Theories of dreaming have varied through time and across cultures. In ancient times, some believed dreams were messages from God or predictions of the future. Today dreams are used for psychological and scientific investigations. Dream activity can now be measured in sleep labs. We now know they are produced in the unconscious mind.
There are different stages of sleep. Stage 1 is light sleep, when you are drifting in and out of sleep. During this stage the eyes move slowly and muscle activity slows. During this phase many experience muscle twitching and the feeling of falling. In stage 2, eye movement stops and brain waves become slower. In stage 3 extremely slow brain waves are interspersed with smaller, faster waves. In stage 4, the brain produces Delta waves almost exclusively. Stage 3 and 4 are considered deep sleep. There is no eye movement or muscle activity. This is when some children experience bedwetting, sleepwalking and night terrors. After stage 4, we enter REM sleep. This is when we dream. Our breathing becomes more rapid, irregular and shallow, eyes jerk rapidly, and limb muscles are temporarily paralyzed. Brain waves during this stage are comparable to a person who is awake. Also heart rate increases, blood pressure rises, males develop erections, and the body loses some of the ability to regulate temperature. If a person is awoken during REM sleep he can remember the dream. This alternating cycle goes on throughout the night, with the REM phase gradually increasing in length with each cycle. REM sleep diminishes as we age, and young babies spend most of their time in REM sleep.
Scientists believe that dreaming is linked with human growth and development. In laboratory testing, people deprived of REM sleep developed unpleasant symptoms such as depression, anxiety, nausea, irritability and general disorientation. Many believe that our dreams are also linked to spiritual growth. Some believe sleep is an intermediate stage between life and death. Others believe dreams are our way of unwinding the day's events, dealing with traumatic situations that have occured, or expressions of unconscious desires.
I personally believe that there is some truth behind receiving messages from a spiritual world through your dreams. I have had episodes of talking with deceased relatives both after I received notifications of their deaths and before. There are many dream interpretations. Some psychologically based and others more spiritually based. I do believe that their are lessons to be learned through our dreams. These are your unconscious thoughts that have been buried, being brought out into the open. This is a great opportunity at gaining self-knowledge and listening to the messages within.
Here are some dream analysis websites:
http://www.dreammoods.com/
http://www.dreammoods.com/dreamdictionary/
http://www.dreamforth.com/
http://www.sleeps.com/
http://www.dreamota.com/
No comments:
Post a Comment