Sat. September 20, 2034 8:00am

Dear Diary,

The dream I recalled this morning took place at night, in the bustling streets of Shanghai, where neon signs gleamed under the dim moonlight. I was lost in the drowning sea of people, who appeared to be surrounding an intersection. I seemed to be examining a map in my hands attentively, the purpose to find the inn where I was supposedly resting. I eventually found my hotel and indolently laid on the king-size mattress of my hotel room, and that ended my strange dream. The dream held an ominous and mysterious aura throughout, possibly because every item and location was somber, adding on that I was all alone. The only illumination I recalled were the luminous street signs and lights surrounding the skyscrapers as I sauntered past. Now, as a narcoleptic patient, I recall my dreams quite easily with the vast amount of sleep I’m granted. Of course, from the outside perspective it seems like heaven, but it has started interfering with my waking life to the point where it’s even difficult to get through one day without interruptions. I always rely on my psychologist for answers regarding my conditions. During my visit last week, I asked when I would be able to improve my current health, but she only comforted me by explaining how my constant dreaming can actually help enhance my memory. I refuse to believe that’s the case and I told her exactly that but she still sent me a piece of literature concerning the bright side of memory function in dreams to skim over. But all I want is a normal life already. Well, I’ll leave an update for my dreams later next week since I’ve been slightly drowsy recently.

Hoping for the best,

Aislinn

                                                                                     Thurs. September 25, 2034 10:00 am

Dear Diary,

The dream I experienced yesterday was definitely a thriller if it was produced into a movie. I was situated in a dark and dingy cellar room with a single window available. I could see a sliver of light pouring in from the tiny opening of the window and it seemed like the only source of light, the moon, was a thousand miles away, perhaps even on the other side of the world. Suddenly, fingers grasped the opening as I stared in shock. It was out of the blue. A man trying to get in. At this point I was rigid as a rock, couldn’t even move an inch. In the background I could faintly hear my mother shouting at me to dial 911 but my body wouldn’t allow it, I was permanently stuck in my sitting position. Then I was awoken by my own fear. Contradicting the intense emotion during that dream, I’ve been doing quite well this week compared to last week. My fatigue has lessened, most likely related to the Provigil medication my physician prescribed to me to help me stay conscious during the day. It’s been quite effective, so I am extremely grateful. I’ve started to halt taking my remembered dreams for granted, as I know many have trouble actively remembering them once awoken. It’s safe to say my life in the waking world has improved drastically. But, now that I think about it, my life in dreams was a part of my forever childhood dreams, to star in brief movies in my mind that are emotional and realistic. My younger self would’ve loved this.

Aiming for more,

Aislinn

                                                                                        Sun. September 28th, 2034 6:00pm

Dear Diary,

I remembered such a bizarre dream last night and it’s a bit lengthy, so bear with me. I think I was situated on a train? Yes, I was on a train where the world around me seemed particularly dull in color and emotion. All the passengers wore straight faces and I felt like I was the only humane individual on that train. Apparently I was holding an infant in my lap for some reason. I placed the infant into the hands of an individual seated next to me tenderly, with the sweet temper of a mother, I believe she was supposedly my “friend” in the dream. I got up to leave for a moment, and when I returned to my seat, yes you can probably guess what comes next. The baby had gone missing! *facepalm* I somehow realized that there were two kidnappers on the vehicle who were the culprits of stealing the infant, so I chased them down until I reached a seat. Except it wasn’t any ordinary train seat. The kidnapper lifted the seat to reveal a slot that led to the rail tracks. I thought I was losing my mind at this point. The kidnapper without hesitation threw the infant down the seat hole with an empathetic expression I couldn’t quite put into place. I anxiously peered into the hole, catching a glimpse of an old woman with a wood-woven basket where she softly placed the infant inside. That’s it. That’s the end of my senseless dream. You must be thinking that I need my brain checked, I assure you I’m fine. This morning I was attempting to interpret this dream by myself, but I eventually took this story to my psychologist, who told me that there’s a good chance that this dream came from my latest memories. As soon as she said this, my brain saw the light at the end of the tunnel. Aha! I was on a train a few days ago, as my intent was to visit my grandmother down in New Castle, Delaware, but where did the baby come from? Guess it’ll stay a mystery for now, but it was quite the entertainment to experience this dream, my brain was pretty creative.

