Woken up many nights in a row with a cold sweat taking over your head and back? Feeling clammy and disturbed? Did you see something in a dream that is now occupying far too much space in your mind to leave you to your peace? Well. Looks like you’ve had a nightmare!

Chronic nightmares is a realistic issue, and many over the world face the challenge of having to wake up from difficult dreams that don’t let them rest. Science proves that dreams are a product of Rapid Eye Movement, an action that allows one to capitulate images from their subconscious memory in a series of representations while asleep. To this end, certain images remain ingrained in your mind, and remain a recurring dream. Needless to say, nightmares are a nightmare, in that they don’t leave you with much comfort. Here are a few ways to help you overcome your chronic nightmares:

• Make notes: Keeping a dream journal is a very useful way to keep in touch with your mind and what it is trying to tell you. It is also a way for you to try to identify the intensity of the nightmare, and gauge when it is at its worst, or when it is comfortably better. Accordingly, you will be disposed to make changes in your lifestyle.

• Use the imagery rehearsal therapy (IRT): When nightmares keep coming back over and over again, they are chronic. Owing to the repetitive nature of these dreams, it is easy to recollect some, if not all, details from the dream you see. Psychiatrists use a technique called the Imagery Rehearsal Therapy, to help treat chronic nightmares. All it requires is for you to write down a very basic description of the nightmare itself. Then, after that, be guided to start altering the course of the nightmare – you can rewrite the ending, and then the remainder parts of the dream. Then, once you have the new dream in order, spend some time mentally rehearsing the new dream. This will help you alter the kind of visuals you see in your nightmares. Before sleeping, make sure that you tell yourself that you have influenced the course of your dream, and that your mind should show you this new dream.

• De-stress! Most nightmare issues come from a place of stress in life. When you experience a lot of stress and don’t give your mind or body an outlet for the stress, your mind finds ways to release the pressure. Invariably, this manifests as nightmares of a repetitive and chronic nature. Some useful ways to de-stress would be to do yoga, meditation, to listen to peaceful and soft music, and also perhaps to do some breathing exercises.

• Avoid watching television : particularly violent programs – and / or reading violent books with content that makes your mind fall in line with a rather aggressive state. If you simply must read or watch something, preferably watch shows and programs or read material that are light on the mind.

References:

http://healthmeup.com/news-healthy-living/how-to-overcome-chronic-nightmares/32917

Photo courtesy: readlakewriter.wordpress.com