Nightmares in the general population: identifying potential causal factors
Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology July 15, 2017 Stephanie Rek, Bryony Sheaves, Daniel K. Freeman 54 citations
Nightmares are distressing and linked to psychiatric problems, but not everyone with high negative affect experiences them. This survey of 846 UK adults found that, beyond negative affect, higher levels of worry, depersonalisation, hallucinatory experiences, paranoia, and longer sleep duration were associated with nightmare occurrence (odds ratios 1.25–1.45). Nightmare severity was associated with worry, depersonalisation, hallucinatory experiences, and paranoia. Alcohol use and physical activity were not associated with nightmares. The findings suggest several potential predictors of nightmares that need testing in future causal studies.