15 Lesser Known Dream Facts

**Placebo** · 01-10-2005 02:28 PM

While doing some research on dreaming and REM, I discovered some interesting facts. I thought I'd share

Sorry if some are widely known - they were generally new on me

1. There are various ways to detect REM - including electroencephalogram (brainwaves), electrooculogram (eye movement), electromyogram (muscle tension), heart rate (ECG/EKG), respiration, PHG (blood oximiters I think?) - and even genital arousal ( I kid you not, it uses VPA - vaginal pulse amplitude !

)

2. REM, known as 'dream sleep', is NOT synonymous with dreams - as is widely believed. People can dream in any sleep stage including delta. It has been shown that the majority is in REM however.

3. During REM, the body’s heating system is regulated more like a reptile - It assumes the temperature of the surrounding room externally

4. During REM, messages from brain are cut off at the brain stem and never reach the body. Hence what we know as Sleep Paralysis (SP)

5. We know about hypnagogic imagery - but ever heard of hypnapompic ? Its the same thing, but when waking

6. Alcohol causes the level of Serotonin in the brain to drop considerably which results in what appears to be dreamless sleep, and no REM.

7. When alcoholics try to withdraw, many experience delirium tremens (DTs) (2). These nights are characterized by shaking, sweating and hallucinations. Why? Because the body overcompensates for previous lack of serotonin, and overcorrects. Too much serotonin = not good

8. Generally one's body will compensate for lack of dream sleep one night by dreaming more the following night until the normal quota is reached. Unless you are an alcoholic who does not sleep in which case you will quite literally "loose your mind" (2). IE. You can 'catch up' on dreaming

9. The amount of R.E.M. sleep that you have in a nap has no effect on the R.E.M. sleep you have that night

10. Polygraph measurements during REM sleep appear very similar to those taken of the person in the waking state. REM sleep is sometimes refered to as paradoxical sleep, for this reason.

11. Brain oxygen demand increases above that of supply, suggesting an increased tolerance to carbon dioxide during this time

12. Depressed people demonstrate changes in REM sleep. REM occurs earlier (after 60 minutes or so) and mostly occurs to the latter half of the period of sleep.

13. As a person gets older the percentage of time spent in REM sleep decreases (Okay, I knew this. But at least I have a good source on it now

)

14. In the healthy adult, non-REM sleep accounts for 75 percent of sleep time

15. Someone waking rapidly from deep non-REM half to one hour into sleep will be disorientated and possess disorganised thinking and will be slow in returning to baseline consciousness/cognition. Thus it is suggested that awaking from deep non-REM sleep will result in specific disorders resulting from the disorientation experienced, such as bedwetting, somnambulism and nightmares.

Placebo

**gvoigt21** · 01-10-2005 02:40 PM

Thanks for posting all the info

I had just been looking for information on seeing hypnogogic like imagery while awake and now i know what to look for (Hypnapompic). I've always been able to focus my sight in a weird way while awake and with my eyes open since i was a kid to and see very small green and yellow diamond-like star things like a filtter over my vision, but didnt know what was going on.

Also, that stuff about your brain making up for a lack of dreaming with a night of excessive compensating dreams is interesting...Have you ever tried using alcohol to deny your brain of dreams so that a few nights later when it "catches up" you may experience more vividness and length of dreams? I might give it a try.

**Alex D** · 01-10-2005 02:51 PM

Wow, that was some bloody interesting reading, so just out of curiosity, would the depression help or hinder dreams? I myself, just getting out of a huge bout of it.

**TygrHawk** · 01-10-2005 02:53 PM

Originally posted by Placebo
But at least I have a good source on it now

Would you care to share your source?

**Placebo** · 01-10-2005 10:47 PM

Originally posted by gvoigt21
Thanks for posting all the info

Pleasure

I had just been looking for information on seeing hypnogogic like imagery while awake and now i know what to look for (Hypnapompic). [/b]

They generally meant this to occur while still waking up - not necessarily while fully cognitive.
I'm not sure if it's related ...

Might be...

I've always been able to focus my sight in a weird way while awake and with my eyes open since i was a kid to and see very small green and yellow diamond-like star things like a filtter over my vision, but didnt know what was going on.
[/b]

Interesting. Strong visualisation perhaps?

