Quality sleep used to elude me primarily because I worked long hours. I considered it a good night’s sleep if I got 7 hours, rather than only 5 or so. These days, without the stress of a job, it’s still hard to get a good night’s sleep, though for unknown reasons.
The first few hours after I go to bed are decent sleep, but then I’ll wake up (usually to use the bathroom). When I try, try, try again to get back to sleep, I end up tossing and turning
I kept on tossin' and turnin'Turnin' and tossin' tossin' and turnin' all night I threw the blankets on the floor, turned my pillow upside down
When I do get into a deep sleep, I have bad dreams. For as long as I can remember, all the dreams I’ve had while sleeping have been bad dreams. Never a good dream. The themes are usually me attempting to run away from someone or something that’s chasing me. And I’m escaping along some weird twisted path or water way that looks like it came out of a Dr. Seuss book or that wild mine train roller coaster-like ride in the Indiana Jones movie. As a young child I had a recurring bad dream. Same damn dream about some monster or person chasing me down the street.
I’m not sure that most of those bad dreams are considered true “nightmares”,
Occurring during rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, a nightmare is a dream that results in feelings of extreme fear, horror, distress, or anxiety. This phenomenon tends to occur in the latter part of the night and often awakens the sleeper, who is likely to recall the content of the dream.
Most nightmares are a normal reaction to stress, and some clinicians believe they help people work through traumatic events. Frequent occurrence of nightmares, however, becomes a disorder when it impairs social, occupational, and other important areas of functioning. At this point, it may be referred to as Nightmare Disorder (formerly Dream Anxiety Disorder) or "repeated nightmares," which is a term defined more specifically as a series of nightmares with a recurring theme.
Nightmares, which tend to be more common in girls than boys, usually begin in childhood before age 10 and are considered normal unless they significantly interfere with sleep, development, or psychosocial development. They may continue into adulthood where they are often associated with outside stressors, anxiety, or trauma. They may also exist alongside another mental disorder.
at least they don’t seem to rise to the level of what experts call night terrors —
During a sleep terror episode, a person may:
- Begin with a frightening scream or shout
- Sit up in bed and appear frightened
- Stare wide-eyed
- Sweat, breathe heavily, and have a racing pulse, flushed face and dilated pupils
- Kick and thrash
- Be hard to awaken, and be confused if awakened
- Be inconsolable
- Have no or little memory of the event the next morning
- Possibly, get out of bed and run around the house or have aggressive behavior if blocked or restrained
My other FP is that Valentine’s Day is in a few days. The yearly reminder of my lack of a love life. Bah Humbug! (what’s a similar comment for V. Day?) However, I’m grateful I haven’t been subjected to the form of “love”Rob Porter gave the women in life.
What’s your FP?