For as long as I can remember I have had both recurring dreams (these dreams repeat almost exactly the same way each time: haven't been to class all semester then remember to only to panic a lot, flying then falling, trying to drive my red childhood tricycle on 695, trying to find the perfect pastry shop only to realize the food isn't real...I could go on) and serial dreams (my dreams pick up or continue like events unfold in my real life).
I've heard of recurring dreams, of course. Another recurring dream I have is a common one: teeth falling out. But I was always told you can't have serial dreams, which I never believed because I've been having serial dreams since I was a child.
My Google search came up with this response:
Serial dreams that feel like real-life continuations or parallel universes happen because your brain links waking experiences, unresolved issues, or even imagined scenarios into coherent, ongoing narratives, using the same brain areas active during wakefulness to create vivid sensations, essentially creating "installments" of your subconscious, which can feel like exploring other realities or selves. It's your mind processing, rehearsing, and making sense of life, sometimes with such depth it mimics other dimensions.
Why Dreams Feel So Real & Serial
- Continuity Hypothesis: Your dreams often directly reflect your waking life, emotions, and anxieties, acting as a continuation of your day-to-day experiences, says a ScienceAlert article.
- Brain Activity: The same brain regions responsible for emotions, sensations, and images while awake are active during dreams, making them feel incredibly real and immersive, explains BrainFacts.org.
- Memory Processing: Dreams help your brain sort, process, and consolidate memories, creating stories or exploring scenarios, which can lead to recurring themes or sequels, notes Psychology Today.
- Unresolved Issues: Recurring dreams often signal unresolved problems, fears, or unmet psychological needs (like competence or connection) that your mind keeps bringing up for processing, according to The Sleep Foundation.
- Practice/Simulation: Your brain may be creating practice runs for difficult situations or threats, allowing you to rehearse reactions in a safe space, notes a behavioralhealth2000.com article.
The "Parallel Universe" Feeling
Unconscious Narratives: Your unconscious mind generates these complex stories, introducing itself and its metaphors, leading to a sense that you're experiencing an alternate life or dimension, says Quora users.- Heightened Realism: Some people experience heightened emotions, vivid colors, familiar yet different locations, or "dreams within dreams," making these worlds feel like actual alternate realities or multiverse glimpses, note Reddit users.
Essentially, your mind is creating immersive, ongoing stories from your own experiences and inner world, which can feel like stepping into another reality because of their vividness and continuity.
