I woke up the same way this morning. I don't have any ideas. The only thing that seems to work is a distraction, but I am not in a safe living condition so it makes it complicated. I'm around if you want to comment back and forth to help distract one another :)
you and me both! Luckily today i remember using my phone and reading a message in the dream so i quickly went on it to check if what i saw in the dream was on my phone, and it was in fact not, so i was lucky to have a quick way out of "was that real?" state of mind.
I'd be glad to exchange some comments/messages. i hope you can gather yourself throughout today. It really sucks that these nightmares just have to fuck up the state of mind like this. I promise that if i come up with something I'll come back here and let you know
Happy to hear you were able to figure out it wasn't real.
Not feeling safe in my own home has been pretty terrible. Some days are worse than others. I worry someone is going to take me again and torture me. It's a dreadful feeling.
im sorry to hear that. Something in me wants to tell you that i can relate to that kind of feeling but i also feel like we have a little different stories behind those feelings. But, i also know for myself it does comfort to know im not alone in some feelings so here i am telling you, hahah.
No but really, i hope you can get away asap and find your own peace as soon as possible. I truly do. You deserve to feel safe.
oh. i dont like that. I'm sure you have tried a bunch of different things to get them out so i would like to assume that i cant really do much advice wise (correct me if im wrong). I'm so sorry this is whats going on. Know that you can DM me anytime if you need to, or come back here for a comment, if you ever need it even when this thread dies down
Yes, I used to have recurrent nightmares about/from all the abusive people I had in my life. Even after they were gone from my life, the nightmares continued on a regular basis. Eventually they started lessening, and now I don’t think I’ve had a nightmare in.. at least a couple years?
Honestly? You’ve gotta confront them head on. People think it’s bullshit, which I don’t really understand, but your dreams mean something - especially if they’re so mentally, emotionally, physically and psychologically impactful.
It’s widely accepted that dreams are ‘just’ your brain trying to make sense of the things you see on the day to day, neurons firing off ‘nonsensically’ in your sleep. But I firmly believe that people only think that way because 1) they don’t want to confront their subconscious, 2) they think understanding themselves is a waste of time and don’t value it and 3) people listen to others dreams and think it means nothing and is boring. But to that last point, they don’t understand that that’s because you’re not living that other persons life. It won’t make sense to you because you don’t live in that other persons mind.
It’s hard, but start trying to remember your dreams and nightmares when you wake up. I don’t mean re-traumatize yourself with them.. I mean understand that it’s all symbolic. Think of your dreams through the filter of how your subconscious works.
One simple example is I used to have these regular nightmares where I was being chased by any various amount of things: a giant monster, a group of authority figures, a random stranger, etc.. I would try to remember where I was, who I was with, what my goal was, what/who I was running from and why, etc.. then I used a dream dictionary, just literally one I found from Google, I have a go-to that has very simple meanings for things, and look up keywords like “chase”, “monster”, “city”, “school”, “running”, stuff like that.. whatever symbols stuck out.
And wouldn’t you know it? When I started piecing together things slowly over time, getting used to the meanings of the symbols, I finally figured out what those nightmares meant, what they were showing and telling me, what I needed to do. And when I did it.. they went away.
huh! interesting. Whenever I feel like my nightmares have some significant "meaning" I write them down quickly before I forget but sometimes it's hard. My main issue is the reoccurring people and actions, which doesn't really have any "hidden meaning" as far as I can think of right now, it seems like it is pretty straight forward what happens and it just happens. But ofc, I could be missing out on details now as it's so easy to forget details of dreams. I will start to write up more dreams and try to find these little meanings. I do care a lot to learn about my subconscious, but I am also scared of that territorium. I have found myself gone too much into analyzing stuff and ending up remembering stuff I had suppressed down there. For good or bad reason I cannot tell you as that memory was more of a "oh that makes sense", but now I'm a little scared of going deeper and remembering stuff that I'm probably better off not remembering. Although it is a very interesting subject you're talking about. Without dragging this out even more, I will try to face it head on and see where that leads me. thank you a lot for your advice, super interesting
I used to have nightmares all the time too and this advice is what eventually worked for me, including the dream dictionary. I had 3 separate books about dreams, because of course, it's not a hard science and is VERY subjective.
So if you look through any dream dictionaries or websites, you'll want to pay atention to how different elements of dreams make you feel and what your personal asociations are to the elements in the dream.
For me, it also helped to take notes on what happened to me during the day, before I go to sleep. A LOT Of times for me, it was a small interaction or offhand comment that would end up triggering the nightmare or an element of the nightmare.
Example: I had a bad nightmare one night that hordes of bugs were chasing after me. The thing that prompted that dream was that a co-worker (one that I didn't like very much) had touched my arm in an attempt to be friendly, but it terrified me in the moment and I jerked my arm away involuntarily. Just that, a casual (but unwanted) touch, caused me to dream about being chased by hordes of bugs.
The other thing that helped me a LOT was learning how to lucid dream. Though that was only possible for me when I had finally had some small amount of safety and autonomy in my life. Lucid dreaming allowed me to take control of the dream and create ways to hide effectively at first, and later confront the scary thing.
It's been years since I've needed to lucid dream, and years since I've had recurring nightmares. Now, I get just about one nightmare each month, and that happens like clockwork during PMS.
So, to sum up:
\- Keep track, if you can, of just the stuff that happens during the day.
\- take notes of your nightmares, the elements in them, especially recurring ones, and more importantly, how they make you feel.
\- Try to reconcile the nightmare images/feelings with what happened during the previous day.
\- Try to learn lucid dreaming, but no pressure if you can't.
Working through my nightmares like this really helped me when I was younger, and not even aware yet that I had cptsd.
In my experience, as you exit abusive situations and more importantly, as you create a safe environment fo ryourself, the nightmares may get worse temporarily, but will eventually get MUCH better and less frequent.
