Your dream experiences sound very much like mine Jeanna. They're not about pain or disability either, but often involve being killed or being trapped and scared for my life, horrible.
I go through phases when i dream constantly, then have weeks when i don't. I do often find that the dreams are worse when the night sweats are worse, like the feverish dreams I remember having when i was a child and unwell, so wonder if its linked to body temperature or something...just a speculation.
