Sweet Dreams
Dreams are the sequence of images, ideas, emotions, and sensations that usually occur involuntarily in the mind during certain stages of sleep. We all have entered into this seemingly alternate universe many times in our lives, and many people take the messages in their dreams very seriously. Whether our dreams really do have concrete signs that should be paid attention to or not is still unknown. The content and reason behind dreams is not fully understood, but they have been a topic of scientific interest, as well as philosophical and religious curiosity, throughout history. The scientific study of dreams is called oneirology.
Through the study of oneirology, it has been determined that dreams mainly occur in the rapid-eye movement (REM) stage of sleep, which is when brain activity is high and resembles that of being awake. REM sleep is characterized by continuous movements of the eyes during sleep. At times, dreams may occur during other stages of sleep, but these dreams tend to be much less vivid or memorable. Although we don’t know whether the content of your dreams in significant, scientist have been able to characterize different the types of dreams you can experience and what onsets them.
Daydream: Daydreaming is defined as a level of consciousness between being bright-eyed and being sound asleep. Research shows that people have the tendency to daydream an average of 70-120 minutes a day. This occurs when you are awake and functioning during the day, but you “space-out” and let your imagination take you away. As your mind begins to wander and your level of awareness diminishes, you get lost in your imagined scenario and fantasy.
False Awakening Dreams: Have you ever thought you have woken up, peeled yourself out of bed, and gone on with your morning retinue, only to wake up “again” and realize that what just happened was just a dream? This sensation is classified by scientists as false awakening.
Lucid Dreams: Lucid dreams occur when you become aware you are dreaming while you are still asleep. Most of the time, the dreamer awakes instantly after realizing that they are dreaming. In some cases though, people are able to foster the skill to remain in the lucid state of dreaming. Being able to possess the ability to realize you are dreaming without waking up is a skill many people attempt to master. Lucid dreaming allows you to be an active part in your dream. Who wouldn’t want to be able to make choices in their dreams and influence the dream’s result?
Nightmares: This dream state is all too familiar for most of us. A nightmare is a distressing dream that causes you to wake up feeling anxious and frightened. Research has led doctors to believe that certain nightmares are often a triggered response to real-life trauma and situations. This type of nightmare falls under a defined category called Post-traumatic Stress Nightmare (PSN). Nightmares may also occur because you have ignored or refused to accept a particular life situation. Research supports that most people who have regular nightmares have a family history of psychiatric problems, are involved in an unstable relationship, or have had experiences using drugs. These people may have also contemplated suicide. Nightmares are an indication of a fear that needs to be acknowledged and confronted. It is a way for the subconscious to say, “Wake up and realize this!”
Recurring Dreams: Recurring dreams repeat themselves with nearly the same story or theme. Although these dreams can be positive, usually the content is more nightmarish. What causes dreams to reoccur tends to be because a conflict you face in the dream remains unresolved or overlooked. Most people have found once they found a solution to the problem, the recurring dream never returns.
Healing Dreams: A healing dream is your body’s way to send a message about your health. The Ancient Greeks referred to these dreams as “prodromic.” If you are able to recognize that you are experiencing a healing dream, it can draw your attention to your health, which can help in avoiding potential problems. Research shows that asthma and migraine sufferers have certain types of dreams before an attack. Scientific research proves our bodies are able to communicate to your mind through dreams. The dreams are able to sense that something is wrong with your body even before any physical symptoms show up. If you can understand the signs in your dreams, your dreams will serve as an early warning system.
Prophetic Dreams: Prophetic dreams, also referred to as precognitive or psychic dreams, are dreams that seemingly reveal the future. One theory accepted by many dream scientists, which explains this phenomenon, is that your dreaming mind is able to put together bits and piece of information that you may normally overlook or take lightly. In other words, your unconscious mind knows what is coming before you consciously piece together the same information.
Epic Dreams: Epic dreams (also known as Great Dreams, Cosmic Dreams or Numinous Dreams) are so compelling and vivid that it seems real. The details in these types of dreams stick with you for years. These dreams are also known for possessing many archetypal symbols. When you wake up from such an epic dream, you feel that you have discovered something profound or amazing about yourself or about the world, like an epiphany.
Progressive Dreams: Progressive dreams happen when you have a series of dreams that continue over a period of nights, so the dream continues where you left off the previous night. Such dreams are usually problem-solving dreams and can help to show you different various approaches to a problem, situation, or relationship.
Mutual Dreams: When two people experience the same dream, it is known as a mutual dream. It is possible for mutual dreams to be planned, which would mean that two people actively work toward achieving the same dream. But, mutual dreams can also be spontaneous. You find out afterwards that a friend, a significant other, faraway relative, or an acquaintance has had the same dream on the same night as you. Although not much study has gone into the phenomenon of mutual dreams, scientist believe there is a very strong bond that exist between the mutual dreamers.
For further reading please check out these sources:
http://www.dreams-dictionary.org/
