I have really bad dreams which affect my mood the following day; I can be depressed, angry, have existential dread.
It’s frustrating but I also think a lot of it centres around people i know and people i used to know - so my brain is creating situations with people i don’t want to & won’t interact with ever again, just to make me feel bad.
My favourite dreams have just been me roaming around and exploring places - sometimes travelling by car or boat. Usually by myself. If i went running in the woods more, could i leverage my brain to give me more pleasant dreams like that?
Non-consensual dreaming I call it. Some good advice in here. I dont have much to add, but suffer from this sometimes too.
I try and idk, find joy and peace during the days, and fall asleep while intently keeping my thoughts on a subject I know wont hurt me, like house flipper 2 where I build houses often, so I just think about my plans for that, and if my mind veers off somewhere else I redirect it back to my project, until I am asleep.
Doesnt always work.