You wake up in a cold sweat, panting and your heart racing. You secretly scan the dark room. Nothing. Reassured, you relax: it was just a nightmare. But still, that feeling of vague horror lingers and you struggle to fall asleep again.
We’ve all had nightmares, and they’re never fun to experience. We tend to remember them better than regular dreams because they are charged with emotion and, if disturbing enough, wake us up halfway through, making it more likely that we can remember them.
Sometimes people come to me and say they are concerned about the intensity of their nightmares. But while they tend to be vivid and are often threatening or bizarre, in all but a handful of cases, having nightmares is completely normal.
In fact, nightmares are thought to be a form of emotional processing. They are our brain’s way of trying to sort through and make sense of something that is bothering us – a way of exploring fears or worries, or of grappling with memories of events that have caused us distress and which may sometimes be too big, complex or disturbing. are something to think about when we’re awake.
Interestingly, the risk of nightmares is greater under certain physical conditions, such as if you have a fever or if you have eaten close to bedtime.
Nightmare disorder is a true sleep disorder in which nightmares occur so frequently that they disrupt your sleep, mood, and daytime functioning
The theory is that both things boost the body’s metabolism and make the brain more active.
Certain medications also increase the likelihood of them occurring, as do mental health problems such as depression or anxiety.
More than 80 percent of people with post-traumatic stress disorder report nightmares. In healthy people, its frequency is said to decrease with age.
They are most common in children aged three to six years and decrease as we get older. Still, about 5 to 8 percent of adults report problems with nightmares, and for some they can pose a real threat.
Nightmare disorder is a true sleep disorder (also called parasomnia) in which nightmares occur so frequently that they disrupt your sleep, mood, and daytime functioning.
Not only do patients wake up with a feeling of anxiety and fear, preventing them from easily falling back asleep, but in some cases they are so afraid of a recurrence that they delay going to bed.
The problem is that this kind of sleep avoidance only makes the situation worse. They are so exhausted and sleep deprived that the normal sleep cycle is disrupted, causing even more intense dreams and nightmares.
Naturally, this can affect people’s mental health, increasing depression and anxiety, which increases the risk of more nightmares. Although sometimes there is a clear underlying factor contributing to the malevolent appearance of a bad dream (for example, a traumatic event), this is not always the case.
Often psychotherapy can help uncover and address hidden causes, but sometimes, if no clear reason can be found, recurring nightmares can be difficult to treat.
Some therapy techniques aim to improve people’s sleep hygiene, improving the quality of sleep they get, which can help overall.
Simple things like avoiding alcohol and caffeine before bed and putting away the screens at least an hour before bed can all prime the brain for a good night’s sleep.
Patients often ask if I can prescribe a pill. But unfortunately, there is no reliable cure for nightmares.
However, over the years I have found one remedy that really seems to help: exercise. I often recommend it to patients, and last week a study confirmed that this advice works.
Researchers at the University of Texas found that when people got at least 60 minutes of exercise during the day, they not only slept better at night, but also spent less time in the sleep period where dreams and nightmares occur – REM, or rapid eye movement, sleep.
By making ourselves less physiologically vulnerable to nightmares—by literally shortening the time in which they occur—we may be able to avoid them.
It often comes down to a few different approaches to tackling nightmares, but an hour of exercise a day seems like a really good start.
According to a study, vaping has been linked to a 20 percent increased risk of heart failure. But don’t let this statistic scare you if you’re trying to quit smoking cigarettes. Vaping is still much less risky than tobacco.
Ellie is right to pause her social media
Singer Ellie Goulding took a break from Instagram after the collapse of her marriage to art dealer Caspar Jopling and temporarily deleted her account, which has nearly 14 million followers.
What a wise thing to do. For some people going through a difficult time, social media can be a source of support. But all too often it is harmful.
Singer Ellie Goulding took a break from Instagram after the collapse of her marriage to art dealer Caspar Jopling
When patients are having a hard time, I often advise them to distance themselves from social media. When you’re in a vulnerable state, a few unkind, catty, or thoughtless comments can send you into a spiral; and the fake, sanitized version of the world often makes you feel worse about your own world.
Who wants to see pictures of other people hooking up with the love of their lives when you’re going through a breakup?
About a decade ago, women were bombarded with terrifying stories about HRT. The increased risk of breast cancer, stroke and heart attacks was well documented – or so it seemed – and doctors were reluctant to prescribe it.
But in recent years, further analysis of the research has shown that some of it overemphasized the risks. At the same time, several celebrities have become outspoken advocates of HRT, describing how it has helped them deal with the unwanted effects of menopause.
Now a new study has shown a special physical benefit that should not be underestimated.
A steep drop in estrogen levels during menopause causes plaque buildup in the arteries, leading to a sharp increase in the risk of heart problems.
However, HRT, which stops this sudden drop, has been shown to reduce the risk of heart disease in women who use it.
Dr. Max prescribes… Hay fever balm
The drug-free HayMax balm (£8.49, hollandandbarratt.com) is rubbed around the nostrils and works by capturing more than a third of the pollen before it is inhaled
It seems spring has finally arrived – but with it comes a rise in pollen levels and, for some, the inevitable misery of hay fever.
The drug-free HayMax balm (£8.49, hollandandbarratt.com) is rubbed around the nostrils and works by capturing more than a third of the pollen before it is inhaled. It also works if you have dust or pet allergens.