By Leslie Alan Horvitz
Second of three parts
Certain elements are characteristic of most dreams. They are usually perceived from a first-person view. In other words, the action is seen by or involves the dreamer. With few exceptions (like lucid dreaming), dreams are involuntary. They are also surrealistic in that they don’t seem to be governed by the laws of logic or make any narrative sense. Many dreams evoke powerful emotions regardless of their apparent incoherence. Affection and joy are commonly associated with known figures and are used to identify them even when in the waking state; the same people didn’t evoke either emotional state.
Dreams typically feature individuals who are known to the dreamer. In a study of 320 adult dream reports, 48 percent of the figures who appeared in a dream were known by name to the dreamer; 35 percent involved people whose role, if not necessarily their name, were identifiable—a police officer, a teacher, a waiter—but they were distinguished by the fact that they had some role in waking life that the dreamer had experienced. In last place, 16 percent reported appearances by people they didn’t recognize. Facial recognition (45 percent) was the tipoff for most dreamers, followed closely by an intuitive sense (44 percent) or “just knowing.”
Dreams usually connect the dream state and waking life, however tenuously; this is known as the “continuity hypothesis.” (There is also a “discontinuity hypothesis,” which holds that the dream and waking states are fundamentally distinct and unrelated.) Nonetheless, evidence suggests a connection, possibly a strong one. Studies of the dreams of psychiatric patients and patients with sleep disorders, for example, have found that their daytime symptoms and problems are reflected in their dreams.
On the other hand, habits, interests, or preoccupations that dominate a person’s waking life can also play an essential part in their dream life. In a study of 35 professional and 30 non-musicians, the musicians experienced twice as many dreams featuring music as non-musicians. The frequency of music-associated dreams corresponded to when the musicians began formal instruction, not the degree to which they played or listened to music in daily life. The music that they reported hearing, though, was not necessarily music they were familiar with in their waking life, suggesting that original music can be created in dreams.
Whatever else dreams mean (or don’t), their interpretation is big business. A category known as dream books is intended for readers who want to determine the meaning of their dreams. In the Apple app store, users can download an app and “step into a realm of self-exploration and personal growth with DreamsBook, your comprehensive guide to dream interpretation and analysis.” The app purports to offer “a deeper understanding of your psyche, assist you in identifying your life patterns, aid in self-discovery, and even help improve your sleep quality.”
Or you can walk into a bookstore and pick up a copy of Dream Moods: A to Z Dream Dictionary or The Complete Dream Book: Discover What Your Dreams Reveal About You and Your Life and find out how to apply the insights from dreams to waking life. There is no evidence, though, that any dream book or app can guide the meaning of people’s dreams, much less any clarification that the lessons they teach can have practical use. The lack of scientific validity, however, hasn’t stopped writers from continuing to churn out books designed for the insatiably curious who remain convinced that their dreams can be puzzled out and provide them with valuable insights.
Do We Dream in Color?
Whether we dream in color often depends on when we were born. Researchers discovered in a 2011 study that about 80 percent of participants younger than 30 dreamed in color, but only 20 percent at 60 or older did so. The same study found that the number of people in their 20s, 30s, and 40s dreaming in color increased from 1993 to 2009, suggesting that color television might have been a factor that may explain why another study of dream reports (using questionnaires and dream diaries) found older adults had more black and white dreams than the younger participants.
Older people, however, reported that their dreams, whether in black and white or in color, were equally vivid, whereas those who were younger said that their black and white dreams were of poorer quality.
Gender Differences
A study of dreams experienced by 108 males and 110 females found that the participants’ dream content did not differ regarding aggression, friendliness, or sexuality. However, women’s dreams featured more children, families, and indoor environments than men’s.
Dreams in Pregnancy
Studies comparing the dreams of pregnant and nonpregnant women showed that women who were not pregnant had fewer dreams about infants and children. Perhaps more surprisingly, until the late third trimester, most pregnant women didn’t have many dreams about infants and children, either. In the third trimester, though, the pregnant woman was more likely to dream about pregnancy, fetuses, and childbirth. They also reported having more morbid content in their dreams than women who were not pregnant.
Nightmares
Nightmares are disturbing dreams that appear to be symptomatic of anxiety and stress. Dreams of being chased, falling off a cliff, or showing up in public naked, all of which are common, may be due to stress. Fear, emotional problems, and illness may also factor into the occurrence of nightmares. Trauma, as well, may play an essential part in triggering nightmares. One manifestation of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is called “re-experiencing” or, more simply, “flashbacks.” These involuntary recollections often manifest in the form of nightmares that can cause significant emotional distress. Even when the nightmares may not involve flashbacks, they may have a strong symbolic or indirect connection to the traumatic event.
For most people, nightmares are infrequent, but some suffer from a form of sleep disorder called nightmare disorder. “With nightmare disorder, you have these distressing nightmares that are repetitive,” says Drerup of the Cleveland Clinic. “They occur frequently. They wake you from sleep. You can’t get back to sleep [afterward]. You have a panicked feeling upon awakening and take a while to reorient.” Jandial, the neurosurgeon and author, adds: “Reports of nightmares and erotic dreams are nearly universal.”
