Dream A Little Dream
One of the most unexpected and unsettling symptoms of pregnancy has been the experience of exceptionally vivid dreams.
And they’re not just *dreams*, I’ve been having horrible nightmares which have, on several occasions, had me waking up crying. Poor T has no idea what’s going on, or what to do, when I wake him up by crying all over him after he’s been snoring away merrily.
It came to a head last week when I got into work and cried all over the manager for a quarter of an hour because I was so tired and the lingering after-effects of a particularly bad dream were refusing to disappear even several hours after waking up.
I read that this was a normal symptom of pregnancy and that it’s down to a combination of factors; those pesky pregnancy hormones again, running riot through my veins are causing all sorts of issues. Then I’m obviously sleeping more, but due to being up and down to the bathroom several times each night, and having Spud wiggling away in there, I’m having a greater amount of light, REM sleep, rather than the restorative deep sleep, which means dreams are more easily remembered.
I also know what my dreams *mean*, so to speak; I tried to untangle the web of randomness that make up the dreams, and I know it’s all tying in to fears of being a momma, a big life change, the end of an era, and everything that goes along with a first baby. It’s apparently common for a pregnant woman’s subconscious to attempt to sort through any issues that may be unresolved in waking hours, in order to wipe the slate clean and start fresh when Spud arrives. I hope that’s the case as I don’t know how I’d cope with the fatigue from night-feeds and nightmares together!
T and I talk through all of our worries, hopes, and fears, and we’re honest with one another about how we’re feeling at any given time, which I guess is the best way to try and mitigate some of my bad dreams as we’re trying to muddle through honestly during daylight.
As with anything, though, knowing logically what’s happening and why doesn’t particularly help at 4am when I’m scared to go back to sleep.
Did you experience vivid dreams or nightmares while pregnant? How did you cope with them?
It came to a head last week when I got into work and cried all over the manager for a quarter of an hour because I was so tired and the lingering after-effects of a particularly bad dream were refusing to disappear even several hours after waking up.
I read that this was a normal symptom of pregnancy and that it’s down to a combination of factors; those pesky pregnancy hormones again, running riot through my veins are causing all sorts of issues. Then I’m obviously sleeping more, but due to being up and down to the bathroom several times each night, and having Spud wiggling away in there, I’m having a greater amount of light, REM sleep, rather than the restorative deep sleep, which means dreams are more easily remembered.
T and I talk through all of our worries, hopes, and fears, and we’re honest with one another about how we’re feeling at any given time, which I guess is the best way to try and mitigate some of my bad dreams as we’re trying to muddle through honestly during daylight.
As with anything, though, knowing logically what’s happening and why doesn’t particularly help at 4am when I’m scared to go back to sleep.
Did you experience vivid dreams or nightmares while pregnant? How did you cope with them?
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