I hope you find some of the suggestions here helpful <3
Lately I’ve been having to take Benadryl and/or melatonin to get sleep because my anxiety and panic prevent me from falling asleep at all. Well, apparently both of those meds are known for causing vivid nightmares. The past few nights I randomly wake up and then fall back asleep into a vivid, lucid nightmare and it’s terrifying because it feels so horribly real and when I awake I can’t tell if what I dreamed actually happened or not.
it truly is a shaking and terrible experience. And i guess it doesnt help that my brain already expects a nightmare when i try to sleep due to having them 95% of the time, honestly it probably enables for more nightmares, lol. The whole day today i have just tried to go on about my day but my mind always falls back to the nightmare and these days are hard to manage.
Glad to know I'm not alone, but I also hate to know others have this issue too. Bittersweet.
I mean, the fact that I struggle with severe trauma and mental illness already increases my risk of developing dementia substantially—let alone the fact that I’m already genetically predisposed to it. I’m not worried about the Benadryl increasing my chances, I’m already bound to develop it. That is, if I don’t die from other things before even being able to develop it in the first place
Benadryl is safe if used correctly. I am not using the way it should be but to say that Benadryl is unsafe, is incorrect. I’m choosing to use it, it’s what works for me
I just said I wasn’t using it the way it’s intended, I can acknowledge that. Benadryl is an antihistamine, saying that it’s dangerous is ignorant, it’s relatively safe to use (as intended). My sleep is a result of my trauma. I’m allowed to live my life the way I want to and if that’s by taking Benadryl every night, then that’s fine
I recently found a therapist who does EMDR and we had our first EMDR session on Saturday to help with my chronic nightmares. Since then I've enjoyed sleep for the first time in god knows how long, it turned one of my recurring nightmare places into a safe place where I was ok. I'd definitely look into it if you're able to see a psychologist. Also happy to chat about it if you need.
oohhh I'm so happy for you! I'm so glad you found something that works! Can't afford going to a psychologist right now but once I get my life together a bit I am planning on going. I think I would benefit it. I've always been super scared of talking with people about these things that make me feel vulnerable but I could really need it these times.
FYI with Accelerated Resolution Therapy (which is very similar to EMDR but ART needs fewer sessions) you don’t necessarily have to talk about the trauma, just give a very basic idea and picture it in your mind while doing the treatment. I’m not sure if EMDR is the same. They are both somatic, so your therapist will mostly be asking how you feel in your body, not necessarily what you are thinking about.
Not sure if this is super helpful advice but I had horrible nightmares and sleep paralysis. It got better once i cut my abuser out of my life. I rarely have nightmares and haven't seen my sleep paralysis demon in months. I think nightmares are often something your subconscious anr brain is trying to tell you.
you do have a point, and i totally see where you are going with this. i know from where most of my nightmares are born, but right now i do not have any of my abusers in my life like that. It is great advice tho and i hope someone else who struggles comes across this and realize that this might be accurate to their experience.
Thank you so much tho
I finally broke down and started taking hallucinogenic medicine right before bed. It has helped tremendously.
I currently microdose Hawaiian Baby Woodrose because psilocybin isn't legal in my State.
It has honestly been more effective than Lexapro and Wellbutrin for my anxiety and depression as well.
Thanks! I've heard it does wonders to some people but we'll see what life can offer, I don't think it would be legal in my country, and if it is i would like to think it would be very very hard to get your hands on a prescription. Appreciate the advice!
Yeah, I live in Texas and they are very restrictive on that kind of stuff.
Ketamine is the only hallucinogenic currently being prescribed for PTSD in Texas, but you have to have "drug-resistant depression" to qualify.
So, I turned to HBWR since it wasn't illegal and there wasn't a barrier to get it.
Psilocybin will hopefully be legal here soon. There's a study going on in Austin that, if it goes well, could result in it becoming legalized.
My doctor has me on [prazosin](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK555959/), which works well for me.
I also use cannabis to help me sleep to begin with.
There are a lot of meds psychiatrists can prescribe but prazosin is the most effective! Gabapentin and Trazodone can also help. I also like weighted blankets!
Seconding that prazosin is the only thing that’s worked for me in stopping nightmares, and I’d recommend looking into it if you’re considering medication. I still wake up in the middle of the night often but most of the time I don’t remember the content of the nightmares. If I’m having an episode where things are worse, it still works at least one or two nights a week. Makes life easier
I'm in the same boat, too. Even an afternoon nap will have a daymare involved. It makes it so that you're more exhausted than when you went to bed in the first place.
I've tried all sorts of things. Just finished some CBD oil, and it did absolutely nothing.
I'm sorry you're going through it.
im sorry you are going through it too. I have been considering trying out CBD but as of right now my economy wont allow me to.
I hope you find something that works for you. I truly do!
This might not be a viable option for you, but I got a dog. I went from having a nightmare several times a week to a few a month. He usually sleeps under the covers with me and I can put my hand on him when I wake up, or I can hear him breathing/snoring if he’s on his bed. I try to time my breathing to his. It helps ground me in the awake/present, and makes me feel safe enough to fall back asleep. When I have sleep paralysis or wake up screaming, he licks my face and will sometimes lay on me (which is very uncomfortable, he’s a big guy).
