There are many reasons why nightmares and bad dreams occur during sleep, and the specific causes are still being researched. However, there are many known factors that can be addressed to ensure the best chance of restful and uninterrupted sleep. Here's our guide to eradicating nightmares...
While alcohol can make you drowsy or help you fall asleep faster, it has both stimulating and calming effects. Alcohol consumption has been consistently associated with poor quality and quantity of sleep, disrupting natural sleep cycles. This disruption can then translate into nightmares as the body tries to regulate itself against the pauses and wakes you up for a reset. Eliminating alcohol before bedtime leads to a good night's sleep.
For obvious reasons, caffeine is another major cause of disrupted sleep patterns. Essentially, it cracks down on the nervous system, and takes up to ten hours to completely exit the body. Try to avoid caffeine after 2pm to help you fall asleep much more easily and sleep more deeply to minimize the chance of bad dreams.
If a hot drink is a necessity in your evening routine, try chamomile and spiced apple tea to help relax the mind and body thanks to the antioxidant in chamomile called apigenin. Apigenin binds to specific receptors in your brain that are known to reduce anxiety and help initiate sleep.
Complex foods, if eaten right before bedtime, will keep your body busy digesting them, keeping you in rapid eye movement (REM) sleep mode — where you experience more vivid dreams — for longer and thus reduce the risk of bad dreams magnified.
For the same reason, eating a large meal before bed also causes bad dreams. Try to eat earlier in the evening and only eat light snacks in the hours before bedtime.
For a late night snack, fruits like cherries and bananas are good options because they contain naturally occurring chemicals, melatonin and magnesium, which promote sleep and muscle relaxation.
With many of us leading stressful lives, we should strive to fill our free time with calming activities that regain our spirit; especially those who struggle with disturbed sleep and nightmares.
In the hours before going to bed, we should try to incorporate activities that promote relaxation and shut down to give our nervous system a chance to rebalance and restart after periods of high stress. Scary movies, crime thriller TV shows, and binge-watching can be appealing, but if they're a regular part of your relaxation routine, they can over-energize your brain. This excessive activation of the mind, combined with the content of what you have seen, can contribute to nightmares and disturbed sleep.
Instead, opt for calming activities such as yoga, breathwork, reading, taking a bath, or simply catching up with your kids/partner/roommates about their day. This allows the brain to switch to the nighttime mode of healing and realignment needed to rest the mind and body in preparation for the next day.
Many people keep a dream journal for various reasons. Adjusting this for nightmares may sound counterintuitive, but it can really help in the long run.
If you have a bad dream, record it in as much detail as possible in the journal. Read it through the next day and unravel it slowly, to see if you can find recurring themes or especially revealing "events". You may notice that your brain has taken a very small detail from your day and made a whole story around it based on your fears. This will help break through the nightmare and figure out what may have happened that caused it so you can address those feelings of fear or worry.
Even though you may fall asleep when you're snug, our body's internal temperature should drop by a degree or two before bedtime. The ideal room temperature for sleeping is around 18 degrees Celsius.
Resist the urge to turn up the heat to the max or add several layers of hoodies or blankets. Make sure sheets and bedding are made from natural, breathable materials such as cotton to allow your body to regulate temperature throughout the night and to avoid waking you up from overheating.
A quiet and dark bedroom is also essential, and for some, removing clocks or annoying light sources (devices and chargers) from the bedroom helps reduce bedtime anxiety and can help get an uninterrupted night's sleep. will help prevent unwanted bad dreams.
We spend up to a third of our lives sleeping, so it is vital that we invest time and effort in having the best sleep aids on hand to ensure that when we can enjoy a good night's sleep we are not hindered by aches and pains .
A mattress and pillow that keeps your head, neck and spine aligned is imperative. An unsupportive mattress or pillow can cause pain and discomfort, which can lead to disturbed sleep and make you more prone to bad dreams. Spend time "test sleep" on different mattresses before purchasing to make sure you find the perfect feel and fit.
If you have frequent nightmares that constantly affect your sleep or your daily life, it is advisable to consult your doctor to investigate possible causes or treatments.
