One of the walks was just three of us. The vet I just mentioned, myself, and another peer who was also on the "family" side, like me. The nightmare conversation was getting going pretty good. We weren't going into any details about imagery, but we were discussing intensity, dream hangovers, and general strategies.
During a lull in the chat, the other family volunteer looked at me and said "Wait - were you in the military yourself?" I replied that I wasn't, and then she said "Well, what do you mean you have nightmares?" She honestly seemed confused by the fact that I could have nightmares without actually having served.
I was confused because I thought (and still think) everyone has nightmares. Maybe not too the "night terror" level, or even intense nightmares, but most people have them.
I find it really odd that someone would question, almost to the point of challenging me, on the "truth" of having nightmares without having served.
An aside, from WebMD: "While it's true nightmares are more common among children, one out of every two adults has nightmares on occasion. And between 2% and 8% of the adult population is plagued by nightmares"
Since I was a small boy I've had combat related nightmares and never served. Nothing short of reincarnation could really explain that...but I also had PTSD related nightmares due to the fact that I was sexually assaulted as a boy. You don't need to be in combat to have nightmares....most if not all people do have unpleasant dreams...most of us call those nightmares.
ReplyDeleteDreaming, as you know, is a way for the mind to go completely insane and return to normal in one night. It is a mysterious way for the brain to assimilate in image form things that bother you and things that you feel will happen. And if you could remember the images they might make sense when analyzed. But most of them seem to evaporate when you wake up or as the day goes on. And this is for everyone, vets and non-vets. From all I have read, most nightmares are normal and safe. But some are nothing more than reliving some horrible event, and they need to be dealt with. I have discovered that I have them when I sleep in a warm room. I prefer cold, with the fan running even in the winter. I have also had dreams of being at sea when the ship goes down. If didn't happen to me, but it did to one of my friends from when I was aboard. The brain is a strange and fascinating organ.
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