Nightmares

Post Reply New Topic

Does anyone know why it is that you are more likely to have nightmares if you lie on your back whilst sleeping? Well, it always seems that way for me, anyway. I always try to avoid laying on my back, for this very reason, but sometimes I turn over in my sleep without realising it, and then I often have a nightmare.

Last night I had a nightmare that was so scary I don't even want to think about it. And everything about it seemed so vivid and real (both imagery and sound) - it wasn't until I woke up (and I woke up naturally, shortly after 6am) that I realised it had all been a bad dream - it was a very detailed nightmare, and it really freaked me out.

Most of the time, my dreams are so vivid that I think they are real - it is only occasionally that something impossible happens in a dream, and then I know it can't be real. In the cases where I realise I am having a bad dream, I can sometimes try to force my eyes open in order to wake myself up.

I'm sorry that you have nightmares...I used to have nightmares all the time.I still do in my depressed moods and let me tell you they are FREAKY!-shudders-I also have bad hallucinations and hear creepy voices.

-SpaceCase

Another thing I forgot to mention in my original post:

I often have recurring dreams about hiding from some unknown person - for example, someone knocks on the front door, and I hide away from the windows so they can't see I'm in the house. i have actually done this in real life, as I am shy and I don't like to answer the door when I'm alone in the house, particularly to strangers.
Trying to hide away from someone is a common dream for me, and they have been recurring for many months - I may have one of those dreams about once a month or so (although usually it's less often than that).

Yeah, you are so right. Nightmares and Sleeping on My back seem to go hand in hand.... I hate Nightmares, and I have always noticed that when I'm having one, I wake up on my back. I hate nightmares...

I have weird dreams most of the time. The scenes change in a continuos flow very quickly. The only difference to nightmares seems to be the lack of fear. Hiding is a topic of my dreams too. Recently I had a dream I often have. I wanted to be alone, so I entered my flat and tried to close the door but it wouldn't close, because sometimes it would be too small after opening, sometimes too big and sometimes would be too deformed in other ways to close. In a nightmare I knew there was someone or something coming wanting to harm me in a way (:evil:). Interestingly I never get to see who or what is looking for me.

Maybe the nightmare is the cause for rolling on the back and not the other way round. I also awake from a nightmare lying on my back and believe most people do so most of the time. I think the nightmare somehow changes your physical movements while sleeping. On the other hand lying on the side definitely is more comfortable.

i have lots of scary dreams.

there seems to be a communication theme with most of my nightmares. i have dreams about something bad happening but when i try to call the emergency services the telephone is broken and the operator can't hear me, or i try to shout for help but i'm mute.

I haven't had a nightmare in years (thanks goodness), but I had them practically on a daily basis as a kid. There was this chandelier in my childhood apartment that I was terrified of. It almost always showed up on my dreams. Oftentimes, it was disfigures in a scary way. Now imagine yourself seeing a scary chandelier in your dream, then see the real thing just 5 minutes later.

Interesting theory. I usually wake up on my back after nightmares.

I have horrible nightmares all the time. I think it's my anxiety problems coming out while I sleep. I have nightmares about what I deeply fear.

Last night I had a night mare about tornadoes striking my town (avoiding tornadoes is my most common nightmare), and running and hiding all over the house with my mum.

I usually wake up before the tornado gets me, but in this case, I didn't. A tornado got me and I was holding my mum's hands tight, she got in it too. The sensation was awful, and it seemed to go on forever. We finally fell down when it passed and I was near dead, mum woke up first, and I slowly woke up, unable to hardly move think or breathe.

I woke up, and for a few minutes still experienced what I felt in the dream. It took me a while to realise that the dream did not have a real effect.

I've never had a nightmare. Maybe one when I was little, but it wasn't scary enough to wake me up. It was more of a trippy, seemingly drug-induced dream than a nightmare. I have dreams that take things from the day and mix them all up. Never a nightmare though, maybe I just too hard to scare.

BTW, I always sleep on my back.

I have never had a nightmare that I rember on waking but I use to get night terrors all the time and I always woke up on my back when I had them

I often have nightmares when I need to go to the toilet (or 'to the bathroom' as you Americans say). When I have a nightmare and I wake up, I need to take a piss.

Err... never heard the back sleeping theory before! Still, I recently read that Aspies etc are more likely to have vivid dreams! I was like 'meh' until I remembered that when difficult stuff is going on in my life, I have nightmares every night. Apparently I scream and swear in my sleep, and more often than not I don't even know unless mum tells me! Lol, the best ones are where I go to punch someone in my dream and end up thwacking my fist on my bead head! Not nice! Owies!

I have had nightmares. Most likely, they have been dreams about me watching fictitious TV shows.

I've had the weirdest dreams ever, they're so weird I can't even explain them to you in words.

I sleep on my left side but I have the occasional "frustration" nightmare, dreams where I am trying to get somewhere but things happen that make the place further and further away.

I don't wake remembering them often, but when I do I just hate it.

Maybe I should sleep on my back.