When my daughter has nightmares, it can be scary for me to watch her having a bad dream. Luckily, they only happen every now and then to her. For other people, nightmares are a more constant occurrence. Here's an article from the Harvard Medical School publication called Improving Sleep:A guide to a good night's rest that discusses recurrent nightmares and other problems that can disturb sleep:
Nightmares, which usually occur early in the morning, are bad dreams that become so threatening that a person wakes in a state of fear and agitation. Nightmares occur mainly during REM sleep, when the body barely moves.
Nightmares can be a side effect of certain medications, such as antidepressants, narcotics, and barbiturates. Nightmares can also occur when a person stops taking drugs that cause a temporary increase in REM sleep, such as benzodiazepines. Alcoholics who stop drinking often experience dream disturbances and nightmares.
If you experience frequent nightmares, counseling may help. One form of behavioral therapy is desensitization, in which the sufferer recalls the details of the nightmare and uses relaxation techniques to overcome fear. The therapist may guide you through typical dream sequences — for example, helping you imagine confronting or driving off a pursuer. A psychoanalytically oriented therapist, on the other hand, may focus on identifying and resolving past and present emotional issues that play themselves out in nightmares. Bad and good dreams can be useful tools for approaching many psychological issues.
Sleep terrors. A sleep terror can be quite dramatic to witness. The sleeper may let out a bloodcurdling scream, sit bolt upright, and attempt to fight or flee. During an episode, which may last as long as 15 minutes, a person may seem confused and agitated. After the spell is over, he or she is likely to go right back to sleep and later may not remember what happened.
Unlike nightmares, sleep terrors occur during non-REM sleep, usually in the first hour or so after going to bed. They appear to run in families and occur most often in children. Adults with sleep terrors tend to be more agitated, anxious, and aggressive than children who have this problem. When the episodes involve violent or injurious behavior, medical treatment may be recommended. Some doctors prescribe medications such as benzodiazepines that suppress deep sleep. Hypnosis or a relaxation technique known as guided imagery may also be helpful.
Sleep-related panic attacks. People with this condition awaken suddenly because of episodes of intense panic characterized by a racing heartbeat, sweating, trembling, breathlessness, or the feeling that they may be dying. Anti-anxiety drugs are often useful for both daytime and nighttime attacks.
What has your experience been with nightmares, sleep terrors, or nighttime panic attacks?
Julie K. Silver, M.D., is an assistant professor in the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at Harvard Medical School. She is also the Chief Editor of Books for Harvard Health Publications.
Sleep
Need better sleep? Learn how to get it with Improving Sleep: A guide to a good night's rest. This special report from Harvard Medical School describes the factors that can disturb sleep, the latest in sleep research, and, most importantly, what you can do to get a good night's sleep. It also includes in-depth information on sleep disorders, including restless legs syndrome, narcolepsy, and sleep apnea.
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Comments: 6
* When my son was 4 months old, he had abdominal surgery to repair a diaphragmatic hernia. Unfortunately, he was already rolling over and loved to sleep on his belly. Every time he rolled over on to his belly, he'd scream in agony because he put his weight on the abdominal scar. He also had gotten used to waking every 60 minutes in response to the nurses coming in and checking on him in the PICU. It took about 2 weeks for all that to stop. We were in *agony* those 2 weeks.
* When I came home with our newborn daughter, my son had about a week's worth of waking up with terrified screaming. He refused all soothing efforts from dad and would literally try and beat him until I came in and consoled him. The problem was my daughter was nursing every 2 hours or so, so half the time poor dad had to go in there until our daughter was done nursing. During her growth spurts, I would nurse her, go in and soothe our son for the 45 minutes to hour it took to calm him down and go back to sleep, which gave me just enough time to put him to bed and go BACK to my daughter to nurse her again! I was EXHAUSTED.