Nightmares: Under-Reported, Undetected, and Therefore Untreated.
Journal of clinical sleep medicine : JCSM : official publication of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine July 15, 2015 Michael R Nadorff, Danielle K Nadorff, Anne Germain
Nightmares are a strong and changeable predictor of higher suicide risk and poor mental health outcomes, yet they are rarely screened for or treated, even in sleep clinics. In two U.S. surveys, only 37.8% of people with clinically significant nightmares in one sample and 11.1% in another had discussed them with a healthcare provider. Among those with significant nightmares, fewer than one-third believed nightmares were treatable. Greater nightmare severity made people more likely to report them but also less likely to believe they could be treated. The findings indicate that nightmares are seldom reported to healthcare providers, which may explain why effective treatments are underused, and support routine nightmare screening.