How We Dream and Why We Dream
When investigating the interpretation of
dreams, it is important to examine just what role dreams play in our
lives. Dream research has shown that dreams play an important role,
both physically and psychologically, and a thorough understanding of how
we dream and why we dream is an important basis for anyone interested in
dream interpretation.
The Physical Side of
Dreaming
 During dream sleep, the body goes through some important
changes. When in dream sleep, the level of adrenaline
release goes up, the blood pressure rises, and the hear rate goes up as
well. It is important to note the results that scientists have found on
brain waves and dreaming.
Dream research has shown that
brain activity during dream sleep is actually higher than during normal
waking hours. Therefore, dreaming could be thought of in many ways as
a higher state of consciousness.
Dream sleep is also known
as REM sleep, or rapid eye movement sleep. As the name implies,
the eyes move rapidly beneath their closed lids during dream
sleep. Dream sleep takes place in the final state of sleep and takes
up between 15% and 20% of sleep time for the average person.
Every person will dream between
four and seven times during the average night, but the dreams most likely
to be remembered in the morning are those that take place closest to
waking.
Just because the dreamer does not
remember the dreams, however, does not mean they did not
occur. Every person dreams every night, whether they
remember those dreams or not. It typically takes between 30 and 90
minutes from falling asleep to the start of dreaming.
After the deepest stage of sleep
is reached, the dreamer will cycle in and out of REM sleep during the rest
of the night. During REM sleep, the blood pressure and heart rate
both fluctuate and increase.
It is also important to know that
the body is completely immobile during dream sleep. While we may toss
and turn during other parts of the sleep cycle, the muscles remain
completely relaxed during dream sleep. This is commonly known as
"dream paralysis" or "sleep paralysis".
The Psychological Side of
Dreaming
While science still does not fully
understand the function of dream sleep, we do know that dreaming is
essential to our physical and psychological well being. Studies have shown
that those who are deprived of dream sleep exhibit a variety of
psychological symptoms. In one study, volunteers were awakened just
before they could enter the REM sleep cycle, then allowed to fall asleep
again. This cycle was repeated throughout the night.
Even though all the volunteers
sleep the same amount of time as ususal, they exhibited an impairment in
their daily activities. The subjects exhibited disoriention, depression
and other psychological ills. In addition, the dream deprived
volunteers showed irritability and quick tempers
as well.
As the study continued thorugh
several consectutive nights, the volunteers continued to become more and
more agitated and psychologically unwell.
This study, as well as subsequent
studies have shown that dreaming is an integral part of our well
being. Further studies have confirmed the importance of dreaming, and
the psychological effects caused by depriving sleepers of the ability to
dream.
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