Do you dread the thought of going to bed because of nightmares you could have? Then you’re not alone. Although, this is not something many adults would like to admit, however having nightmares even when you’re older is common. From the 50% adults that may have nightmares, only 10% would boldly report it. It’s true children are prone to rattling nightmares, but so are adults.
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It’s upsetting – that gripping fear you feel when you’re about to close your eyes. You’re clueless whether or not you would have a peaceful shuteye. When you don’t, you get sleep deprived. Unfortunately, this could lead to depression, obesity, and even heart diseases. However, you may find it hard disclosing to anyone that you have constant nightmares.
Nightmares could be a plague from experiences or could be because of past trauma. Some solutions are at your fingertips as all you need to do is to dial your therapist’s number. Sometimes, talking helps you come through such situations and you find that sleeping becomes easier.
Rosalind Cartwright, director of the sleep disorder service at Rush-Presbyterian-St. Luke’s Medical Center, explains in her book Crisis Dreaming: “Nightmares are a cry for resolution for finding a way to incorporate the terrible experience into our lives. Occasional nightmares are normal,” she adds. “But not nightly, and not over and over again.”
If the bad dreams are recurrent, as advised earlier, talk to a therapist, a doctor, or a psychologist. You can also keep tabs on the kinds of dreams you have by writing it down.
However, there are other triggers to nightmares that you may easily ignore. The following are some likely causes of your nighttime bad dreams.
Avoid Doing These Things Before You Sleep
1. Medication: In some medication labels it is clearly written, “may cause illusions, or may cause nightmares.” Some medications like antidepressants, heart drugs, blood pressure drugs, among others, can be linked to your nightmare. If you’re experiencing one, discuss with your doctor. You may either change prescriptions or discuss other options.
2. Stress: When you have nightmares, it could be because you’re stressed. Stress could result from anxiety, large workload, etc, and it could lead to depression and in this case, nightmares. Therefore, consider a lifestyle change and talk to a professional on managing stress.
3. Indulging in late-night snacks: The whole idea of sleep is to rest. Eating before bed defeats the whole purpose because it increases your metabolism, which leads to nightmares. Your brain becomes more active than it should be and can contort images that may taunt your mind. So, skip the meal and wait till morning to indulge in it. However, if you must snack, ensure it is light and not right before bed.
4. Lack of Sleep: It’s ironic how not sleeping can cause nightmares, and nightmares make you stop sleeping. But take a moment to examine the process. When you stop sleeping, your nightmare is more likely to increase and the vicious cycle begins. A quick fix is for you to spend some time catching snoozes when you can. You can also sleep in a different place just in case your room triggers bad dreams.
