Do you have nightmares after a nap?

Sillawithans · 2021-06-09T17:02:57+00:00

Not AIBU, posting for traffic. Do you have nightmares after a nap? I'm honestly scared to fall asleep as I keep having nightmares. I had one today that involved one of my children. Same child woke me up and I grabbed her and hugged her so tight. Told her how much I love her. I feel sick and shaky since.

Treacletreacle · 09/06/2021 18:08

When you say nap do you mean during the day? If so it doesn't matter how tired I am, I can't sleep during the day. If I do I wake up feeling like someone is laying on top of me and I end up feeling terribly anxious. The last time I napped during the day I woke up 10 minutes later feeling like I had a stroke. Felt terrible, so no matter how tired I feel I never sleep during the day. Perhaps it's something to do with your brain function being too busy or something. 🤷‍♀️

Original poster

Sillawithans · 09/06/2021 18:15

Yes, during the day. It mostly happens if I was up in the morning and fall back asleep as that's usually the only time I would fall back asleep.

I rarely nap because I was up groggy and can't function but I was unwell at the weekend and slept terrible so came home from work today and conked out.

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shivawn · 09/06/2021 18:39

No never nightmares. I love a good nap but I never feel good after it.

Original poster

Sillawithans · 09/06/2021 18:42

@shivawn love your name! I always have a nightmare and they're nearly always about my children.

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cookiecreampie · 09/06/2021 18:42

Not necessarily nightmares but I do have more vivid dreams. I think it's because you're in the light sleep stage. I get them in the mornings just before I wake up too.

Original poster

Sillawithans · 09/06/2021 18:46

Yes I get them in the mornings too. They really knock me sideways as always terrifying and about my children.

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NotSure94 · 09/06/2021 18:57

If I have particularly deep sleep, like in a super comfy bed after a busy day I find I have super elaborate and often scary or violent dreams. It's like my subconscious is totally going for it. I never end up feeling rested!

I get a LOT of hypnagogic jerks too when I'm at rest as a side effect of my BP medication (where you feel like you're falling) so my shitty dreams are always falling off bridges or walls or mountains which is GREAT as I have vertigo in real life, it's absolutely horrible how many times I've experienced the moment before I die in my dreams!

cookiecreampie · 09/06/2021 18:57

The worst dreams I've ever had are about awful horrific things happening to my kids. It's cos you love them and it's your worst fear, it doesn't mean it's really going to happen. It's still horrible though.

Original poster

Sillawithans · 09/06/2021 19:08

@NotSure94 that sounds awful! Do you wake up with a jump when you're falling?

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Original poster

Sillawithans · 09/06/2021 19:11

@cookiecreampie horrible isn't it. Today I dreamt that people were trying to take my daughter from me, I was circled and they were trying to peel her from me. I feel terrible now and just can't shake it.

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goddessofmischief · 09/06/2021 22:29

If I nap in the day I usually lucid dream. It started off as nightmares, then sleep paralysis but now I'm in full control. Don't get to do it often. Eerily satisfying but not very restful.

StayOrGoOrWhat · 09/06/2021 22:33

I get sleep paralysis if I nap during the day. Now that I know what it is, it doesn’t scare me but they can be horrible dreams at the time. Never had a dream about anyone getting the DC luckily though.

shetlandponies · 09/06/2021 22:36

I had a nap in the day the other day and had a bout of sleep paralysis

Was horrible 😫

BackforGood · 09/06/2021 23:04

No.
I love a daytime nap.

MyGrassIsBrowner · 09/06/2021 23:09

I tend to have nightmares when I go to bed after having a nap during the day. I think it's something to do with the fact that because you've had sleep during the day, you don't go into the full REM sleep as quickly as you would normally.
I suffer from sleep paralysis too, and I tend to suffer worse when I've had a day nap. It really is frightening!

Mydogdoesntlisten · 09/06/2021 23:11

I end up with sleep paralysis too if I sleep in in the morning. It's horrible, but nightmares are even more horrible. It's just your mind being a bit screwed up, I think, but it's very unsettling for a few days afterwards.
Perhaps try a regular sleep pattern on a strict routine? Not always easy to achieve though.

NotSure94 · 09/06/2021 23:12

@Sillawithans yup - I haven't hit the ground yet but it's always waking with a jerk as it's happening when I'm on the way down! I just presume I'm jerking (lol) periodically in sleep and my brain's coming up with ways to explain it!

NotSure94 · 09/06/2021 23:17

OMG just googled sleep paralysis and I definitely had one episode of that as a teenager - I was going through a bit of a religious phase and I was convinced I'd been possessed! I couldn't move and felt that jolt of pressure on my chest - then it passed through me and away. Fortunately a one off even if I am falling off cliffs these days!

It must be awful to have sleep paralysis frequently. Sleep disorders are horrible. x

Thomasina79 · 09/06/2021 23:21

@NotSure94

If I have particularly deep sleep, like in a super comfy bed after a busy day I find I have super elaborate and often scary or violent dreams. It's like my subconscious is totally going for it. I never end up feeling rested!

I get a LOT of hypnagogic jerks too when I'm at rest as a side effect of my BP medication (where you feel like you're falling) so my shitty dreams are always falling off bridges or walls or mountains which is GREAT as I have vertigo in real life, it's absolutely horrible how many times I've experienced the moment before I die in my dreams!

I have these jerks too, they are horrible and are really frequent. Neurology team do not seem to know why. Sorry you are having them too, but glad I’m not the only one.

I too get nightmares, I think partly due to chronic insomnia and also due to family estrangement which has caused untold grief and also chronic worry about another family member.

I also,get night terrors when I feel there is someone in the room and I cannot get away.

Gosh, what I would give for eight hours solid sleep with no dreams!

HareofEasttown · 09/06/2021 23:24

Yes!

jasmineda · 09/06/2021 23:25

I do not have any nightmares, but my kid has and it is so scary when he starts to scream at 3 am and I do not know what to do with that.

MumofTeens2021 · 09/06/2021 23:29

@jasmineda not sure if it's the same thing but both my children had night terrors where they wake hysterical and can't properly focus on you because they are still sort of asleep. It's horrible but really common, and not harmful (although really upsetting for parents) and neither of them had them past the toddler/under the age of 6 or 7.

NotSure94 · 09/06/2021 23:35

@Thomasina79 consensus does indeed seem to say it's not harmful and they don't really know why it happens. I've not been to see any consultants but online forums seem to corroborate that for me it's seemingly a medication related thing. I hate the dreams, but going to sleep I take the jerks as a way of reminding me I'm relaxing and well on the way to going to sleep so sort of twist it into a positive even though it is shite. Fortunately they don't cause a sensation pain like restless legs, I just twitch sporadically so I just mentally hand over to my body and think "you sort it out, I'm signing off" :D Sorry to hear you have various things getting in the way of a good night's sleep. It's such a simple thing that's taken for granted. x