Is 'reality' as we know it a dream?

Ill start this by quoting Zhuangzi;
"Once Zhuangzi dreamt he was a butterfly, a butterfly flitting and fluttering around, happy with himself and doing as he pleased. He didn't know he was Zhuangzi. Suddenly he woke up and there he was, solid and unmistakable Zhuangzi. But he didn't know if he was Zhuangzi who had dreamt he was a butterfly, or a butterfly dreaming he was Zhuangzi."

My question is, if this life as we know it is perception of our own reality and our reality is simply our central nervous system sending electrical signals throughout our body, how do we that any of this is real? Like Zhuangzi, I could be living my life as a dream, not really existing, just being in-between an alternate reality. Just because I can experience physical pain does not necessarily make me 'real'.

I am dumbfounded. I know there is no right or wrong answer here but please share your thoughts as this will torment my mind until I can make any kind of sense of it, which I don't think is entirely possible...