Nightmares and starting to understand

[jalcnlmcl2003]

Has anyone spent any time trying to interpret the images in any nightmares you have had? I'm not a big Jungian believer or anything, but I find it somewhat interesting. As I'm going through therapy with my wife, she is becoming aware of all the emotional sh*t that was put on me AFTER the SA ended, by my mother.

For the last 24 years, my mother has been my primary trigger, and I'm just starting to sort through all the negative messages she has embedded in my emotional wiring.

Last night, I woke from a nightmare, and had a hard time getting back to sleep. I felt like a fat little 10 year old again. I actually snuggled up to my sleeping wife like she was my mother.

The dream took place in my grandfather's house (he intervened and stopped the abuse). I was seeing images of pigs (representing unclean and dirtiness), black widow spiders (the dominant female -- my mother -- represented by a lethal creature), and scorpions. The spiders kept biting me, and I can remember feeling each bite like it was happening.

The house, pigs and spiders made perfect sense, given my history. I had a hard time understanding the scorpions. In the dream, they seemed to be attacking and killing the spiders.

Well, with a little research, I realized the scorpion in dreams is typically associated with defense/protection (and more obviously, the zodiac Scorpio). When I realized that last piece, it clicked into place. Both my grandfather and my wife are Scorpio by birth, and both have taken the role of defender and supporter.

Just thought I'd share.

 

[Sick Puppy]

My nightmares are usually pretty straightforward, flashbacks to my abuse or abusive situations that could have occured, but didn't. I don't see much symbolism or imagery in them, except for the ones I have when I have a fever and I don't even know where to start with those.

 

[Wuamei]

J2003:

I've had some weird dreams, too weird to even try to figure out sometimes, tho I don't remember my dreams as much as I used to anymore.

However I had a vivid recurring nightmare for years, when I was a teen, relating to my CSA by my mother & others. If you want to read about it:

https://www.malesurvivor.org/cgi-local/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=1;t=001347#000002

Take care

Victor

 

[MEC]

Hi J,
I seldom remember dreams and lately have been sleeping longer than I'd like.

I used to have nightmares occasionally, but one I remember to this day. That nightmare happened first decades ago when I was less than 7 or 8 I think. I have no idea what any of it meant. Because I often used to cry before falling asleep as a child, for no logical reason at all, I never gave much thought to waking and crying over a bad dream. For me to tell any of my fears to my parents about the dream or crying for no reason, it wouldnt have gotten any caring anyway. Hell, I was sick with fever one time, with some delirium, my father told me to shut up.

The dream has GOT to have something to do with much of what I am only now beginning to remember about my SA.

Maybe you can comment since you seem to have some knowledge of dreams. Basically, it's short and I remember waking up crying that I would be left alone.

In the dream, it was night, raining and our car slide off a raised road and got stuck in the mud. Then I remember my father getting out of the car from the drivers side and my mother just opening the door from the passenger's side. That's it.

????
Michael

 

[ScottyTodd]

What a thread! I haven't thought of my nightmare for years. I had it over and over when I was a kid and teen. Listen to this one:

I had a beany hat on; was about 4-5 years old. I'd spin the beany cap and fly...soaring way up high, real scary...then diving down toward earth. The feeling in the pit of my stomach on dropping down was scarey, upsetting; I couldn't stop because the indians on horses were chasing me and wanted to hurt me. I would soar down toward the indians and not stop getting closer and closer to the indians. As they reached out, I'd wake up.

Curiously, tonight I identified the feeling of soaring down as the feeling I would get when I was abused. Sometimes I'd wake up to people being sexual with me.

Thinking of it, I got the same weird feeling on the ferris wheel (avoid them and rollercoasters absolutely!! even today!!). But I remember the dropping feeling being in my lower stomach or my genitals. I was frightened to death of the feeling!! Still HATE IT TO PIECES!!!!!!!!!

Anyone have any sense in this? I stopped having the dream when I left home at 19.

Weird? Huh??

Howard