Thread: I asked my dream for help in getting my husband to appreciate dreams! He NEVER remembers them!

This was a success! My husband has remembered his dreams every night :-) sometimes two dreams. He is totally enjoying the experience and we are talking about them daily as a good communication tool :-). First thing he tells me in the morning is about his dreams, but then he asks me about mine. Would you believe that I have not remembered my dreams since he started? I am not too worried because that was my focus! I just wanted him to get excited about it and it worked. If he had not been on board I wouldn't have pushed the issue but so thrilled that this has opened another door for communication which is huge at our age! We are in our 50's.
Now I have to focus back on MINE! Do any of you ever have periods where you just don't remember them? What works best for you?

: )Its great that he is starting to show an interest in dreams as well. When I don't remember my dreams all that much I like to think.about what I like about dreaming and try to recall even a small part that stood out for me. I than try and remember what happened before the thing that stood out occurred. If I do recall something I than try to remember what happened afterward. Kind of like a timeline.

Originally Posted by Serene

This was a success! My husband has remembered his dreams every night :-) sometimes two dreams. He is totally enjoying the experience and we are talking about them daily as a good communication tool :-). First thing he tells me in the morning is about his dreams, but then he asks me about mine. Would you believe that I have not remembered my dreams since he started? I am not too worried because that was my focus! I just wanted him to get excited about it and it worked. If he had not been on board I wouldn't have pushed the issue but so thrilled that this has opened another door for communication which is huge at our age! We are in our 50's.
Now I have to focus back on MINE! Do any of you ever have periods where you just don't remember them? What works best for you?

I know first hand how exciting that is! My poor husband never gets enough sleep to have dreams during the weekdays. He gets on average 4-5 hrs a night on week days. Sometimes less. I think I'd go crazy if I had to do that. But he does listen to a whole lot of my dreams & has now started having dreams also like your husband but of course it was on the weekend because of the whole REM issue. I'm really glad you posted this because it reminded me to tell my husband where I leave my journal in case he can remember some. I would love to wake up & find his dream in my journal, cuz that would be really exciting.

I am similar to your husband because I actually only get about 5 hours of sleep on average and it takes me on average an hour to fall asleep. Some nights I swear I don't sleep a wink. I think it is my old age haha. I am also an extremely light sleeper and hear everything. I get woken up easily which is probably not helping my dream life much. I think in my younger years being a light sleeper helped in recall and it is also why I always feel extremely aware in my dreams because I don't feel I get into a really deep sleep often. Just think of how exciting my dream life will be when I retire! That is a plus! More sleep more dreams ahhhhh.

Originally Posted by Serene

We are in our 50's.

Nice to have some other "chronologically challenged" dream enthusiasts around, welcome!

Now I have to focus back on MINE! Do any of you ever have periods where you just don't remember them? What works best for you?

Yes, I've found that my recall waxes and wanes on a fairly reliable cycle. Recall is additionally very sensitive to mental state -- being relaxed, stress-free, and well-rested is really important. Best for recall is to continue to lie quietly, without moving, and reach for dream memories immediately upon realized you've woken up. I find my recall is worst when my mind is stuck on waking life worries or problems, when my first thought upon waking is right away going back to those worries. Being able to keep you mind on dreaming while in bed, and put off waking life issues to after having gotten up out of bed, can be very helpful.

I have a list of dream recall tips I put together a while back, maybe you'll find something useful there: FryingMan's dream recall tips

As far as I know, it is normal that you can't remember a dream upon waking up. But, based on my experience, there was a time that I can continue a dream when I get back to sleep at once.