Dreams

A dream, in simple words, can be explained as a succession of emotions, sensations, ideas, and images that take place in an individual’s mind involuntarily during specific sleep cycles. Even though there are no concrete reasons why people dream or its meaning, science has shown a great deal of interest in dreams. Psychology harbours a specific interest in dreams and has consistently searched for reasons behind the phenomenon. In this blog, we will be talking about what dreams are, why do they occur, how long do they occur, and the history and current scenario of dream interpretation. In addition, we will discuss Sigmund Freud’s opinion on dreams and the reason.

What are dreams?

A dream is a phenomenon that takes place in an individual’s mind during different stages of sleep. There is a succession of images, emotions, sensations, and even ideas in their minds when they dream. Usually, dreams occur during the rapid eye movement (REM) stage of sleep. The study of dreams and dream interpretation is called Oneirology.

When do dreams occur?

Since the REM stage is the most active stage of the sleep cycle in human beings, most dreams occur during that stage. Brain activity during REM is high and so active that it resembles the brain activity when an individual is awake. For those of you wondering how to identify REM sleep, you need to observe the rapid eye movement that is taking place when an individual lays down to sleep. Even though dreams occur during the other stages of a sleep cycle, they are less vivid and less likely to be recalled by an individual.

What are the lengths of dreams?

The length of dreams varies, starting from a couple of seconds and lasting up to half an hour. However, most dreamers can recall what they dreamt in their sleep due to their dream taking place during the REM stage of their sleep. Studies have concluded that people have an average of three to five dreams every night while they are sleeping. But the majority of our dreams remain inaccessible and cannot be recalled by us. Dreams last longer with the progression of the night, and the majority of dreams occur when an individual is sleeping during the two hours of REM sleep.

History of dream interpretation

During the Mesopotamian age, around 5000 years ago, researchers wrote down an analysis of their dreams on clay tablets. For a long time, the Greeks and Romans believed that dreams were messages sent to people from their gods and deities and deceased people. There was also a practice of dream incubation done by people to capture and cultivate dreams into prophecies.

The current explanation of dreams 

Most studies conclude that a dream builds a connection with an individual’s unconscious mind. There are several kinds of dreams that an individual can experience in their sleep. The variety of dreams depends on the feeling left after the dream ends or during the dream—the different natures of dreams range from frightening, adventurous, sexual, sad, and even magical. In addition to that, our dreams also range from being common everyday scenarios to being impossible, bizarre situations. Apart from lucid dreaming, individuals have little or no power or control over their dreams. That being said, the dreamer is aware during lucid dreaming. At times, lucid dreaming inspires the dreamer as it gives them creativity.

There have been several opinions about dreaming and the reason behind dreams. But the most accepted opinion about the dream is the Freudian theory of dream, which states that dreams are nothing but hidden thoughts and emotions. Other than that, theories also suggest that dreams help individuals problem-solve or recall real-life incidents, or at times dreams may occur due to the sudden activation of the brain.

The REM behaviour disorder occurs in individuals when they start to act out in their dreams. Often, this disorder turns out to be fatal and can cause harm to the individual or even their bed partners.

Comprehension of dreams

During the 1900s, Sigmund Freud contributed significantly to the analysis of dreams and came out with a theory about the reason behind dreaming. According to Freud, dreams are a way to portray our hidden, dark, and often sexual desires and thoughts that otherwise remain hidden to society during the conscious state. He also believed that every dream was an outlet of sexual frustration that individuals stored hidden from society, irrespective of the dream content. He came up with a book in 1899, known as the interpretation of dreams, which had several guidelines that helped psychologists study the motives and thoughts behind dreams.

Conclusion

Despite dreams being a topic with little or no scientific information, it remains one of the most experimented niches in science and psychology. A dream is a succession of images, sensations, emotions, and even ideas that an individual undergoes during the REM stage of their sleep. It can range from a couple of seconds to a reasonable half-hour time frame. Psychologists over the years have tried to explain dreams, but only Sigmund Freud’s theory behind dreams has remained popular and widely speculated. He states that dreams are nothing but hidden thoughts and motives that stay hidden from society when an individual is conscious. He believed that every dream, irrelevant of its content, was directed towards the sexual tension an individual had. Dreams remain a topic of discussion even today, with the study of dreams becoming more popular.