Last night I had another dream that felt so real and left me feeling anxious and bewildered upon waking. I don’t have these dreams every night, but frequently enough I suppose. They seem to happen more at times I’m especially stressed – I’m sure that’s no coincidence.
The dream last night was similar to the rest: I dreamt I still had to defend my dissertation and felt immense panic at the prospect and a boatload of anxiety that it wasn’t done already. Then, the dream shifted and I was confused. Trying to figure out what I had been doing all this time if I hadn’t already defended my dissertation. I realized (in my dream) that I must stil lbe a student! And suddenly I was terribly worried for my future and where and when and IF I might find a real job.
I woke up at that point stressed out, anxious, and fearfully confused.
I don’t want to say grad school gave me post-traumatic stress syndrome, because people who have that usually had truly horrible things happen to them. But…evidently grad school gave me some post-traumatic style nightmares and an unhealthy dose of lingering anxiety.
It may be time to seek medication for that…
Living the Dream 