Looking for advice on maladaptive daydreaming and cotards syndrome
I’ve been told by many therapists since age 12 that I show signs of both cotards syndrome and delusions surrounding daydreaming.
its gotten a lot worse over the years and I feel like I spend every moment of my life elsewhere believing I’m dead, and living off in another reality somewhere, therefore nothing I do has any meaning or consequences… leading me to make some terrible choices in my life.
i briefly come back into reality almost everyday and when I do I am overwhelmed with such intense anxiety I struggle to breathe.
does anyone else suffer with anything like this? I’ve never met anyone who believes they are already dead but i need someone who understands to talk about this with and unfortunately cannot afford professional help.
@Elenatano
It sounds incredibly difficult to be experiencing something as intense and overwhelming as what you're going through. While I don't have Cotard's syndrome or similar delusions, I can definitely listen and be here for you if you want to talk more about what you're feeling. It must be so exhausting to feel disconnected from reality like that, especially when anxiety kicks in during those moments of clarity. You're not alone, even if it feels that way, and while I may not fully understand your exact experience, I'm here to support you however I can. Sometimes, just having someone listen can make a difference.❤️
@Elenatano What could happen if you treat your 'delusions' as the other reality that only you can see? Let's imagine for a moment that you are living a life A (this is the 'somewhere' you were taking about) and a life B (born as a human, here on planet Earth). Let's assume that your 'life B' is a kind of a simulation, a computer game or a test, in which your mind's attitudes, capabilities and intentions are checked. In such a case your wrongdoings or carelessness would be far from being harmless - because they destroy your path in 'life A'. What would you think about seeing your everyday life like that?
@Elenatano Actually, your thoughts are similar to the deepest dilemmas considered by the philosophers through the ages: 'What if by thinking that you are alive you are just dreaming, and you really wake up after you think you died?". It is also a kind of a mirror paradox: "Which of the worlds is real: ours, or that one in the mirror?".
Today's life is standarization. We tend to give labels to people who are just a little bit different than average, call them ill and try to 'cure' them.
I've heard that native Americans (Indians) were very respectful towards people whom primitive 'science' of today would call insane - because they believed those are the chosen ones, who can see another dimensions.
Also, I've heard about some Muslim people believing that 'depression' is not an illness to be cured, but understanding the nature of this world, with all its good and bad aspects.
Maybe some psychologists would call such observations 'schizotypical', but what if they are wrong?...
