PT Were Anakin's visions of Padme's death normal dreams or inspired by the Force?

Here's what I don't get. When Anakin had those nightmare premonitions that Padme would die in childbirth, was he just having a bad dream, or was he receiving visions through the Force? Dreams are caused by brain functions, I think. So, was Anakin's mental state and fears giving him some dreams and nightmares, or, was the Force itself sending him visions of the future?

In empire strikes back, Yoda told Luke that, through the Force, you can see past, present, and future. Is that what happened to Anakin? The movies never said the source of the nightmares.

If they were Force visions, then that would create a wierd dillemia and paradox, a self fulling prophecy. Anakin turns to the darkside to save his wife after having a vision of his wife dying, but him turning to the darkside is why she died, she lost the will to live after he did terrible things in service to the Sith. How could the Force do that?

 

Nothing in the movies specifies. Feel free to speculate.

 

I think it's strongly implied these are not "normal" dreams but in some way born of Anakin's Force ability. Some have theorized they were somehow sent by Palpatine, though.

 

I suscribe to the theory that Palpatine had a hand in sending the visions to Anakin

 

Well, a director that influenced Lucas did do a movie with a self-fulfilling prophecy...

 

I don't think it was a normal dream, unless whoever wrote the story wanted to have a really random story, one random event as simple as a dream turns a man to evil. It makes far more sense if the dream is mystical or at least superpowers in nature. The Force is kind of like between magic and pseudo-scientific superheroes.