Thank you for the thoughts. I did stay at a sleep clinic as a late teen and was told I have no sleep apnea. I have no gut issues but my back frequently hurts. My therapist diagnosed me with complex PTSD and believes my nightmares are a result of my childhood sexual abuse, which has been layered onto by abusuve partners and strangers (all males). If that's the reason for my chronic nightmares, combined with whatever genetic disorder I have in which I skip over non-REM to REM, then it makes sense. I just don't know how to stop them from happening.