Nightmares

I don’t remember much dreaming. Not sure if it is related to meds. Some dreams are very striking and difficult. I do reflect on them. Sometimes I am unsure for a while whether they are dreaming or real life. So that is hard. Do you have anyone to share them with?@Ed1975

• Yes @Appleblossom

It takes me some time to become aware it's not real. I have a recurring nightmare

I woke up and thought it had happened.

I'm not on any meds.

I do @Ed1975 most nights. I am on medication though and it does help. They aren’t quite as bad. It definitely interrupts my sleep though. Over time I have not a bit better at being able to resettle myself and get back to sleep again.

That is heavy going @Ed1975 for the time you are supposed to be resting and regaining energy. Not easy to re-orient.

I am not recommending meds, just aware that my dreaming has reduced, but still happens. I studied psychoanalysis back in the day, so am reflective about the “need” for dreams to help the unconscious work through its stuff. So no dreams is not optimal. I see it as, them sending messages about dealing with unprocessed trauma. Do a little research, become the expert on your life. Getting trauma therapy may help, but in my understanding, it will be you doing the work that matters. Go gently on yourself when you have those dreams, but maybe acknowledge they are your beings best way to deal with hard truths you have experienced.

In my dreams, I may have to deal with content that is very boring mundane but the feeling is totally wired and overwhelming. It’s how I know its trauma related. The unconscious does weird stuff, but it is worth learning about. It’s a mechanism of bringing the unconscious into consciousness. As it happens and we integrate it into our feelings and intuition, we may regain suppressed energy, and the high trauma stuff reduces.

@Ed1975 vivid nightmares yes. They're a whole body experience and sometimes, I just wake up scared for apparently no reason.

I've been having them since I was a teenager. I generally don't feel safe in the dark.

Yes, related to my past vivid images of the people involved... it is literally terrifying like it's all fresh in my mind again

Yes I do @Ed1975. Virtually everyone with PTSD will have nightmares mostly very vivid, it's one of the diagnostic criteria for PTSD. I often take a while to work out if what I just dreamt about has just happened in real life. But many of mine are about stuff that actually happened.

@NightFury me either. The dark holds some terrible memories for me.

@Till23 yes, some of mine are too. That's why I think I wake up and don't know if it was real or not. They're interwoven with each other.

I get them too. Either super bad dreams with awful scenarios with loved ones suffering and I’m unable to protect them or similar or full blown nightmares but they mostly happened back when I was experiencing flash backs during the daytime too,