10 December 2005

Dreams within dreams

This was odd. I've had people describe being aware of their real bodies in dreams and feeling paralyzed, but I'd never had it happen to me. Until last night.

I woke up, or so it felt, and knew that I was in bed in my room. There was a skeleton in bed beside me, so I tried to get out of the bed and found I couldn't move. So I think I woke up just enough to be aware of my surroundings, but not enough to stop dreaming. Anyway, I "woke up" again (in the context of the dream), and it was my mom beside me and we were in a hotel. This time I could move (I had actually gone deeper asleep not woken up), and got out of the bed. And that's all I remember at the moment. It's not pleasant, though, feeling like you're paralyzed.

(Incidentally, the last time my mom and I shared a bed, I was 7. The hotels were booked except for one room with a single king-size bed. My mom swears that I took up the whole bed and that she woke up with bruises. )

4 comments:

John said...

Sleep paralysis is thought to be the cause of 'alien abduction' experiences. Apparenty you were aware that you were not really awake and were still dreaming. Some alien abductees get very passionate, even violent, when this explanation is suggested to them.

Fibonacci said...

I used to have dreams where I would repeatedly think I was waking up, but I would only get a certain distance away from the bed before "waking up" again. Every time I thought I woke up, it would feel like it was more real than before, and I would be certain that I had really woken up that time. Then after several iterations I would get scared that I wouldn't ever be able to get out of the dream.

Qalmlea said...

I remember one dream where at first I "woke up" and everything was normal. I got dressed and ready to go to school. Then I walked out the door of my bedroom...onto a busy city street (my door actually opens onto an interior, basement hallway).

John said...

I have dreamed that I have been at work for awhile, before suddenly waking up for real.