dreamed about choking

I feel asleep without the CPAP last night. Was watching TV and thought I was just going to close my eyes for a min, well that turned into like 2 hours because I fell asleep. I was having this dream about a thin wire that got caught around my neck and I couldn't get it off and it was getting tighter and tighter. I was looking at my friend and gasping "help neck" but he didn't understand and it kept choking me. Then I woke up and put my mask on.

I once read that dreams were just about consolidating memories but if that's the case why do I dream about choking when I sleep without my mask? Before I got my CPAP I also dreamed about drowning, poisonous gases in the air, asthma attacks, etc.

Hi Nobody

I used to have similar experiences - being aware of choking, but not being able to move. I think this was called sleep paralysis, which I used to get a lot when sleeping sitting up.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sleep_paralysis

http://www.smh.com.au/news/health/wakin ... 66939.html

What you describe sounds to me like you were having an apnea attack, and whatever state of conciousness you were in was trying to get you to do something about it, but of course you could not, because you were still asleep.

I think you were actually choking, and you unconcious mind/body was trying to make sense of it, and sending messages which unfortunately you could not respond to, until you woke up.

Were you out of breath when you woke up, or were you still choking, were you frightened?

Just my 5 bobs worth, and am glad you are still alive.

cheers

Mars

I think dreams are too complex and non-concrete to put in a box. I have a journal of odd dreams that I believe are OSA induced. Yours sound to be similar to mine. Probably at least 15 years ago a doctor told me he thought I had sleep apnea. When I told him about my strange dreams, he said they hear that a lot from patients who end up diagnosed with OSA.

I had a really odd, CPAP-related dream two nights ago, just before an appointment to see my sleep doctor.

I dreamed I was in bed, under the covers, in an exam room of a doctor's office. The lights were out. My primary care physician (not the sleep doctor) walked into the room, and pinched me somewhere near me feet. I immediately woke up. I believe I was having an apnea, and indeed, my AI component was quite a bit higher than average that night.

Not to change the subject, but the movie currently in theaters, 'Furry Vengeance' has a really interesting dream sequence in it. People on this list will immediately recognize it starts with a person laying in bed, experiencing REM sleep (Thats only part of the 'interesting', you need to see the whole scene to appreciate how bizarre it is).

nobody wrote:I feel asleep without the CPAP last night. Was watching TV and thought I was just going to close my eyes for a min, well that turned into like 2 hours because I fell asleep. I was having this dream about a thin wire that got caught around my neck and I couldn't get it off and it was getting tighter and tighter. I was looking at my friend and gasping "help neck" but he didn't understand and it kept choking me. Then I woke up and put my mask on.

I once read that dreams were just about consolidating memories but if that's the case why do I dream about choking when I sleep without my mask? Before I got my CPAP I also dreamed about drowning, poisonous gases in the air, asthma attacks, etc.

There are at least two kinds dreams - REM and non - rem. The non rem dreams often pull in what is happening around you so it added the interesting choking fetish video. Rem dreams process what has happened during the day and are not so influenced by what is currently happening but they may be processing your fears.