Looking forward to more bizarreness,

Aislinn

                                                                                         Fri. December 16th, 2034 11:00am

Dear Diary,

I think I’m losing my sanity. Why? Because recently my dreams have begun to seem too real in comparison to my waking life. I’m sure everyone has experienced the action of falling in their dreams right? It’s named the hypnagogic jerk and they’ve been too frequent lately. Every time I’m nearly asleep, I seem to fall down a building abruptly with the speed of light, with an atmosphere so palpable it’s enough to make someone’s blood run cold. It was daunting to me. Is my brain really fine? I also visited my parents for the holidays and we were discussing our next vacation location. Someone mentioned “cruise” and I immediately replied “We already went last year, let’s pick a location that’s new to everyone.” With all the eyes in the room on me, not even a second after, did I realize my mistake; my issue and my world collapsed. I was baffled. There was only one evident cause to this: I was recalling my dreams as real life memories. I couldn’t believe it, why did they seem so... so real? I could almost faintly discern the outline of the massive cruise ship before me as it sailed until only a speck was seen, bobbing from side to side on its long voyage. Was there something wrong with my brain? After those incidents, I seeked out my psychologist for assistance by booking an appointment for tomorrow. I’ll update you when the time comes.

May luck be on my side,

Aislinn

                                                                                                       Wed. Jan 2, 3035 9:00pm

Dear Diary,

I’ve been through some rough patches last month so I wasn’t able to update that often. Basically I had to

receive a larger dose of the medication, Provigil, I was taking recently because my doctor said the smaller dose wasn’t working as effectively as before. My life is back to the usual again, and I’ve managed to separate my dreams from reality, thank goodness. The dream I had yesterday was quite imaginative. I was walking along the streets of Toronto during the late afternoon as playful kids ran past me, all gripping little toy fans. This scene reminded me heavily of my careless days as a child, and the sentiment came flooding. Tears in the corner of my eyes were beginning to form like the first rain of May. My mother, my sister, and I were heading to a writing class that was taking place in a local library. I was in the middle of the foreign writing class when I felt the urge to use the restroom, so I opened the restroom door. But the peculiar thing is, the restroom contained a portal-like door to a magnificent underwater city. I’m talking like sci-fi, high-tech skyscrapers. I swam down to the city and peered at a giant light-piercing pearl as guards surrounded it. And then I woke up to the boring planet we live upon. A wave of satisfaction washed over me, it’s been a while since I’ve had such a significant, fantasy-filled dream. I visited my psychologist this evening to discuss my current conditions, and I was doing well, considering the nightmares of last month. I always discuss my recalled dreams with her, and she mentioned that she heard a vast amount of dreams from me. I had a sleep disorder, of course I was expected to remember a large amount of my dreams. My psychologist claimed that sleep disorders were not the only aspect that could impact whether we remember our dreams or not, and I’m gonna be honest, I was shocked to hear that. All my adulthood have I only heard that my disorder can help recall dreams, maybe a little too well at times, but to think that there are other conditions and factors that could increase dream recall was mind-blowing to me. I was so eager to learn about what else could potentially affect my memory of dreams. She sent me a news article to satisfy my curiosity and I’ve been dying to skim over it after I finish this entry. I’ll let you know my opinion once I’m finished.

Eager to learn more,

Aislinn

                                                                                                      May 25, 3025 9:45 am

Dear Diary,

The dream I last recalled was situated at a doctor’s office. I was rambling on and on about my heart conditions out of worry. The doctor layed out two ways to fix my medical condition: the first was surgery and the second included medication. It was at this moment that I realized that the doctor was my friend who was working as a real estate agent a few years ago. She told me that the apartments around the corner were deemed to have a good reputation, that I would be interested. Upon hearing her advice, I stepped into where the apartments were located. Except, the apartment area was blocked by a fulfilling food market with every nourishment ever known for every appetite possible. I was stunned to say the least. I was just about to buy myself some fresh baked pastries when I was awoken by the construction nearby my house, so the dream ended on a quick note. I actually haven’t been dreaming that often, so I wasn’t able to update these few months. I wondered why, but then my mind drifted to the newspaper I read in Jan. The reason my dream recall has lessened these few months is most likely because I’m waking up with an alarm almost daily. I’ve been extremely busy at the office recently that there were times where I needed to wake up early on weekends as well. You must think all those early mornings have put me into a habit of waking up during this time, but trust me, I’m still not a successful morning bird. Of course I wouldn’t, my condition forces me to sleep at random times of the day, but these months have been pivotal for healing my condition. I sleep relatively well during the night, and thanks to my medicine, I can live like a normal human during the daytime. Without a doubt, my narcolepsy has taught me many life lessons along the way and I truly believe I became a better person out of all this. Indeed, this wound will never completely heal, as I will always remember this helpless time in my life but I continued to persevere and changed my life for the better. I’ve had many helpers along the way, one being my empathic psychologist; she deserves all my gratitude. This journal is a bit full now, I think I’ll need to replace it with a new one. Good-bye and thank you for letting me pour all my emotions into this, it certainly helped.

With all my love,

Aislinn