needtobefree

Hi again. I'm wondering if anyone here has noticed an increase of nightmares since being sober. I have had nightmares for most of my life and they are very disturbing, last nights was a doozy though, beyond anything I've had before. Anyone else have this problem?

Tazman53

When I was drinking I hardly dreamed at all, when I did they were a mixture of nonsense & nightmares, since I have been sober I dream more often and they are more vivid, except for the rare drinking dream I no longer have night mares. I was lucky in early sobriety, no night mares except the drinking ones which were WAY WAY to real!!!! I would wake up some times convinced I had relapsed!

DoingWell

The first month I quit I had HORRIBLE nightmares, in fact it was the biggest side effect for me in quitting. I've had sleep problems almost all my life but those first few weeks of being sober were the worse. I remember telling my therapist about them in detail, she told me that it was quite normal and gave me a few things to do before bed time that really helped. She suggested getting off the computer an hour before bed, a relaxinng soak in a bath, try to keep brain activity low the last hour before bed. I like to read before bed but I had to change what I was reading Stephen King before bed was not going to cut it anymore. LOL

I still have a few nightmares from time to time but less often.

CarolD

Need...
as you have always been troubled with nightmares
and I have no experience with this...

We do have a Forum that might interest you

http://www.soberrecovery.com/forums/...ia-nightmares/

Keep in focus....
Blessings

nandm

It is very rare that I do not have nightmares and I have been sober nearly 7 years. Always have except when I was dead drunk and passed out (probably did then but just don't remember). I am doing the outside help thing for them though as they are related to my PTSD from my childhood. It is my brains way of trying to work through the issues.

Carol did post a link to a good discussion area for nightmares.

Afraid2Succeed

Not to be 'glib' (as Tom Cruise would say), but I can control my dreams most of the time. I don't know how I do it, but I realize I'm in a dream, and then I make it what I want. However, I still get the occasional nightmare in which I'm being chased or I'm fighting a losing battle...

GlassPrisoner

AF2S, "Lucid" dreams are cool ! I can only do it every now and then.

To the OP, yes, nightmares and drinking dreams are quite common. Mine have significantly reduced as I get more sobriety under my belt.

blue_Icecream

I had lots of nightmares during the first week. The worst was when I dreamt that I had a couple of drinks and realised with horror that I was going to have to start my recovery again from scratch. I used the dream as a sign of how committed I was to staying sober, because I knew it'd fill me with even more horror and shame to really drink again.

GlassPrisoner

Yup, that's a drinking dream blue. We all get them.

DWR

I've always had nightmares -- even as a child. The drinking and drugging used to supress them because I was passing out every night. I still have them after nearly 2 years, and I do not take any medication to help me to sleep.

I found that getting up when the dreaming phase begins, which is around 4am to 5am, and meditating to sunrise has helped me a lot. Not only do I feel good in the morning, but I get to see the sunrise every morning. The nightmares are disturbing, I am seeking outside help to sort out the root causes, but I have accepted that they will go away in their own time. Dreams are not going to kill me, but some of my waking behaviours are. Hang in there, there may come a time when you'll miss them!

AndrewBeen

I have stopped using the computer at night to help with the nightmares. It has.

DKS

Yes, I've had nightmares all my life too that weren't as noticeable when I was passing out drunk every night but returned now that I'm sleeping without alcohol. I had a very disturbing dream the other night where I bought a case of beer, threw away the box to hide the evidence, but couldn't sneak the cans into the house for some strange reason and the case of beer stayed in my car for a couple of days. It really hurt when I broke down and bought the beer, and then when I didn't get to refrigerate it and drink it, I continued to obsess over whether or not I would actually break down and drink it or not, how it would taste if I had to drink it hot, etc, etc. I never did actually drink it in the dream, but the guilt and shame and the pain of obsessing over it for days on end seemed so real and it seemed to drag on for an eternity. Usually I actually drink the beer in the dreams and wake up feeling terrible, but this time I didn't even drink it but was still so riddled with guilt for making the decision to buy it and obsess over it. What a horrible feeling.....

barb dwyer

Needs -
I think it's the body releasing poisons and trying to balance its' systems after so long being 'under the influence'.

I'm a dreaming fool.
I LOVE the Dreamtime.
Lucid ... all the time.
Love it.

Nightmares - turn 'em around.

But needs - I think they'll ease up once you've been sober long enough to get into the deeper levels of healing.

Dee74

Yeah nightmares and really vivid ones, seem to be the status quo.

They do lessen tho

D