How to stop dreaming about work

[Lolly]

Any advice on how to not dream about work? Some mornings I wake up feeling like I have just been in the office for the past 7 hours. My dreams are very vivid and leave me feeling really exhausted.

I have always been a work dreamer - and am hoping others out there may have been too but found a way to switch off?!?!

[Dark Shadow]

I hear ya, but it's many years since I've dreamt about work, nowadays I switch off an hour before I leave the place

Many years ago when I was on the tools, I'd be driving bobcats, backhoes, ditchers, trucks all that sort of crap and id be digging holes and shifting dirt in my sleep, couldn't wait to get to work in the morning

Not advice, but hopefully time will heal for you, there must be some pressure or deadline on you for it to be coming up in your sleep

[Roger Explosion]

Horror movies. Lots of horror movies.

(And yes, I have had the same issue pretty much every time I have started a new job. Kinda makes you feel a bit ripped off every time you wake up)

[Roger Explosion]

http://b.imagehost.org/0758/19871129.gif

[Huggy]

The night before I have exams or something important on at work early, I often dream of waking up late. I always seem to wake up from that dream freaking out I'm gonna be late, only to realise moments later that it's actually a fair while before my alarm was set...

It's only normal to dream about what's happening in your life. All I can suggest is as mentioned just try switch off before bed. It's a bit of a cliche, but read a book. Might help

[TurboR1]

I get this for some time when I start a new job and the change and new experiences play out repeatedly. Just been happening recently.

It's a sign that you are not fully switching off from work, the events of the days past or the anticipation (both good and bad) of the work that lays before you.

The trick is to switch off, be able to either compartmentalize work and home life and keep them separate, don't let one blend into the other.

You may need a mental trigger to switch off, let your body know that the day's work is over, where that's a book, a hobby, movie, anything that gets the brain into gear that the working day is over.

You may need a physical trigger, riding the pushy, sitting on the Swan river bank, getting out on the motorbike, rub one out, (and that's not just me being filthy)

You may need a combination of the two, sitting on the swan rubbing one out while reading a book after your bike ride. (that's being a little dirty)

[Fozzy]

Drink...

Or take sleeping pills.

Or Both at the same time.

Eat cheese before bed.. I dream about all sorts of weird shit when I do that.

[Rich]

Sort of like Turbo says...

You need a trigger to let your brain know to stop...

When I was having sleep issues due to work I began writing down what I needed to do the next day before I went home..

[Lolly]

Glad to know I'm not alone The pressure at my work can be unrelenting and I worry about making sure it all goes ok. Someone said maybe hypnosis might work - sounds a bit unsettling though... thoughts?

Your comments above too make me think maybe I'm not getting enough down time after work to be able to go into relax mode. Glass of wine and dinner now to mull over it.

[Desmo]

Try a notebook Lolly, take 15 or 20 minutes at the end of your work day and write down all you need to achieve the next day.
Might go some way to emptying your mind.

[agrid]

As a distraction I have talkback radio on while I sleep and if I start thinking about something I need to do the next day, I write it down otherwise as soon as a fall asleep I start dreaming about the thing I need to do.

[Twigs]

I dream about work as well for some reason. It doesn't make me feel worse or cheated. They don't go for very long and are very vague! (thankfully!!)
As others have pointed out- write down what you need to do before you go to bed. Knowing you've got it all there and ready will hopefully settle your mind and give you a good night sleep.
When I was doing TEE I had sever nightmares that would keep me up and disrupt my sleep horribly. When I transferred my TEE courses to something easier and more achievable, I stopped having dreams. I think it was stress induced.

[Taylor]

I put all my exercise between work and sleep, I lose count at seven so often that there's no room for worry about work.

Clears my head.

[Lolly]

Thanks for your suggestions - I think writing things down is an excellent idea - but as I sit here and type I can't think of anything to write and yet I'm dreading how wretched I'll feel when I wake up.

A couple of things-

1 - I read or heard that even though I may get 6-7.5hrs a night sleep - because I generally am not in bed before midnight those hours are not worth as much as if I had gone to bed say at 11pm. Any view on that?

2. Magnisium - someone said to take it before bed. Sounds snake oilish to me but I am willing to keep an open mind.....anyone have a testimony to add here?

[Intherough]

Thanks for your suggestions - I think writing things down is an excellent idea - but as I sit here and type I can't think of anything to write and yet I'm dreading how wretched I'll feel when I wake up.

A couple of things-

1 - I read or heard that even though I may get 6-7.5hrs a night sleep - because I generally am not in bed before midnight those hours are not worth as much as if I had gone to bed say at 11pm. Any view on that?

2. Magnisium - someone said to take it before bed. Sounds snake oilish to me but I am willing to keep an open mind.....anyone have a testimony to add here?

Magnesium is supposed to help with calming your nerves so it may help you relax. It's not an instant cure like normal pharmaceutical drugs or narcs, it actually takes time before you start to notice any difference. I've been taking magnesium/potassium tablets along with Vitamin B supplements as an aid to stress management. No nightmares or stressful dreams and if you knew what I'm dealing with currently then you'd probably say yeah it has merits. Consult a naturopath though if you want to go down this path. It could save you money in the long run.

Go with writing up To Do lists. I used to do a weekly broad objectives list during my exec days and break it down into task level. Review daily and cross them off when completed or amend at the end of each day. If you can't think of anything to write you're thinking and making it too complicated. Start with simple tasks and you'll soon get on a roll.

[Barfridge]

I take magnesium daily before bed, and have found it to be good. Give it a go, what have you got to lose?
But honestly, what you are ging through sounds a little more major then normal tiredness

[dadwantsafyabl4de2]

Lie in bed on your back. No covers and arms at sides. Clear mind. Gradually relax extremities, limbs, body until they feel weightless. Eventually you may 'see' DEEP blackness. Your body will feel disconnected.

Stay like that as long as you like.

Then:


JOLT YOURSELF OUT OF IT VIOLENTLY!


Then go to sleep.

If you see yourself from the ceiling, don't do the jolt yourself out part.

[Dark Shadow]

Have you tried submitting overtime requests to the boss for all this extra time you're putting in during the night?
His response may instill an attitude of "fuck you I'm not dreaming about work ever again" and you'll get your zeds zzzzzzz

[BERT]

You need something like Fighting Fit or yoga.

[HughDMan]

They come with the joys of owning your own business.