Dreams during Pregnancy

From WikiParenting

Most mothers find that they can remember their dreams while they are pregnant better than they could pre-pregnancy, and that the dreams were more vivid and detailed than before. This article will cover the causes of vivid dreams during pregnancy, and things you can do to deal with them.

[edit] Causes

Everyone dreams every night, whether or not they remember them the next day. During pregnancy several factors work together to increase dream recall and frequency. These factors include:

• Physical Changes – During pregnancy, a mother’s body produces a variety of hormones that help sustain and promote the pregnancy. These hormones – progesterone in particular - can extend the length of time that is spent in REM sleep, the portion of the sleep cycle in which many dreams begin.

• Frequent waking - Dreams are more readily recalled just upon arousal, pregnant or not. Since the many discomforts of pregnancy can wake you up at night, you have a better chance of recalling your dream.

• Emotional factors - You may be having more vivid and frequent dreams because your subconscious is working over time to deal with the emotions that you are feeling in regards to the pregnancy.

• Vitamins – If you normally did not take vitamins and are now taking prenatal vitamins during your pregnancy, the B vitamins that they contain help to form brain chemicals that are needed to dream frequently.

• Better Health – Most mothers are careful to avoid things like alcohol, drugs, and smoking during pregnancy. These substances block or hinder absorption of vitamins that are needed to dream.

[edit] Common themes

Dreams during pregnancy may be joyful or frightening, but due to the anxieties that can come with being pregnant, they are often the latter. Common themes reported by pregnant women include:

• Falling
• Running
• Entrapment
• If the baby is a boy or girl
• What the baby looks like
• Labor and delivery
• Body changes as a result of pregnancy

Dream studies have shown that certain types of dreams are more common in specific times during a woman’s pregnancy.

First trimester themes are often about:

• Water and water symbols – It is thought that this is due to the woman’s awareness of the amniotic fluid and the increase in amount of fluid in a pregnant woman’s body. Plus the fact that the urge to urinate happens more frequently for a pregnant woman – your body might be trying to tell you something!

• Buildings – Buildings can symbolize a woman’s body, because of the open spaces that are within them, and because of the work that goes on inside them – a subconscious representation of pregnancy. The buildings often get larger as the pregnancy progresses, and dreams about skyscrapers late in pregnancy are common.

Second trimester dreams are often about:

• Animals – Animal dreams are thought to be the result of a woman’s awareness of the baby’s movements. Dreams about animals also represent the baby, and concern about how the relationship between mother and child is going to be.

Third trimester dreams are often about:

• The baby – As the pregnancy progresses to the end, dreams tend to be about the baby itself – what it will look like and if it is a boy or a girl. Many mothers are “given” the name of the baby in a dream. You may also work out any anxieties about caring for the new baby by dreaming about day to day care of the child, or hazardous situations in dreams that you must rescue your baby from.

• Sex – Sounds strange, but it is true. Pregnant women dream about sex often during the final months of pregnancy. Since it is hard to be intimate in the final months of pregnancy because of your expanding tummy, it is thought that the sex dreams are an emotional compensation for less sex in the real world. Dreams about sex also help to reassure a pregnant woman that she is still desirable and loved.

• Relationship dreams – A common theme of dreams in the third trimester is relationship dreams. This is the subconscious working out anxieties about how the relationship with your partner is going to weather the changes caused by a new baby.

[edit] Dealing with pregnancy dreams

If you are the lucky mother who has joyful and pleasant pregnancy dreams, there is not much to deal with, just enjoy them. If your dreams are disturbing or frightful you may wonder what you can do about them. First, remember that they are just dreams, and do not have any bearing on how good a mother you will be or what the baby will look like. Never take a scary dream too seriously.

If you find that you are having many frightening dreams on the same subject, it might be helpful for you to do some soul searching to see what emotion you are storing in your subconscious that may be initiating the dream. It also may help for you to discuss your dreams with your partner or close friend, they may see a theme that you could work on that you were not aware of. If your dreams are so intense that they are interfering with your daily activities or with your ability to get a good night’s sleep, talk with your healthcare provider.

[edit] Tips for good sleep

Do what you can to promote deep restful sleep by following these tips:

• Your bedroom should be kept dark and cool.
• Turn off the television and the radio – try using a white noise sound machine if you dislike sleeping in silence
• Do not exercise before bed
• Don’t consume a lot of fluids in the evenings before bed. You need to stay hydrated, but if you take in too many fluids before bed, it will increase the number of times you need to use the bathroom
• Deal with your troubles during the day, and vow to not worry about them right before you go to sleep