With the Coronavirus and the following stay-at-home orders, there has been no shortage of stories and instability. However, lost among the symptoms of the virus are the profound amount of unusually vivid and abnormal dreams.

Many people across the globe have been finding themselves in the midst of unfamiliar, though lively, dreams. A common theory, that dreams are influenced by our daily actions, could then explain the increase in these lifelike dreams, as we continue to receive updates about the cases and deaths from the pandemic. As our unconscious mind becomes more aware of the altered life we’re facing in our society, our dreams move to reflect the world’s problems in our own vision. In the past, altered dreams such as these have often been seen following traumatic events, such as dangerous, life-threatening, or disturbing events. Due to the current pandemic, most of these dreams are most commonly manifesting themselves in nightmares relating to the Coronavirus, such as a general fear of testing positive, or as reminiscent memories of a person’s life before the pandemic, which can be as mundane as going to work, or going to school.

While researchers are not entirely sure about what causes these dreams, a possible explanation could be that our mind is trying to prepare us for stressful situations, working them out beforehand. Meanwhile, other theories suggest that your dreams are simply your unconscious mind’s interpretation of your situation. Other theories, however, believe there to be little to no connection between dreams and a person’s conscious mind. Regardless of the true explanation for these new and expressive dreams, they are affecting a large portion of our society, and will most likely continue to affect us as we move through the pandemic.