Dreams and Sleep Talking

I have been talking in my sleep lately.  I go through these phases now and again when I have crazy dreams and then the next morning Jeff tells me the weird things I was doing and saying.  Its kind of a fun game!  What will I do next?!

I always have had sleep walking/talking issues and it started when I was really little with Night Terrors.  My poor parents had to witness crazy things that the child version of myself did in the night.  I would run out of my room horrified by something screaming and crying inconsolably.  It was so weird that they couldn’t leave me with a babysitter!  Sorry parents!

Here is some of the crazy stuff I have done over the years.  The first line will be in italics, that is what I dreamt.  The next bulleted lines are what I was actually doing instead of sleeping.

Dream: Reoccurring scary dream about being chased or balloons popping. (Yeah, weird? I was a small child, maybe 3 years old, so what else would I have to dream about?  These night terrors occurred quite frequently. I still have a strange recollection of this terrifying dream and whenever I would have the dream the next morning my parents said I had a night terror.)

• Mini-Barb: [runs out of bedroom screaming and crying with horrified look on face]  Wahhhhh Ahhhhhhh
• Parents: Its okay Barb [Barb is inconsolable, still crying horrifically.  Then I stop and go back to bed]

Dream: I was in a room and I had to count a whole bunch of things or else something bad would happen to me.

• 4-year-old Barb: [comes out of bedroom in a panic, immediately goes up to the wall where there is flowered wallpaper, starts counting flowers frantically] 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10…. oh NO, I can’t count them all! (I had only learned to count to 10 at this point in my life)
• Parents: [they have friends over who witness this spectacle] Barb, what’s wrong? 
• 4-year-old Barb: [counting again, but starting over] 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10…. if I can’t count all these he’s going to get me!
• Parents: [laughing] Who’s going to get you?
• 4-year-old Barb: [more frantic, terrified]  1, 2, 3…..10…..[crying, frustrated].  I can’t count them, I can’t count them all!

(I still had crazy dreams over the years, but the night terrors and sleep walking stopped until I was an adult.  I was not aware I was still doing crazy things in my sleep until I got married and Jeff was around to witness my shenanigans.  So most likely I had always been doing this stuff, but nobody was around to witness it.)

Dream: I am in a cheese factory getting a tour.  I am walking around eating cheese.  Glorious.

• Barb: [I wake up in the kitchen standing in front of the refrigerator with string cheese in my hand] Interesting.
• Barb: [Finish my string cheese and go back to bed, happy, best dream ever]

Dream: I am walking Elle when she starts to float away like a balloon. 

• Barb: [I sit up in bed suddenly] Ohmygodohmygod!
• Jeff: What?  What Barb?
• Barb: [Frantically grabbing at the air above me] Stop her stop her, she is floating away! 

(The next two episodes happened this week….)

Dream: I see a midget and I am watching the midget.  I want to put said midget in my pocket. 

• Barb: [I sit up and stand at the foot of my bed peering out into the dining room] Do you see him?
• Jeff: Huh, what are you talking about?
• Barb [Still peering out into the dining room] Do you see him, the midget!  He's in there.
• Jeff:  Go back to bed, crazy.

Dream: There was something in my bed!

• Barb: [I sit up suddenly] GET IT OFF THE BED!
• Jeff: What are you talking about THIS time?!
• Barb: [kicking off the covers pushing my hands out as if I am sweeping things off the bed] Get it off!

I wonder what makes me have crazy dreams and then act them out?  Does anyone else do this sort of thing, or am I the only crazy person?