A couple of months ago I shared how I had gotten a concussion. The effects from that were pretty surprising at times. I experienced the typical things anyone might expect: headaches, a little dizziness, and fatigue for the first few days. But something I wouldn’t have expected to experience as a result of a concussion, was an increase in seemingly precognitive dreams.

Precognitive dreams ~ common after concussion?

I noticed within the first few nights that I was having very vivid and active dreams. These dreams felt meaningful, like they were telling me something. They sometimes had messages in them, whether spoken by someone in the dream, or in the form of writing I would encounter and read. One thing I found was happening was that I would dream about something very odd and very specific, and then the next day I would see a sign of that very thing I had dreamt about. These details were very specific and unusual. Meaning, they weren’t things I would have expected on any ordinary, random day. Rather, they stood out, they were different from the norm.

What explained this? I have no idea. It got to be a kind of joke with my husband though. I’d tell him about a “weird” detail, and then we’d encounter that vivid detail in real life the next day. He’d just look at me like, “um…. did that just happen? Like, for real?” We weren’t looking for the detail, it would just show up somewhere.

For a few days I jokingly wondered if I’d acquired some kind of new clairvoyant ability. I mean, wouldn’t that be cool? I didn’t actually think so, but I mean… How many TV shows have explored this idea, where someone goes through an injury or trauma, and comes out the other side with some newfound psychic ability? It must be a common private fantasy for many, to be a concept featured in TV shows so many times.

Brain changes

What I really thought, was that since even a very mild brain injury like the one I suffered, causes the brain to sort of rewire, these dreams were just a side effect or symptom of that rewiring. I assumed that as my brain healed and got everything sorted, the dreams would calm down a bit and seem less predictive.

They did do that, settle back down, I mean. Even after settling a bit, my dreams continued to be intense at times, though not particularly predictive of anything. My dreams have always tended to be very active, detailed, and vivid. I have also had my share of what felt like precognitive dreams over the years (I think we all have). But this experience with the post-concussive dreams did definitely leave me wondering.

The senses, heightened

There was no doubt that something was going on. I guess I could consider that my brain was simply picking up certain details in my day-to-day life that previously I wouldn’t have noticed, but because they had been in a dream, and because my healing brain was apparently now supersensitive to smaller details, they stood out more. Kind of like how in the early weeks after concussion I was super sensitive to light. Every bright reflection of light, even the sliver of sun coming in between curtains for example, or the light reflected off the hood of a car sitting in a sunny parking lot, seemed intolerably bright at times. For some people after a concussion, every sound booms, and senses like taste and smell change temporarily.

The way it was explained to me by one of the doctors I saw after the injury, was that the brain in its injured state needs to rewire itself. It is relearning. So, it initially overreacts, in a way, to bright lights for example. But, it made me wonder, if the brain has the ability, in that post-concussive state, to see, hear, smell, taste, feel… sense… things differently, does that point to a greater, existent, innate ability to do so? Is it always there, but just not typically needed? If indeed there was a real, precognitive ability during sleep in the post-concussive brain, what does that imply? Since it exists in that state (post concussive), is it somehow always there, but typically not being accessed? Forgive me if I’m asking stupid questions, or sounding stupid asking them! They arose naturally from my experiences.

Do we all have precognitive dreams?

There are some who say we are all psychic, and there is also research that shows most people experience what feel like precognitive dreams. I mean, I don’t know. As I said earlier, I have had dreams throughout my life that certainly seemed to be directly predictive. I’ve certainly heard of astounding experiences people have had that have saved lives (theirs or others’). I’m referring to instances that didn’t seem to have other, more immediately plausible explanations.

In the weeks before 9/11, I had vivid but somewhat simple dreams about standing on a street that was absolutely filled with dense, dark, gray smoke and debris. The dreams always had an ominous feel to them. I knew others were around me, but I couldn’t see them because that smoke was so dense. Because it was so simple, limited to that visual of thick, gray smoke, I really didn’t think much of it. The dreams stood out by their simplicity and the sense of impending doom, but I didn’t connect them to anything. I didn’t try to figure out what they might mean, I didn’t take them as a “sign” of anything. That is, until the news on the morning of 9/11, and I saw the videos of the aftermath at the World Trade Center. I still don’t say with any confidence that they were actually predictive though. I just don’t know. It certainly felt that way, when the images on TV aligned so well with the images in the dreams. I have heard that many others had had similar dreams prior to 9/11 as well.

Research and learn more about the nature of dreams

It’s something I hadn’t thought about for a long time. After that series of post-concussive dreams, that even my more skeptical husband couldn’t help but wonder about, I’ve been inspired to research more. I’m also feeling motivated to start keeping a dream journal again. Lucid dreaming also seems to come a bit naturally to me, as well as reading in dreams, and a journal could help me track these things. It seems it might be a useful habit to get into, after this experience.

What do you think? Do you have experience with precognition, in dreams or outside of them? Or experience with concussions, and resulting notable symptoms? I’d love to hear your experiences, or your thoughts.

Some great resources

I’m thinking of buying this dream journal for myself (this is an Amazon affiliate link, so if you happen to click through it and buy something for yourself, thank you, you’ve just helped support the site!). It’s the Clever Fox Dream Journal; (you can also choose a larger format that has room for a little more reflection). I have used several journals and planners from Clever Fox, and they have always been solid quality. They aren’t glamorous, but they are high quality. They come in lovely colors, and are designed with a load of attention to detail. Also, the price doesn’t feel like a huge splurge. I expect the dream journal to be the same. If I do buy it, I’ll add a post reviewing it and sharing photos 😊

If you’re interested in some of the articles I read to learn more about dreams, specifically precognitive dreams, please see the following:

What are My Precognitive Dreams Trying to Tell Me?

On the Reality of Precognitive Dreams

The Anatomy of a Precognitive Dream

Precognition in Psychology: Exploring the Controversial Phenomenon

Why Do Some Dreams Seem to Predict the Future?

Some of these support the idea of precognitive dreams, that is, that there is some predictive quality in some dreams. Others lean more evidence-based and suggest a more psychological explanation. I found all of them to be solid and worthwhile reads. I hope you will check them out!

Reach out!

As always, thanks for reading, and please feel free to get in touch.

~ Nellie

p.s. Image created for Winter Moon Review using Microsoft Copilot and Photoshop