Live access to the emotional dynamics of REM sleep dreams in lucid dreamers with narcolepsy
Jean-Baptiste Maranci, Pierre Champetier, Delphine Oudiette, Emma Chabani, Luc Masset, Alix Romier, A.C.N. Chen, Amélie Barbier, Umberto Pannacci, Federica Sapo, Başak Türker, Smaranda Leu-Semenescu, Andrea Pinna, Isabelle Arnulf
bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory) September 1, 2025 preprint DOI: 10.1101/2025.08.27.672557 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Observational study |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 24 |
| Population | Lucid dreamers with narcolepsy |
| Topics | Lucid dreaming |
| Keywords | Narcolepsy Sleep system call Dynamics music Cognitive psychology Developmental psychology Neurology |
| Key findings | Emotions in REM sleep dreams are fluid and fast-changing, with positive and negative valences alternating frequently and each valence lasting about one minute on average. |
Abstract
Abstract Sleep helps regulate emotions, but it is still unclear whether -and how- the emotions we experience in dreams contribute to this regulation. To uncover the potential function of dream emotions, we must first understand what they are and how they unfold in dreams. The emotional content of dreams has mostly been studied using post-sleep dream reports, which provide a biased and static snapshot of a complex and dynamic experience. In this study, we took a more direct approach, accessing dream emotions in real-time. We asked twenty-four lucid dreamers with narcolepsy to report the emotional valence of their dreams, - positive, negative or neutral-, while still asleep, using predefined facial codes during daytime naps monitored with polysomnography. Of the 126 naps recorded, 62 contained at least one emotional code during REM sleep, yielding 191 codes in total. The ratios of positive and negative codes were evenly balanced per nap. The 33 naps with at least two codes allowed us to track the dream emotional dynamics. Over half of these naps showed opposite emotional valences (positive and negative). By measuring the time elapsed between codes, we estimated the average duration of a given dream’s emotional valence in REM sleep to be about one minute. Positive emotions emerged on average earlier than negative ones during lucid REM sleep. These findings confirm the highly emotional nature of dreams and, more importantly, highlight that emotions in REM sleep dreams are fluid and fast-changing. Such emotional dynamics during REM sleep dreams may help us to better understand the mechanisms of the emotional regulatory function of dreams.
Comparable studies
Other observational and cohort studies on lucid dreaming, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lucid Dreaming: a State of Consciousness with Features of Both Waking and Non-Lucid Dreaming Student volunteers trained to become lucid and signal lucidity with horizontal eye... | 2009 | Observational study | n = 6 |
| Neural Correlates of Dream Lucidity Obtained from Contrasting Lucid versus Non-Lucid REM Sleep: A Combined EEG/fMRI Case Study Experienced lucid dreamers | 2012 | Observational cohort | n = 4 |
| Real-time dialogue between experimenters and dreamers during REM sleep. Individuals during REM sleep, including frequent lucid dreamers, a novice, and a... | 2021 | Observational study | n = 36 |
| Lucid Dreaming in Narcolepsy Consecutive patients with narcolepsy and healthy controls | 2015 | Case-control study | n = 106 |
| Metacognitive Mechanisms Underlying Lucid Dreaming Human participants split into high- and low-lucidity groups based on reported dream... | 2015 | Observational cohort |
Citations in the library
Cites 12
- Lucid Dreaming Verified by Volitional Communication during Rem Sleep Perceptual and Motor Skills June 1, 1981
- Real-time dialogue between experimenters and dreamers during REM sleep. Current Biology April 12, 2021
- Lucid Dreaming in Narcolepsy Sleep February 27, 2015
- Metaphor and hyperassociativity: the imagination mechanisms behind emotion assimilation in sleep and dreaming Frontiers in Psychology August 18, 2015
- How You Measure Is What You Get: Differences in Self- and External Ratings of Emotional Experiences in Home Dreams The American Journal of Psychology August 21, 2017
and 7 more in the library