All the same, nightmares are not very common. Half of adults report experiencing nightmares from time to time, but 10 percent have recurring episodes. Children more than adults have nightmares, although some child psychiatrists believe that’s because they have a difficult time distinguishing between reality and fantasy.
Nightmares are not only frightening to experience, but they leave people feeling debilitated and tired the next day. As a treatment, Drerup recommends imagery rehearsal therapy. “This treatment has some really significant research backing behind it,” she says. “You work with your therapist to rewrite the nightmare to contain less disturbing content and then practice the new dream imagery during the daytime.” She describes it as guided imagery, which exposes the patient to new content to lessen the disturbing impact of the nightmare. “The image you’re practicing can replace or decrease the frequency of that disruptive nightmare or completely eliminate it altogether.”
Another treatment recommended for people who report frequent nightmares is to try to focus on positive elements of their day immediately before bed or to avoid rumination and dwelling on disasters. For nightmares originating with PTSD, visualization treatments in which patients replay traumatic memories in “safe” ways have shown potential to bring relief.
People who have sleep disorders, including those with insomnia and narcolepsy, may recall their dreams better than those who do not. The negative nature of the dreams and underlying stress may explain their improved recall.
Lucid Dreams
Lucid dreaming refers to dreams in which the dreamer controls the dream’s content. It also occurs when the dreamers suddenly realize they are dreaming and gain control over the dream. If it does take place, lucid dreaming usually occurs in late-stage REM sleep. Most people, though, do not report having lucid dreams. In fMRI studies, lucid dreaming involves the activation of the prefrontal cortex and a cortical network that includes the frontal, parietal, and temporal zones. Its popularity is due to the belief that lucid dreaming can boost creativity and confidence and reduce stress.
Numerous groups and communities prioritize lucid dreaming, although evidence to support individual initiative in lucid dreaming is scant. The capacity for lucid dreaming differs from one individual to another. Lucid dreamers report willing themselves to fly, fight, or act out sexual fantasies. Advocates of the practice hold that you can train yourself to have lucid dreams by starting with regular recordings of dream experiences to gain a greater awareness of the conscious roles the dreams may already play in common scenarios, a kind of homework for taking control over dreams. Another strategy involves waking up two hours earlier than usual, staying awake briefly, and returning to sleep. The idea is to increase awareness of what occurs in late-stage REM sleep, aiming to direct the dreams in this stage.
Dreams and Memories
We don’t go to sleep to forget. On the contrary, one study showed that sleep does not help people forget memories they’d prefer to bury. Instead, it seems that sleep might dredge up memories that we’ve tried to suppress, an idea that inspired Freud’s concept of “repression.” Freud described a category of dreams known as “biographical dreams,” which he theorized were based on the troubling historical experiences of an infant who, unlike an adult, couldn’t repress them. Even today, researchers hypothesize that these traumatic memories can reemerge in dreams and that they can help an individual reconstruct and come to terms with past trauma.
The connection between memories and dreams can be classified as either dreams in which memories of the last day are incorporated (the day-residue effect, as it’s known) or dreams that incorporate memories from several days before (the dream-lag effect). According to a study conducted by Canadian researchers in 2004, memories generally take a week to resurface in dreams.
They concluded that the dream-lag effect was more typical than the day-residue effect. The dream-lag effect has been reported in dreams that occur at the REM stage but not in other stages of sleep. Overall, though, only 1 to 2 percent of people report either effect in their dreams, compared to the 65 percent of people who report that their dreams reflect some aspect of their waking experiences.
Two types of memory typically occur in dreams. The first are autobiographical memories—short-term or those that go back many years. In autobiographical dreams, the recreated memories are usually fragmented and selective. The dreams may be part of a consolidation process, transforming them into long-term memories.
The second type consists of episodic memories, in which dreams are inspired or triggered by specific events like the 9/11 attacks or the assassination of JFK. A small study (with 32 participants) found that 80 percent of reports contained a low to moderate level of autobiographical memory incorporation. In contrast, only one person reported a dream that could be considered episodic (0.5 percent).
Forgetting and Remembering Dreams
Even though most people over 10 dream between 4 and 6 times each night, they rarely remember their dreams. Within five minutes after a dream, most people have forgotten 50 percent of their dreams. In another five minutes, they’ve forgotten all of them. We know how easy it is to forget our dreams, but why is it so hard to keep hold of them, and is there anything we can do to remember them?
The answer to the first question is unknown, but researchers have identified certain factors that may help people recall their dreams, both how much of the dream they remember and how vivid it is. Evidence suggests that recalling dreams becomes more difficult starting in early adulthood but not in older age. Dreaming also becomes less intense as the person ages. Men’s dreams change faster than those of women.
There are tricks to recalling dreams. For instance, the Surrealist artist Salvador Dalí would fall asleep in a chair holding a large key above a plate on the floor. When he nodded off, the key would fall from his hand, hit the plate, and make enough noise to rouse him. At that point, he would sketch what he’d remembered of the dream he’d just had. It is no coincidence that so many of his paintings were inspired by dreams. Jandial, while not relying on the drop of a key, says that most of his ideas come when he wakes slowly and then writes down what he remembers of his dreams. Most of the time, he admits that what he documents is not very promising. “But when there are good ideas, it’s from that time. It’s not from two o’clock with my espresso.”
