Dream On

Hannah’s anxieties were puzzling. She was a popular girl from a good Bostonian home. She was enjoying every Torah-learning moment at NCSY’s National Yarchei Kallah in Stamford, Connecticut. So why was she a nervous wreck?

She then confided in me that she suffered from nightmares. On the instruction of her therapist, every morning, as soon as she woke up, she’d write down her dreams in a special diary. She would then review and discuss them with her therapist.

I asked her if she could trust me with a one-month experiment. Every morning, when she woke up, she should immediately start her day, ignoring her dreams and taking a break from her therapist. (To clarify: I’m a staunch believer in the benefits of therapy; this was an unusual exception.)

Hannah tried this for a month and then sent me a short note: “Thank you! The nightmares have gone.”