Also, that stuff about your brain making up for a lack of dreaming with a night of excessive compensating dreams is interesting...Have you ever tried using alcohol to deny your brain of dreams so that a few nights later when it \"catches up\" you may experience more vividness and length of dreams? I might give it a try.[/b]

No, but the thought crossed my mind.
I believe that sleep deprivation techniques have done a similar thing - and they can work

Alcohol may be an alternative that allows your body to recover at least
Of course, alcohol is addictive...

Would you care to share your source?

[/b]

Sure. I have a list of sources:
http://www.dreamgate.com/dream/library/idx...science_rem.htm
http://library.thinkquest.org/C005545/engl...M.htm?tqskip1=1
http://serendip.brynmawr.edu/biology/b103/...michaelson.html
http://www.ucdmc.ucdavis.edu/pulse/scripts...p_research.html
http://www.23nlpeople.com/Depression%20&%20Sleep.htm
http://www.watchtower.org/library/g/2003/3.../article_02.htm

The last one is from the Jehovah's Witness magazine - the Awake!
Believe it or not, they are often very good sources of information

**Amethyst Star** · 01-10-2005 11:18 PM

That's awesome stuff! Thanks for allowing us to be a little more enlightened about the world of dreams

-Amé

**Placebo** · 01-11-2005 12:54 AM

I also found this on HowStuffWorks.com. Many of you probably already read it...

Tips to Improve Your Sleep
- Exercise regularly. Exercise helps tire and relax your body.
- Don't consume caffeine after 4:00 p.m. or so. Avoid other stimulants like cigarettes as well.
- Avoid alcohol before bedtime. Alcohol disrupts the brain's normal patterns during sleep.
- Try to stay in a pattern with a regular bedtime and wakeup time, even on weekends.

**Aphius** · 01-11-2005 04:56 AM

Originally posted by gvoigt21
I've always been able to focus my sight in a weird way while awake and with my eyes open since i was a kid to and see very small green and yellow diamond-like star things like a filtter over my vision, but didnt know what was going on.

Hey, that happens to me too.

**Howie** · 01-11-2005 08:52 AM

Originally posted by gvoigt21
Thanks for posting all the info

I had just been looking for information on seeing hypnogogic like imagery while awake and now i know what to look for (Hypnapompic). I've always been able to focus my sight in a weird way while awake and with my eyes open since i was a kid to and see very small green and yellow diamond-like star things like a filtter over my vision, but didnt know what was going on.

Also, that stuff about your brain making up for a lack of dreaming with a night of excessive compensating dreams is interesting...Have you ever tried using alcohol to deny your brain of dreams so that a few nights later when it \"catches up\" you may experience more vividness and length of dreams? I might give it a try.

Actually gvoigt21 look under (HH). The proper term hynopompic hallucinations.

Those are some interesting facts

**Amethyst Star** · 01-11-2005 03:54 PM

Originally posted by Placebo
Tips to Improve Your Sleep
- Don't consume caffeine after 4:00 p.m. or so.

What? No caffeine? Uh... wuh.... shaeiprehanipvejap

-Amé

**OpheliaBlue** · 01-11-2005 11:12 PM

IE. You can 'catch up' on dreaming

[/b]
Oh HELL yeah! Whenever I miss alot of sleep I try to take a nap in the day. And the dreams I have during naps are crazy insane! My wildest LDs have been during naps.

**Placebo** · 01-11-2005 11:26 PM

Originally posted by OpheliaBlue

IE. You can 'catch up' on dreaming

Oh HELL yeah! Whenever I miss alot of sleep I try to take a nap in the day. And the dreams I have during naps are crazy insane! My wildest LDs have been during naps.[/b]

That's for a different reason though... that's this:

9. The amount of R.E.M. sleep that you have in a nap has no effect on the R.E.M. sleep you have that night [/b]

Naps are primarily REM, and don't have the same cycles as sleeping at night.
It has to do with your sleeping routine, and melatonin release

**Seeker** · 01-12-2005 12:58 PM

BUGGER! REM decreases as you get older! Grrr....

**nightowl** · 01-12-2005 06:15 PM

hmmm..nice to know

**Howie** · 01-12-2005 08:00 PM

Originally posted by Seeker
BUGGER! *REM decreases as you get older! *Grrr....

