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As if the pregnancy symptoms that hit during waking hours — from morning sickness and body aches to relentless food cravings and bouts of insomnia — weren’t enough, many women also experience vivid, weird dreams during pregnancy.
What kinds of strange pregnancy dreams are moms having?
We asked moms about some of their strangest pregnancy dreams and they reported a wide range of odd nighttime occurrences:
“I had a particularly spicy dream about Tim Tebow, which was weird, because I was not even attracted to him before that.”
“I dreamt of bears — all kinds — during my pregnancy.”
“I had super crazy dreams, like giving birth to a 4-year-old girl. I had a boy.”
“My first kicked so hard I had recurring dreams he broke through the uterine wall and belly and fell out prematurely, and when I caught him he would blow up into a balloon … and I’d rush him to the hospital.”
“My first pregnancy, I repeatedly dreamt I was giving birth to a litter of kittens. My second pregnancy, I kept dreaming that my water broke in front of the lobster tank.”
“I constantly dreamed of being swept away by a river or the ocean. Probably because of how overwhelmed I felt.”
“My favorite was a dream I had that I was a Mexican wrestler, El Gigante Pregnante (obviously, I know this isn’t correct Spanish). … I had a mask and a yellow and red cape. Fear the belly!”
These weird dreams are entirely normal, according to Dr. Sears. “You dream differently sleeping while pregnant, because you sleep differently while you’re pregnant,” Dr. Sears wrote on AskDrSears.com. During pregnancy, women spend a larger percentage of nap and nighttime sleep in REM, which fosters both more dreaming and easier awakening.
Why we have weird dreams while pregnant
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According to the National Sleep Council, fluctuating hormones are the reason for these strange dreams, but that’s not the whole answer. Many fathers-to-be also report an uptick in strange or vivid dreams while awaiting the birth of a child, according to Dr. Sears.
But for pregnant women, some of the weird dreaming comes down to increased recall, due to changing sleep patterns, the NSC explains. Women are likely waking up more to use the bathroom or shift positions, which leads to remembering more dreams they’d forget on a regular night of sleep.
What do weird dreams during pregnancy mean?
The range of dreams during pregnancy runs the gamut from meeting up with old partners to having a spouse leave to being surrounded by baby animals to vivid sex dreams. Many fear-based dreams relate to the baby, such as having no milk, dropping the baby, or being unable to find the baby.
Your weird dreams during pregnancy are not prophecies for events to come, nor do they indicate anything else is wrong. The dreams can mean you’re bonding with your child (as in when you dream you’ve birthed a cute animal, rather than a baby) or that you’re processing some anxieties related to the huge life change of welcoming a child.
“Sleeping while pregnant causes dreams that often reflect a woman’s pressing concerns, which change with the stages of pregnancy,” explains Dr. Sears. This means your dreams may shift over the trimesters, capturing your latent worries at each stage. Toward the end of pregnancy, you may have bad dreams about delivery, or your child being hurt, but also upsetting dreams about your career or your partner.
Can we stop weird pregnancy dreams?
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Putting an end to upsetting dreams can be difficult, but you may be able to reduce their frequency by speaking to your doctor or therapist about your fears, anxieties, and questions regarding pregnancy and motherhood. Finding ways to manage your moods or anxiety during the day might also help you process whatever issues may be causing fearsome dreams.
You can also follow the National Sleep Foundation’s sleep tips for pregnant women to reduce your likelihood of waking up as often, thus cutting down on your recall of these dreams.
- Avoid spicy, acidic or fried foods that may cause sleep-interrupting heartburn.
- Stay hydrated during the day but avoid drinking liquids close to bedtime.
- Exercise regularly to stay healthy, promote good circulation ,and to avoid leg cramps.
- Consider using pregnancy pillows to achieve the most comfortable position possible while sleeping.