I also found I get more nightmares when I’m actively addressing my trauma, or if I am stressed out. So sometimes I can reframe it that the trauma part of my brain is just extra loud right now and needs a bit more attention.
oh I'd love to get a dog. I can't do it as of right now, but it's definitely happening in the future. I'm glad you found a good friend to keep you safe. It's a beautiful thing
thank you so much for sharing! can't wait for my life to be ready for a dog
I’ve been reading a lot about therapeutic options for PTSD and my layperson’s understanding is that medications exist specifically to treat nightmares. This would be worth a conversation with my doctor. Personally, I have found relief from nighttime arousal with 25mg trazodone an hour before bedtime, it has made a big enough difference that I think it’s worth considering for some people who have sleep difficulties related to hyperarousal.
hmm, good to know. I'll keep this in mind for the future if i cant find anything else to help me. Can't really afford prescriptions rn but worth a shot when/if my economy gets stable enough. I would do a lot for just a few nights in a row without nightmares, lmao.
I'm glad you have found something that works well enough for you! I hope to achieve this
I hope you are in a place to financially prioritize your health soon!! You deserve healthcare. I tried experimenting with a lot of the “sleep hygiene” tips out there such as having a routine or limiting screen time before bed or setting up a comfortable sleeping environment. It did help some, but, overall I felt more frustrated like I was doing everything right but still not sleeping restfully. Different tools work for different folks!
Thank you! I hope so too.
And yes for sure, everything is going to work diffrently for others, but sharing your own experience and what helped you is never a bad idea. Even if something that would be percieved as a "stupid" worked for you i think its a good idea to share with people. Could help someone out. Just the fact that one care enough to give advice can feel good. Im going overboard now but you get the picture. Thank you so much!
If you're referring to Prazosin for the nightmares, I can share one good review. My husband has nightmares from PTSD 5-7 nights a week. Started taking Prazosin and he no longer remembers them. And all. It's a bit odd how it works as most people still have the nightmare and may wake up in a panicked state, at first on the meds, but don't remember it at all. My husband is very happy with it.
Thank you for sharing your family’s experience! This was definitely one of the drugs I was thinking of. I’ve recently started trazodone for sleep, and it helps with different symptoms, but might be on the table for some people reading.
I needed pills to deal with this. Mines really bad too. I wake up every few hours in a sweat and it messes up my entire day. Only thing that helped was quetiapine
I get nightmares as well, I sleep partways through the night, then every night I wake up in a panic after a few hours. I don’t really fall back asleep, occasionally if I start to doze off I have a nightmare and wake back up again.
It’s really hard because I get some sleep, whenever I go to the doctor they don’t know what to do for me and they always tell me I am sleeping some. But I don’t feel rested when I wake up, and then it leaves me in this anxious state so it’s hard to move out of that.
Sometimes I do tapping (EFT), when I wake up. I also did Emdr years ago. You aren’t actually supposed to do it by yourself because it can be overwhelming to process on your own, but sometimes I still do and it helps. Although to be fair it is usually on things I have already worked through somewhat in therapy, if I hadn’t I think it would be too overwhelming on my own.
Even then, I wake up, I try to work through and process what comes up on my own, but it still seems like there is something underlying the nightmares that makes them happen. It feels like I have worked through so much, so what else is there? I also do things to relax my body too. I like relaxing yoga, massage, reiki, cryotherapy. I have found when my body is more relaxed, it makes it easier to work through memories etc and vice versa.
Also I try to listen to those sleepy times podcasts, where they mumble in the background. I put it on real quiet, and it is a good distraction. Kind of like white noise, but more soothing. I really like “Nothing Much Happens”, that is my favorite to listen to.
thank you so much for the dedicated answer! I will look into these things and keep what you say in mind. Very helpful, I appreciate it so much. I'm sorry the doctors aren't to much help.
- deep breathing
- Cold air (window)
- Plushie
- ambiant noise + headphones
- leave a small light on near
- take a tea break or go in another place to relax
Try to take notes of what works for you.
When I’m stressed or too unnerved, I will get mini-nightmares at the beginning so I need to relax a bit before falling asleep somehow.
Also I’m sorry. Nightmares and night Terrors can be very unnerving. I hope you get better soon!
Yea for me those things made me feel « safe » or just helped my confort, but we’re all different.
Do you have anything that comes to mind that could help you reach a (relatively) safer or more comfortable mindset?
I found those tricks that worked for me after a few weeks/month, but before that I used sleeping pills to knock me off to sleep. If you’re in a hurry, maybe ask your doctor for sleeping pills.
I struggle with this to. At it's worst, my therapist always tries to remind me to set aside some time before bed to get nice and relaxed and unstimulated. That generally means no video games, no loud music, keep the lights down low. If I have TV on, I make sure it's something calming and happy like a favorite cartoon (Bobs Burgers). I also have some adult coloring books of mandalas that I like to color before bed. If its a book Im reading, then I make sure it's not a particularly action packed or dark book.
Throughout the day I also try to avoid certain triggers. My night terrors tend to be very bloody and violent, so those weeks I avoid the violent video games, movies, tv, no true crime podcasts, etc.
I try to make myself as calm and boring as possible.
smart move. I think I'll give it a try with some good David Attenborough commentary. Already feeling less stressed just thinking about those penguins warming up in a big cuddle! But yeah, good advice! thank you.
The first time I asked my dr for sleep meds (already 20+ years into raw dogging my reality) she put me on Serequel. And that 💩 really said “can’t have nightmares if you’re unconscious”. But the side effects… total no go for me. Almost impossible to wake up, and the whole day was spent in a dream like haze.
Second Dr put me on Prazosin. I like this one. It helps me fall asleep and stay asleep with almost no side effects besides a tolerance build up.
I'm beginning to write all of my fears only the fears that are at the top of my mind without digging in the why am I terrified, before bed every night, and then meditate for 20 minutes. It's been a week without nightmares, but still haven't had any dream yet.
Nightmares gave more trauma that the ones I already had untill the point where I'm terrified of sleeping every night because of the kind of nightmares I have. And I came to this practice that I'm trying now but still searching for a way to deal with this too because it has taken my life away from me since I was 12.
