my dreams are exhausting

[nuskone]

i can't track the thread now, but someone posted a link about this so called "intense world theory", which, in short, would explain that autistic people have pretty much an over intensified way to interpret what their brains perceive that can as a consequence cause mental stress
its more complicated than what i described of course and i suggest you to read the full article since its very intresting

either way, this made me think

i have been having just recently these very vivid, long, detailed and coherent dreams, sometimes leaving me strong emotional reaction on top of everything, and once they're over, i woke up more tired than how went to sleep

of course the first conclusion someone should try to reach is that there is many other factors that can influence something like that, which is what i did

but after doing a bit of research on dreams and how they work, coming to the understanding that this is a largely "work in progress" study, i found out that the brain is still somewhat active during sleep, depending on the phase

some people may not realize it, for how simple that may be once you think about it, but the brain mantainance alone is responsable for an important part of our daily food intake, meaning that the food intake for an autistic person (we're going BIG inside pseudoscience territories here!) may be slightly higher due to the intensity in how we process certain feelings

so, all of these wild dreams i'm having, may not only take a toll on me due to how they make me feel, but also because they leave me phisically exhausted, kind of like jogging for a bit or something similar, due to the resources comsumed to just "see them"

does anyone feel like they can relate to this?

 

[Fino]

Have you been very stressed or depressed at all lately? It sounds like you're having too much REM sleep, which would prolong dreams and cause tiredness.

 

[nuskone]

Have you been very stressed or depressed at all lately? It sounds like you're having too much REM sleep, which would prolong dreams and cause tiredness.

far from it actually, its not something i ever associated with particularly bad, or good for that matter, moments of my life

its kinda always been there

 

[Fino]

You've been waking up physically exhausted all your life?

 

[nuskone]

You've been waking up physically exhausted all your life?

noooo only when i dream lol

 

[Fino]

Actually, we dream every night! It's a common mistake for people to confuse "not remembering" with "not happening," and not just in the case of dreams.

 

[Progster]

I think it's true that we often experience things more intensely than most people. Even just being me is exhausting, I get tired from doing nothing.

 

[nuskone]

Actually, we dream every night! It's a common mistake for people to confuse "not remembering" with "not happening," and not just in the case of dreams.

well, now i feel kinda stupid lol

EDIT: no wait i just woke up and i forgot one of my original points, which is that the difference between the dreams we make but forget and the dreams we remember is that our brain is absorbing the informations derivated from it on a different, more long term, state

well, actually, i don't know, pseudoscience as i said

 

[Streetwise]

well, now i feel kinda stupid lol

EDIT: no wait i just woke up and i forgot one of my original points, which is that the difference between the dreams we make but forget and the dreams we remember is that our brain is absorbing the informations derivated from it on a different, more long term, state

well, actually, i don't know, pseudoscience as i said

don't feel stupid you're just in the exhaustion period of your life I've been in it for 12 years, one reason for traumatic dreams is hormone inbalance ,classic in pregnant women ,mine happened because I stopped taking an antidepressant too quickly.
i'm at the point where I don't know if I'm just remembering things in my dreams that are going to happen or there just dreams I also get visions but that's because I'm a Christian and probably also because I'm autistic and so much more open to communication .

 

[Pats]

I used one of those bit things that track your sleep and was not surprised that the majority of my sleep is in REM. I dream a lot and it can be tiring sometimes - depending on how intense the dreams are. Like the other night I was trying to fight off lions and more was coming and I didn't feel like I could handle any more, but put some gloves on and said, ok, if I have to. (Feels kind of like life has been. lol)
But my biggest nuisance with dreams is waking up with all my muscles so tight they hurt and it feels like it takes a long time to get them to relax a little bit.

 

[Tom]

I think I have read about brain activity consuming a lot of calories/energy, but don't know how much. Is a long dream the equivalent of a game of tennis or game of cards? I know they say we dream whether we remember or not but also heard dreaming depends upon reaching a certain stage of deeper sleep. I have gone long periods where I only seem to sleep in short bursts and not reach deep sleep and do not remember any dreams. But I never really studied it so am unsure. I know when I sleep longer periods I tend to have more remembered dreams.

