Nightmares are a substantial burden for sleep quality. Previous studies have shown that traumatic experiences can increase the probability of nightmares, and also waking-life distress can enhance this effect. There is evidence that the intensity of negative dream emotions is more responsible for rating a dream as a nightmare than threatening dream contents. However, there is still a lack of...
Being the aggressor in dreams has been investigated relatively sparsely. On the one hand, these kinds of nightmares may represent continuity of aggression in waking-life, but on the other hand, being the aggressor in dreams may compensate failing (suppressed) aggression from waking-life. Two subtypes of aggressor nightmares should thus be distinguished: Those in which the dreamer is the primary...
This consensus paper provides an overview of the state of the art in research on the aetiology and treatment of nightmare disorder and outlines further perspectives on these issues. It presents a definition of nightmares and nightmare disorder followed by epidemiological findings, and then explains existing models of nightmare aetiology in traumatized and non-traumatized individuals. Chronic...
Nightmares are extremely dysphoric dreams, which are prevalent and associated with psychological strain. This study investigated (a) the efficacy of an internet-based imagery rehearsal therapy (IRT), (b) the role of imagery rescription, and (c) the role of guidance during internet-based IRT. A total of 127 patients suffering from mainly idiopathic nightmares were randomly assigned to 1 of 2 IRT...
Chronic nightmares have a prevalence of 3 to 8% in the general population, but they seem not to play a relevant role in the health care system despite the existence of evidence-based treatments. The aim of this study was to identify nightmare-related knowledge, attitudes and coping approaches in the German mental health care system. A total of 219 health-care providers (primary care,...
Nightmares are a common and serious problem in psychotherapeutic practice, although they are seldom considered as independent mental disorders. There are some promising approaches to the treatment of nightmares, notably Imagery Rehearsal Therapy, a cognitive-restructuring treatment. The core of this approach is the modification of the nightmare script and repeated imagination of the new script....