My 7 Cups Dream Journal
Entry 1: The Boxes of Cats
It was a little strange but what I remember most is visiting a house that was in my old neighborhood that I’d recently moved from (it really wasn’t, so dream logic) but I came back to collect something I left or my mother left.
It was very sad and the people who were there now were sort of okay with me wandering around and looking. I kept noticing the signs that I’d once lived there (painted over places that still revealed chipped paint and stuff I recognized from my apartment).
Then I looked beneath a couch or table and found boxes full of kittens. Two boxes were full of meowing kittens in water that the new home owners had no idea were there, and one more box held a very dead cat that was an older one from a previous litter. All of the kittens were starving without their mother and I knew that it was the reason why the older one passed.
The new owners suddenly smelled the dead cat and I took it upon myself to get rid of it. When I came back an hour later all of the kittens were gone, and when I was walking past another house I could see all the kittens. They’d all grown up into adult cats!
I dreamt that I was living with my mom in my current apartment that I’d had to vacate. I guess we moved right back in a day or so after being told to leave, and while I was trying to clean stuff my mom got on my back about some sort of record made of music I’d burned from my iTunes to create a CD that somehow was a negative influence on my younger sister?
I spent forever trying to find the song my mom had a problem with but my computer kept crashing when I tried to look it up on YouTube Music or on my iTunes.
For the life of me I’m not sure which song it was, just that I kept mistaking it for a song by AFI when it might have been Cobra Starship, but I’m so sure it wasn’t that either.
It turned out that hat mid-dream my mom needed money so I looked in one of my old desk drawers I hadn’t properly emptied and found an old wallet with $35 dollars in it.
I guess I’ll be listening to music and looking at CD cases to see if I can figure it out today while I do Friday trash day chores!
Is there a certain kind of music that your mom likes?
Maybe you can listen to some stuff that you like. @integrityblues
My mom loves grunge. I like indie and alternative rock.
I’m still not sure what the song was, I’m just sure that it isn’t Cobra Starship since I’ve listened to plenty of it today. I just recall that in the dream I’d kept thinking about how if I hadn’t listened to the album so many times I could have played it for her without it skipping. The list of CDs I’ve worn out that way is short, so I’m thinking it was a song by Fall Out Boy, Panic! At the Disco, or Brand New?
I just got off the phone with her. She forgot our call was on the 26th, but I sat and chatted with her for an hour about inconsequential stuff mixed with sprinklings of news or thoughts about my younger sister.
My mom called one of her homeless friends who is in the same encampment under a bridge as my sister and got someone to take back a five gallon water jug my sister left behind.
We also talked about other things related to my sister. Like how she still wants her to go to get her GED or health classes for the caregiving position, but my sister won’t. This tells me my mom doesn’t really remember what I’ve told her about the program.
Also she was talking about how my sister’s boyfriend is probably out of jail now and looking for her- how he might show up at my mom’s place and start harassing her. I told my mom that she’s going to be fine because her place has a locked gate and her doors and windows are always secure. That she can call the police to get him to leave her alone, but that’s only if he shows up. That my younger sister will be safe if she just stays where she is.
Glad that you had a productive, easier conversation with your mom. Your mom was still telling you rougher stuff, but it is great that you were able to listen to her without absorbing her emotion.
It sounds like she is a bit like my mom. Mine is also getting older and forgetting more. It definitely makes her more anxious. She gets upset very easily usually about technology or caring for my dad. I absorb that myself and it can easily ruin my day.
You are doing an awesome job. @integrityblues
I’m trying to get better about separating her emotion from mine, or at least changing how I respond.
Keep up the good work. @integrityblues
I dreamt that I was talking to my aunt about not wanting to replace my futon. In real life she’s been trying to get me to accept a mattress and in the dream I was trying to explain how I don’t want more furniture and things, that what I have is more than enough for me to take care of and exist with.
