What are dreams, and how to cure them?

[Knowledge_Seeker]

From what I belive you sleep, and on of four things happen to you:

1. You sleep, have no dreams; wake up

2. You sleep, have a dream(s) and remember it clearly when you wake up

3. You sleep, have a dream(s), dont remember much when wake up

4. You sleep, have a dream(s), but dont remember anything when you wake up.

For me, i have been having dreams when i sleep everyday for at least the past year now. I find it very annoyin to be bothered by dreams and feel, tired, when I wake up.

Is there some specific things that induce dreams or make them stop?

[Vermonter]

Dreams are a way for the mind to store and file away memories of past events. Sometimes dreams are great, other times you have nightmares. I wouldn't want to try and "cure" them, I think they are an important part of the mind, according to psychology.

[redshifter]

I think you're pretty much stuck dreaming. From what I've read, everyone dreams every night (in REM sleep) though you don't necessarily remember them each night (though in your case you apparantly do). If you're feeling tired every morning, you could try 1) going to bed earlier, 2) getting a different matress, 3) seeing a Dr. (or psychiatrist), you could have something else going on.

[Dragon Star]

There is no cure, but there may be something you can temporally do about it...

Is it difficult for someone else to wake you up? Do you think you are a light sleeper?

I can take NyQuil and be out like a light without any dreams (that I can remember) because I'm a light sleeper.

[selden]

People deprived of dreaming apparently can develop serious psychological disorders. I suspect you really wouldn't want to go without dreaming for very long.

http://www.nature.com/nature/journal...2041337a0.html

You probably should discuss your problem with a physician. I fear that always feeling tired is unlikely to be caused by dreams, but rather that both are being caused by something else. There may be something more serious going on.

My personal experience has been that memorable dreams happen most often when I'm not sleeping heavily -- when various physical discomforts are preventing deep sleep, for example.

[Frog march]

may be you have Sleep apnea which is a breathing problem that some people experience when sleeping.
Alcohol can bring this on.

[Delvo]

Tiredness after sleeping is a big sign of one of a handful of medical, psychiatric, or ergonomic problems that have nothing to do with whether or not you dream. They should be looked into for diagnosis and treatment, but the treatment won't be to dream less or quit dreaming, because dreaming isn't causing the problem.

Even if you have some reason to believe that there is a real connection between the "insufficient rest" symptom and your dreaming (and remembering it), such as that the symptom started occuring at about the same time that you started remembering your dreams more often, it isn't causative in the way you're thinking. The explanation could be that, for example, the system that's supposed to paralyze you to keep you from acting out dreams isn't fully working so your muscles use more energy than they're supposed to, or you're waking up in the middle of dreaming instead of after it's over... but not "dreaming causes the problem, so not dreaming would fix it".

[TheOncomingStorm]

or there are people who go to sleep wake with asthma attacks take meds and go back to sleep-more to do with list then your problem.

[TheOncomingStorm]

I do not think dreaming is the problem, sometimes it is when you asleep, or how much sleep you get (sometimes getting to much can effect you) but as stated before talk to doctor because there could be something more serious.

[Doodler]

may be you have Sleep apnea which is a breathing problem that some people experience when sleeping.
Alcohol can bring this on.

Or any kind of sinus blockage. I've had a sinus infection I let go way too long. You do NOT rest well without good O₂ flow, regardless of reasons.

Stress also generates nightmares. You would not believe the nightmares I get around the time deadlines loom.

[Maha Vailo]

Try the simple things first. Use some stress-relieving techniques right before bed, go to bed earlier, or even a glass of warm milk. If those don't work, a visit to a sleep therapist is in order.

Dreams, even the occasional nightmare, are normal - don't try to stop them.

- Maha "hold on tight to your dreams" Vailo

[Doodler]

Avoid caffeine at all costs before going to bed. Nothing will fuel some screwed up dreams like lots of extra energy to burn.

[Knowledge_Seeker]

All of this information is very helpful and i appreciate it a lot.

i forgot to include that im just 15; if that makes any different. and i believe my word tired might have been the wrong word to use. i actually feel kind of annoying by dreams because i feel that my mind is constantly thinking and when i wake up i dont want my mind replaying random blurs of my dream but just to be almost blank.

[jrkeller]

I'm basically number three on your list. I've always been that way. I'd say that I'm lucky to remember one a month.

My ex-wife was like you. Remembered all of her dreams every night. She said she'd just kick back and enjoy the show.

I agree with dumping the caffine. Also a regular bedtime helps.

[Ronald Brak]

Sleeping at night with a regular bedtime helps. If your sleep patterns get out of whack your slight might end up being dream filled and not very restful.

Also cutting out quickly digested carbohydrates and instead eating low G.I. carbs instead can help. It will provide your body with a steady energy source while you sleep.

[DaveC426913]

All of this information is very helpful and i appreciate it a lot.

i forgot to include that im just 15; if that makes any different. and i believe my word tired might have been the wrong word to use. i actually feel kind of annoying by dreams because i feel that my mind is constantly thinking and when i wake up i dont want my mind replaying random blurs of my dream but just to be almost blank.

Dreams are essential and normal. They are not what you should be worried about.

You should be concentrating on getting a good night's sleep. Regular bedtime, avoid spicy foods, caffeine, etc., make sure you're comfortable, and in a dark, quiet place.