Maybe they meant Random energy moments

**recombinant** · 01-13-2005 08:46 AM

Originally posted by gvoigt21

I had just been looking for information on seeing hypnogogic like imagery while awake and now i know what to look for (Hypnapompic). I've always been able to focus my sight in a weird way while awake and with my eyes open since i was a kid to and see very small green and yellow diamond-like star things like a filtter over my vision, but didnt know what was going on.

Sounds like the 'floater' phenomenon. I guess the word phenomenon is slightly overblown, but there is a medical explaination. There are two kinds of floaters, "normal", and for the purposes of the conversation, "bad" ones. The eye is filled fluid (vitreous humor) and those floaters are solid particles that make shadows on your retina. These tend to increase in frequency when we age, are are usually just a nusiance more than anything else. However, the "bad" floaters are sometimes a sign of retinal detachment, so if you are not seeing 20-20, you may want to have your optometrist dialate your pupils and have a look inside.

FWIW.......

**Haz** · 01-13-2005 09:22 AM

Originally posted by Howetzer
Random energy moments * *

LMAO

**Placebo** · 01-13-2005 09:27 AM

Thanks recombinant - I've often wondered what those black squiggly floating (

) things are in my vision
I seldom notice them though

It does sound a little different to the diamonds, etc that they described though...

**blatantfish** · 01-13-2005 02:53 PM

about temperature during sleep i read an article about it which showed a study that said if the temperature you are in is either noticably hot or cold, you will lose some rem sleep, so the perfect temperature is youre personal thermal conmort zone, which means when you dont notice the temperature around you.

**recombinant** · 01-13-2005 04:14 PM

Originally posted by Placebo
Thanks recombinant - I've often wondered what those black squiggly floating () things are in my vision
I seldom notice them though

It does sound a little different to the diamonds, etc that they described though...

Its true....You and I are more alike in that we do not see color with those squiggly things. However, it is very typical for people to have color and bright spots. All pretty much the same.......You know what else is interesting? In specific regard to the squigglies, they come from blood vessels that are in your eye when you are an infant. When your eyes open as an infant these vessels disintegrate causing the floaters.....kinda cool, huh?

**Placebo** · 01-14-2005 03:23 AM

Very cool - interesting stuff! 8)

**Amethyst Star** · 01-14-2005 07:55 PM

If I stop moving my eyes and focus I can see the floaters in my eyes. Not to mention I get my eyes dialted yearly, but dialation is more often used to check for glaucoma (retinal detachment) than anything else, if I remember correctly.

At first I didn't know what was meant by hypnaponic imagery, but now I recall something that happens rather regularly during the day time and for some reason it's more common when I'm swimming. I'll look at something in bright sunlight and I'll see this pulsating ring of..... thinks of how to describe it* random shapes. I can ignore it usually but it's still apparent. I wonder if it can be used for any reason, like hypnogogic imagery is used for lucid dreaming.

-Amé

**alucinor** · 01-15-2005 03:02 AM

Originally posted by Alex D
...just out of curiosity, would the depression help or hinder dreams? I myself, just getting out of a huge bout of it.

Well depression is tied to a drop in serotonin levels i think (?). So if, as placebo said, you're more likely to have dreamless sleep with lower serotonin levels, i suppose it follows that depression will hinder your dream capacity. Good luck with your recovery mate.

**Placebo** · 01-15-2005 04:03 AM

alucinor : Agreed. In theory at least.
Ame: I can't think of any use for daytime HI. I'm not even sure if this can be called HI at all

Regarding the alcohol and it's negative effects on REM:
I did an experiment yesterday - and I'm dissapointed with the results.
Here's how it went:

Before bed, I had 3 double brandy + cokes, then a tot of saki (rice wine - 50% alc.) and then a tot of amarula cream.
I was thoroughly intoxicated, but I wouldn't say plastered
Eg. I woke up with a dry mouth and a very very mild headache, but no real hangover

The result? I had at least 3 dreams, and I remember one of them clearly.
In fact, one of them even became lucid, but for some reason I cannot recall what happened after the reality checks

What does this prove? ... that drinking before bed is not necessarily a dream killer.
Perhaps I have too much serotonin as it is? This would explain why melatonin actually tones down my dream quantity

And perhaps if I do WBTB and drink a few shots of saki or stroh rum

.. might have more effect. Point being, the effect seemed minimal at best for me..

Is there an easy way to test my serotonin ?

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