Dreams while in induced coma

[Willclark]

Just joined after reading some post about dreams that seemed so real yet some of things that i have never seen before but still seem real and fairly clear, after 4 months.

Will

[jojokarak]

The dreams will stay with you for a while but the intensity eases off its almost 4 years ago now for me and I don't dream about them anymore but I can still recall them but they don't freak me out no more

[angelrock in reply to jojokarak]

They still freak me out after three years - can't quite believe I went through all that and more.

[Alisongiblin]

You will remember the dreams for a few years & they seem so real I was convinced some of them had really hepprned for a while . After 7 years they don't bother me so much .

[comadreams]

I found that writing them down in every detail you can remember and then putting them aside, just a folder on your computer somewhere or literally print and find a nice box for the printed pages (kind of a ceremony) you can put the dreams to rest and separate them from your 'real' life.

[RichardNeill in reply to comadreams]

I totally agree. I write my hallucinations/dreams in a book with a lock on it. It is something I can always read through, but then lock away. Subconsciously I then find they don't bother me any longer and it has stopped me dwelling on them.

[stevet11753]

Dreams and 'reality' just merged into one another, and the dreams weren't just short and confusing but continuous stories in real time. I had many disturbing dreams of entrapment, which I can still remember clearly. But there were also consoling dreams. One of my dream themes was being in a hospital on a hillside in Belgium, with beautiful golden flower-beds and surrounded by woodland and fields. I really believed I was there, whereas I was actually in a hospital in the centre of Liverpool. The dreams were so important to me I decided to write them down, in the form of a story, so I would never forget them, even the disturbing ones.

[Visceralcomadreams in reply to stevet11753]

Hey Steve I was in an induced coma for 21 day in July/aug 2019. I wrote down all my 30+ dreams , some positive, most horrifying. Would love to connect to hear your experience.

[ICUsteps-Peter Partner ICUsteps]

As others have said, they do fade with time. Describing them as dreams doesn't convey how vivid they were or how hard they can be to distinguish from reality. If you're fortunate enough to have a follow up clinic at your hospital or have the chance to visit the ICU again, these can both be helpful in coming to terms with our delusional memories. It can be a difficult step to take but many survivors, myself included, find it a help towards putting the experience behind us.

[RichardNeill]

I totally agree. I write my hallucinations/dreams in a book with a lock on it. It is something I can always read through, but then lock away. Subconsciously I then find they don't bother me any longer and it has stopped me dwelling on them.

Hi Peter, I am returning back to ICU next Friday after just over two and a half years. ICUsteps has played a very important part in my recovery, and it has helped me more than I could have ever expected.

[Bailey_Pontefract]

I’ve just joined after reading your question. I was in a induced coma in 2004 after being injured in Iraq. I’ve never spoke to or met anybody else who’s been in a coma so I’ve never had the chance to ask others questions who went through the same. My coma dreams where truly an amazing experience where I felt safe in all them. They were so real & I can still see them in my head as clear as I did while in that coma 14 years ago. I had 4 that only this year I’ve tried to write down/ draw them to try make sense of why I dreamt them scenarios if that makes any sense also I’ve wrote down all my hallucinations I experienced when I woke up out my coma. I joined Quora this year after I lost my wee dog and used that as a platform to write everything down that I experienced before I was put into that coma then my dreams. It’s helped me lots. I’m an atheist so I know the first dream was only that. I was always interested in trying to find out if there was any meaning to it. Ive used certain objects from them dreams to help me over the years when my PTSD flashbacks/nightmares were bad because in them dreams i felt safe. Maybe it’s time like others have said below to lock them away in my diary & forget about them. Apologises for the long message and I wish you all the best. Kind regards Bailey