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Recurring Nightmares Horror trips at night can sometimes go on until well into the day
The fall into infinite depth or a menacing persecutor who comes closer and closer: well, everyone has ever awakened from a bad nightmare. It's not always over. The nightly horror trips can also make the day hell in some cases.
When horror scenarios often take place
Everybody knows nightmares where, for example, the partner falls down the precipice, one is pursued by a murderer or can no longer move. If such horror scenarios occur frequently at night, it can make life too tormenting for those affected during the day. Appeasements like: "It was only a dream", do not necessarily take away their fear and inner restlessness. Many worry about the confused dreams and their meaning and come to no satisfactory result. In a message from the dpa news agency, experts explain why people have nightmares, how they affect life, and what they can do about it.
Bad nightmares can also haunt people in their everyday lives. Image: Dominika Baum - fotolia What is a nightmare??
As the scientific head of sleep research at the Central Institute for Mental Health in Mannheim, Prof. Michael Schredl, explains, nightmares trigger such strong, negative feelings that one wakes up from it. In addition to fear, this can also be sadness, anger or disgust. Usually those affected can remember the nightmares very well. These usually occur in the second half of the night. But even bad dreams from which one does not wake up, can bring a considerable suffering pressure with it, as Hans-Günter Weeß, chairman of the board of the German society for sleep research and sleep medicine according to dpa explained. A dream whose content one does not remember, but from which one scares in panic and often screaming, does not fall under the term nightmare. The medical name for it is Pavor Nocturnus.
What influence do the nightmares have on life??
"Everybody has nightmares. They only become a problem when there is a lot of suffering, "says Judith Koppehele-Gossel from the Institute of Psychology at the University of Bonn. For example, if dreams terrify one during the day, or if they no longer want to go to sleep for fear of another nightmare. In addition, the concentration and, above all, the mood can be severely impaired by nightmares, adds Schredl. If nightmares occur more often than once a week, sufferers would probably be diagnosed with an anxiety disorder. According to the news agency, this is recorded in the diagnostic catalog ICD-10 and is one of the sleep disorders. In Germany, about five percent of adults are affected.
Typical nightmare scenarios
According to Schredl, the five most common adult nightmare topics are: falling, being persecuted, feeling paralyzed, being late, and the death or disappearance of a loved one. As Koppehele-Gossel reports from her work, many people with nightmares assume that they always dream exactly the same thing. "But when they do have a dream diary, they quickly realize that there are only certain elements that keep appearing, but the sequence or context, for example, is different." In retrospect, nightmares often appear more intense and longer. "Nobody does that extra extra, it's quite natural when we can add memories, even dream memories, to existing memories and then not be able to differentiate them." Immediately after awakening, the assessment was the most realistic.
Why do people have nightmares??
So far, the exact causes of nightmares have not been clarified. "Especially people with a post-traumatic stress disorder are particularly often affected," says Koppehele-Gossel. In the nightmares of these persons usually a theme returns again and again. It is also known that stress can be associated with nightmares. Furthermore, the predisposition and drugs such as antihypertensives or antidepressants may encourage nightmares, as Weeß complements. Alcohol as well. "Who has problems with nightmares, should give up the evening glass."
What you can do against the horror trips
Although children sometimes dream of helping parents, according to experts, it would be better to let the little ones find a solution by discussing the bad dream with them the next day. Even adults should not accept it: nightmares can be defeated. There are targeted techniques with which one can get a grip on nightmares on one's own or with professional help. There are also successful therapies for chronic nightmares. The family doctor can often recommend an experienced psychotherapist or a sleep specialist. Drugs are only prescribed in the worst case.
Confront yourself with dreamed ones
For those who startle at night and can not remember the dream, Schredl recommends trying it before going to sleep with targeted relaxation techniques for stress relief such as autogenic training or progressive muscle relaxation. Furthermore, sufferers can try with special techniques. For example, with confrontation: You write down the nightmare and read it afterwards several times in succession. "The fact that you experience the dream again and again, you get used to it - as in a desensitization," explains Weeß. "In addition, the nightmare loses its fright in the everyday context."
Becoming aware in the dream that you are dreaming
In the "Imagery Rehearsal Therapy" sufferers write down their nightmare and deal with it. As Schredl loud dpa explained, but it is not done, because affected seek a new, positive end to their dream. This does not mean running away or waking up, but, for example, to imagine helpers. "It's about changing the rationale." The new principle then says, "I'm scared and wondering what I can do." According to the information, this should be done once a day for two weeks. If it works, then one reacts as if trained in sleep, and the nightmare comes to a positive end. Koppehele-Gossel explains another technique: Lucid's Dreaming. In doing so, one becomes aware through training in a dream that one is just dreaming. The nightmare is questioned. Affected persons should again keep a dream diary and become aware of certain patterns or recurring elements. As an example, she mentions the dog who no longer lives: "The next time I see my dead dog in the dream, I know that I'm dreaming." (Ad)