New twist on an old nightmare

[Out-to-Lunch]

I may have related this before. I was a college professor. To calm my students, I often related the following about test anxiety dreams:

I, too, used to have dreams like yours where I was a student: I know we have an exam, I am not sure what time the exam is, I can't find a pencil, I cannot find the building, after I find the building, I cannot locate the correct room....

Sadly, not much changes when you "are on the other side of the desk." Now, my dreams are: I know I scheduled an exam, I forgot to write the exam, I cannot find the xerox machine to copy the exams, I am not sure what time I scheduled the exam for, after I make the copies I am late for the exam, I cannot find the building, I cannot find the room in the building, when I finally get to the room none of the students are there...

Sigh.

 

[JoeWras]

I may have related this before. I was a college professor. To calm my students, I often related the following about test anxiety dreams:

I, too, used to have dreams like yours where I was a student: I know we have an exam, I am not sure what time the exam is, I can't find a pencil, I cannot find the building, after I find the building, I cannot locate the correct room....

Sadly, not much changes when you "are on the other side of the desk." Now, my dreams are: I know I scheduled an exam, I forgot to write the exam, I cannot find the xerox machine to copy the exams, I am not sure what time I scheduled the exam for, after I make the copies I am late for the exam, I cannot find the building, I cannot find the room in the building, when I finally get to the room none of the students are there...

Sigh.

Imagine my Econ professor LIVED your nightmare! He couldn't find all the tests and had to assume some were stolen for cheating purposes.

Ended up giving us an oral (write down) exam using blue books instead of the multi-choice sheet he planned, then giving another exam outside of normal times as a make up for people who felt the bait and switch was wrong.

And then it turns out the painters covered the "stolen" box of tests with a dropcloth.

 

[Koolau]

Imagine my Econ professor LIVED your nightmare! He couldn't find all the tests and had to assume some were stolen for cheating purposes.

Ended up giving us an oral (write down) exam using blue books instead of the multi-choice sheet he planned, then giving another exam outside of normal times as a make up for people who felt the bait and switch was wrong.

And then it turns out the painters covered the "stolen" box of tests with a dropcloth.

I hated "blue books" with a passion. My penmanship - on a good day - was barely legible. Trying to write a test in one gave me true anxiety. I'm so glad those days are long gone - never to return.

 

[Car-Guy]

I was talking to the DW about this thread and I'm surprised she never had such dreams. Her senior year in HS she missed almost as many days as she went. And then she got out early every day when she did go since she only needed a few classes to have enough credits to graduate. Surprised she could remember her schedule and where her classes were. Different story in college, she took a full load+ and went every day. Graduated both with honors and no nightmares.



Me,;;;; well let's not go there.

 

[Exit 2024]

This gets me thinking... Do students today go through this?

I really think our dreams about forgetting classes or finding out at the last minute you signed up for one were a product of the times. Or the one you have about sections combining for finals which always gave me huge anxiety.

You registered, got a notification, and that was it. If you changed on the fly, you didn't get an email (didn't exist) or even snail mail about your change of class, section etc. You had to pay attention to know where finals were.

For registration, you could always go to the admin office and have them print one, but who has time when you are drinking beer? Same with going to your prof's office and looking at the finals location list on the door.

I'm going to guess that the bi-directional feedback students get from registration lessen this dream a bit. They also have apps that list everything. But I could be wrong, maybe they get The Dream too.

I do not think it relates to the organizational part of the exams, I graduated from the university in the different part of the world and all that you are describing did not existed there, but nevertheless I also had the variations of those dreams over the years, although it is not about not finding room but forgetting about the class completely and only realizing at the time of finals that I do not have a slightest idea what this class is about and facing academic dismissal for not passing it

 

[easysurfer]

#1 + 2 are definitely recurring nightmare for me too.

Another is I have one of I'm just a class or two short of finishing a degree but for the life of me can't put out a passing grade anymore so I run into a brick wall and lost my touch as a student .

 

[RunningBum]

I've had variants of that dream. Usually it's something like looking at the inside cover of a notebook where I copied my schedule and realized I had totally blown off one class, and go running around trying to figure out where it is.

Another common one since I run a lot of races is to get to a race, and I'm inside a building putting on my shoes and socks and talking to people and I keep getting distracted by friends talking to me. I notice people heading outside for the start but I other people keep coming up to me. Then I hear the start gun go off and I'm still having trouble and someone tells me not to worry, that's just the first wave but then the other waves start and I look around and the building is pretty empty and my shoes are still untied. I think I've heard that one probably is due to worrying about not having done enough training for a race so I probably don't feel ready for it.

 

[JoeWras]

I hated "blue books" with a passion. My penmanship - on a good day - was barely legible. Trying to write a test in one gave me true anxiety. I'm so glad those days are long gone - never to return.

Most professors hate them too, well may except law professors.

My Econ prof was not happy about what he had to do that day either.

