Whether you’ve closed your eyes and dreamed about the guy you saw on the subway, your boss, your ex or Bradley Cooper, those sexy dreams can have an impact on your waking life. All you want to do when you wake up sometimes is shake off the weirdness of dreaming in that way about people who you may never, ever want to (or have the chance to, in Cooper’s case) have sex with. Not to mention the mental infidelity that just occurred in dreamland if you’re currently married or in a relationship with someone else. Of course your dreams didn’t actually happen in real life, but they can have an effect on your relationship, according to a recent study. Researchers published findings of dream studies in The Social Psychological and Personality Science journal, and their findings are somewhat surprising.

The previous day’s activities had an impact on what was dreamed that night, and the dreams subsequently had an impact on the subjects’ personal relationships the next day. Strong emotions experienced in dreams, such as jealousy and infidelity, caused strains in intimacy the next day. People who dreamed about fighting with their mate would be more likely to – you guessed it – fight in real life the next day. However, the good news is that couples who were on solid ground before a steamy infidelity dream was experienced may be ready for action – i.e., intimacy – after the dream. The conclusion researchers are coming to is that our dreams may relay how we feel about our real-life love (and sex) lives. Not only that, but also dreams may predict how our relationships will pan out, at least in the short term.