Is your dream telling you how to react to your aunt? Do you find the futon comfortable? Does it fit well in your space? It sounds like a good processing dream. @integrityblues
Eh, she’s brought it up twice in the last six months. Not sure why it was on my mind enough to show up in a dream
Maybe the futon is starting to feel less comfortable to sleep on? @integrityblues
I dreamt that I was living with my family again, but that we were all fighting. My parents fighting each other, my younger sister and I fighting each other, and so on.
At one point I prevented my father from entering the motel room we were all staying in and he broke the door knob to try and get back in while I was shouting to him about how horrible he was.
I got so angry at my sister being a jerk that I asked one of my aunts if I could come over, and I did.
While I was there I took a walk and one of my cousins came with me. On the way we paused to look at what looked like baby squirrels “growing” off a piece of a tree that fell to the ground while she and her mom were doing gardening and watering the plants.
I say growing but really that’s how they were meant to be born and it would just take them time to remove themselves from the branch and I kept warning my cousin that we shouldn’t touch them.
While we were walking I mentioned the idea of me coming to stay with them and she said her mom would probably be okay with it, and then I woke up.
I will be able to read both of your messages in the next day or so and really respond. My son is performing in a play and I am getting home too late to read or type much.
But I will be back soon. @integrityblues
That’s okay. I hope your son’s play goes well
Thanks for waiting for me. The play did go well and I am finally able to start on my message pile tonight.
That sounds like an interesting dream of working through some older family trauma. I like the bit with the squirrels. I can see you taking good care of them. @integrityblues
From the things I’ve looked at online and my own interpretation, I guess finding baby squirrels at the end of a dream airing out my family troubles indicates new beginnings or stages because the squirrels are just babies, maybe treating myself gently while becoming more playful and resourceful going forward with my future plans.
I love the idea of new beginnings, working towards new plans and treating yourself gently. I hope that your week is going well. @integrityblues
Thanks. I’m doing okay in spite of strep throat. I’m very tired, handling symptoms and taking penicillin.
That isn't fun. But a perfect time to treat yourself gently with lots of things to soothe your throat. Are you a cold ice cream kind of person or a hot tea kind of person?@integrityblues
I like both too but the hot tea with honey is great. I hope that your throat is a bit less sore today.
It’s a bit better but I’m halfway through the antibiotic. I’m finally getting the energy back to do things like chores. I just did a whole hour’s worth of dishes!
I am so glad that your energy is slowly coming back. An hour of dishes doesn't sound like fun, but I bet you felt quite accomplished afterwards. @integrityblues
That’s true.
It may not have been a lot of dishes but I cleared one side of the sink and loaded up my dish rack. It had just been so very long since I’d focused on doing that chore that it took much longer with extra scrubbing.
Hopefully today you had even more energy! @integrityblues
I did way too much and ended up laying down and napping all afternoon. It could have been worse
I dreamt I was eating a huge burrito, and when I say huge I mean that it was as big as my arm.
I overslept and missed my alarm this morning. I had less than fifteen minutes to take all my meds, eat something, then start my Zoom call with my job developer.
I got very excited because during the meeting I got an email about my new laptop being ready to pick up from my nearby DOR office.
I took a shower and once my hair was dry I went to the office. It turned out that I completely forgot that I was also getting a printer too.
All of it came in a huge heavy box that they had to move with a cart and I immediately told them that I had come there on a bus and that I’d not be able to handle such a large package, that I hadn’t been told the dimensions and that I would have loved to be told!
They said I could come back another day to do it but I was struck by how stupid I felt as I was answering questions about did I know anyone who had a car or did I have a car? I told them everyone I knew was busy, but said I’d make some calls and come back.
I left to find the bus stop and was consumed with thoughts of self- harm over what I’d call my personal failure in the moment even if I know logically it’s just an inconvenience or something not going to plan that only highlights how difficult it is for me to get things done without needing help from others. It’s been awhile since I got so close to giving into the thought and planning how I was going to do it, and between texting my aunts with the computer news and asking for help, I’d also told my friend about the computer news but asked if we could talk when I got home?
I’d also started panicking and thought I was misremembering what the front desk DOR people told me about when I could pick up my new laptop and bring a ride, so I emailed my counselor and asked about how long the laptop would remain at that location saying that the soonest I could get help would be next Wednesday.
