I'm not getting the message...

This morning was the third morning in a row I have woken up from the same nightmare. I wake up feeling drained and full of dread. Normally when I dream, it is as if I am watching movie happening, when I have nightmares I see it all as I would through my own eyes. This nightmare is no exception, including full Technicolor, surround sound and terrifying emotion.

The nightmare starts and ends exactly the same way. I am standing in a corner of a room shivering, terrified and crying. The room is square, brown, dingy, windowless (with some type of light source that I can't see), doorless and with a cold stone floor. I can actually sense how cold the floor is, I can see the details of imperfections in the stone, things such as the mortar holding it together. In the corner to the left of me is a brown wooden slat bed with just a white feather pillow on it, no blankets or any source of warmth. My senses tell me that I am in a Monk's room. I feel trapped, anxious, terrified and full of despair. I can actually feel my heart beating, it is pounding so hard it feels as if it is about to burst through my chest.

Suddenly my body starts to shake even harder, I look up and there is an old man standing in the corner that is diagonal to me. He looks like he is in his 70's, yet I feel as if he is ancient, older than time. He has on a white shirt, with his sleeves rolled up a few turns, black pants and suspenders. His hands are hanging to his side. In a flash he is in front of me, his eyes are vacant and black, he makes a terrifying shrill noise opens his unimaginably wide mouth (it is as if he has no hinge in his jaw). I see rows and rows of razor sharp teeth, similar to that of a shark. I cannot scream, instead let out a moan of defeat and as I do he starts to rip me apart with his teeth.

I can actually feel my body being ravaged, my heart beating harder and harder, then weaker. I feel helpless, then angry, then sad. After what feels like an eternity, I sense that it is almost over, that I am about to die and just as I am feeling my last heart beat, I wake up.

I realize this is a nightmare, but why three mornings in a row and why am I waking up feeling drained, sad, dark. I do things during the day to try and shake it, but I can't and this nightmare is so incredibly vivid I can see it right now. Is my sub-conscience or something else trying to send me a message? If so, why am I not getting it? Or am I but I just don't want to admit I understand.