Nightmares can provide benefits such as managing emotions or a cathartic effect when narrating them.
Often, we think of nightmares with outright denial; We do not like their contents and they cause us discomfort. However, both pleasant dreams and nightmares are part of our life and they also have meaning.
Although they are related to dreams that generate intense fear or threat, they are attributed a certain benefit. Even so, it is essential to know when to worry, since sometimes they are the expression of a greater discomfort. In the following space we tell you more about it.
Causes of nightmares
Let’s start by saying what nightmares are. According to him Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders in its latest edition (DSM-V), they are a type of parasomnia that involves the repeated appearance of terrifying dreams, which can wake up the affected person and whose content generates fear or intense discomfort.
In general, they appear in REM sleep, which occurs 90 to 110 minutes after falling asleep, or in the second half of the night, which is the most frequent. When inquiring into the reasons for nightmares, there are multiple reasons.
There are positions that are focused from neuroscience and psychophysiology, while there are other approaches that are oriented around an unconscious that seeks to give us a message or resolve a desire. The interpretations do not have to be exclusive.
- The presence of chronic stress is also at the base of nightmares, Therefore, it is important to address both issues hand in hand, since they can imply a significant deterioration in daily functioning.
- Worry about nightmares has been very recurrent since the Covid-19 pandemic. In this case, the high load of stress and uncertainty, along with concern for one’s own health and that of loved ones, became the trigger.
- On the other hand, nightmares can often occur after a heavy dinner, with difficult-to-digest foods that prevent a good rest.
- They can also occur due to being under the influence of alcohol or other types of substances.
- There are ages in which it is detected that there are greater nightmares or night terrors. In this case, they are very common in childhood and adolescence, and would be part of a brain development process.
benefits of having nightmares
It is difficult to think that nightmares provide benefits, since they are associated with bad sleep and negative emotions. However, a study conducted by researchers at the University of Geneva, the University Hospitals of Geneva and the University of Wisconsin in the United States, suggests some positive effects.
According to the publication, neuroscientific theories propose that the emotions experienced in dreams they contribute to the resolution of emotional distress and the preparation for future affective reactions.
In other words, it is possible that they help to act more confidently in potentially dangerous situations in real life. As observed, the nightmares caused more activity in the medial prefrontal cortex, that is, the brain area that regulates the fear response. Let’s take a closer look at the possible benefits.
stress relief
One of the main benefits of nightmares is stress reduction. This achieves it by allow adopting other roles and actions that in reality are not allowed or are inhibited for some reason.
That is, they propose a space to take alternative ‘exits’. For example, that nightmare in which a person argues with his boss and yells at her very loudly. In real life, this is probably not recommended, but after the dream it is liberating.
coping emotions
In some cases, the sensations experienced in nightmares allow us to face fears, anguish and anxieties. In fact, sometimes they seem so real that you feel the physical exhaustion of it. Even so, when reviewing the events in the vigil, it is possible to adopt a different perception of what happened and reflect on it.
In nightmares, the events are magnified, but allow us to think in a ‘what if’. Thus, we come face to face with feared situations and rehearse possible responses.
Finding solutions
In many cases, the interpretation of nightmares is the starting point for solving issues that arise in real life. They also enable new ideas to face situations that tend to be difficult.
Telling nightmares usually has a cathartic effect. It is liberating and provides relief.
There is also something good in nightmares
Nightmares would be an unreal scenario in which we can rehearse different roles and deal with certain concerns. One of its benefits is that, by anticipating a feared scenario, we make it familiar.
For this very reason, we can not only prepare ourselves, but also predispose ourselves in another way, both attitudinal and in relation to the body.
Even so, these episodes should be taken more seriously, and as a possible reason for consultation, when they recur or make it difficult to rest. For example, if they interrupt sleep and then it is not possible to fall asleep again. Also if it is necessary to follow certain behaviors after having them, such as leaving the lights on.
In these cases, it is recommended to improve sleep hygiene through habits such as going to bed early, limiting the consumption of sugar and caffeine in the hours before rest, avoiding screens, among others.
Many times, nightmares are a symptom of clinical conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression and anxiety. In this sense, it is advisable to consult with a professional to recover well-being.
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