Can nightmaresbe good for us? A team of researchers from the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Geneva has examined the question. The scientists wanted to find out how anxiety experiences affect us. According to the new study, fearful situations help us to deal with negative thoughts and feelings in the awake state. Bad dreams can “train” our brain, so that we can better process everyday problems.
Thanks to nightmares, we learn to deal with negative thoughts and feelings in the wake state
The scientists observed 18 subjects while sleeping and carried out a sleep-Eeg in a sleep laboratory. With electroencephalography, their brain activity was measured during the experiment. The researchers woke the participants after each dream phase and asked them about their dreams. They analyzed the data and were able to identify the brain areas that are active in nightmares. The scientists found that the insula and the cingular cortex regulate the fear experiences in the dream. The same areas in the brain regulate our feelings of fear even when we wake up. For example, the cingular cortex is responsible for controlling our reactions to dangers.
To check the results, the team carried out a second experiment. 89 subjects were asked to fill out a questionnaire every morning. There you should describe your dreams or nightmares. After a week, all participants were examined with magnetic resonance imaging. During the examination, they looked at different pictures, some of them were neutral, others were terrifying.
After evaluating the results of the study and the experiment, the researchers were able to find a clear connection between nightmares and fear in everyday situations. People who had bad dreams in the test week were less alarmed by the pictures than people who had no or good dreams. The researchers assume that we will prepare for everyday situations in a dream. For example, the prefontal cortex ensures that we can react despite fear.
Learning to deal with negative thoughts and feelings: When are nightmares dangerous?
So if you have a nightmare every now and then, you have no reason to worry. Even if the bad dream is very realistic. However, it is worrying if the nightmare triggers too strong feelings of fear. The scientists assume that he will then lose his function as a regulator and that it is something else. Strong feelings of fear can be a sign of certain diseases. All the more dreams can reflect concrete symptoms. They can also be triggered by pain that occurs during sleep. People with anxiety often report on nightmares, but the scientists assume that certain feelings are processed in sleep.
The researchers from the University of Geneva would soon find out which function positive dreams fulfill.