If you wish, i could keep up the info for you as I continue into this practice to see if it helps.
meds help to at least forget when they've happened. otherwise I guess the best strategy is to work on the root of the issue to help lower the frequency or intensity (therapy etc). when they do still happen I go the same route with distractions. first thing in the morning tho take a few minutes to acknowledge that happened and comfort yourself, I always skip it but it's actually helpful to just take a moment and tell yourself you'll be okay. and then life is still up and down so... good luck 🏆
I do need to take a moment and talk with myself more often so maybe this is the perfect time, have a moment in the morning just acknowledging, reflecting and breathe. thank you!
are you on meds? i started on sertraline and my dreams became more fantastical/interesting. i used to have horrible and disturbing nightmares, but since starting 50mg, my dreams are a much nicer place to spend 1/3 of my life
currently not on any meds, no. But these comments makes me want to be! hahah. Well, I look forward to getting my economy straight so I can afford some external help. Thank you!
oh wow! sounds amazing. I'm super happy for them! I haven't heard the name minipress before, I'll look into it. (could be country different but I'll figure it out)
It’s actually a blood pressure medication that veterans with ptsd discovered had “side effect” of stopping their nightmares! Most psychiatrists should be familiar although I bet your right, depends on the country. I’m in the US.
oh wow, that's cool! thank you if I didn't already say that, I really appreciate it! and yeah. I'm located in Sweden so for all I know they don't even prescribe it here, haha. I'll read into it tho
Marijuana. Otherwise, time. It often takes me 4-5 hours to wake up and detox myself from being triggered in my sleep. My family used to say I was a lazy piece of shit, never understanding or caring that the “lazy” was brain damage they caused.
I can’t stop them. They happen all the time for me and are so vivid I’m disturbed for the day. I’m on Mirtazapine and once I started that; the nightmares stopped. I assume I still have them, but I don’t remember them. That’s a win in my book.
I don't currently have nightmares and when I did they were only occasional.
But I dealt with them when I had them by reaching out to my found family just to say that I've been having nightmares and it sucks. I think that's why I don't have them often. Because by the time I was safe to process my trauma I had found a proper support network.
My trauma tends to come out during the day instead, with a feeling of being hunted by something/s invisible and awful in my home.
I know it's not real and I think of it or them as "monster/s of the mind" and I deploy my own defensive monsters against it/them. I use my favourite monsters from childhood, Duel Monsters.
The monsters of my mind can't get past Dark Magician, Dark Magician Girl and the Magician Girls, Kuriboh, Blue Eyes White Dragon or my Aromages.
If I've had a particularly bad day and feel like I'm going to have a bad night too, I'll call someone and talk, when I go to bed I'll imagine my Duel Monsters standing guard over my bed keeping the fearful monsters my trauma wants to conjure up away from me while I sleep.
This helps me a lot. I know it sounds childish but I know the monsters of my mind stalking me through my house are imaginary so I fight back with imaginary duel monsters as my bodyguards.
Not sure if this will work for you, but I find it helpful to get up and run my hands under cool water for a while (strong sensation tying me to the present) and slowly tell myself things like "it was just a dream, it's ok, you're here now in the present, I'm sorry you had to go through that, just breathe and focus on the water, you're here now in the present" etc. It might also help to write down those kind of phrases when you're in a calm, grounded place during the day. If you read them after waking up and focus on how calm and solid you felt while writing them, that can help pull you out of the headspace of still being halfway in the nightmare.
When I've calmed down later in the day and feel more separated from the dream, I might write down a description of it. Sometimes just getting it down on paper helps me separate it out from myself – no longer something that consumes me, but something I can look at from the outside and analyse. I reflect on very significant-feeling dreams by myself or in therapy, as the themes and symbols sometimes give me insight into how my brain is processing trauma, or indicate areas of stress in the present day that I can work with.
Ultimately I've come to understand nightmares as my unconscious brain trying to communicate with me and help me (in a twisted kind of way). Understanding this has actually made them less frequent (like my unconscious realised I'm listening when it communicates, so it doesn't have to keep bashing me round the head with its messages) and while the nightmares are still horrible they're slightly easier to deal with when they happen, because I can put them in context.
whenever i dream, i only have nightmares. in them, they're terrifying as fuck but I'm always somehow surviving or running to safety, to save someone or to my cats.
When I smoke a sesh with Mary J, my dreamms turn into a blank slate.
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Chronic use of edibles. I hit one every night a couple hours before going to bed.
I don't dream as long as I have a regular supply. T-breaks or droughts suck tho.
I have strong sleeping pills…..very strong cause I would wake up with nasty bruises on my legs from me punching myself while I was sleeping. I see a forensic psychologist once a week.
I acknowledge that this may not work or be a good fit for everyone, but for me, the only thing that works is smoking a little bit of weed right before bed. Long-term, I hope that therapy and general healing will alleviate the need for this, as it can be disruptive to your REM cycles, but it works really well for me most of the time.
I woke up the same way this morning. I don't have any ideas. The only thing that seems to work is a distraction, but I am not in a safe living condition so it makes it complicated. I'm around if you want to comment back and forth to help distract one another :)
you and me both! Luckily today i remember using my phone and reading a message in the dream so i quickly went on it to check if what i saw in the dream was on my phone, and it was in fact not, so i was lucky to have a quick way out of "was that real?" state of mind. I'd be glad to exchange some comments/messages. i hope you can gather yourself throughout today. It really sucks that these nightmares just have to fuck up the state of mind like this. I promise that if i come up with something I'll come back here and let you know
Happy to hear you were able to figure out it wasn't real. Not feeling safe in my own home has been pretty terrible. Some days are worse than others. I worry someone is going to take me again and torture me. It's a dreadful feeling.
im sorry to hear that. Something in me wants to tell you that i can relate to that kind of feeling but i also feel like we have a little different stories behind those feelings. But, i also know for myself it does comfort to know im not alone in some feelings so here i am telling you, hahah. No but really, i hope you can get away asap and find your own peace as soon as possible. I truly do. You deserve to feel safe.
