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Conference hydra::dejavu

Title:Psychic Phenomena
Notice:Please read note 1.0-1.* before writing
Moderator:JARETH::PAINTER
Created:Wed Jan 22 1986
Last Modified:Tue May 27 1997
Last Successful Update:Fri Jun 06 1997
Number of topics:2143
Total number of notes:41773

1324.0. "Could this happen while dreaming?" by CGVAX2::LANDRY (Closer to the Heart) Fri Jul 27 1990 17:30

    My name is Anna and I work at NQO.  I read this file but have never
    written to it.
    
    The strangest thing happened to me last night and would like some
    *feedback* on it.  I guess it amounts to a dream, but then again I am
    not quite sure.
    
    I went to bed early, and my SO came to bed about 1 hr later and I was
    asleep when he came to bed.  I awoke to find myself laying with my back
    to the floor, my elbows digging into the carpet!  The best way I can
    describe this is that someone literally picked me up and slammed me
    back first into the floor!  (I was not drinking and did no drugs.)  I
    had to have hit the floor hard because my shoulders felt the impact and
    were sore.  As I got up (and believe me I was dazed and confused) I had
    to check to make sure nothing was broken, hence the reason I felt like
    I was slammed to the floor.  The last thing I remember dreaming (now
    this is quite foggy) is almost getting hit by a truck.  Could this
    dream have made me *duck* out of the way, hence falling to the floor? 
    The one thing that confuses me is that when I got up, I was lying
    diagonally with the bed.  It would make more sense if I was lying in
    the same direction of the bed (like rolling off), but I was lying
    diagonally with the bed which would mean I would have had to sort up
    get up as I fell off the bed -- like I said I am very confused by this
    and really had a hard time getting back to sleep - it spooked me so
    much.
    
    Any comments?  I did check with my husband about it and he told me all
    was normal when he came to bed.  We have a big bed so he could not have
    kicked me out without knowing it (or doing it on purpose) and this has
    *never* happened in my adult life (falling out of bed).
    
    Signed,
    
    Very baffeled!
    
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1324.1Night terrors, I think.CADSYS::COOPERTopher CooperFri Jul 27 1990 19:0038
    Sounds like you experienced a "night terror".  These have been
    discussed under various topics in this conference under such titles
    as "The Hag in the Night."

    Basically -- ordinary dreams -- including ordinary nightmares -- occur
    in a phase of sleep called REM sleep.  REM dreams, however incoherent
    by waking standards, are fairly structured.  They have a regular "plot"
    and can generally be recalled in detail if the dreamer is awakened
    during the dream.  During REM sleep, to prevent the dreamer from
    thrashing around in response to dream events and injuring themselves, a
    kind of switch is thrown in the brain which causes the body to become
    paralyzed (with a few minor exceptions such as the eyeballs).

    Dreams do occur in other phases of sleep but are generally "muddy" and
    incoherent without a plot.  They are "dreams" of a single image, idea
    sound or event.  The body does not generally react to these single
    image dreams since it is not perceived that the dreamer is part of
    some events.  Occasionally, particularly when the person is under
    some form of stress but sometimes just randomly, a non-REM dream has
    more of an impact -- usually because it is intense and frightening.
    The body is *not* paralyzed like in REM sleep, and so the dreamer's
    reaction -- crying out, striking out, attempting to move out of the
    way -- gets translated into actual action.

    My guess is that you had a non-REM dream which really did consist of
    nothing more than the image of a truck bearing down on you.  In
    reflex action you tried to fling yourself out of the way of the truck
    with the expected and observed consequences.

    Nothing to worry about unless there are frequent similar recurrances.
    In that case, you should be looking at doing something about the stress
    levels in your life (*frequent* night terrors may also be a symtomatic
    of neurological problems, and so you should check with a doctor if
    they reoccur frequently and seem unrelated to stress.  This is only
    a precaution, however -- its just like if you had frequent headaches,
    probably nothing serious but better to check out).

					Topher
1324.2CGVAX2::LANDRYCloser to the HeartMon Jul 30 1990 15:175
    Thanks, Topher, that sounds like it must be that - night terror.  My
    mother has been very sick lately and I have been worried about it.
    
    Best regards.