Ask BR: I've Been Having Unsettling Dreams Since Starting Your Healing Trauma Audio. Is This Normal?

Hello. At the guidance of my therapist, I’ve purchased and downloaded Belleruth’s Healing Trauma and I’m on day 9. I’ve been having unsettling dreams the last three consecutive nights - not nightmares, but not pleasant either, all of a very similar nature. Is this a normal part of the process that I should just be patient with and continue? Or should I do something else? Any suggestions?

Thanks,

K

Hey, K.

I’m sorry you’re having unsettling or disturbing dreams. Since they seem to have similar themes, I hope you’re discussing them with your therapist – seems like there could be some really useful information in those dreams. 

And yes, this can be part of the process, but depending on how disturbing these dreams are, it’s not something you necessarily have to endure. Often it’s a question of timing and readiness for the intensity of that healing imagery. If it’s really disturbing, it may be pushing you too hard. You may want to stop listening to that imagery for now, and take the time to chew over with your therapist what these dreams are trying to tell you.

And while you’re doing that, you can also back up and work with some less evocative and more calming, soothing, self-regulating imagery, to get used to deploying these self-calming exercises to either forestall or quickly remediate any time you get emotionally triggered – it becomes automatic, which is great – stands you in good stead for all kinds of internal disturbance!

These would be audios like our Relaxation & Wellness imagery, General Wellness, Relieve Stress or Anxiety & Panic audios. 

Then, when you’re in the groove of automatically using these self-soothing exercises, and have those tools tucked into your “back pocket”, so to speak, you can go back to the Healing Trauma imagery and either listen to it in incremental segments, or listen to the whole thing. 

The other possibility is that, after installing all those self-regulation skills into your nervous system, you may not even need the healing trauma imagery – that sometimes happens too. 

I hope this answers your question, and I wish you all the best at respecting your readiness, taking those dreams as a gift of useful information for you to explore, and taking your own sweet time to get to the healing places that you’re moving toward.

All best,

Belleruth