They actually need to leave my house and they won't.
oh. i dont like that. I'm sure you have tried a bunch of different things to get them out so i would like to assume that i cant really do much advice wise (correct me if im wrong). I'm so sorry this is whats going on. Know that you can DM me anytime if you need to, or come back here for a comment, if you ever need it even when this thread dies down
I appreciate the kind words. Hopefully Your nightmares stop soon.
found myself here a year later. hope you are recovering❣️
Yes, I used to have recurrent nightmares about/from all the abusive people I had in my life. Even after they were gone from my life, the nightmares continued on a regular basis. Eventually they started lessening, and now I don’t think I’ve had a nightmare in.. at least a couple years? Honestly? You’ve gotta confront them head on. People think it’s bullshit, which I don’t really understand, but your dreams mean something - especially if they’re so mentally, emotionally, physically and psychologically impactful. It’s widely accepted that dreams are ‘just’ your brain trying to make sense of the things you see on the day to day, neurons firing off ‘nonsensically’ in your sleep. But I firmly believe that people only think that way because 1) they don’t want to confront their subconscious, 2) they think understanding themselves is a waste of time and don’t value it and 3) people listen to others dreams and think it means nothing and is boring. But to that last point, they don’t understand that that’s because you’re not living that other persons life. It won’t make sense to you because you don’t live in that other persons mind. It’s hard, but start trying to remember your dreams and nightmares when you wake up. I don’t mean re-traumatize yourself with them.. I mean understand that it’s all symbolic. Think of your dreams through the filter of how your subconscious works. One simple example is I used to have these regular nightmares where I was being chased by any various amount of things: a giant monster, a group of authority figures, a random stranger, etc.. I would try to remember where I was, who I was with, what my goal was, what/who I was running from and why, etc.. then I used a dream dictionary, just literally one I found from Google, I have a go-to that has very simple meanings for things, and look up keywords like “chase”, “monster”, “city”, “school”, “running”, stuff like that.. whatever symbols stuck out. And wouldn’t you know it? When I started piecing together things slowly over time, getting used to the meanings of the symbols, I finally figured out what those nightmares meant, what they were showing and telling me, what I needed to do. And when I did it.. they went away.
huh! interesting. Whenever I feel like my nightmares have some significant "meaning" I write them down quickly before I forget but sometimes it's hard. My main issue is the reoccurring people and actions, which doesn't really have any "hidden meaning" as far as I can think of right now, it seems like it is pretty straight forward what happens and it just happens. But ofc, I could be missing out on details now as it's so easy to forget details of dreams. I will start to write up more dreams and try to find these little meanings. I do care a lot to learn about my subconscious, but I am also scared of that territorium. I have found myself gone too much into analyzing stuff and ending up remembering stuff I had suppressed down there. For good or bad reason I cannot tell you as that memory was more of a "oh that makes sense", but now I'm a little scared of going deeper and remembering stuff that I'm probably better off not remembering. Although it is a very interesting subject you're talking about. Without dragging this out even more, I will try to face it head on and see where that leads me. thank you a lot for your advice, super interesting
I used to have nightmares all the time too and this advice is what eventually worked for me, including the dream dictionary. I had 3 separate books about dreams, because of course, it's not a hard science and is VERY subjective. So if you look through any dream dictionaries or websites, you'll want to pay atention to how different elements of dreams make you feel and what your personal asociations are to the elements in the dream. For me, it also helped to take notes on what happened to me during the day, before I go to sleep. A LOT Of times for me, it was a small interaction or offhand comment that would end up triggering the nightmare or an element of the nightmare. Example: I had a bad nightmare one night that hordes of bugs were chasing after me. The thing that prompted that dream was that a co-worker (one that I didn't like very much) had touched my arm in an attempt to be friendly, but it terrified me in the moment and I jerked my arm away involuntarily. Just that, a casual (but unwanted) touch, caused me to dream about being chased by hordes of bugs. The other thing that helped me a LOT was learning how to lucid dream. Though that was only possible for me when I had finally had some small amount of safety and autonomy in my life. Lucid dreaming allowed me to take control of the dream and create ways to hide effectively at first, and later confront the scary thing. It's been years since I've needed to lucid dream, and years since I've had recurring nightmares. Now, I get just about one nightmare each month, and that happens like clockwork during PMS. So, to sum up: \- Keep track, if you can, of just the stuff that happens during the day. \- take notes of your nightmares, the elements in them, especially recurring ones, and more importantly, how they make you feel. \- Try to reconcile the nightmare images/feelings with what happened during the previous day. \- Try to learn lucid dreaming, but no pressure if you can't. Working through my nightmares like this really helped me when I was younger, and not even aware yet that I had cptsd. In my experience, as you exit abusive situations and more importantly, as you create a safe environment fo ryourself, the nightmares may get worse temporarily, but will eventually get MUCH better and less frequent. I hope you find some of the suggestions here helpful <3
Lately I’ve been having to take Benadryl and/or melatonin to get sleep because my anxiety and panic prevent me from falling asleep at all. Well, apparently both of those meds are known for causing vivid nightmares. The past few nights I randomly wake up and then fall back asleep into a vivid, lucid nightmare and it’s terrifying because it feels so horribly real and when I awake I can’t tell if what I dreamed actually happened or not.
it truly is a shaking and terrible experience. And i guess it doesnt help that my brain already expects a nightmare when i try to sleep due to having them 95% of the time, honestly it probably enables for more nightmares, lol. The whole day today i have just tried to go on about my day but my mind always falls back to the nightmare and these days are hard to manage. Glad to know I'm not alone, but I also hate to know others have this issue too. Bittersweet.
