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Trauma from nightmare?

Luigiii

Learning
Can you get trauma from nightmares?
A little backstory, i’m a 16 year old girl and I have (c)ptsd. My usual is 3 to 4 nightmares a week but it’s been happening more lately (maybe bc ive been sleeping more). Another change is that it’s not just about my trauma, it’s also about what if’s and things that I’ve never imagined/seen/thought about before but now that I’ve lived it in nightmares it absolutely terrifies me and i think about it a lot + avoid certain things.

I’ve written about it before but feel like i need to talk about it again….
 
in my own case, it was the other way around. the trauma caused the nightmares. the longer i repressed the trauma, the meaner and more irrational the nightmares became.
 
in my own case, it was the other way around. the trauma caused the nightmares. the longer i repressed the trauma, the meaner and more irrational the nightmares became.
Yeah i have that too (I think it’s one of the main points of ptsd) but the thing i was trying to say was that besides those nightmares about trauma ive been getting nightmares (the best i can describe them as are real looking horror/terror/psychological thriller nightmares that feel like are giving me more trauma idk if that makes sense

You say you've written about it before. Do you have a trusted person in your life you can talk to about this? 💜
I have therapists if thats what you mean. My family is more of the pray the ‘sin’ away (sin being my problems) and I don’t have many deep friendships
 
I am a devout Christian and sin is NOT your problem! Being told that might be part of the problem. Emotional issues, mental illness, ptsd, and trauma are not "of the devil." They are illnesses and horrible circumstances life throws at us. When I had my breakdown the stigma that "good" Christians hold told depression, or any kind of mental illness almost broke me. You are not bad or sinful. You need help. Keep posting. Keep talking. 💔
 
it’s been happening more lately (maybe bc ive been sleeping more)

over-sleeping could be a factor here. even when they are not nightmares, over-sleeping adds an extra weird layer to my dreams. since i never achieve a deep sleep when i am over-sleeping, i remember my dreams more vividly. the same extra time which allows for the over-sleeping can also give me more time for rumination.
 
You can develop a phobia of nightmares, but I don't think nightmares can give you trauma per se. Especially if you know they're just dreams. Some people experience things they believe are real overnight, and those can be traumatic. But if you know it's fiction, not so much.
 
Can you get trauma from nightmares?
“Get trauma” is probably a weird way to say it.

Nightmares can be traumatic, in the typical use of the word. Like “watching that movie was traumatic”. And it can have much the same consequences as any other ordinary daily experience that causes distress.

Definitely if you’ve had a really distressing nightmare, it’s a good idea to do some self-care and kindness to help your system offload that distress before getting on with the day.
 
over-sleeping could be a factor here. even when they are not nightmares, over-sleeping adds an extra weird layer to my dreams. since i never achieve a deep sleep when i am over-sleeping, i remember my dreams more vividly. the same extra time which allows for the over-sleeping can also give me more time for rumination.
‘sleeping more’ for me is like 6-8 hour a night. I got insomnia (+this weird fear of sleep because im afraid of having a bad night of nightmares which happens a lot but still). My usual is 6 hours on a good day, none to 2hours on a bad night

I am a devout Christian and sin is NOT your problem! Being told that might be part of the problem. Emotional issues, mental illness, ptsd, and trauma are not "of the devil." They are illnesses and horrible circumstances life throws at us. When I had my breakdown the stigma that "good" Christians hold told depression, or any kind of mental illness almost broke me. You are not bad or sinful. You need help. Keep posting. Keep talking. 💔
Thank you so much!!! You have no idea how much this message means to me. Religion has always been hard for me, it wasn’t exactly a safe place for me but I’m still trying to believe in my own way. (I’m not really sure how it applies to what i wrote but grateful anyway)
 
Have you talked to your doctor about this? There is a medication, Prazosin that really helped my nightmares. I still had some, but they weren't frightening if you can believe that.
 
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