Recently someone I graduated high school with (we had a very small graduating class) reached out to me since she knows I am going to school for herbalism. She has been having severe night terrors since having a concussion which resulted in a brain bleed requiring two bore holes and drains to get fluid off her brain. She also had COVID (not hospitalized) I believe after this neurological event. Since then, she has been having night terrors at least 1-2 times per week. She describes the night terrors as waking up into another dream and waking up from that dream into another dream. Sometimes these dreams have seven “layers”. She wakes up terrified and feeling untreated. I truly wish I was further in my studies so I could understand more of her constitution/energetics. Is there anything you can think of that may be able to help her? She does see a neurologist and is on anti-seizure medications to prevent seizures from the neurological event and the surgery. Thank you for any information/advice you can give.

By the way… that was supposed to read “unrested” and not “untreated”. Also she has a history of migraines. From my understanding she had undiagnosed vessel malformations in her brain and the concussion triggered the brain bleed. She is a 45 year old, otherwise healthy and active woman.

This is a very complicated case and I do not know what medication she is taking, so I cannot make any specific recommendations beyond the Bach Flower Rescue Remedy. In TCM some herbs are used for overactive dreaming such as processed Biota seed, Suan Zao Ren, Fu Shen, Lotus seed or Chinese Polygala. I would say the dream within a dream is due to dreaming at a much deeper state than she did prior to the neurological event. This causes people to “wake up”, but not really be awake and usually they feel paralyzed and panic. The first thing to understand is you cannot usually fight your way out of this, the best approach is to relax (I know it is very difficult). Meditation and dream work can also be helpful.