let me preface by saying i rarely ever have nightmares and am not an expert on this, but i don't think your nightmares are a result of your lifestyle or habits. i think there is a subconscious issue at hand that needs resolution. have you sought to interpret meaning from your nightmares? are they the same every time or are they distinctive? is there a recurring theme? are you an observer in them or do you have control? usually the nightmare contains clues as to its source in your life. you might not have much stress in your day to day life, but a nightmare is often about something traumatic or unresolved in your personal/interpersonal life. it might be something you've repressed or blown off long ago coming back to seek closure. it could have lain dormant for a time and been triggered by a recent stressor in your life. are you generally a superstitious or fearful person? and when you had a concussion, how severe was the brain swelling and where was it? if the swelling damaged your amygdala/frontal limbic system, there could be a connection...

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Originally posted by djjoshuaallen whenever I have a nightmare, or a dream for that matter, I am able to figure out that im dreaming in my dream. So then i just start to fuck around with my dreams and its not that scary at all. Is anybody else able to figure out your dreaming during your dream, and then start to control it or just fuck around in your dream?

I've had dreams about dreaming too. There were times when I woke up but realized I still had to wake up again! Kinda like going through 2 demensions.
I also used to have dreams about someone dying or that someone got hurt and they'd be true. The dreams were like a predicament. I still have them but they're alittle different now and I haven't had any dreams that had to do with death lately, thank God!

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Originally posted by KarenLuvs2Party I pretended to play dead but then they still came back and found that I was alive.

jajajajajajja

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colonelcrisp i bust my ass for the money i make ******** Oh so you are a male prostitute? That is such hard work taking dick? Now your ass can match your mouth.

I never have nightmares. All my dreams are filled with cotton candy and unicorn ass.

Is there a pattern to your nightmares, Julia? Or are they always different scenarios with the same level of fear?

-edit-
Rich nailed it.

The only times I WON'T remember my dreams is if I had smoked weed right before going to bed.

When I do remember my dreams, most of the time they are lucid, meaning I can control them. I can either "stand back" and witness the dream as the events unfold right in front of me, knowing that I'm only dreaming, or I can actually take part in the dream and manipulate it however I want. I've been able to do this since I was about 7-8 years old, so I'm pretty good at it.

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Originally posted by Electrophile I never have nightmares either. I am almost always self aware in my dreams too. It is like living my fantasy life, any woman I want, any place I want to be, driving what I want etc etc. I can wake myself up if I want to by just yelling WAKE UP in my dream. I can also process data in my head while I sleep, for example, I will put on an episode of "The Universe" and fall asleep half way in. I then wake up the next morning knowing how far it is to the Andromeda galaxy and how that distance is found using Hubble's law. I first discovered my ability to do this a few years ago when I fell asleep during a documentary on Nikola Tesla and was able to produce facts and trivia on about Tesla without ever studying his life. Now I do this almost every night and my scientific knowledge has grown exponentially. Anyone else able to do this while they sleep?

do you want a nomination for the pulitzer prize or something?

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Originally posted by Miss Julia I'm not on any medication.

There's your problem. Try Xanax for your anxiety. It'll make you not give a f*** about anything and it'll also help you sleep throughout the night. (might have a problem getting up though)

Disclaimer: I am not a medical doctor. You should consult with your help care professional before taking any type of substance.

