It's been a long time since I've had one of these caregiving PTSD dreams, but last night I dreamed my mom was back, crazier than ever. First we were driving around town, running errands, and she very literally invaded my space by sitting as close to me as she possibly could, and it immediately made me feel the need to get away from her, but there was nowhere I could go. Then we were back in the house I grew up in, and I had run into my room and turned to lock the door to keep her out, but before I could she pushed into the room. As always, I felt this extreme sense of NEED from her, that she wanted more from me than I had to give. I began to loudly tell her what she was doing, that by always invading my space, physically and emotionally, it made me want to go away from her -- the exact opposite from what she wanted. But she was crazy, and just kept trying to get me to give her what SHE wanted. The dream was very fragmented, and at one point we were in a shopping mall, but always she was coming after me and I was trying to get away.
This dream may reflect unresolved issues or trauma related to your relationship with your mother and the caregiving role you may have held in the past. The repetitive nature of these dreams suggests that these feelings of being overwhelmed by her demands and the need to escape from her influence are deeply ingrained in your subconscious.
The dream could symbolize feelings of suffocation and boundary violations in your waking life, particularly in relation to your mother or other relationships. The driving around town and the presence of a shopping mall may represent the constant movement and distractions in your life as you try to avoid confronting these unresolved emotions.
Locking the door to your room and feeling like you have no escape could represent a desire for boundaries and personal space that are not being respected in your waking life. The fragmentation of the dream may indicate feelings of chaos or confusion caused by the unresolved emotions and memories associated with your mother.
Overall, this dream may be urging you to acknowledge and address these deep-seated feelings and explore ways to establish healthy boundaries and self-care in your relationships to prevent feeling overwhelmed and suffocated. Therapy or counseling could be beneficial in processing these emotions and helping you navigate this challenging emotional terrain.