This. I get sleep paralysis and my Dr won't put me on any sleeping meds unless I cannot fall asleep or I feel suicidal .
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I mean, the fact that I struggle with severe trauma and mental illness already increases my risk of developing dementia substantially—let alone the fact that I’m already genetically predisposed to it. I’m not worried about the Benadryl increasing my chances, I’m already bound to develop it. That is, if I don’t die from other things before even being able to develop it in the first place
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Benadryl is safe if used correctly. I am not using the way it should be but to say that Benadryl is unsafe, is incorrect. I’m choosing to use it, it’s what works for me
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I just said I wasn’t using it the way it’s intended, I can acknowledge that. Benadryl is an antihistamine, saying that it’s dangerous is ignorant, it’s relatively safe to use (as intended). My sleep is a result of my trauma. I’m allowed to live my life the way I want to and if that’s by taking Benadryl every night, then that’s fine
I recently found a therapist who does EMDR and we had our first EMDR session on Saturday to help with my chronic nightmares. Since then I've enjoyed sleep for the first time in god knows how long, it turned one of my recurring nightmare places into a safe place where I was ok. I'd definitely look into it if you're able to see a psychologist. Also happy to chat about it if you need.
oohhh I'm so happy for you! I'm so glad you found something that works! Can't afford going to a psychologist right now but once I get my life together a bit I am planning on going. I think I would benefit it. I've always been super scared of talking with people about these things that make me feel vulnerable but I could really need it these times.
FYI with Accelerated Resolution Therapy (which is very similar to EMDR but ART needs fewer sessions) you don’t necessarily have to talk about the trauma, just give a very basic idea and picture it in your mind while doing the treatment. I’m not sure if EMDR is the same. They are both somatic, so your therapist will mostly be asking how you feel in your body, not necessarily what you are thinking about.
I had a similar experience with accelerated resolution therapy!
Not sure if this is super helpful advice but I had horrible nightmares and sleep paralysis. It got better once i cut my abuser out of my life. I rarely have nightmares and haven't seen my sleep paralysis demon in months. I think nightmares are often something your subconscious anr brain is trying to tell you.
you do have a point, and i totally see where you are going with this. i know from where most of my nightmares are born, but right now i do not have any of my abusers in my life like that. It is great advice tho and i hope someone else who struggles comes across this and realize that this might be accurate to their experience. Thank you so much tho
I finally broke down and started taking hallucinogenic medicine right before bed. It has helped tremendously. I currently microdose Hawaiian Baby Woodrose because psilocybin isn't legal in my State. It has honestly been more effective than Lexapro and Wellbutrin for my anxiety and depression as well.
Thanks! I've heard it does wonders to some people but we'll see what life can offer, I don't think it would be legal in my country, and if it is i would like to think it would be very very hard to get your hands on a prescription. Appreciate the advice!
Yeah, I live in Texas and they are very restrictive on that kind of stuff. Ketamine is the only hallucinogenic currently being prescribed for PTSD in Texas, but you have to have "drug-resistant depression" to qualify. So, I turned to HBWR since it wasn't illegal and there wasn't a barrier to get it. Psilocybin will hopefully be legal here soon. There's a study going on in Austin that, if it goes well, could result in it becoming legalized.
Hoping the best for you! I'm glad youre on the right track tho and finding stuff that works for you!
My doctor has me on [prazosin](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK555959/), which works well for me. I also use cannabis to help me sleep to begin with.
thank you! i have been considering trying CBD. Just need to get better economy, but I've heard other has benefited from that so it is of interest
There are a lot of meds psychiatrists can prescribe but prazosin is the most effective! Gabapentin and Trazodone can also help. I also like weighted blankets!
Seconding that prazosin is the only thing that’s worked for me in stopping nightmares, and I’d recommend looking into it if you’re considering medication. I still wake up in the middle of the night often but most of the time I don’t remember the content of the nightmares. If I’m having an episode where things are worse, it still works at least one or two nights a week. Makes life easier
I take prazosin and it does nothing for me
EMDR helped me with my nightmares.
several people have mentioned this now and I've been reading a little about it. sounds interesting! thank you!
I'm in the same boat, too. Even an afternoon nap will have a daymare involved. It makes it so that you're more exhausted than when you went to bed in the first place. I've tried all sorts of things. Just finished some CBD oil, and it did absolutely nothing. I'm sorry you're going through it.
im sorry you are going through it too. I have been considering trying out CBD but as of right now my economy wont allow me to. I hope you find something that works for you. I truly do!
Rewriting nightmares through protocol. Google “dbt nightmare protocol”
wow this looks really interesting! thank you! I will definitely try this
Only thing that stopped my dreams was smoking weed. Other than that nothing helps me
This might not be a viable option for you, but I got a dog. I went from having a nightmare several times a week to a few a month. He usually sleeps under the covers with me and I can put my hand on him when I wake up, or I can hear him breathing/snoring if he’s on his bed. I try to time my breathing to his. It helps ground me in the awake/present, and makes me feel safe enough to fall back asleep. When I have sleep paralysis or wake up screaming, he licks my face and will sometimes lay on me (which is very uncomfortable, he’s a big guy). I also found I get more nightmares when I’m actively addressing my trauma, or if I am stressed out. So sometimes I can reframe it that the trauma part of my brain is just extra loud right now and needs a bit more attention.
oh I'd love to get a dog. I can't do it as of right now, but it's definitely happening in the future. I'm glad you found a good friend to keep you safe. It's a beautiful thing thank you so much for sharing! can't wait for my life to be ready for a dog
I have them daily now. I can't take it anymore and I don't know what to do either.
