Dreams and Pushing Recovery (Possible Triggers)

[Dewey2k]

I usually dream while I sleep, and I can usually remember snippets from those and use them as fuel for my writing.

I work graveyard shift and sleep during the day four days a week. Today I had a dream that, unlike the others, I remember every second of.

It was a flashback, and it really rattled me. What rattled me most was the emotions it brought up- I felt like I did when I was 12, wanting it to happen again... until I woke up, and then it hit me hard.

I wonder if I'm pushing to hard in trying to deal with what happened to me. I rarely have sexual dreams in any case, and to have this jump out of the wood work, so to speak... It makes me wonder.

 

[Dewey2k]

I'm bumping this because I need to know:

Is it possible to push recovery too hard?

 

[Rustam]

Hi Dewey,

I guess it is possible to push too hard and try and move to fast, however for me the process does involve some pretty uncomfortable times, most of us have an old habit of avoiding our feelings, facing and feeling them is going to be difficult. For me disturbing vivid dreams are part of recovery, there are times when it can feel like its too much but generally issues come up for me when I am ready to deal with them. Its almost as if I have an internal regulator, but it sure gets scary at times.

You have just made the decision to tell your dad and have told him which is such a big thing; I guess its not surprising if it all feels too much right now.

Take care,

Peter.

 

[roadrunner]

Dewey,

Yes, I think it is possible to push too hard, especially when you first come here. It is such a revelation to discover that you are not alone, and then to find the courage and confidence to tell your father: that's doing a lot in a short period, and in itself it's great. The problem is that it might give a false hope that recovery will always be so rapid and fruitful as these first steps. You will find your own pace, but it will probably not be so dramatic as these first steps have been, and many guys here will tell you they have experienced very disappointing setbacks as well. I guess it's rather like life itself.

My experience is that dreams connected with SA seem to be one way I come to terms with what happened. It can sometimes be very frightening or upsetting to relive those moments and how you felt at the time, but it helps me to see these episodes as part of the way I cope and deal with things. I try to accept them as indications that I am making progress, as opposed to confirming how messed up I sometimes think/know I am.

Take care,
Larry