Number one: Black and white - what are the colors we see in our dreams? Just imagine that you are dreaming, you are seeing a colorful and patterned world. Well, most of us see it like that. But one study has said that dreams aren’t always as colorful as that. For this 2008 study published in the journal consciousness and cognition, it was discovered that a small percentage of people dream in black and white. It’s like they put a black and white filter on top of their subconscious mind. According to the study, older people are common for this type of dream because they grew up in black and white media. Younger people on the other hand dream mostly for color because of the modern media which is bright and colourful. So, next time you’re dreaming, try to think about the aesthetics of your dream because your age and the media you’ve seen can affect the way your dream actually looks like.
Number two: Sleep paralysis - During REM sleep, your body is essentially paralyzed. This period of deep sleep freezes the motor neurons in your brain and stops you from moving. This process is called muscle atonia. Muscle atonia prevents you from running, jumping and moving in real life. Without this process, your body will unconsciously move during your dreams. Most of the time, muscle atonia will end when you wake up but it doesn’t always stay that way. The feeling of numbness can continue and it causes what is called sleep paralysis. Your mind will be awake and conscious but your body will be essentially asleep for the moment. Sleep paralysis can be a scary experience but it is common and completely natural. So, no need to panic, just relax and give your body a few extra minutes to wake up.
Number three: Gender differences - For one 2013 study published in the International Journal of Dream Research, scientists discovered that men and women dream about different things. Anyone can like anything. Some subjects are more divisive than others. For example, cars and tools are of common interest to men while clothing and jewelry are of common interest to women. But you know these trends are affecting the way men and women dream. Male dreams are more likely to contain male interests such as cars and tools. Female dreams are more likely to contain female interests. Even though this difference is small, it shows us that we don’t dream independently. We are influenced by our passions, lifestyles, gender, interests and expectations.
Number four: Personality changes - This same 2013 study we talked about found that dreams can change based on your personality. They compared the dreams of introverted men to the dreams of extroverted men and it was discovered that their dream content was quite different. For example, extroverted men's dreams contain more female characters than introverted men's dreams. In other words, social preferences, experiences and routines can also affect the way you dream.
Number five: Bizarre experiences - Why are dreams so strange? There is a scientific reason why you create strange combinations for your dreams. For your everyday life, your brain is hard at work making sense of the world around you. It combines sensory information, perceptual cues and stored memories to create a landscape that you can understand and navigate. But when you fall asleep, these important areas of your brain will rest so your subconscious mind will be free to run wild. Your brain can’t make sense of all the information you are receiving in a dream and it makes your dreams usually strange and difficult to understand.
Number six: Dream face, it happens to most people to see other people in their dreams but you know that every face you see is a face you have seen before even if you don’t recognize the person when you see it, your brain does use a face he has seen before. You may have seen the person on TV, in the library or on the street. But every person in your dream exists somewhere in this world.
Number seven: Dreaming animals, you know your dog may be running for his sleep, but do animals dream like humans? Scientists have been debating this issue for a long time. Dreams are related to a high level of consciousness that humans have but dogs don’t. If we talk about dogs being able to dream, who knows what their brains will be able to do? For years now, some studies have shown that animals dream, for example cats stalk and catch prey in their sleep, but the question still remains whether your dog is really dreaming or not.
Number eight: Stress nightmare, where do nightmares come from? A nightmare with a combination of sensory information just like a normal dream. On their own, nightmares aren’t scary, but strong emotions and stress can turn a positive dream into a negative nightmare. If you go to sleep with low stress and a happy mindset, you’re more likely to have sweet dreams, but if you sleep with stress and sadness, you could spend the night running from monsters.
Number nine: What do blind people see when they dream? They see color for the dream picture even if they are already blind since when they were born? According to one study done in 2017 for the third international conference on applications of optics and photonics, blind people dream like everyone else. Their brain experiences the same feeling and picture even if they can’t see the dream very well. However, the study talks that a blind person may not be able to remember their dreams as well as a person who can see.
Number ten: The dream of a person during sleep is dreamed by every person, from a person in London, to a person in Lagos or even a person in Timbuktu. Common dreams like falling, running or flying, being naked in public, are common to every culture and community. But why are these things happening? It’s because every human fears what they don’t know or can’t control, and they want to experience what they can’t do in real life. That’s how every person would like to fly like a bird in the sky, even if it’s in a dream.
Number eleven: How many dreams do you remember every night? Most people are lucky to remember one, but the brain dreams up to four to six times a night. These dreams can be short or long and even if you can’t remember them, your brain is very active at night more than you know.
Number twelve: When you sleep, can you talk for your sleep? Most people think that sleep talking will make sense and clarity. You might be imagining your friend saying some funny things in their sleep but according to a story published in a journal called Sleep in 2017, sleep talkers sound a little bit different. If you’re sleep talking in a dream, it’s possible that the thing you say will just be brief and even a little rude. For example, around 10 percent of sleep talkers use bad words while sleeping. The most common word used is "no". If your friend is sleep talking, don’t expect you to be able to talk well.
Number thirteen: According to an article published by Scientific American in 1951 called "Calvin Hall", dreams are not just visual images and sounds. They can activate your emotions in strange and powerful ways. However, some emotions come more often than others. For example, fear, worry, anger, sadness and embarrassment are some of the negative emotions you may feel for your dream. Sometimes, you can still feel these emotions when you wake up. It’s going to be like sleep paralysis when your dream emotions are still affecting your real life. You might just be upset about nothing or you might feel like you want to cry for the whole day because of the dream you have. Dreams are quick to escape our memory and hard to understand, but they can affect our mood and way of thinking.
Number fourteen: Have you ever had a dream about your teeth falling out? Studies have shown that dental dreams can have a physical basis. The fear that your teeth are falling out could be a sign that you are experiencing dental irritation. The physical symptoms you have can manifest as images in your brain. So if you’re having a lot of dental dreams, it could be that you need to floss your teeth more.
Number fifteen: It’s possible that dreams can help you with your everyday life. When you’re asleep, your brain is still active. It will still reflect on the problems, puzzles and conflicts you face in your daily life. Even if you feel stuck before you go to sleep, you can wake up with a better answer for your mind because your brain has been working all night.
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Mindfulness