I didn’t hear back from my friend till I was home with Taco Bell I shouldn’t have gotten (but felt like a better option then physically harming myself) and brought home a prescription refill since it was on the way.
My friend told me that she couldn’t talk because she was going to a baseball game, and since I hadn’t mentioned the rising self-harm thoughts to her yet I decided to not say anything about it because I didn’t want to ruin her night out.
I instead told her to have a nice time, that I’d work through some stuff in therapy tomorrow and that today had just been unfortunately timed in addition to everything (but I didn’t add that it was also poorly timed because I’ve been quietly anxious over my upcoming hysteroscopy on Friday), and because I was trying to really sell how okay I was I asked her to tell me who I’m supposed to boo in order to support her team. I teasingly booed the Rays and told her to have a nice time.
I ate my dinner, watched YouTube, and much later texted my aunt who is going on a trip starting Friday (which ruins the vague plan I’d made to ask her for help during my hysteroscopy appointment, and now I know my other aunt is busy with work all week too). I told her that though I hadn’t heard back from my counselor yet that I was sure that it would still be there by Wednesday, the day she offered. I thanked her for her help and asked her to have a nice time on her trip.
That sounds like a day with lots of moving parts, but there were lots of great elements in there. Maybe the burrito was the sign of a day with lots to chew on.
It is okay that you were a little overwhelmed figuring out the logistics of pick up. You did nothing wrong. I know that the self harm thoughts surprised you but I think that came out of moving up and down emotionally so quickly from excitement to panic. They should not of expected you to be able to carry all of that.
Taco Bell is actually great if you are choosing between that and self-harming. But do let your friends know when things suddenly take a nose-dive. You can do it as a little mention rather than a big one, but you will feel better if you do. The therapy session tomorrow will help you sort through things more.
Not supporting the Rays, huh?? They are actually my team (just joking, I don't care that much. But they are actually our local franchise and we go about once a year to a game). It is a small world.
Ok, so the anxiety over the hysteroscopy appointment. I can imagine that is weighing on you quite a bit too. What kinds of things are you doing to work all of that out? Sending lots of peace.
Focus on the fact that you are figuring out how to get all of the stuff to you. You will do this and you will get a printer too. @integrityblues
I dreamt very little. I was constantly tossing and turning then woke up finally around 4 a.m. to prepare for my big gynecologist appointment.
I pushed all the trash cans and recycle bins off the curb as quietly as I could before 6 a.m. so everything was ready for my neighbor who agreed to give me a hand this afternoon and haul it all back for me.
I got to my appointment early because the only other option was to get there late on the bus.
The appointment went as well as I expected it to.
I spoke with the gynecologist and I changed the type of medicine I take to regulate my period because my birth control hasn’t been working as well over the last year or so. I’ll start taking Medroxyprogesterone for ten days a month to trigger a period.
The actual hysteroscopy had its painful moments. I experienced enough pain when the speculum was inserted that a second gynecologist examined my cervix to make sure that I didn’t have Pelvic Inflammatory Disease.
I knew I’d have to have a local because the only other pain management I’d gotten was two ibuprofen I’d taken before I left the house and a big ibuprofen shot I got once I was settled in the examination room. There were three shots of lidocaine injected on or around my cervix- the first was a simple pinch, I barely felt the second, and the third one was the deepest and most awful.
After that they prepared the little camera that was going in along with a tube that would inflate my uterus with fluid so it was easier to see things. I was sort of like a water balloon for a little bit, but they turned the screen so I could see what they were examining. There were no large fibroids or polyps, but they found a small one and another on my cervix.
They did a D&C to remove the polyps they could see and some endometrial tissue that was preparing to detach with my upcoming period. They took samples for testing, detached me from the various tools, and let me rest while the nurse set up my next appointment. I was able to clean up, get dressed, and shoved the sort of warm heat pack used during the procedure into the front of my jeans so the cramps wouldn’t bother me too much.
I got home and spoke to my mom like she asked, told my older sister the good news about the procedure being done, and let my aunts know.
