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Chronic pain resolution after a lucid dream: a case for neural plasticity?

Mauro W. Zappaterra, Lysander Jim, Sanjog Pangarkar

Medical Hypotheses March 1, 2014 DOI: 10.1016/j.mehy.2013.12.011 (opens in new tab)

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Study at a glance

AI-extracted from the abstract
Characteristics Case study Case report Peer reviewed
Sample size 1
Population Mr. S, a patient with chronic pain for 22 years
Intervention biopsychosocial treatments
Duration 2 years of biopsychosocial treatments
Topics Lucid dreaming Neuroplasticity
Key findings Central nervous system reorganization (neural plasticity) may serve as a mechanism for pain relief after biopsychosocial interventions, as illustrated by a patient's complete resolution of pain following a lucid dream.

Abstract

Chronic pain is often managed using a multidisciplinary, biopsychosocial approach. Interventions targeting the biological, psychological, and social aspects of both the patient and the pain have been demonstrated to provide objective and subjective improvement in chronic pain symptoms. The mechanism by which pain attenuation occurs after these interventions remains to be elucidated. While there is a relatively large body of empirical literature suggesting that functional and structural changes in the peripheral and central nervous systems are key in the development and maintenance of chronic pain states, less is known about changes that take place in the nervous system as a whole after biopsychosocial interventions. Using as a model the unique case of Mr. S, a patient suffering with chronic pain for 22 years who experienced a complete resolution of pain after a lucid dream following 2 years of biopsychosocial treatments, we postulate that central nervous system (CNS) reorganization (i.e., neural plasticity) serves as a possible mechanism for the therapeutic benefit of multidisciplinary treatments, and may set a neural framework for healing, in this case via a lucid dream.

Comparable studies

Other case reports and case series on lucid dreaming, most cited first.

Study Year Design Participants
Lucid Dreaming as a Learnable Skill: A Case Study The author 1980 Case study n = 1
Lucid Dreaming as a Treatment for Recurrent Nightmares People with recurrent nightmares 2010 Case study n = 5
Lucid dreaming: Correspondence between dreamed and actual events in one subject during rem sleep A lucid dreamer 1984 Case study n = 1
Lucid dreaming treatment for nightmares: A series of cases. Participants with nightmares 2003 Case series n = 8
Nightmares in the Context of PTSD Treated with Psychoeducation Regarding Lucid Dreaming 39-year-old male with a history of suicide attempts and psychiatric admissions 2010 Case study n = 1

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