Life would be much better if only children had nightmares. Despite their social status, life experience and impressionability, terrible dreams can overcome everyone without exception. And to cope with them an adult is sometimes no easier than a child.
When asked why people have nightmares, psychologists are categorical - this is how a person’s consciousness struggles with a whole range of problems. Among them:
- anxiety state;
- regular stress;
- accumulated fatigue;
- ongoing experiences.
There are also deeper provocative factors, which include stress experienced in childhood, acts of violence and much more. In such cases, qualified treatment by specialists is recommended.
There is also an opinion that nightmares are a way to clear the mind of negative emotions. So the human mind in a state of sleep visualizes a situation that does not give rest in real life, using metaphors on the most frightening topics. From this point of view, nightmares have a kind of therapeutic benefit, signaling psychological problems.
Along with psychological, there are completely domestic causes of nightmares. These include:
- unpleasant or just a pungent smell in the room;
- included screens of electrical appliances;
- extraneous sounds: leaking taps, fan, noise in the street.
In these cases, it is enough to eliminate the provoking factors so that nightmares no longer dream.
What to do if a nightmare is dreamed by another person
The most tormenting nightmares dream of in the phase of deep sleep, which occurs a few hours after falling asleep. It is difficult to wake up independently during this period, and the sleeping person can actively gesticulate, twitch with his feet and make various sounds. Contrary to instinctive desire to help, scientists recommend not waking a person in this state. This is due to the fact that the sleeping person may not immediately recognize the person next to him, and perceive him aggressively, following the dream scenario.
In such a situation, it is best to call the sleeping one by name in a calm but loud voice so that awakening comes as naturally as possible. To prevent the nightmare from continuing, the old "grandmother" advice is useful - turn on the other side and try to fall asleep again. Changing the sleeping position will allow you to "reset" consciousness, and the nightmare will be replaced by another, more neutral dream.
If all external stimuli have been eliminated, and nightmares continue to prevail, the following simple rules should be learned and firmly followed.
Rule 1. The right diet
It is necessary to build your diet in such a way that once and for all exclude night or late meals. Dinner three hours before bedtime will ensure the normal functioning of the digestive system, which in turn will ensure healthy sleep.
The same should apply to coffee, tea and alcohol, which are best left in the morning and early evening, respectively.
Rule 2. Information diet
If nightmares do not repeat the same plot, but present the new "horror films" to the sleeper every night, it is possible that films, computer games or books with the appropriate content provoke it.
To broaden your horizons, you should temporarily abandon action films, take a break in computer battles, and instead of reading detective stories about maniac killers, read classic literature.