Hi,
Can anyone shed light on why my husband is having bad dreams night after night after night? He hasn't slept properly now for days because he has to get up for a couple of hours at least each night to break the cycle. He goes to bed and falls asleep quite readily and then the dreams start. They seem to be a variety of topics but always seem to end with him being lost and on his own.
Many thanks,
Curity
In Chinese medicine, sleep that is disturbed by strong dreams is brought about when there is too much "heat" in the body that affects one of the functions of the Heart (not the physical heart, but the aspect of regulation of emotion). Heat can arise in several ways; the usual one is a deficiency of Yin, which then fails to regulate Yang allowing a relative growth of heat, usually at night. This is likely to be coupled with slight palpitation, thirst and red cheek bones, and often is made worse by overwork and anxiety. Yin deficiency is brought about by long hours of overwork, anxiety and stress, and in women, blood loss, hence the heating up in the menopause.
Heat also arises when there is an excess of Yang, even when Yin remains intact. There might be profuse sweating, a red face (as opposed to just the cheeks), a tendency to anger, probable headaches and maybe some dizziness. Excess Yang is worsened by alcohol, coffee, spicy foods, and by too much activity in the evening.
It might be likely that there is some emotional component too; fear, anxiety and anger can all contribute to disturbing the Heart, and as sleep is ruled by the Heart in Chinese thinking, sleep problems can result.
Eating too late can also heat the body up, as we tend to warm up when we digest food.
Hi,
Can anyone shed light on why my husband is having bad dreams night after night after night? He hasn't slept properly now for days because he has to get up for a couple of hours at least each night to break the cycle. He goes to bed and falls asleep quite readily and then the dreams start. They seem to be a variety of topics but always seem to end with him being lost and on his own.
Many thanks,
Curity
Soul loss. Possibly intrusions as well, but the aspect of being "lost and on his own" suggests soul loss.
Thank you for your replies.
Hi Crowan - Can you please tell me a little more about Soul Loss. I've never heard of it before.
Thanks.
Curity
Dreams tend to represent symbolically those of our daytime emotions which have not been fully acknowledged/expressed during the day. If your husband is quite a reserved person and does not share his feeling easily, then if something worried or upset him this is likely to show up in dreams in an exaggerated form. E.g. I used to have a difficulty with acknowledging anger, and if someone or something did make me angry during the day, I would tend not to show it, but then have really violent dreams.
The theme of being lost and on his own may suggest that there is some underlying anxiety about being "lost" (this could be metaphorical rather than literal) - you could possibly gently encourage him to talk about things that are bothering him - if these feelings are acknowledged and validated, they are less likely to translate into scary dreams.
Masha