Diagnosing Spontaneous Arising / Passing Away Events

rik, modified 7 Years ago at 3/22/17 5:45 PM
Created 7 Years ago at 3/22/17 5:45 PM

Diagnosing Spontaneous Arising / Passing Away Events

Posts: 51 Join Date: 2/9/17 Recent Posts
Sometime last year a very close friend of mine described a dream she had the night before.  She said she couldn't really explain it well but it consisted mostly of glowing golden clouds and large pulses of energy, and that it reminded her of visionary scenes in movies when the main character is about to go through a major point in the story.  I happened to be reading MCTB at the time and the similarities between the dream and the A&P stuck out to me but I chalked it up to the fact that I was just had tunnel vision from recently being exposed to the idea.

I recently spent a couple of weeks with her and she woke me up in the middle of the night a few times because of how she jolted out of her sleep terrified.  We talked more about it and she said that starting ~6 months ago she's been having frequent night terrors and has felt a general sense of fear and anxiety increased from what it used to be.  She is away from home for the year in a new country but she also expressed how there isn't anything in particular that is bothering her but she finds herself thinking and worrying about death very often, which she claims is a new thing.  She also said she worries that the anxiety is not going to go away when even when she gets back home.

To me this all sounds like a completely normal reaction to living in a new country for the first time, but since she told me about that dream that I had tagged as a potential spontaneous A&P event I am also seeing similarities between her current experience and the dark night.  Is there any good way to distinguish between dark night symptoms, general anxiety and stress, and the development of mental illness in someone who doesn't meditate?  We are both in our early twenties which I'm aware is when many mental disorders begin to really show themselves.

Additionally she expressed that she will be seeking a therapist when she returns due to the extreme fear and anxiety. 

Thanks for any advice or insight

Breadcrumb