What changed a year ago? School? Your room? Your larfam? A change in the household? Are you getting up later?

[BigDon]

If you need to supress active dreaming, two things I know of work well. Consumption of alcohol is a well known dream suppressor and partaking of marijuanna, especially in older (over 35) men. Neither are good for you in the long run.

[Doodler]

I dunno, I've had some REALLY vivid dreams while fershnickered. Never toked, though.

[Casus_belli]

You do need to dream. I suffer from epesodic cluster headaches. During one bout everytime I tried to sleep 20 minutes later I'd wake up with a cluster headache. After a few months of this I started to halucinate simply because I couldnt sleep and therefore dream.

Alcohol suppresses dreams. Its the lack of dreams that give alcoholics the D.T's

[Ronald Brak]

Alcohol suppresses dreams. Its the lack of dreams that give alcoholics the D.T's

Well it's the withdrawal of alcohol that causes DTs so an alcoholic can drink for 30 years and only have them when she stops drinking. It's supposed to be something to do with the supression of the neuroinhibitor GABA.

But their is also alcoholic hallucinosis which is different from DTs (and less dangerous).

[Knowledge_Seeker]

What changed a year ago? School? Your room? Your larfam? A change in the household? Are you getting up later?

well i did start high school, and i did move a year ago... but i think i can still remember having dreams before i moved...

[Jeff Root]

Knowledge Seeker,

Over the years I've had periods of vivid dreaming and periods where
I'm hardly aware of them at all. They come and go for no apparent
reason. But one external factor that almost guarantees vivid dreams
is being uncomfortably cold. Being hot just makes it hard to sleep.

Somewhere around seventh or eighth grade I started having trouble
falling asleep. That was probably a factor in causing me to go to
bed later and later. By high school I was going to bed at 1 AM,
which was way too late, but still not falling asleep until 2 or 3 AM.
I couldn't wake up when my alarm went off at 6 AM, and I was
drowsy most of the day. I suspect that teenagers are wired to
be active at night, like mice, cats, and astronomers.

-- Jeff, in Minneapolis

[Frog march]

maybe there isn't enough fresh air in your bedroom.

[Gerrsun]

Goodness no, wish I could remember my dreams every night.

When I was younger I used to have some doozies.

"Dreamed I was in an attic and there was a window in the roof,
I was pushed up very close to the window and all I could see outwards was the ocean.
I opened the window and exited the window and found I was on top of a tall,thin pinnacle of rock in a massive ocean.

Great swells of water rose and fell and the water crashed against the small spire of rock, splashing all around.

I thought surely that thin strip of land could not withstand the crashing waves but it did.

While the waves crashed I felt myself begin to fly and I swooped down and up following along the swelling waters.

Never getting wet but enjoying myself immensly."

Was sad when I woke up actually after that one.

[Argos]

I sometimes I remember my dreams exactly on wake up. I don´t want to be cured.

[Tunga]

I tend to be #5 on the list.
5). I sleep, I dream, I wake up and quickly write it down, I go back to sleep, I wake up in the morning refreshed and I don't remember the fine details of what the dream was about until I read what I have written. I find great tranquility with the process.

Dreams are very good. I find answers to deep questions in my dreams.

It is my observation that as you age, individuals do not dream as much as when they were young, such as in their teenage years.

[Fazor]

It sounds like the origonal poster never remembered (or never had) dreams until recently, so i could see how it could feel unwanted. I remember my dreams about 50% of the time, but think nothing of them and usually within 10 minutes of being awake i've completely forgotten them. Altho I find that if i wake up say, an hour before i normally do, get up for a short time, then go back to sleep for say 45 minutes i have a bunch of short wierd dreams and i love that.

From what i've studied, the reason one could be suddenly having dreams when he/she didn't before could have a lot to do with your sleep pattern changing. We dream, as so many have mentioned, during REM sleep. We remember our dreams only when woken up during REM sleep. And for a complete cycle to take place (i believe but could be wrong that there's 4 stages, and REM is the shortest), it takes about 45 minutes. So maybe you're sleep duration has changed and you're waking up consistantly in your REM phase. Could be the matress causing stress and tension on your spine/body. Could be sleep apnea (sp?) or could be an evil voodoo curse.

As far as being tired when you wake up, i think the dreams themselves have little to do with this. both are much more likely the result of the different problem. as mentioned, there's medications out there that can help. tho most sleep pills can be highly addictive, and I personally am verry weary of putting any kind of pills into my body (altho i freely drink alcohol. hypocricy at it's best). good luck.

[Gillianren]

I suspect that teenagers are wired to be active at night, like mice, cats, and astronomers.

True. According to my therapist, some high schools are finally starting to recognize that and starting at 10 or even later, so the kids are actually equipped to learn something in their first couple of classes.

[Doodler]

There've been nights I wish I could sleep without dreaming, and there've been mornings where I've woken up muttering a blue streak at the alarm clock for breaking up a rather...interesting...encounter.

Most of the time, I forget my dreams, but there is actually a linked series of landscapes that, if I concentrate on before bed, I can actually conjure up pretty effectively and consistently. Even as I sit here typing this, I can reconstruct the vast part of it in my head.

Its kind of a hybrid of a bunch of places I've known in my life since childhood. Every so often, it will expand, but the places I have explored are pretty consistent over the course of time.

[Knowledge_Seeker]

I assume that since i dont have any regular sleeping time at all, it does disturb me.