When I was in middle school, I started having these strangely detailed daydreams about imaginary characters. I didn't think they were bad because they made me all-around happier when I would stop daydreaming a few minutes later, but that soon changed. Whenever I had free time, I would daydream, pretty much everywhere. When I'm alone at home in my room, I would pace while looking at the floor for a while (up to and hour and a half was the longest time I can remember). When something bad happened in my imaginary world, I felt mad/sad about it and it carried into real life. I did research. The difference between schizophrenia and my daydreaming is the fact that I can differentiate daydreaming from the real world. Then I discovered something called "Maladaptive Daydreaming", but even then, I couldn't self-diagnose myself without seeing a therapist, and I didn't know if I just had a very vivid imagination. My daydreaming shows no signs of going away. I quite enjoy daydreaming, and I don't want this "excessive daydreaming" to leave, even if I had the option of ridding myself of it. But it's interfering with real life, and I can't do anything without slipping into another daydream. I have problems paying attention, and it's caused my grades to slip. I worry my mom won't know what to think of my daydreaming, and I'm really scared that this is just a symptom of something bigger that I might have. Should I tell my mom and seek help from a therapist, or is this nothing to be afraid of?
Read more: Excessive/uncontrollable daydreaming?