In Nightmare PORTABLE

Many studies have reported gender differences in nightmare frequency. In order to study this difference systematically, data from 111 independent studies have been included in the meta-analysis reported here. Overall, estimated effect sizes regarding the gender difference in nightmare frequency differed significantly from zero in three age groups of healthy persons (adolescents, young adults, and middle-aged adults), whereas for children and older persons no substantial gender difference in nightmare frequency could be demonstrated. There are several candidate variables like dream recall frequency, depression, childhood trauma, and insomnia which might explain this gender difference because these variables are related to nightmare frequency and show stable gender differences themselves. Systematic research studying the effect of these variables on the gender difference in nightmare frequency, though, is still lacking. In the present study it was found that women tend to report nightmares more often than men but this gender difference was not found in children and older persons. Starting with adolescence, the gender difference narrowed with increasing age. In addition, studies with binary coded items showed a markedly smaller effect size for the gender difference in nightmare frequency compared to the studies using multiple categories in a rating scale. How nightmares were defined did not affect the gender difference. In the analyses of all studies and also in the analysis for the children alone the data source (children vs. parents) turned out to be the most influential variable on the gender difference (reporting, age). Other results are also presented. Investigating factors explaining the gender difference in nightmare frequency might be helpful in deepening the understanding regarding nightmare etiology and possibly gender differences in other mental disorders like depression or posttraumatic stress disorder.

In Nightmare

"There's no doubt in my mind that as a team, not just individually, but as a team we can come back and take this nightmare -- whatever you want to call it -- and turn it into a plus," Jones said. "I'm thrilled that we've got the opportunity and I'm thrilled that we didn't have to look over there at the Philadelphia game and the San Francisco game and say, 'Boy, did we mess up.'"

In sleep medicine, nightmares have a more strict definition than in everyday language. This definition helps distinguish nightmares from bad dreams Trusted Source National Library of Medicine, Biotech Information The National Center for Biotechnology Information advances science and health by providing access to biomedical and genomic information. View Source : while both involve disturbing dream content, only a nightmare causes you to wake up from sleep.

While most people have nightmares from time to time, nightmare disorder occurs when a person has frequent nightmares that interfere with their sleep, mood, and/or daytime functioning. It is a sleep disorder known as a parasomnia. Parasomnias include numerous types of abnormal behaviors during sleep.

Frequent nightmares are more common in children than in adults. Nightmares in children are most prevalent between the ages of 3 and 6 and tend to occur less often as children get older. In some cases, though, nightmares persist into adolescence and adulthood.

Nightmares affect males and females, although women are generally more likely to report having nightmares Trusted Source Elsevier Elsevier is a publishing company that aims to help researchers and health care professionals advance science and improve health outcomes for the benefit of society. View Source , especially during adolescence through middle age.

Though not fully understood, a genetic predisposition may exist that makes it more likely for frequent nightmares to run in a family. This association may be driven by genetic risk factors for mental health conditions that are tied to nightmares.

Some evidence indicates that people who have nightmares may have altered sleep architecture Trusted Source National Library of Medicine, Biotech Information The National Center for Biotechnology Information advances science and health by providing access to biomedical and genomic information. View Source , meaning that they progress abnormally through sleep stages. Some studies have also found a correlation Trusted Source National Library of Medicine, Biotech Information The National Center for Biotechnology Information advances science and health by providing access to biomedical and genomic information. View Source between nightmares and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), a breathing disorder that causes fragmented sleep, although further research is needed to clarify this association.

Sleep problems can be induced by nightmares in several ways. People who have nighttime disruptions from nightmares may wake up feeling anxious, making it hard to relax their mind and get back to sleep. Fear of nightmares may cause sleep avoidance and less time allocated to sleep.

Unfortunately, these steps can make nightmares worse. Sleep avoidance can cause sleep deprivation, which can provoke a REM sleep rebound with even more intense dreams and nightmares Trusted Source American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM)National Library of Medicine, Biotech Information View Source . This often leads to further sleep avoidance, giving rise to a pattern of disturbed sleep that culminates in insomnia.