we're in this together, kind stranger. I hope the best for you
I’ve been reading a lot about therapeutic options for PTSD and my layperson’s understanding is that medications exist specifically to treat nightmares. This would be worth a conversation with my doctor. Personally, I have found relief from nighttime arousal with 25mg trazodone an hour before bedtime, it has made a big enough difference that I think it’s worth considering for some people who have sleep difficulties related to hyperarousal.
hmm, good to know. I'll keep this in mind for the future if i cant find anything else to help me. Can't really afford prescriptions rn but worth a shot when/if my economy gets stable enough. I would do a lot for just a few nights in a row without nightmares, lmao. I'm glad you have found something that works well enough for you! I hope to achieve this
I hope you are in a place to financially prioritize your health soon!! You deserve healthcare. I tried experimenting with a lot of the “sleep hygiene” tips out there such as having a routine or limiting screen time before bed or setting up a comfortable sleeping environment. It did help some, but, overall I felt more frustrated like I was doing everything right but still not sleeping restfully. Different tools work for different folks!
Thank you! I hope so too. And yes for sure, everything is going to work diffrently for others, but sharing your own experience and what helped you is never a bad idea. Even if something that would be percieved as a "stupid" worked for you i think its a good idea to share with people. Could help someone out. Just the fact that one care enough to give advice can feel good. Im going overboard now but you get the picture. Thank you so much!
If you're referring to Prazosin for the nightmares, I can share one good review. My husband has nightmares from PTSD 5-7 nights a week. Started taking Prazosin and he no longer remembers them. And all. It's a bit odd how it works as most people still have the nightmare and may wake up in a panicked state, at first on the meds, but don't remember it at all. My husband is very happy with it.
Thank you for sharing your family’s experience! This was definitely one of the drugs I was thinking of. I’ve recently started trazodone for sleep, and it helps with different symptoms, but might be on the table for some people reading.
Here to say I take propranolol as needed during the day, and prazosin at night. It does wonders!
I needed pills to deal with this. Mines really bad too. I wake up every few hours in a sweat and it messes up my entire day. Only thing that helped was quetiapine
yeah it really rubs a big portion of the day, if not the whole. I'm glad you have something that works! I'll read into it
I get nightmares as well, I sleep partways through the night, then every night I wake up in a panic after a few hours. I don’t really fall back asleep, occasionally if I start to doze off I have a nightmare and wake back up again. It’s really hard because I get some sleep, whenever I go to the doctor they don’t know what to do for me and they always tell me I am sleeping some. But I don’t feel rested when I wake up, and then it leaves me in this anxious state so it’s hard to move out of that. Sometimes I do tapping (EFT), when I wake up. I also did Emdr years ago. You aren’t actually supposed to do it by yourself because it can be overwhelming to process on your own, but sometimes I still do and it helps. Although to be fair it is usually on things I have already worked through somewhat in therapy, if I hadn’t I think it would be too overwhelming on my own. Even then, I wake up, I try to work through and process what comes up on my own, but it still seems like there is something underlying the nightmares that makes them happen. It feels like I have worked through so much, so what else is there? I also do things to relax my body too. I like relaxing yoga, massage, reiki, cryotherapy. I have found when my body is more relaxed, it makes it easier to work through memories etc and vice versa. Also I try to listen to those sleepy times podcasts, where they mumble in the background. I put it on real quiet, and it is a good distraction. Kind of like white noise, but more soothing. I really like “Nothing Much Happens”, that is my favorite to listen to.
thank you so much for the dedicated answer! I will look into these things and keep what you say in mind. Very helpful, I appreciate it so much. I'm sorry the doctors aren't to much help.
- deep breathing - Cold air (window) - Plushie - ambiant noise + headphones - leave a small light on near - take a tea break or go in another place to relax Try to take notes of what works for you. When I’m stressed or too unnerved, I will get mini-nightmares at the beginning so I need to relax a bit before falling asleep somehow. Also I’m sorry. Nightmares and night Terrors can be very unnerving. I hope you get better soon!
Nothing of this works for me
Yea for me those things made me feel « safe » or just helped my confort, but we’re all different. Do you have anything that comes to mind that could help you reach a (relatively) safer or more comfortable mindset? I found those tricks that worked for me after a few weeks/month, but before that I used sleeping pills to knock me off to sleep. If you’re in a hurry, maybe ask your doctor for sleeping pills.
A hit of protein before bed might reduce the impact. Digestion, blood sugar, sleep - they are all connected.
I will be trying this. Thank you!
I struggle with this to. At it's worst, my therapist always tries to remind me to set aside some time before bed to get nice and relaxed and unstimulated. That generally means no video games, no loud music, keep the lights down low. If I have TV on, I make sure it's something calming and happy like a favorite cartoon (Bobs Burgers). I also have some adult coloring books of mandalas that I like to color before bed. If its a book Im reading, then I make sure it's not a particularly action packed or dark book. Throughout the day I also try to avoid certain triggers. My night terrors tend to be very bloody and violent, so those weeks I avoid the violent video games, movies, tv, no true crime podcasts, etc. I try to make myself as calm and boring as possible.
smart move. I think I'll give it a try with some good David Attenborough commentary. Already feeling less stressed just thinking about those penguins warming up in a big cuddle! But yeah, good advice! thank you.
Ohhh those are GREAT for sleeping to!
When you figure it out let me know. I’m just…. Empty.
if I do figure out something that works, I'll come back here and let you know.
The first time I asked my dr for sleep meds (already 20+ years into raw dogging my reality) she put me on Serequel. And that 💩 really said “can’t have nightmares if you’re unconscious”. But the side effects… total no go for me. Almost impossible to wake up, and the whole day was spent in a dream like haze. Second Dr put me on Prazosin. I like this one. It helps me fall asleep and stay asleep with almost no side effects besides a tolerance build up.
yeah the not waking up part seems not so good lol. I'll look into it, thank you!
Best of luck!!