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www.rabbanlaw.com

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Originally posted by Miss Julia I know you guys will think I'm crazy, but I have to share what's been going on with me.... I have intense, disturbing, visual, vivid dreams/nightmares practically every night. I even have nightmares when I lay down to take short naps. In my nightmares, I can see colors, remember faces, conversations, names, numbers, details, textures... I can hear sounds, music, peoples voices, and sometimes even smell. I'll wake up a couple times a night (depending on how bad the nightmare was), and sometimes my heart is pounding out of fear, and I'm sweating. Sometimes when I wake up from a nightmare, I'll be thinking, "Holy shit, did that just happen"???? And I'll want to go online to google it or check my email to see if what I just dreamed happened or if it was just my imagination. I also have sleep paralysis maybe once or twice a year (I haven't had that in a little over a year though... and I hope I don't have to go through it ever again). Here is some background info about me... 1. I've been having vivid dreams since I can remember, but I don't remember having them every night like I do now. 2. I had a concussion when i was 12 years old, in a coma for a couple days (maybe this causes nightmares?) 3. My first intense sleep paralysis experience was when I was around 20 years old. I remember having it a couple times before that, but not as intense as this one. 4. My nightmares have become unbearable within the last 2 years. 5. When I finally get out of bed in the morning, I feel like I didn't get a good nights rest, and sometimes the dream is so disturbing, that I'll be in an upset mood in the morning. 6. I'm always tired through out the day, and always want to sleep early. I told all this to my doctor recently, so he had me take an MRI brain scan. He said my results looked a little "different", so he got an opinion from a 2nd doctor. The 2nd doctor said he noticed some brain shrinkage (aka early signs of Schizophrenia and Alzheimer's). The 3rd doctor said my brain is ok, and there is nothing to worry about. So in conclusion, my doctor said my brain is "ok". Well, I guess I'll trust my doctors opinion. (I did some research, and brain shrinkage starts showing when you're about 60 years old, and can be caused by drinking alcohol or being a vegetarian. I'm only 27, I don't drink alcohol often, and I'm not a vegetarian). So then, my doctor had me take a sleep study at the hospital (this was a few weeks ago). Basically, they check your heart rate, breathing patterns, and they video tape you while you're sleeping. The nurse called me a couple weeks saying I have a little sleep apnea, but in general, my results came out "normal". I asked her there MUST be something my doctor can do... perhaps another sleep study that specializes in brain activity when you're asleep? She said she would ask the doctor and call me back, but she hasn't followed up with me since. (go figures... the medical insurance system these days) I can't imagine having more stress in my life than the average person... so I don't think nightmares are directly related to stress. I don't know why I have nightmares. I just bought a Tempurpedic pillow top for my mattress, and a humidifier for my bedroom, hoping these two things would help, but I've still been having nightmares. I'm not on any medication. I don't usually eat food late. I don't drink. I work out moderately a few hours before sleep. I usually relax before sleeping... either by watching TV or reading a book or magazine. What can be the cause for my intense nightmares? What can I do to stop them? I wish my brain would just shut off at night.

i've died many times in my dreams and had many horrible dreams. when i die in my dreams i always ask myself "no way, this isn't possible. let me try to wake myself up" and i wake myself up just to make sure. when i wake up, my heart is pounding, sweating... but i cannot say i had them as excessively as you have. i am not a psychologists but first thing i wonder is if you are going through a challenging/tough times in your life now (aside from your nightmare problem).
another thing i suggest to you, although i am not too certain of, is to get yourself checked by universities. for example i know UC Irvine has great psychology program and a great research team. maybe going to them for help will be beneficial (i am not sure if they will be helpful but i don't know why they wouldn't help because they are always trying to learn and come up with new research). i know someone who graduated with psychology major from irvine a while back i can ask him if the school accepts "walk ins". pm me if interested.

One word... Shrink

i was curious about this and did some research on it. it sounds like you have what's called nightmare disorder. some successful treatments include meditation, yoga, counseling, psychotherapy, systematic desensitization, benzodiazapines (diazepam), and benadryl elixir (diphenhydramine). it's said that as you get older, the disorder responds better to treatment and subsides.

here's some links...

http://www.psychnet-uk.com/dsm_iv/n...re_disorder.htm
http://www.minddisorders.com/Kau-Nu...e-disorder.html
http://www.sleepeducation.com/Disorder.aspx?id=37
http://psychcentral.com/disorders/sx48.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nightmare_disorder

hope this helps!

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