‘I felt so trapped’: Content creator Sufi Motiwala on living with Dream-Reality Confusion

Describing the dream as unsettling, Sufi said he felt trapped and unable to wake up. “No, I felt so trapped. I felt like I couldn’t wake up. I felt that I was never gonna come out of it. It felt like it was years and years long. I was telling people in my dream to hit me so that I could realise if it was real or not,” he shared.

Sufi further disclosed that he has Dream Reality Confusion Syndrome, adding that he first experienced it when he was 16 years old. “I have suffered from it. It’s called DRS (Dream Reality Confusion Syndrome). This happened to me when I was 16,” he said.

 

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Psychiatrists and mental health experts say DRS is not recognised as a standalone psychiatric disorder in major diagnostic manuals such as the DSM-5 or ICD-11. Instead, dream-reality confusion is understood as a symptom or clinical phenomenon that may occur alongside sleep disorders, mental health conditions, or periods of intense stress and sleep deprivation.

“Dream-reality confusion isn’t really treated as a separate psychiatric disorder on its own in the big diagnostic lists like DSM-5 or ICD-11. Usually, it is viewed as a symptom that can occur alongside sleep disorders such as narcolepsy or parasomnias, as well as psychiatric conditions including psychosis, dissociative disorders, anxiety, depression and PTSD,” said Dr Murali Krishna, Visiting Consultant, Psychiatry & Counselling Services, Aster RV Hospital, Bengaluru.

He added that occasional confusion between dreams and reality can happen even in healthy individuals, particularly during periods of sleep deprivation or prolonged stress. “Occasional mix-ups between what is dreamt and what is real can be normal enough, but if it keeps happening or becomes distressing, a professional evaluation is important to identify whether there is an underlying medical, neurological, psychiatric or sleep-related condition.”

What is Dream Reality Confusion?

According to experts, dream reality confusion differs significantly from vivid dreams, nightmares or sleep paralysis.

“Dream Reality Confusion refers to persistent difficulty distinguishing memories of dreams from real-life experiences after waking. People may vividly remember conversations, events or situations from a dream and genuinely question whether they actually happened,” Dr Rimpa Sarkar, PhD, Sentier Wellness, Mumbai said. “Unlike an ordinary dream, where most people recognise it was only a dream shortly after waking, individuals experiencing dream reality confusion may continue to doubt their memories for hours or even longer.”

Difference between nightmares, sleep paralysis, and dream reality confusion

She noted that nightmares are typically recognised as frightening dreams once a person wakes up, while sleep paralysis involves a temporary inability to move during transitions between sleep and wakefulness, sometimes accompanied by hallucinations. “In dream reality confusion, the primary difficulty lies in distinguishing dream memories from waking memories,” he said.

Dr Sarkar emphasised that treatment focuses on addressing the underlying cause rather than the dream-reality confusion itself.

“The first step is a comprehensive assessment to determine whether sleep disorders, anxiety, depression, trauma or other conditions are contributing to the symptoms,” she said.

She added that improving sleep hygiene, reducing stress, keeping a dream journal and practising reality-checking strategies can help people better distinguish dream memories from real events. “Psychological interventions such as Cognitive Behavioural Therapy can be helpful when stress or trauma is part of the picture. Medications are generally recommended only if there is an underlying psychiatric or neurological condition requiring treatment, not for dream-reality confusion on its own,” Dr Sarkar explained.