Dreams

Dream occurs during the REM, or rapid eye movement, phase of sleep. During this phase of sleep, our closed eyes dart rapidly about, our brain activity peaks, and our muscles suffer temporary paralysis.

We dream to exercise the synapses, or pathways, between brain cells, and that dreaming takes over where the active and awake brain leaves off. When awake, our brains constantly transmit and receive messages, which course through our billions of brain cells to their appropriate destinations, and keep our bodies in perpetual motion. Dreams replace this function. Dreams focus upon our thoughts and emotions, and speculate that dreams deal with immediate concerns in our lives, such as unfinished business from the day, or concerns we are incapable of handling during the course of the day.

It has been agreed for some time that dreams deal with emotion. However, not all emotion causes dreaming. Only emotional arousal unexpressed while awake causes us to dream. So, for example, if you have a screaming row with your partner you are unlikely to dream about it as the emotional arousal was allowed full expression. However if you become angry with someone at work but cannot express it then this frustration will probably be played out during dreaming. Depressed people dream much more than non-depressed people because typically, they do much more ruminating. This can result in physical and mental exhaustion.

There’s no exact answer, but just some thoughts on how to avoid dreaming: (Will add-on if there’s any)
1. Pray for a peaceful night rest
2. Dreams usually appear when the sleep is not deep enough. Try exercising
3. Take some fruit juice / soya milk before sleeping
4. Settle any frustrations / unexpressed emotions before going to bed