start daydreaming, you are empowering your imagination and creativity. Our brain tends to turn off the analytic and empathetic part leaving all the focus on the pure imagination and fantasy. When your focus is on how things could have been or how they should be, then the creativity level increases. Creativity comes from vivid thoughts and daydreaming is visual thought. So, a person must daydream in order to be creative.
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We have found more positives of daydreaming than the negatives. It is up to you to decide if you want the best of daydreaming or the worst. Id\f you have anything to share with us about daydreaming then leave a comment below.
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