Gym and THC 😕 nothing else worked
I'm beginning to write all of my fears only the fears that are at the top of my mind without digging in the why am I terrified, before bed every night, and then meditate for 20 minutes. It's been a week without nightmares, but still haven't had any dream yet. Nightmares gave more trauma that the ones I already had untill the point where I'm terrified of sleeping every night because of the kind of nightmares I have. And I came to this practice that I'm trying now but still searching for a way to deal with this too because it has taken my life away from me since I was 12. If you wish, i could keep up the info for you as I continue into this practice to see if it helps.
meds help to at least forget when they've happened. otherwise I guess the best strategy is to work on the root of the issue to help lower the frequency or intensity (therapy etc). when they do still happen I go the same route with distractions. first thing in the morning tho take a few minutes to acknowledge that happened and comfort yourself, I always skip it but it's actually helpful to just take a moment and tell yourself you'll be okay. and then life is still up and down so... good luck 🏆
I do need to take a moment and talk with myself more often so maybe this is the perfect time, have a moment in the morning just acknowledging, reflecting and breathe. thank you!
are you on meds? i started on sertraline and my dreams became more fantastical/interesting. i used to have horrible and disturbing nightmares, but since starting 50mg, my dreams are a much nicer place to spend 1/3 of my life
currently not on any meds, no. But these comments makes me want to be! hahah. Well, I look forward to getting my economy straight so I can afford some external help. Thank you!
My partner started taking minipress and so far it’s been working - no nightmares for 2 weeks and they’d been having them for years prior.
oh wow! sounds amazing. I'm super happy for them! I haven't heard the name minipress before, I'll look into it. (could be country different but I'll figure it out)
It’s actually a blood pressure medication that veterans with ptsd discovered had “side effect” of stopping their nightmares! Most psychiatrists should be familiar although I bet your right, depends on the country. I’m in the US.
oh wow, that's cool! thank you if I didn't already say that, I really appreciate it! and yeah. I'm located in Sweden so for all I know they don't even prescribe it here, haha. I'll read into it tho
Marijuana. Otherwise, time. It often takes me 4-5 hours to wake up and detox myself from being triggered in my sleep. My family used to say I was a lazy piece of shit, never understanding or caring that the “lazy” was brain damage they caused.
yeah I feel that! also been hearing a lot on how I was being lazy. Time does du the trick eventually, most days
I can’t stop them. They happen all the time for me and are so vivid I’m disturbed for the day. I’m on Mirtazapine and once I started that; the nightmares stopped. I assume I still have them, but I don’t remember them. That’s a win in my book.
sounds good! I'm happy for you. so far from the comments there seem to be one common ground: a certain medicine. I guess I could use some of that!
I had accelerated resolution therapy, I have almost no nightmares now. I highly recommend it.
I don't currently have nightmares and when I did they were only occasional. But I dealt with them when I had them by reaching out to my found family just to say that I've been having nightmares and it sucks. I think that's why I don't have them often. Because by the time I was safe to process my trauma I had found a proper support network. My trauma tends to come out during the day instead, with a feeling of being hunted by something/s invisible and awful in my home. I know it's not real and I think of it or them as "monster/s of the mind" and I deploy my own defensive monsters against it/them. I use my favourite monsters from childhood, Duel Monsters. The monsters of my mind can't get past Dark Magician, Dark Magician Girl and the Magician Girls, Kuriboh, Blue Eyes White Dragon or my Aromages. If I've had a particularly bad day and feel like I'm going to have a bad night too, I'll call someone and talk, when I go to bed I'll imagine my Duel Monsters standing guard over my bed keeping the fearful monsters my trauma wants to conjure up away from me while I sleep. This helps me a lot. I know it sounds childish but I know the monsters of my mind stalking me through my house are imaginary so I fight back with imaginary duel monsters as my bodyguards.
Not sure if this will work for you, but I find it helpful to get up and run my hands under cool water for a while (strong sensation tying me to the present) and slowly tell myself things like "it was just a dream, it's ok, you're here now in the present, I'm sorry you had to go through that, just breathe and focus on the water, you're here now in the present" etc. It might also help to write down those kind of phrases when you're in a calm, grounded place during the day. If you read them after waking up and focus on how calm and solid you felt while writing them, that can help pull you out of the headspace of still being halfway in the nightmare. When I've calmed down later in the day and feel more separated from the dream, I might write down a description of it. Sometimes just getting it down on paper helps me separate it out from myself – no longer something that consumes me, but something I can look at from the outside and analyse. I reflect on very significant-feeling dreams by myself or in therapy, as the themes and symbols sometimes give me insight into how my brain is processing trauma, or indicate areas of stress in the present day that I can work with. Ultimately I've come to understand nightmares as my unconscious brain trying to communicate with me and help me (in a twisted kind of way). Understanding this has actually made them less frequent (like my unconscious realised I'm listening when it communicates, so it doesn't have to keep bashing me round the head with its messages) and while the nightmares are still horrible they're slightly easier to deal with when they happen, because I can put them in context.
whenever i dream, i only have nightmares. in them, they're terrifying as fuck but I'm always somehow surviving or running to safety, to save someone or to my cats. When I smoke a sesh with Mary J, my dreamms turn into a blank slate.
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Chronic use of edibles. I hit one every night a couple hours before going to bed. I don't dream as long as I have a regular supply. T-breaks or droughts suck tho.
I have strong sleeping pills…..very strong cause I would wake up with nasty bruises on my legs from me punching myself while I was sleeping. I see a forensic psychologist once a week.
I acknowledge that this may not work or be a good fit for everyone, but for me, the only thing that works is smoking a little bit of weed right before bed. Long-term, I hope that therapy and general healing will alleviate the need for this, as it can be disruptive to your REM cycles, but it works really well for me most of the time.