1048 Cortisol Awakening Response Predicts Nightmares in College Students: Evidence for Stress-Physiology Sensitivity in Disturbed Dreaming
SLEEPJ May 8, 2026 Elijah Nichols, Nancy Hamilton, Michele Okun
Abstract Introduction Nightmares are emotionally intense sleep disturbances linked to impaired emotion regulation and physiological arousal. Although stress sensitivity is theorized to increase vulnerability to nightmares, little research has examined whether specific HPA-axis indices, particularly the Cortisol Awakening Response (CAR), predict nightmare frequency in non-clinical young adults....