United Brachial Plexus Network, Inc.

Does anyone else in this group sleep really, really well? I Do. 90% of the time I sleep like a babe and I consider that this is the main reason that I have been able to maintain what sanity I have. I only take two exedrin pm's at bed time, and that is really not the factor that helps me sleep; rather it is, I believe, the way that I dream.
I am not actually, all that comfortable about discussing this, but since my injury my dreams have been the single most important aspect of my life.
I will give serious narcotics the nod for launching this dream-cycle, but I have long since quit opiods, and none-the-less sleep like the dead. But I do not sleep "normally." I can "fix" things in my dreams. I have worked on this capasity ever since I was injured, and never the less, after 3 years, still dream that I have two arms that work well.
I wonder how do the rest of you dream? Believe me, I think that this essential or I would not ask, But who else would I ask, and where?

My son is TBPI and I have watched him sleep. I cant speak for him, he doesnt tell me about is dreams or even if he dreams, but, I dont think he sleeps very well. He acts really frustrated while he sleeps and talks like he is frustrated, tends to sleep more than before the accident and seems more tired sometimes.

i'm really new to the forum - and my injury doesn't involve any avulsions ... but i do have a lot of pain. and i don't sleep well at all - but started on neurontin and elavil recently - which seemed to help my sleep the first few nights. the last couple days though i am working my way back to less sleep.

but to your point about dreams - YES - when i sleep, my dreams are very active, very bizarre, and more often than not, very disturbing. but interestingly, they never have anything directly to do with my arm.

hi and welcome!

actually, since my tbpi 2 years ago, i sleep like cr@p! however, the fact that i share my bed with a 90 lb. rottweiler who tosses, turns and snores, may not help! LOL

however, i also dream that my right arm/hand is fine and that i'm doing things with it like i used to do. not sure if this is just wishful thinking or what.

anyone else get dreams like that?

hugs,

jan

I would like to thank everyone for their reply. I feel that the dream thing is important because it allows me to sleep. I, too, take neurontin, and know that I would not function or sleep well without it. I have, however, come to realize that my dreams are a powerful aspect of dealing with this injury, particularly the pain. Without enough sleep (and I mean something on the order of 8 hours) my pain level ramps up to being nearly out of control; which, of course, makes it nearly impossible to sleep. If on the other hand, I get enough sleep, I feel that I am reasonably in control during the day and get to sleep at night fairly well. Most of the time I dream with two arms, and am just as healthy and strong as I ever was, but sometimes don’t and I begin to dream that my arm is caught in something. This puts me into a half-sleep state with the “shooters” tearing through my arm--a very unpleasant experience to which I’m sure you all can attest.
One reason that I feel dreaming is key relates to how dreams affect, or rather, do not affect us, physically, while we sleep. I have read that there is a paralysis effect (the official name escapes me at the moment) in the mind which, simply put, allows the mind to do whatever it wants while dreaming, such as: running, jumping or anything else, without the body being affected—this is why we don’t jump up and down while we sleep, allowing us to both dream and sleep. The pain theory for TBPI basically states that the main reason we have the pain is that the brain, our brain, is constantly contacting our affected arm in an attempt to get it to move, and when the arm will not move the brain cranks-out a pain signal in response. I feel that we can take advantage of the paralytic effect of our dreams to short circuit the initial pain response between our arm and our brain, in fact, I know that we can because I’ve done it, but it is a rather “sketchy” prossess at this juncture.
There is some “thinking outside the box” to be done with this, I believe, and perhaps an outside possibility that we can use some of this during our waking hours. At this point I’m ready to be creative as I, apparently—like many of you, have a life sentence with this struggle so I figure I might as well try to jump the fence if I can.
Anymore input would be very welcome, as hopefully this is a work in progress.
Thanks; Onepaw

Both my father and son use dreams to solve problems(neither are injured)My son has done designs for cars that have appeared years after he has drawn them. My father solves business problems. They write down what they have dreamed sometimes in the middle of the night. I have seen this first hand and feel it is something that should be nurtured and used to your benefit. It may sound crazy to some but to me anything that can make life easier and better why not.
Good luck

Very interesting topic! After my daughter was born (OBPI) I used to watch her sleep - alot actually - held her during naps - because every once in while she'd twitch her arm a tiny tiny bit, and that was something that she could not do when she was awake, and that gave me hope that something was connecting in there somehow.

When I was in college before she was born, I had done a few papers about dreams - (psychology/sociology major) - It is so interesting. You do solve problems while you sleep- your brain sorts thru the day and tries to make sense of it or any conflicts in your life - that is why people always say stuff like " You'll feel better or know what to do in the morning" - your brain is working while you sleep to solve. I remember reading once that people who are born completely blind do not dream in color because they don't know what 'color' is. I've read that our dreams are made up of our experiences only, which we can also exaggerate in our dreams from other experiences that we'd had in our lives - and so a person who could see color, and then become blind will still dream in color.... or a person who knows what something is in life - like say an animal - might use that animal in a dream to solve a problem about something else happening... It's complicated but very interesting. There are also the reaccurring dreams - those are geared towards trying to make sure that you understand something that during the day you might not be paying attention to. Also a blind person who has only felt things their whole life will only 'feel' in their dreams because they have never experienced the sight of the object and have nothing to reference in their brain besides touch. Freud had some great books out. Dreams of yourself flying meant that you were feeling great about yourself and life was going good for you, so I wonder if dreaming about life before the accident might mean that you are remembering but alright now - just good memories but you are fine today - sort of like when you dream about a loved one that has died and you get to see them again - it's kind of a nice dream but then you wake up - but the dream was good because you got to live it again. I am sorry if I have rambled too much - dreams just completely fascinate me because of how they work. It has been pretty many years since I've read any updated material - and now I want to go to Barnes and Noble!! It is a very interesting subject I think. Lyn, I'd like to read the book that you posted about - thanks.
Christy

A woman from Harvard has recently written a book about how artists, athletes etc can use dreams to enhance performance, solve probs etc. There is info in this (long) article http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/5569228/site/newsweek/

I rarely feature in my own dreams as a physical being, I am just a "feeling" of myself. However I do have 2 working arms if I am in them as a person. But then, I still have 2 working arms in my head when I'm awake, too-to this day I assume I can do anything and am surprised when I try and can't. Only then do I rememvber the bpi. Sometimes people I'm with remind me, I recently offered to hold a friends baby AND lead her horse while she went to the loo....she gently pointed out that might be a bit difficult and I felt a complete idiot-it hadn't entered my head that I couldn't do it! I don't walk around thinking I have a non working arm, at all. When I see myself (and my weird arm) in a mirror I'm always surprised, my self image in my head is of an able bodied girl of about 19.....imagine my surprise when this 45 yr old with a bung arm is looking back at me!
Interesting thread........:0)

Christy-I read your thread and realised it's been years since I had a flying dream, I really want one now!
Jen NZ