Nightmares, or bad dreams, are terrible. I’ve dreamt about throwing up, animals swallowing me, and someone breaking into my house―all causing me to wake up in the middle of the night, heart racing, anxiety growing out of control. Sometimes, my bad dreams reflect exactly what I’m feeling anxious about. Other times, they’re about something else, but still seemingly caused by my anxiety levels. To find out if anxiety really can cause bad dreams, I went straight to the experts.
The experts I spoke with agreed that anxiety could contribute to bad dreams. “Thoughts filled with anxiety while someone is asleep can manifest (显现) themselves as bad dreams or stress dreams,” said Alex Dimitriu, a double board-certified physician in psychiatry and sleep medicine. “Stress dreams, such as missing an important event, a test, or a flight, are often quite common in people undergoing stress during their daily lives.”
Although the reasons why we dream are not fully understood, there may be times when your mind is simply trying to work through a challenge from that day — one that can be causing you to feel anxious. “We do know from research that the brain continues to work on solving problems during sleep,” explained Jason Durant, a New York-based licensed clinical psychologist.
In that sense, dreaming can actually be a good thing, even if it feels uncomfortable at the time. “The mind is attempting to prompt (促使) you to use the tools you successfully used before when in a similar life situation, or to remind you what did not work and to try something new,” said Nancy Irwin, a clinical psychologist.
Anyhow, bad dreams may be the last thing you want. You may not be able to prevent bad dreams completely, but you can focus on managing your anxiety during the day, which may help alleviate (减轻) the problem. Dr. Dimitriu suggests going for a walk, talking to friends and journaling to process your feelings throughout the day. Then, in the evenings, step away from your devices, and take some time to plot out a strategy for dealing with the things that are causing you stress.
【小题1】Why does the author mention his/her experiences of bad dreams?| A．To say anxiety is very common. |
| B．To analyze the cause of bad dreams. |
| C．To find anxiety levels in a dream. |
| D．To prove bad dreams are unavoidable. |
| A．Bad dreams. |
| B．Sleeping people. |
| C．Stressful events. |
| D．Anxious thoughts. |
| A．They keep us free of anxiety. |
| B．They help us deal with problems. |
| C．They allow us to recall the past. |
| D．They warn us to remain cautious. |
| A．Advice on how to reduce bad dreams. |
| B．Ways to totally prevent dreaming. |
| C．How to relieve anxiety through exercise. |
| D．How to improve sleep quality at night. |
