Sleeping Pills and Dream Content
British Journal of Psychiatry June 1, 1974 Hugh Firth
Almost all sleep-promoting drugs distort natural sleep by suppressing REM sleep and cause a rebound to above-normal REM values lasting about six weeks after withdrawal. Barbiturates reduce the number of eye movements per unit time in REM sleep, with a rebound in eye movement profusion upon withdrawal. Non-barbiturate hypnotics produce similar effects, also leading to a rebound in eye movement profusion on withdrawal.