Life
There's a lot of weird stuff that happens while you're awake during pregnancy, but did you know there's also some pretty weird stuff that goes on while you're supposed to be getting a break and resting up? In addition to (and in fact, sometimes caused by) having to pee repeatedly all night long because of that baby sitting on your bladder, you'll also get to experience these weird dreams when you're pregnant, because things are about to get strange in your bed!
While the number one thing you want to do when you climb into your bed every night is sleep, there's a high chance you're going to be dreaming about a whole range of odd topics like running away, dinosaurs, or even bodies of water. The reason why you might remember those pregnancy dreams so vividly is because symptoms like leg cramps or having to go to the bathroom might wake you up from a deep sleep more frequently throughout the night. Most dreaming occurs during the deep sleep Rapid Eye Movement (REM) stage, but we cycle out of it throughout the night, thus forgetting what we've dreamed about, according to Baby Centre. Not so while you're pregnant! Instead, you get to remember a whole lot more about your dreams, for better or for worse.
Even when dreaming about giving birth to puppies can be indicative of worries that you have about childbirth and parenthood. No matter where your brain goes when you sleep, you might want to know what a few of these wacky dreams mean.
1
Giving Birth To Grown Children
If you're dreaming of giving birth to grown babies rather than newborn infants, which is common during first pregnancies, it could signify that you're not totally aware of what's about to happen, according to dream expert Patricia Garfield, Ph.D. She wrote in Pregnancy and Childhood Dreams, "Perhaps an older baby or child seems less threatening than a fragile newborn to the inexperienced mother."
2
Bodies Of Water
Dreams about bodies of water are most common during the first trimester, when the amniotic sac is starting to fill with fluid. Dreams are "the ultimate self portrait of who you are, what you need and what you believe in that point in your life," said Ian Wallace, a psychologist in Edinburgh, Scotland, to Fox News. Wallace explained that dreams about murky water can tell you that you're unsure of what's ahead, while a tsunami off in the distance lets you know that a big emotional change is about to take place.
3
Driving A Bus
Driving is likely going to get more and more uncomfortable for you while you're awake as you get further along in your pregnancy, and you might find yourself dreaming about struggling to drive a huge vehicle like a truck or bus as a result of your changing body. "The process of adjusting to these changes is probably what these similarly awkward dreams symbolize," explained Dream Herbs.
4
Puppies And Kittens
If you're dreaming of giving birth to puppies, kitties, or any other type of animal or even an inanimate object, it's a sign that you're subconsciously preparing yourself for motherhood. The "newborn" in your dream symbolizes the child, said psychologist Alan Siegel to The Huffington Post. "It’s an internal preparation for nurturing and the responsibilities of pregnancy,” he explained.
5
Sexy Times
Holly Robinson, from American Baby, reported in Parents that there's a very good chance your extra boost in libido from things like increased blood flow to your genitals and increased testosterone during pregnancy could lead to some pretty racy dreams. "Your pregnancy dreams may reflect your joys and fears about your body in some unexpectedly lusty ways," she said.
6
Dinosaurs
It might not be exactly a pleasant reminder of your increasing girth, but dreams of dinosaurs and other large creatures could start frequenting your dreams. Dreammoods.com confirmed, "As your body changes and grows, dreams of whales, elephants and dinosaurs and other larger animals may also start appearing at this stage of pregnancy."
7
Dropping The Baby
Dreams that involve you not being able to protect your little one, like dropping or leaving a baby, are particularly alarming and can make you worry that you're really cut out for the job. To the contrary, Babble reported, "These dreams simply reflect that you are a caring mother," said Charles McPhee of DreamDoctor.com. So don't stress — You got this!
Check out Romper's new video series, Bearing The Motherload, where disagreeing parents from different sides of an issue sit down with a mediator and talk about how to support (and not judge) each other’s parenting perspectives. New episodes air Mondays on Facebook.
