Reddit reviews Returning to Reality: How to Stop Maladaptive Daydreaming

> Do we know what causes it? Is it associated with childhood trauma, etc.?

We don't know what exactly causes the condition. This article cites that Dr. Somer (whom I'll mention more about down below) drew a connection with trauma (in a paper he published on MD), since his six-subject cohort had all been sexually abused as children.

> Is any treatment in particular considered optimal?

Therapy. This can help identify the triggers and underlying causes of maladaptive daydreaming. Therapeutic techniques such as cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) may help expose underlying issues. A therapist might also suggest useful coping techniques.

A case study of one individual with maladaptive daydreaming showed that fluvoxamine (commonly used to help treat OCD) was helpful in managing daydreaming. However, there is currently little research to support the use of drug treatments.

> Is there any especially popular book/website/video(s) about it?

This buzzfeed article is centred around the recount of a woman with MD (published October 2017)

While I haven't read it, this book seems to have been received fairly well by those who have

This video by a clinically licensed therapist talks about MD in comparison to Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID)

> Is there anyone who is generally considered the lead expert in regards to this phenomenon?

Dr. Eli Somer, a professor of clinical psychology at the University of Haifa in Israel, first identified the condition in 2002. He described it as "a disorder where people spend about 60 percent of their waking life in a self-designed imaginary world".

He did an AMA on this subreddit last October

Hope this helped!

This is called "Rubber Band Technique", as given in one of these books

Freedom from Maladaptive Daydreaming: Self-Help Strategies for Excessive and Compulsive Fantasizing

Returning to Reality: How to Stop Maladaptive Daydreaming

I hope this method works for you :)