The world of dreams

Mia Botha (Edugate Academy) Whether we would like to admit it or not, whether we are able to remember them or not, we all dream. Even animals and blind people too. Dreams have been a topic of scientific, philosophical and religious interest throughout recorded history, but there are still a bunch of unanswered questions.What do teenagers dream about?An Instagram survey run by Edu-Times gathered some of the common themes people dream about, here are some of our favourites:· “News Cafe in Swakop”· “Babies and death”· “My consciousness staring at me (black figures/someone who looks like me)”· “Usually weird family members expressing their disappointment in me”· “Rejection of all kinds”· “Mostly dangerous situations for some reason...”· “It’s always random”· “People and places”· “Pink doll house? So weird.”The results of an Instagram poll showed that only 232 out of 361 people usually remember their dreams, with the most voters being teenagers or young adults. Most teenagers do not get enough sleep during the night, causing them to wake up during the rapid eye movement (REM) phase of sleep. Hence they are more likely to remember their dreams. The length of dreams can vary, they can last for a few seconds or around 20 to 30 minutes and the average person has three to five dreams per night.Dreams usually occur during REM sleep; this is when your brain activity is high - almost as if you are awake . Your dreams mainly occur in the typical two hours of REM, this is during a full eight-hour night’s sleep, of course. Most of your emotional memory processing takes place in REM sleep. This is where the importance of dreams come in.Dreams help you to store important memories and things you have learnt; they also get rid of unimportant memories and help you to sort through complicated thoughts and feelings. This is why numerous people dream about their successes and failures. Have you ever dreamt about being totally naked in front of a large group of people or maybe even doing something you would never even think about doing in real life? Nobody knows for certain why we dream. Some researchers say dreams have no purpose or meaning, while others say we need dreams for our mental, emotional and physical health.Some of the most common dream themes are about falling, being chased, dying, teeth, being naked in public and flying, with the most common one being falling. If you have ever dreamt about falling, it might suggest that something in your life is not going well. “Dreaming of falling is very common. It is a symbol of fear in real life - perhaps of failing at work or in your love life,” Russel Grant, author of The Illustrated Dream Dictionary, said. Ever heard about the popular myth that if you hit the ground in your dream when falling, you will die in real life? Well, it is definitely not true.Now you might be wondering how long dreams really are and why we often forget them the moment we wake up. Forgetfulness is generally linked to neurochemical reactions in the brain that occur during REM sleep, according to an article in the journal Behavioral and Brain Sciences. Researchers found that people forget their dreams due to changing levels of acetylcholine and norepinephrine during sleep - these are both neurotransmitters. If you are someone who feels as if dream recall comes naturally to you, it might be due to alarm clocks and irregular sleep schedules which cause you to wake up during REM sleep. Now for one of the most asked questions about dreams: “Can a blind person dream too?” The answer is yes! They can dream, however, their dreams can be somewhat different from those of sighted people. Research shows that if you lost your sight before the age of five, you will be less likely to see images in your dreams, but it all depends on when sight was lost. During a study done in 1999, researchers looked at the dreams of 15 blind adults over a period of two months - with a total of 372 dreams. They found evidence to show that the dreams of blind people are very similar to those of sighted people but there are a few interesting exceptions:· Blind people were less likely to dream about aggressive interactions.· Blind people had fewer dreams about personal success or failure.· Some blind people reported more frequent dreams about food or eating.· Some blind people dreamt more about animals - usually their service dogs.Where did the scientific study of dreams originate from?Oneirology is the scientific study of dreams and was developed by the infamous Sigmund Freud, who suggested that dreams are manifestations of one’s deepest desires and anxieties, often relating to repressed childhood memories or obsessions. Freud wrote extensively about dream theories and their interpretations in the early 1900s and developed the therapeutic technique of dream analysis used in psychoanalysis.Here are a few common questions about dreams answered by [NAME MISSING!!!], a clinical psychologist based in Otjiwarongo.Is dreaming good for you? “Yes, dreaming relieves the unconscious mind.”Can you learn from your dreams? “Yes, you can learn about repressed feelings and an emotional world hidden behind your unconscious mind.”Do we dream differently across the world? “No, you dream according to your own culture and experiences...”Are dreams necessary or important? “Dreams are very necessary and important, because it acts as a tranquiliser to anxiety and hidden fears”.

The world of dreams

Kommentaar

Republikein 2024-11-22

Meld asseblief aan om kommentaar te lewer

The world of dreams

Kommentaar

Republikein 2024-11-22

Meld asseblief aan om kommentaar te lewer

MELD AAN

Advertensie