 

[mystang52]

I can't recall the last time I had one of those recurring back-in-college nightmares. I'd guess 15 years or so. However, they've been replaced with back-at-work nightmares of similar themes such as being at a meeting and I don't know why, interviewing for a position, etc. I had one of those just last month.

 

[Chris7]

I've had similar dreams. I didn't finish college and later in life tried to go back. But my first class ended up being cancelled and took the wind out of my sails. That probably compounded the dreams.


I do have lots of terrible nightmares. My wife often has to wake me up. I also have these paralysis dreams that are just terrible.


cd : O)

 

[Golden sunsets]

I've had versions 1 and 2 since graduating and I'm about to turn 75. In my dreams, the class I skipped all semester, the last semester before Graduation, was French 4, and 4 semesters of a foreign language was a requirement to graduate. I sucked at French. There was no way I could take the final after skipping the class for the whole semester and pass. I've always assumed that the reasons I had this recurring nightmare, is I did actually skip my French 4 class a lot during my Sophmore year and sweated passing the final.

Regarding losing my schedule, I have that dream too and can't seem to locate the correct Adminstation building to get a copy of my schedule.

 

[Koolau]

I was talking to the DW about this thread and I'm surprised she never had such dreams. Her senior year in HS she missed almost as many days as she went. And then she got out early every day when she did go since she only needed a few classes to have enough credits to graduate. Surprised she could remember her schedule and where her classes were. Different story in college, she took a full load+ and went every day. Graduated both with honors and no nightmares.



Me,;;;; well let's not go there.

Heh, heh, we only need one smart person in the couple and one to listen. I guess I'm the one who listens.

 

[aja8888]

I don't recall ever dreaming about school, even with two engineering degrees and an MBA in finance. I sure had some tough times getting through all that, though.

I seem to usually dream about old girlfriends instead.

 

[Koolau]

I don't recall ever dreaming about school, even with two engineering degrees and an MBA in finance. I sure had some tough times getting through all that, though.

I seem to usually dream about old girlfriends instead.

Could be good - could be bad, I guess.

Never had that dream though had relatively few GFs over the years. YMMV

 

[Qs Laptop]

Usually in these school dreams where I've blown off attending the classes and then have the final upcoming, it's in something like calculus or vector analysis, whereas I do attend English lit and my history classes. Odd, that.

 

[aja8888]

Could be good - could be bad, I guess.

Never had that dream though had relatively few GFs over the years. YMMV

I didn't get married until I was 33. Lots of fun for many years before that.

 

[O2Bfree]

My variation on the theme is that I've taken a teaching job at a community college again, and it's 20 minutes until my first class. I haven't prepared a syllabus and the subject matter is vague in my mind. I'm trying to decide if I can fill 50 minutes by having students introduce themselves and talk about why they signed up for the course, or if I can throw together an introductory lesson in 20 minutes. And then I remember I didn't even order text books for the quarter!

 

[NW-Bound]

My most recent nightmare about school was this.

I was in a final exam. Darn, the test was so easy for me, I could not believe it. I finished it with 1/2 hour to spare. Instead of turning it in, I put it aside and did something else that I forgot. Maybe worked a puzzle, read something.

Then, when the bell rang and the work had to be turned in, I could not find it. The proctor was standing before my desk, hand extending. I could not find my work among the scratch paper. Panic.

ARGHHHH! That's when I woke up in sweat.

PS. I remember in the dream before I woke up, I screamed to myself that I swore I would never do that again. I would turn the paper in early, instead of risk losing it.

 

[O2Bfree]

Then comes a decisive turning point in the dreams. I'm in my department head's office for my performance review. I wish I could remember how my review went but I can't. However, I had a distinct conversation with my boss, which I remember vividly.

Me: "Why are we having this review. I don't work here anymore. I haven't worked here for years, decades, at least."

Boss: "Well, that's not true. I see you here every day."

Me: "No one gives me any projects. I haven't drawn a paycheck here for decades. I haven't lifted a finger to do a thing here. I'm not on payroll. Log into personnel records and see for yourself."

I have a similar dream about working at my parents' restaurant, which I haven't done since I was 19. I'm there on a Saturday morning, putting on my apron and about to start waiting on tables, when I think, "Why am I here? I don't have to do this, I have a great career of my own, away from the restaurant. Also, I don't remember ever getting a paycheck for this work."

Then I confront my dad, demanding to know why I was put on the schedule and why I haven't been paid. He just kind of shrugs it off, and I'm thinking, "I don't have to do this, I can just walk away."

Oddly, I don't have that dream about the last job I had, which lasted 25 years. Sometimes in my dreams about my 10-year teaching job before that, I start thinking, "Wait a minute, I don't have to panic about the first day of class, I don't have this job anymore," but then I'm usually waking up and realizing it was just a dream.

For me, the restaurant dream seems related to annoyance I often felt about having to work on weekends in my pre-teen and teen years. In the dream it's such a relief to realize I don't have to work there. In real life, I still get a little ping when I go there for breakfast, sit down to hot cup of coffee, and let someone wait on me.

