Dreams do tend to mirror your daytime thinking. Has your thinking become extremely unhealthy and unwholesome because of the stressful events in your life? What we often speak of as being "a nightmare" in real life simply refers to certain horrible events we have experienced. Perhaps your thoughts are too strongly focused on all that is so very horrible in your life just now. You might need to try adopting a much more positive and hopeful attitude.

Note that all the people in your dreams are aspects of your self, and represent the thoughts and ideas you have in your mind. In your dreams, these thoughts and ideas appear under attack. (terrible things happen to them) Do you often second guess yourself, being critical of the ideas you have. Because the people in the dream seem like family, the ideas that your mind is being so hard on would appear to be those that are also very central to your own sense of self (such as core beliefs and ideas that have served you well over time).

It is unfortunate that what goes on in a person's mind does have repercussions even upon their families and friends. How is your real family faring? The manner in which you are being hard on yourself (as shown by your dreams) is rather indirect with the effect being played out upon those around you. There is an explanation for all that happens.