[elaygee]

So I have nightmares. Some are related to trauma. I get that therapy will help with those over time. But I've also always just had really bad, scary dreams. I assume this is of course also linked to trauma and anxiety. But I asked my T can therapy help with nightmares that are just scary? I have them EVERY night and one of my goals in therapy is to stop/greatly reduce my nightmares. When asking T she says "I hope so", but honestly isn't SURE that it will.

Any thoughts?

[CantExplain]

I'm guessing nightmares come from unconscious fears, so therapy should be the best treatment.

[skeksi]

My T always says nothing is a sure thing--he can't promise something will work, just that it might. Generally, I feel anything that MIGHT work is worth a try, given how miserable I am.

I had bad dreams, too, and some weren't clearly related to my traumas. After working through the traumas with T, my bad dreams of all kinds went way down. I still have them once in a while, but not all the time like I did.

[precious things]

I didn't undertake therapy to address my night terrors but I have noticed since working on deeper issues they seem to have subsided. I think the more you talk about it, the less it needs to express itself in your subconscious.

[venusss]

there are tricks to help you with nightmares.

Trauma Nightmares and Lucid Dreaming - Kellevision

hope this helps somewhat. And yes, you can learn this and more with a good therapist.

[EllieBear]

I used to have a lot of nightmares. In fact, when I started therapy and started working through my trauma they got worse. But I agree that the more you talk about and process it in therapy, the less your subconscious has to play it out in dreams. The most helpful things my T told me about dreams and nightmares is to pay attention to the feelings in the dream and work on those feelings, and to ask myself, "what is this nightmare trying to tell me." That actually has helped a ton. When I have one now, instead of getting so lost in it and trying to prevent them from happening, I can take a step back and ask myself what it's trying to tell me. I actually started to welcome them instead of dread them because they helped me understand my feelings and what was really going on inside of me. Not that I think anyone should welcome nightmares...they truly are awful...but I welcomed the insight they gave me into myself. Therapy helped a lot with that because its where I processed all of it. Hopefully it helps you too!

[Favorite Jeans]

If you drink at all, maybe experiment with a 1-2 month hiatus from alcohol and see if that's helpful at all.

[elaygee]

Originally Posted by Favorite Jeans

If you drink at all, maybe experiment with a 1-2 month hiatus from alcohol and see if that's helpful at all.

I dont drink at all

[content30]

I used to have scary dreams. First, I worked through a ton if stuff in therapy, and it did help me. Second, I was able to get off of all prescription medication, and that helped me significantly. Like someone else said, there are no guarantees, but, hopefully, it will help!