LifeStyle of 2026-08-28

Dear GhanaWeb: I constantly see my late best friend in my dreams

Dear GhanaWeb, My best friend of almost 25 years passed away five years ago from ovarian cancer. We were more than friends. We were like sisters, and honestly, I considered her my soulmate. We grew up together, shared almost everything and knew each other in ways nobody else could understand. When she died, it felt like a part of me died with her. I grieved terribly after her passing. There were nights when I would lie in bed and talk to her as though she was still beside me. I would tell her about my day, talk about things happening in my life and sometimes cry while asking her to somehow show me that she was still there. Then, last year, something happened that completely confused me. I had a dream that she came to me and told me she hadn't really died. In the dream, she said everyone believed she was dead because she had secretly joined a cancer treatment trial that required complete secrecy. She told me the treatment had worked, she was now cancer-free and she was coming home. When I woke up, the dream felt unbelievably real. For a moment, I genuinely believed she was alive. I started expecting her to call me or suddenly show up at my house. I waited for months, hoping that somehow the dream was true. But nothing happened. Eventually, reality hit me again. I knew she was dead, and I had to accept her death all over again. It was almost like going through the grieving process for a second time. But despite knowing she was gone, I still desperately wanted to see her. Before going to sleep, I would pray and ask to see her in my dreams. Sometimes, deep down, I wished I could see her ghost or have her somehow appear to me. And strangely enough, she started appearing in my dreams regularly. Whenever she comes, I remember everything clearly when I wake up. We talk, make plans, laugh, go places and do things together. Sometimes it feels like I have another life that exists only when I'm asleep. Sometimes those dreams make me incredibly happy because I get to spend time with her again. Other times, they hurt terribly because waking up reminds me that she isn't actually here. And whenever I feel lonely, I sometimes just close my eyes and imagine her there. I don't know whether this is simply my mind trying to cope with losing someone I loved so deeply, or whether there is something more to it. Part of me finds comfort in believing that she is still somehow connected to me. Another part of me worries that I'm holding on too tightly and preventing myself from healing. Am I simply experiencing a normal part of grief and dreaming about someone I desperately miss, or am I hallucinating and need to seek help? FG/EB Special Prosecutor speaks on AKSA bribery scandal, pending cases