 

[Route246]

Same here, similar dreams haunt my psyche on a regular basis. Forgot to study, showed up and couldn't figure out any of the problems, etc.

 

[Car-Guy]

I don't recall ever dreaming about school, even with two engineering degrees and an MBA in finance. I sure had some tough times getting through all that, though.

I seem to usually dream about old girlfriends instead.

Do you talk in your sleep.

 

[ERD50]

.... Me: "Why are we having this review. I don't work here anymore. I haven't worked here for years, decades, at least."

Boss: "Well, that's not true. I see you here every day."

Me: "No one gives me any projects. I haven't drawn a paycheck here for decades. I haven't lifted a finger to do a thing here. I'm not on payroll. Log into personnel records and see for yourself."

[Boss logs into the payroll records and is shocked to see I'm not in there.]

OK, armchair psychoanalysts, let's hear your diagnosis. I've been pondering what this means for 30 years.

I have no idea what it means, but it's hilarious! I LOL'd. Thanks for sharing.

-ERD50

 

[Go-NoGo]

Originally Posted by Qs Laptop View Post
.... Me: "Why are we having this review. I don't work here anymore. I haven't worked here for years, decades, at least."

Boss: "Well, that's not true. I see you here every day."

Me: "No one gives me any projects. I haven't drawn a paycheck here for decades. I haven't lifted a finger to do a thing here. I'm not on payroll. Log into personnel records and see for yourself."

[Boss logs into the payroll records and is shocked to see I'm not in there.]

OK, armchair psychoanalysts, let's hear your diagnosis. I've been pondering what this means for 30 years.

Too good to pass up since I found out that you can ask ChatGPT to take on a role as a therapist/dream analyst. So I asked it, and this is what it came up with:

---

This dream sequence appears to reflect a complex interplay of emotions and concerns related to your past career in semiconductor research and the subsequent stages of your life. Let's explore the symbolism and possible meanings behind the various phases of the dream:

1. Early Dream Phases - Misplacement and Disconnection: The initial dreams of misplacing your notebook or being unable to find the proper laboratory might symbolize a sense of uncertainty or unease about your role and identity during your active working years. The feeling of being disconnected from discussions and the uncertainty about assignments could represent a fear of being sidelined or overlooked.
   
2. Transition and Identity Shift: As the dreams progress, your role seems to shift from an active participant to a more passive observer. This could reflect your transition from a hands-on role in the semiconductor industry to a more distant, detached position. The discussions, interactions, and activities in the labs might represent the ongoing connections you have with your professional past, albeit in a different capacity.
   
3. Performance Review and Recognition: The pivotal performance review conversation with your boss is a significant turning point. It highlights a deep-seated concern about acknowledgment, validation, and the passage of time. The revelation that you haven't been officially connected to the company for decades might signify a subconscious fear of losing relevance or recognition as years pass by.
   
4. Diminishing Frequency and Changing Environment: The decreasing frequency of the dreams and the expansion of the building could symbolize the gradual fading of your professional identity and the evolving nature of your connection to your past career. Feeling more comfortable in the old section of the building might suggest a nostalgia for the earlier, more familiar stages of your career.

Overall, these dreams seem to reflect your evolving relationship with your past career, the changing dynamics of your identity and connection to it, and your quest for validation and recognition. The dreams might also touch on concerns about relevance, the passage of time, and the fear of being forgotten or overlooked. As the dreams have become less frequent, it could signify a gradual acceptance and integration of your past career into your present life.

It's important to recognize that dream analysis is subjective and can vary based on individual experiences and emotions. These interpretations offer a starting point for self-reflection, but exploring these themes with a trained therapist could provide deeper insights and help you navigate the complex emotions and thoughts surrounding your past career and life transitions.

---

Interestingly enough I had similar dreams a few months after retiring and there are some kernels of myself that I recognize in the analysis. As always YMMV

 

[Spock]

Too good to pass up since I found out that you can ask ChatGPT to take on a role as a therapist/dream analyst. So I asked it, and this is what it came up with:

---
...

"sometimes a cigar is just a cigar"

 

[Qs Laptop]

I have no idea what it means, but it's hilarious! I LOL'd. Thanks for sharing.

-ERD50

What was cool for me is that when I was dreaming I was aware of the fact I was dreaming and I was getting the voice in my head saying, "now drop the bomb on him and tell him you're not on the payroll and you haven't done anything here in years and years." So I did it.

There is a great scene in the HBO production, "Silicon Valley" where "Big Head" gets laid off, but because he's got a 3 year employment contract they can't get rid of him. He has the privileges of coming into work and doing nothing for the duration of his contract. After he gets this news they show him coming into work day after day and merely walking around the hallways, looking into workspaces, and generally doing nothing. DING DING DING DING! I recognized that scenario!

In his explorations of the building he goes up to the roof and there are a handful of people up there drinking beer. They, too, have been laid off and also have employment contracts. The highlight of their day is to argue about where they are going to go to eat lunch.