Many types of psychotherapy fall under the umbrella of cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), including a specialized form of CBT for insomnia (CBT-I) that may be used to treat nightmares. A central component of CBT is reorienting negative thoughts and feelings and modifying detrimental patterns of behavior.

Many psychotherapies for nightmares involve a combination of methods. Examples include CBT-I, Sleep Dynamic Therapy and Exposure, Relaxation, and Rescripting Therapy (ERRT) Trusted Source National Library of Medicine, Biotech Information The National Center for Biotechnology Information advances science and health by providing access to biomedical and genomic information. View Source . Mental health professionals can tailor talk therapy for nightmares to fit a patient, including, when appropriate, account for a coexisting mental health disorder.

Several types of prescription medications may be used to treat nightmare disorder. Most often, these are medications that affect the nervous system such as anti-anxiety, antidepressant, or antipsychotic drugs. Different medications may be used for people who have nightmares associated with PTSD.

Medications benefit some patients, but they can also come with side effects. For that reason, it is important to talk with a doctor who can describe the potential benefits and downsides of prescription drugs for nightmare disorder.

If you have nightmares that interfere with your sleep or daily life, the first step is to talk with your doctor. Identifying and addressing an underlying cause can help make nightmares less frequent and less bothersome.

Whether nightmares are common or occasional, you may get relief from improving sleep hygiene. Building better sleep habits is a component of many therapies for nightmare disorder and can pave the way for high-quality sleep on a regular basis.

Nightmares tend to happen during the period of sleep when REM intervals lengthen; these usually occur halfway through slumber. As we prepare to awaken, memories begin to integrate and consolidate. We dream as we emerge from REM sleep. Because we tend to dream on the sleep-wake cusp, images imagined while dreaming, including the vivid, often terrifying images produced during nightmares, are remembered.

Nightmares are often confused with night terrors, a phenomenon more likely experienced by children than adults and usually more dramatic than a nightmare. Night terrors are not technically dreams but are instead sudden fearful reactions that occur during transitions from one sleep phase to another. They typically occur two to three hours after sleep begins, when deep non-REM sleep transitions to REM sleep. Night terrors often cause children to kick, scream, and thrash about, but, because night terrors do not occur during REM sleep, most children do not remember them.

Post-traumatic nightmares often involve elements similar to the trauma itself, according to the National Center for PTSD of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. About half of the people who have nightmares after a traumatic event have nightmares that replay the trauma. Those with PTSD are much more likely to have exact replays of their trauma.

People who are deeply affected by nightmares can be treated in a variety of ways. First, the cause of the stress, if there is one, must be determined. If a stressor is identified, effective ways to manage it should be found. For medication-induced nightmares, dosages might need to be altered or different drugs administered. People with post-traumatic or chronic nightmares can be treated with psychological therapy or with medication.

Psychological therapy for nightmares is called image rehearsal therapy, or IRT. In this form of cognitive therapy, individuals, especially those who repeatedly experience a given type of nightmare, are asked to recall and write down their nightmares, then asked to rewrite the nightmare and give it a positive ending. The individual then rehearses the rewritten version before going to sleep with the aim of displacing the unwanted content during sleep. IRT has been investigated in a number of studies, says Winkelman, and found to reduce nightmare frequency and distress.

A study published in 2003 in the "American Journal of Psychiatry" reported that the drug prazosin could help relieve nightmares in people with PTSD. The drug, traditionally used to treat hypertension, reduced the level of neurochemicals in pathways that become overstimulated in PTSD.

Several days later, Alice enters into the school bathroom where she meets her friend Sheila. She finds out that Shelia is very tired and then asks her if she had a nightmare last night, however, Sheila tells her that she was going over her homework all last night. After she leaves, Alice sits down and begins to smoke but she realizes that she never smoked before. Later of that day, while sitting in class for her physics exam along with Sheila, Alice begins to dream again, this time finding Freddy in her classroom. 041b061a72