The nightmare is a disturbing dream, associated with negative feelings, such as anxiety or fear, for example, that cause the person to wake up in the middle of the night. Nightmares are more common in children and adolescents, but they can occur at any age..
Nightmares are occasionally normal and may be associated with stress or anxiety, trauma, poor sleep hygiene or medication, however, if they become too common to the point of causing distress, poor sleep quality, fear of sleep or even problems over time.may be considered a disorder and medical monitoring may be necessary in these cases.
- Nightmares usually occur during a sleep phase called the REM phase.
- And the exact cause of nightmares is still unknown.
- Learn more about sleep phases.
However, nightmares can be triggered by factors such as
Nightmares can also be caused by psychological disorders, such as depression, other mental health problems or post-traumatic stress, which can be caused by some of the factors mentioned above, even if they have occurred in the past.with this psychological disorder.
Nightmares are usually short-lived, but after waking up, the person may have difficulty falling asleep again.Some of the symptoms that can occur during a nightmare are sleep that seems very real and disturbing, which makes the person feel threatened and when they are awake, they feel frightened, anxious, irritated, sad or sick, depending on the type of nightmare that has occurred.
In addition, the person can sweat profusely and have a very fast heartbeat, making it difficult for them to sleep quietly again.
There are ways to reduce the frequency of nightmares, such as setting fixed schedules for falling asleep and waking up.For those who have trouble falling asleep, you can read a book or take a relaxing bath before bed.See other tips that can help you sleep better.
If stress and anxiety are the cause of the nightmare, it’s ideal to find a doctor to help the person solve the problem or practice relaxation exercises.See 8 ways to calm the mind.
For children, you can ask them to draw about the nightmare or talk about the characters in this nightmare and try to explain to them that none of this is real or even that they build a happy ending for this story.
In addition, your child may feel safer if he or she sleeps with something he or she likes likes likes like a teddy bear or a handkerchief he or she likes, with the door open to his room and that of his parents. You can also put a light bulb in the room so the kids are not alarmed by the fact that the room is too dark.