[wiretwister]

How do you know if you were awake with intrusive thoughts or just very vivid dreams. All I know is I awoke very tired kept thinking the same thoughts over and over all nights. I do not know which it was. Any suggestions I really do not want another night like that ....

[Crazy Hitch]

Hi tigger

I dunno really.

I can't answer from a medical perspective.

Just wanted to say yeah I know those bad dreams suck.

And can smack us over the back of the head out of nowhere.

Kind of does feel like intrusive thoughts doesn't it?

So I'm not sure.

I guess for me; personally it's a little easier to smack the negativity from the nightmare out my mind reminding myself it's just a dream.

It's less easier for me to personally beat my own intrusive thoughts.

hey tigger, it seems to me that when I have vivid dreams, I'm locked into vivid dreamland and have a hard time waking up as much as I'm trying to will it, like I'm trapped or something, but when I wake up, it's like I jumped out of sleep and landed on my bed.

Trying to sleep with intrusive thoughts is not sleeping at all because my thoughts are aggravating the crap out of me and I get too worked up to relax to sleep because that insistant voice just won't shut up and fills my head. I toss and turn and pound the pillow, cover and uncover, groan, sit up, lay back down, go watch tv, try to sleep again, then the alarm says its time to get up.

They both make me tired in the morning. Are you taking new meds? Changed your diet? White onions gives me vivid dreams too.

My vivid dreams are more action packed with the sound volume turned all the way up. If yours just repeats the same thing over and over, I think I'd pick intrusive thoughts.

Any how, I hope you get some good rest tonight hun

[Turtlesoup]

Hi tigger-I have been having some off the hook dreaming experiences the last few months. I've talked to my tdoc about some of these. I have dreams where I wake up & think was that a dream? Or was I awake & now I'm dreaming. It's got a weird kinda alternate reality vibe. And I think I get what you mean about the intrusive thoughts-I have those where they keep me awake/restless & then sometimes I have them while sleeping & it just repeats over & over & I wake up so exhausted. Usually my dreams are just vivid & entertaining but the last few months I've been working with my T with some pretty icky PTSD stuff which is what I think has caused my current nightmare issues. I do relaxation breathing which helps at times, listen to relaxation music all night & if I'm having a bad evening before I go to bed I journal my thoughts & picture them emptying out of my head so they won't disturb me. Good luck

[Imah]

Suggestions:

Best way to get good sleep is: stay on schedule, avoid caffeine late, eat good food, exercise, be gentle and kind to yourself so you don't go to bed with self doubt and recriminations.

------------- It happens to me to---------------

I am online and answering you because this happened to me tonight. 3 hours sleep, woke up and still kept dreaming, but didn't think it was a dream, I think I am having a psychic connection to this person and there is great meaning behind it all. I think the therapist would call it delusions. I don't know, I guess I will never know. I just have to remember to focus on what I can see and touch and not think I am part of the many people in the world who have some special gift they need to impart. The social evolution of the world has abandoned the psychic training and anyone who doesn't fit it is shunned.

No, its not my job to retrain the world. Its only my job to follow through with my promise to go to the store today, and get the April birthday presents. Focus on my daily tasks and try to be kind and love myself in the process. Because loving myself and being someone others can count on helps me to survive.