The Surprising Cause Of Your Nightmares — And How To Make Them Stop

What you ate for dinner could be a sneaky culprit of those bad dreams. (Photo: Getty Images)

It’s no secret that nightmares can throw a wrench into an otherwise good night’s sleep. But if dreams are the brain’s way of manifesting a reality in a sleep world, do bad dreams mean bad health?

Fortunately, “nightmares are not usually a sign of physical problems,” clinical psychologist and sleep expert Michael Breus, PhD, tells Yahoo Health. “They can sometimes be signs of mental health issues — but not always.” Bad dreams can result from something as simple as watching a scary movie before bed. But nightmares can also be a symptom of a serious condition like post-traumatic stress disorder.

Stress Dreams vs. Nightmares

For a better understanding of nightmares, you first have to know this: “There’s a difference between a stress dream and a true nightmare,” notes Breus. Stress dreams are exactly what they sound like: Stressful dreams that tend to reflect real-life stressors. And while most of the data on dream symbols (a cactus means you’re feeling prickly; an earthquake means you’re life is in shambles) is weak, there are some that could have meaning, Breus says.

One big stress dream: Your teeth fall out. “There is some research that suggests that there is a lot of stress related to that kind of a dream,” notes Breus. Another: trying to run, but only being able to move in slow motion — or not being able to move at all. This, he says, is representative of your body during the sleep cycle when most dreams occur, called REM sleep. “REM sleep doesn’t allow for great movement — so that you don’t act out your dreams. Your brain reads that in a dream as difficulty walking or moving.”

Related: This Sleep Tweak Could Help You Worry Less

Nightmares, though, tend to be more frightening — and while they can be relatable, they usually have an element of fantasy (something that flat out doesn’t make much sense in the real world). They also tend to be far more common in children than adults as kids scare more easily, notes Breus.

“We also know that a tremendous amount of our military suffer from nightmares,” says Breus, who notes that life-threatening situations, abuse, anxiety disorders, depression, and PTSD can all lead to nightmares. Some experts believe that intense, recurring scary dreams are the brain’s way of dealing with stress or struggling with trauma. Research suggests that up to 90 percent of people with PTSD experience nightmares that resemble their traumatic experience in some way.

Other Scary Dream Triggers

But even people without mental conditions like PTSD can report nightmares — often for no reason at all. But sometimes, an unsuspecting culprit can be to blame:

• Spicy meals. If you’re suffering from heartburn or having a hard time digesting your food, that struggle may slip into your dreams. “This has more to do with indigestion than anything else,” says Breus.
  

• Lack of sleep. Oftentimes, when people are sleep-deprived, they see more nightmares, says Michelle Drerup, PhD, sleep medicine specialist at the Cleveland Clinic Sleep Disorders Center. “Your body goes into REM sleep more quickly so you’re spending more time in [the] stage of sleep where the majority of dreams and nightmares occur,” she tells Yahoo Health. Plus, sleep deprivation can up your stress levels — which is another bad dream trigger.
  

• Sleep apnea. “In my practice, people with sleep apnea have reported dreams of being underwater and not being able to breathe,” says Breus. This could be your brain’s way of manifesting the sleep disorder — in which you stop breathing in your sleep, he explains.

Related: How To Train Yourself To Control Your Dreams

Send Nightmares Packing

If nightmares are recurring, interfere with your day-to-day lifestyle, or if you are suffering from PTSD, you should see your doc. There are some techniques that can alleviate the fear and fast-track you back to a peaceful slumber:

• Imagery reversal therapy. Pioneered by Barry Krakow, MD, of the University of New Mexico’s School of Medicine, this technique requires journaling your nightmares. Upon review, you think of a different ending and then re-write the journal entry with the new ending. Read the updated journal entry before bed. When this practice is successful, which is about 70 percent of the time, the dream actually changes to what you wrote — giving you a happier ending.
  

• Prazosin. For people with PTSD or serious trauma-related nightmares, tricyclic antidepressants and selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRIs) like Prozac or Zoloft have historically been prescribed. These medications will actually almost eliminate most REM sleep, says Breus. Because of that, they lessen the amount of nightmares, too.
  

• Cognitive behavioral therapy. Therapy sessions that force you to reconsider the cognition surrounding a nightmare — thoughts such as, “I’m always going to have nightmares” or “my nightmares are always going to disrupt my life” — can help reframe your mindset, and thus, the nightmares themselves.
  

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