I also act out dreams a lot. I talk, shout and make movements like hitting and kicking in bad dreams. I have had to install a railing since I was falling or throwing myself out of bed and beating the crap out of myself in the process. We have a huge down comforter that makes you feel like you are in a cloud and shields my wife fairly well.

 

[Fino]

well, now i feel kinda stupid lol

EDIT: no wait i just woke up and i forgot one of my original points, which is that the difference between the dreams we make but forget and the dreams we remember is that our brain is absorbing the informations derivated from it on a different, more long term, state

well, actually, i don't know, pseudoscience as i said

From what I remember, the primary difference in remembering and not remembering dreams depends on which part of the cycle you wake up in and what you do when you wake up.

 

[SusanLR]

Sleep study is neuroscience, not psuedoscience.
I have always had a lot of dream activity that I remember.
My dreams are usually just like being awake, doing daily activities and talking with people.
I don't have nightmares.

In answer to burning calories during REM dream sleep, the answer is yes, according to neuroscience.
Quote:
The INSIDER Summary:

• Our bodies burn calories when we sleep, especially during the REM (rapid eye movement) sleep stage, according to sleep specialist Dr. Michael Breus.
• During REM sleep, our glucose metabolism increases, accelerating the rate of calorie-burn.
• The longer you sleep, the more calories you burn — but oversleeping has the reverse effect, and slows down metabolism.

• 
  And here is a chart that visually shows the sleep stages:

• 
  
  

 

[nuskone]

Sleep study is neuroscience, not psuedoscience.

oh of that i'm aware lol, i was referring to my own theories since i have little competence in that field

 

[GrownupGirl]

I have exhausting dreams a lot. They just seem to go on forever, and I become aware and try to wake up but can't. I tend to sleep longer than usual and then I wake up feeling much worse than I did when I went to bed.

It's always the same kind of dreams too:

I'm trying to walk down to my parent's house but when I get closer I somehow end up farther away. Or I'm blocked by things such as vehicles, people or even cows (there's a cow farm where my parent's live).

I'm back in junior high school and it's time to go home. But I can never remember where my locker is or what the combination is to my lock. But somehow I always do find it but by that time the buses have all left. So I try to call my parents but I never can for some reason, and then I'm stuck at the school for what feels like hours, it gets pitch dark out but the school stays open. Sometimes I do get on the bus but it never stops near my house and it just goes everywhere else.

I'm back in a group home with no memory of how or why I got there, but I assume that in a moment of pure insanity I moved out of my apartment and into the home because I had thought it was a good idea. But now the delirium has worn off and I want to go back to my apartment, but when I do it's either locked up or someone has already moved in.

 

[SusanLR]

I have those type of dreams where I know it's a dream and want to wake up but can't.
They are so weird and tiring.
I dream I have woke up but I'm not really awake. In the dream I fumble around like someone drunk,
can't see well, can't open my eyes totally, or someone is talking to me and I can't speak.
I know in the dream I am still in a dream and want out of the situation, but, just can't actually wake up.
This goes on for a long time and leaves me tired when I do finally wake up.
My Mom had this type of dreaming also.

The guy I live with was telling me how he can fall asleep for just a few minutes and instantly start
dreaming then wake up.
Sometimes I do too.
This doesn't fit the stages of brain wave activity that is shown on the chart I posted where the deep sleep
happens before dream sleep.

I just tried to find an answer to this and several sites including Mayo Clinic
which I got this quote from say it is a type of Narcolepsy :
Changes in rapid eye movement (REM) sleep. REM sleep is typically when most dreaming happens. REM sleep can occur at any time of the day in people with narcolepsy. People with narcolepsy often transition quickly to REM sleep, usually within 15 minutes of falling asleep.