Discussion Fictional characters

[struggles_inc]

Hey guys! I have a question for you, but first a little story.
As a kid I went through a lot of traumatic experience (bullying, SA) without support from others. However, I managed to find some sort of comfort in fictional stories like movies or literature, and I have developed connections with a few characters I could relate to.

Do you find it weird that I carried it into adulthood? People sometimes get weirded out by my hyperfixations, as if I have an imaginary friend that I should've forgotten.

But the problem is that those characters are in most cases closer than real people.

 

[Abyssal]

No, not weird. I do similar, about they are my own version la of said characters in my own day dreams. I developed it after being ignored as a child by my peers. I've come to believe that so long as I recognize it's all in my head that it's okay, only when I can't tell where life ends and dreams begin is when I'd worry.

 

[Forever Sleep]

I do this too. Actually, I was chatting to @ConfusedHurting2632 in an Offtopic thread about doing this with romantic fictional characters.

But yes- mine started in childhood too as a coping mechanism. I made up a whole load of cartoon characters that would protect me type thing.

In to adulthood, it became more fixations on characters in movies and books that I would embellish and become part of that world. I guess that isn't normal but it's been such a comfort for me. Unfortunately though- it tended to develop into limerence when I focused on guys in real life. It's something I have to be wary of because it easily becomes crazy obsessive for me. Which is especially bad if they are real life people!

 

[doneforlife]

No. It isn't weird. I have literally lived on tv shows. And when it ends , I feel really really lost. I can't even watch any other series for few years. I keep repeating that one series. Recently I have started building characters and their world. When I feel depressed and hopeless, I mentally switch to that world building and disconnect from my real world. It isn't some trauma response, but it helps me in ways nothing else does.