Dream Recall and Dream Content in Obsessive-Compulsive Patients
Anne Katrin Kuelz, Ulrike Stotz, Dieter Riemann, Michael Schredl, Ulrich Voderholzer
The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease August 1, 2010 DOI: 10.1097/nmd.0b013e3181e9dd65 (opens in new tab) via OpenAlex
Summary
AI-generated from the abstractDreams of people with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) contain less positive content than those of healthy individuals. During treatment with exposure and response prevention, OCD-related themes in dreams significantly decrease, supporting the continuity hypothesis that daytime symptoms carry over into dreams. Contrary to expectations, exposure therapy does not make dreams more intense or disturbing. The analysis compared 40 dreams from 9 inpatients, 84 dreams from 10 outpatients, and 63 dreams from 11 healthy controls, with dream reports collected at treatment start and after initial exposure exercises.
Study at a glance
| Characteristics | Observational cohort Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 30 |
| Population | Obsessive compulsive inpatients, obsessive compulsive outpatients, and healthy control participants |
| Intervention | Exposure and response prevention |
| Keywords | Dream Obsessive compulsive Content measure theory Psychotherapist Clinical psychology |
| Citations | 14 |
| Key finding | Before treatment, OCD patients' dreams had significantly less positive content than healthy controls' dreams; under exposure treatment, OCD themes in dreams significantly decreased. |
Abstract
Very little is known about dreams in patients with obsessive compulsive disorder, especially regarding changes over the course of treatment with stimulus exposure and response prevention. By use of dream content analysis, 40 dreams of 9 obsessive compulsive (OC) inpatients were compared with 84 dreams of 10 matched OC outpatients and 63 dreams of 11 healthy control participants. Dream protocols of inpatients were collected at the beginning of treatment and after the first exposure exercises. Controls filled in dream protocols in respective intervals. Before treatment, dreams of patients showed significantly less positive contents than dreams of healthy controls. Under treatment with exposure, a significant reduction of OC themes was observed. The findings support the continuity hypothesis of dreaming by showing a link between day-time symptoms and OC symptoms in dreams. Contrary to expectations, however, exposure treatment does not intensify dreams.