I’ve been resting with a heating pad for the cramps.
When I had mine done, the actual procedure was very much the worst part of it. I hope that your cramps are okay this evening.
You did a good job. Be happy that it is done.@integrityblues
Yeah, it wasn’t comfortable but between all the numbing and how much more painful I find a speculum and any effort to dilate me, I would take it.
my cramps are mild and though I’m still bleeding it isn’t as bad as when it was freshly done. I’m going to walk to the store to get some food.
thanks bestVase. I’m very happy that it’s done for now. Just have to keep watch for more polyps.
I took a nap this afternoon and dreamt that I was cleaning up outside and listening to tenant complaints about dumped trash in the back of our property. I found a set of doors that were removed and stuffed behind our trash cans.
As I turned around I suddenly found myself in a bedroom that I thought was my mother’s. It wasn’t but as I was going to leave I noticed a large snake, a strange cobra rattlesnake hybrid so it had both a hood and a rattle, that was writhing in some kind of web stuck on the wall.
It was well constructed enough that it was nearly a bubble that contained it but I was stuck on the spot staring at it because I was sure that once I looked away it would get away and hide somewhere to bite my mother. I kept wondering how it got in and kept glancing at a locked doggie door on the wall and looking back at the snake.
Someone else came in, that same complaining neighbor, and stared at the snake with me. She decided that the best thing to do would be to get it off the wall but I wanted to make sure I could trap it before it could hide somewhere else.
She took this aerosol spray can and began spraying the snake web. It dissolved the web and freed the snake, but I don’t know what happened next because I woke up.
Ugh. I must admit that I am not a fan of snakes. It sounds like you were trying to protect your mom though and that you had people on your side helping. @integrityblues
Though I’d never own one as a pet, I don’t mind non poisonous snakes.
An old roommate had a couple. One was a little ribbon snake- (because my friend would routinely forget his feedings and wonder why he was so aggressively trying to escape his tank) I’d do it on my off time and fetch the little feeder fish and pour them into his water bowl. It was kind of nice to watch the snake dart his head down in the dish then pop back up with a wriggling mouthful.
Dreaming of snakes can be about change or transformation, sometimes anxiety related to health issues.
Judging by the context of the snake being in what I identified as my mother’s room, it could be referring to a recent talk I had with my mom about oxygen. My mom needs oxygen but she doesn’t believe she needs it if she isn’t in the middle of a COPD flare. She told me that she feels fine and doesn’t think there’s anything wrong, and that she doesn’t want anyone making her do things she doesn’t want to do or pushing her on the issue- like before when she blocked us for months. So I took the hint and let it go only to go over it with a snake in my dream.
I like the idea of transformation in your way of thinking. I know that you worry (and with good reason), but your mom is really stubborn about pushing you away when she doesn't want to do what she needs to. Settling into a place of calm for yourself is better for both of you. @integrityblues
It is a coping mechanism for her unluckily. But it makes your time together more precious in a way. I hope that you are having a good day!
I’m having an okay day. I actually made meatloaf for dinner and had a salad.
My mom got sick again, a relapse into this stomach bug plus fever that’s going around. She stayed in bed all day yesterday, started to feel hungry, but doesn’t have much because she tossed out a lot of food she just bought that she thought was making her sick.
I went over her options with her, discussed what she could cook for herself and how she could treat the fever if she didn’t want to take her Advil PM.
I mentioned that I was making the meatloaf in a muffin tin and she really warmed to the idea of getting a small portion of since I said I’d take her a care package when me and my sister go to see her when she and my younger sister are feeling better and not contagious.
She also let it slip that my younger sister is probably back with her ex who went to jail. They’d come over at some point so he could haul away my mom’s ruined couch, the one that had borne the brunt of my mom and sister’s illness, and threw it out in the trash for her. I don’t have a good feeling about them being together again but it isn’t my business it’s nothing I can control.
I just hope my mom starts to feel better.
Glad that YOU had a good day.
