Daydreaming allows a student to travel anywhere with just their mind. It may be considered a distraction tool or a means to zone out, but science says that everyone daydreams, all for different reasons.
Mind wandering is a normal state of consciousness, occurring when your attention shifts from external tasks to internal thoughts. Imaginative thoughts become your main focus, diverting you from being present.
“For students who are required to focus for hours at a time, not always on topics of interest, daydreaming is a non-disruptive means of allowing a pause, rest or reset in order to be able to better process new information,” said Christiane Kinseley, a licensed social worker and psychology professor at the university.
For students, it can be hard to focus on an hour-long lecture, making it easy for their minds to wander. Daydreaming may be considered distracting , but it has beneficial outcomes as well. It is proven to reduce stress and anxiety while also increasing problem-solving skills and enhancing creativity.
Kinseley said daydreaming is a “helpful mechanism to help take breaks, consider alternate options, and to inspire creativity in general and problem-solving.”
It is also a way of thinking that brings pleasure and can influence one’s mood. Mind-wandering is exactly that — wandering; it does not follow a straight path.
Mia Ligi, a freshman communication student with a concentration in journalism, said that as someone who has been diagnosed with ADHD, she is prone to small seizures that occur frequently. She claims this could be a sign of her frequent daydreaming episodes. There have been links between ADHD and brain injuries with daydreaming being a constant symptom. Daydreaming has been a part of her daily life and affects her day-to-day moods and activities.
“I think it has its beneficial sides because I can think of how to word things or what I’m going to say in future conversations or situations, and I can daydream about a life I’ve always wished to have,” said Ligi.
Types of daydreaming include thinking about the future, solving challenges and remembering upcoming events, while other types of daydreaming bring up unrealistic scenarios from the past, present and/or future.
Though zoning out is a distraction, it helps push focus to something that might be equally important. Zoning out can help prepare a student for situations that weigh heavily on their mind. Ligi has also experienced the pleasant side of daydreaming, where she creates her own world and situations.
“I typically daydream about anything I could possibly daydream about, a lot of it is of a dream life that I wish I could have or wish I did have,” she said. Most times it’s about love, in a silly, hopeless romantic kind of way.”
Studies have shown a positive correlation between mind wandering about loved ones and positive moods, said Jill Suttie of Great Good Magazine.
Suttie said that daydreaming can also be unhealthy, “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.”
Ligi said daydreaming “creates an unhealthy state of mind, thinking that everything can just go a certain way or that is going to happen, and I think it affects my day and mood completely, it can 100% ruin my day or make my day.”
While you explore new worlds and future ideas in your mind, when snapped back into reality, only a few minutes have gone by.
Miles Carter, a junior esports and digital game management major, said, “It can take a few seconds to a minute or so to realize I zoned out.”
With daydreaming, you are able to venture into new worlds, giving you a break from college life that can be a lot .
“I think it’s a nice way to take a break from reality and find peace in my own mind,” said Carter.
