Adventure Dreams

[Mallaky]

So, this is a bit sad and beautifull I believe.


I have nightmares every night, ever since I can remember. It started in early elementary school. Sleeping for me means having nightmares, no way around it.
Every once in a very long while, I have a nice night. Normally when that happens I cry, because nice dreams are a very bittersweet thing for me. I remember when a year ago or so dreamed I had a puppy. When I woke up I bawled my eyes out, cause there was no puppy.

As a kid I started coping by not calling them nightmares anymore, but adventure dreams. I considered them to be like scary videogames, that I loved, that need to be beaten and controlled, the monsters very scary, yes, but possible to beat, with the right technique.
Beating could mean making an conscient effort to wake up, to realize it is a dream, to make them nice again, hiding, or changing the dream. I have some very dramatic memories of some of those dreams. Quite frankly, it would make for a good movie.

Ever since I called them adventure dreams, and I had one every night.
Unfortunately, the monsters rarely show up anymore. My nightmares are nowadays about stressfull things, abondenment, blame and shame, arguments, or spiders, and can be adventures no more. I wonder if, in time, I could get my fighting spirit back up.
Sometimes I wish the old nightmare monsters would visit once again, I kind of miss them. Especially the burning man, we had some awsome adventures.

But I guess, those nightmares are not nightmares anymore, so I got a better class of nightmares.

I hope this thread is not inappropiate.

 

[Kintsugi]

I don't think there was anything inappropriate about your post.

I definitely have different classes of nightmares. The emotionally nightmarish ones do seem to be the worst.

The ghoulish, monstrous ones can be fun with a little lucid dreaming and creativity. Regardless, they are never as bad as the emotionally scary ones. Some of my most visually horrific (gory, violent) nightmares were ones I was detached from emotionally. I had one dream where 30+ children were violently murdered, but it wasn't as bad as the ones where my parents come home and won't believe my brother is sexually harassing me. Not by a long shot.

 

[BlueOrange]

On a semi-related note, I'm currently trying to work out how to make computer games about stressful social situations. I think that the same principles apply - learn how to beat the challenge and you can win.

Perhaps they're still adventure dreams, it's just that you're playing the part of the game that comes after beating up the monsters?

 

[joeylittle]

So, this is a bit sad and beautifull I believe.

I agree. I started just calling anything that happens when I sleep, "dreaming", a long time ago - it's all mostly what one could call "nightmares", but there are the good ones, where I get away from whatever it is, and then the rest of them, where I don't.

Thanks for sharing about yours.

 

[Mallaky]

It is fantastic to find people who can relate. Your responses were very validating, or is it confirming?, to me. Thank you.
It doesnt cease to amaze me, that I finally found people who percieve things alot like I do. :smug::wacky::smug:

 

[Friday]

So, this is a bit sad and beautifull I believe.

I believe so, too.

It reminds me of the line 'I'm friends with the monster under my bed."

It's also how I deal with about 90% of my problems. Look at it. Look at it again. Turn it on its head. See what can be useful. Put that to work. Turn it around again. See what I can reframe. Like a puzzle. I keep turning problems around, and over, looking for ways to make them manageable. Or at least funny. Learn to grok a thing. Learn to change it. Learn to use it.