Last night I had a dream that was so vivid, so real, I couldn’t shake it after waking up. It’s been plaguing me all day. I can’t get it out of my head. Granted, I have OCD, so sometimes things infiltrate my brain and don’t get out. I mean, this dream was so real, it almost seems like my subconscious is yelling, “Hey, girlie! Listen to me! I have something to say and you’re not listening!”
Now, if my brain is really trying to tell me something, and I take this dream at face value, it’s not something I want to/can deal with at this time in my life. I keep thinking about it, mulling it over, pondering it… so much so that I can’t even sleep tonight.
Have you ever been so shaken by a dream that it has affected your daily life? Have you ever had a dream so vivid you couldn’t shake it? How did you get past it? How did you deal with it?
I could use some advice, even if it’s only anecdotal. Thanks.
^ Only as a medicinal side effect or from withdrawal. I consider it to be a real problem, and I always find some way to stop it.
I’m not sure what you mean by not being able to shake it. If you just mean you can’t stop thinking about it–well, then that means the thought is causing you anxiety. I could easily see it as something like finally wanting a kid.
The only way past any of these is the old standby–remembering that you will have thoughts that most people can just ignore, and that there’s nothing wrong with you ignoring it either. And if you have trouble ignoring it, seek help.’
I will tell you one thing that may help you relieve the anxiety–few dreams are literal, and most of the time they don’t communicate anything important you couldn’t figure out in other ways. It’s okay to ignore this. You may want to try coming up with an alternate explanation, IF you think you can believe it.
Finally, don’t forget about minimizing. Ignoring this will not ruin your life. It will probably have absolutely no effect upon it at all.
ETA: If you are hallucinating, then all I can recommend is psychological / psychiatric help. And stay away from benzodiazepines if you possibly can. (But don’t stop taking them if you are already. That’s even worse.)
All the time. I often have crippling deja vu when I see something I’ve dreamed. The first couple of times I got dizzy and had to sit down. Since then, I take it in stride.
Usually there’s a rational explanation.
Imho, it’s the dreams that are recurring but not vivid that I think are from the subconscious.
I’m not hallucinating, just having vivid dreams. I’m feeling a little better today after sleeping for a couple hours last night. It’s still a thought that keeps popping into my head, but I’m hoping it’ll fade within a couple days. It’s just very worrisome and bothersome and I want it to go away.