You are dealing with things well emotionally. Yes, all you can do at this point is offer the mini-meatloaf. I wouldn't have a good feeling either, but if you can stay focused on you and doing stuff for the job search, etc. you will remain stronger for your mom and sister. @integrityblues
Yes. My mom isn’t doing better today but refuses to go into detail about it, so I’m leaving her alone.
I got a brand new laptop, printer, and other equipment from the DOR with my aunt’s help! The box was so heavy because in addition to a printer and laptop it came with a massive package of printer paper.
I’m just getting annoyed with the interview requests I’m getting from places I haven’t applied to though they say I have. I looked up the companies and the latest one sounds like a dumpster fire that makes some of their employees knock on doors to try and sell stuff like cable or phone company stuff. It may not be the job I applied for but I find it unsettling enough.
I have a job development meeting tomorrow so I’m not feeling very excited to give my developer bad news.
I’m so frustrated.
My mom got in touch with me to say that my younger sister who was supposed to go on a three week trip to stay somewhere else with her dog and ex, who is just her boyfriend now I guess, has come back to our mom’s place. My mom refused to explain.
I’m also upset because I haven’t received my travel money yet. It might come tomorrow but that’s what I said yesterday and the day before. I’m getting antsy because I overspent this month and don’t have enough to cover my credit card bill.
If it doesn’t come tomorrow I’ll have to ask one of my aunts for 27 bucks. I’m sure they’d be willing to help I just feel so awful having to ask.
Sorry for all the mini frustrations. Sometimes they pile up on top of one another.
You are allowed to refuse the jobs that look dodgy. I think that your job developer will appreciate that. Your health makes certain jobs simply not worth it. I am so glad that you finally got the new computer and printer.
Focus on the new computer rather than your mom and sister. Keep working on not letting yourself get sucked into the drama.
Are you still caring for yourself food and drink wise? I hope that the money situation settles itself soon. @integrityblues
I haven’t been taking care of myself as well as I should. Money is a bit short this close to the end of the month, and I’m so damned tired. I haven’t eaten anything today, just drinking some water, but I have to get up and make something easy.
I think I can make a packet of ramen. If I had more energy I’d try to make pancakes with sugar free raspberry preserves since I’m out of syrup, or peanut butter cookies.
Yeah, I’ll have a nice soup and maybe a couple of spoonfuls of peanut butter.
The community cat that I’m friends with was hit by a car this morning. I saw it all happen. He was able to run away down an alley, and me and my neighbor’s friend went down the alley to see if we could find him. Another neighbor walked with me down the alley again later to see if we could ask around or spot him. No luck.
I stuck around outside doing more Friday trash day chores even though I didn’t want to anymore, but I wanted to see if the cat would emerge from his hiding place. I just want to see if he’s okay.
Ooh that cat incident sounds so traumatic. I am sorry that you had to see it. I will pray for the cat with you.
I am glad that you began to think about finding something to eat. Ramen and peanut butter sound fine. Keep reminding yourself that not eating anything will not give you enough energy to survive anything else.
Sending lots of strength and peace. @integrityblues
Thanks.
Hoping that things feel better today. @integrityblues
It’s not much better but I’m working through it.
Neither me or my neighbor have seen the cat who was hit, just other cats and raccoons.
I took a nice shower and eventually had something to eat this afternoon when I realized my travel money still hadn’t come in the mail.
My aunt is going to help me pay the 26 dollars I owe for my credit card that I was overdrawn for because I was counting on the travel money coming in on time. She’s busy now but we can take care of it before it’s due.
I had a call with my mom this morning and it was nice. She was sorry that she hadn’t answered me yesterday. She hasn’t been told if anything bad happened to drive my younger sister back to her.
I’m just so worn out.
I know. Seeing the cat was hard on top of everything else.
But I am glad that you had a good conversation with your mom. Focus on that moment.
Keep finding a way to eat something and drink water.
You are going to make it. This is just another bump. @integrityblues
It’s probably something I’m going to have to work through in therapy, and in the meantime I’ll hold myself together and focus on important tasks.
I have no Memorial Day plans so I’ll dedicate my time to cleaning up the house and other chores that I’ve been ignoring. I’ll return a book to the library too.