The Healing Power Of Sleep
What if we were to tell you that dreams play a role in healing past/present traumas and stressors? Dr. Rosland Cartwright, a renowned sleep researcher, said that “ dreams are designed to help us maintain our self-identity, our sense of who we are, as our life circumstances change.”
To give you an idea of just how extensive and elaborate her research was, check out some of her best work:
“Crisis Dreaming: Using Your Dreams to Solve Your Problems”
“The Twenty-Four Hour Mind: The Role of Sleep and Dreaming in Our Emotional Lives.”
“Night Life: Explorations in Dreaming.”
Did you know? 12 % of people dream entirely in black and white.
What if I can’t remember my dreams?
Although the states and significance of the unconscious mind are areas that are most intriguing to researchers and the human race at large, much remains undiscovered and unclear.
An ongoing concern regarding dreams revolves around the potential that there could be a red flag if one can’t remember their dreams. In fact, according to Rubin Naiman’s new study titled Dreamless: The Silent Epidemic of REM Dream Loss, he states that by dreaming less could be an indication we are experiencing both emotional and physical blows to our health.
Let’s get into it, this is important and very real.
Below is Rubin Naiman’s abstract from his new study pulled directly from the National Library of Medicine- Source.
We are at least as dream-deprived as we are sleep-deprived. Many of the health concerns attributed to sleep loss result from a silent epidemic of REM sleep deprivation. REM/dream loss is an unrecognized public health hazard that silently wreaks havoc with our lives, contributing to illness, depression, and an erosion of consciousness.
This paper compiles data about the causes and extent of REM/dream loss associated with commonly used medications, endemic substance use disorders, rampant sleep disorders, and behavioral and lifestyle factors. It examines the consequences of REM/dream loss and concludes with recommendations for restoring healthy REM/dreaming.
To sum it up Dreams are potentially massive indicators of our overall sleep health, and, more specifically, our REM sleep health.
Let’s piece it all together-
What we know:
- Sleep has the power to heal and restore the body like no other protocol.
- Dreams are our window into the subconscious.
- REM sleep stimulates areas of our brain essential to learning and retaining information.
REM sleep doesn’t come until later into the night. Before REM, the body prioritizes the deep sleep we require for survival. As we sleep less and less, the sleep cycles become interrupted, leaving out REM sleep. Cutting off REM Sleep will inhibit dream creation and can lead to health risks.
Some of these health risks include:
- Irritability
- Depression
- Weight gain
- Hallucinations
- Memory troubles
- Immune system breakdowns
Where do we go from here?
We must take ownership of our lives and the external and internal factors that may be playing a role in our loss of quality sleep.
Many turn to heavy sleep medications and high doses of melatonin to “fix” their sleeping problems, which can exacerbate ALL of the above. Many sleep aids mask the underlying issues temporarily but don’t get down to the deeper rooted issues.
A great start would be to take a closer look and research any sleep aids you are currently using and analyze the lifestyle factors that may also be taking away from quality sleep.
Sleep Remedy is designed to restore nutrients and help balance stress hormones to deliver optimal sleep and health. The main ingredients are Melatonin, L-tryptophan, 5-HTP, Magnesium, Vitamin D3, GABA, L-theanine, and Phosphatidylserine. It is a non-pharmaceutical formulation intended to bypass the groggy and drowsy side effects associated with common sleep aids.
It’s non-addictive and can be used every night.