After recounting my “old hag” experience on another thread, I wanted to ask if anyone has experienced anything like the following:
Unlike old hag, who I’ve only experienced once thank goodness, I will have this same night terror at random intervals, usually for a couple of nights at a time. They’re not like nightmares for me, I actually enjoy a good nightmare, there’s a distinct difference in feel. A nightmare is like watching a movie on a cathode TV.
In these dreams or “terrors” I will wake up in bed and the attention to detail is unreal, from the dark shapes of furniture in the room with slight intrusion of the street light outside, to a book I was reading that night on the bedside table. I think I’m awake. I’m not a great sleeper and normally have trouble getting back off to sleep, so I’ll often just get up, go downstairs and try to nod off on the couch as not to disturb my partner, so I do exactly that in these dreams.
The issue arises at the first light switch. Either the light will offer a really dim glow or won’t come on at all when I hit the switch. The light switch has now become a sort of trigger for me along the lines of “Oh [insert blasphemy here] I’m dreaming”. At this moment I am fully lucid, fully aware I’m trapped in a dream. The mood of the dream changes instantly and I am drenched with fear. This is where it gets trippy. I know that ‘it’ knows I am aware, and it doesn’t like it . It’s just like a darkness that starts filling the room towards me, sometimes it laughs and speaks with a - I hate to be stereotypical, but - menacing tone, though I can’t remember anything it says. Accustomed to these dreams I’m usually screaming and shouting already rather than paying any attention to its dialogue. Over the years my pathetic “mmmhh” noises have grown to be more vocal screams, which is quite effective at waking my partner up.
I don’t know if this is my subconcious attacking the fully aware concious part of me, being like “This is my domain and you shouldn’t be here” or, well, I wouldn’t want to speculate.
Anyone had anything similar that can shine a light on what this is. (Providing the light turns on). I am happy to accept “just a bad dream”