NREM sleep spindles are associated with dream recall
Tore Nielsen, Michelle Carr, Cloé Blanchette-Carrière, Louis-Philippe Marquis, Gaëlle Dumel, Elizaveta Solomonova, S. Julien, Claudia Picard-Deland, Tyna Paquette
March 1, 2017 DOI: 10.1556/2053.1.2016.003 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Observational cohort |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 53 |
| Population | Healthy subjects who had participated in a memory consolidation protocol and varied in self-reported recall of dreams and nightmares |
| Topics | Dreaming |
| Key findings | Fast spindle density positively correlated with all measures of dream recall, most robustly with bad dream recall and REM dream word count. |
Abstract
Both rapid eye movement (REM) sleep dreaming and non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep spindles have been linked to processes of memory consolidation. However, relationships between the two phenomena have yet to be explored. In a heterogeneous sample of 53 healthy subjects who had participated in a memory consolidation protocol and who varied in their self-reported recall of dreams and nightmares, we assessed overnight polysomnography, N2 sleep spindle density, REM dream word count, and retrospective estimates of how often they recall dreams, bad dreams (dysphoric dreams, no awakening), and nightmares (dysphoric dreams, with awakenings). Fast spindle density positively correlated with all measures of dream recall but was most robustly associated with bad dream recall and REM dream word count. Correlations with bad dream recall were particularly strong for spindles occurring in sleep cycles 2 and 3 and correlations with word count for cycles 1, 4, and 5. While slow spindle density showed opposite correlation...
Comparable studies
Other observational and cohort studies on 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 |
| Nightmare Prevalence, Nightmare Distress, and Self-Reported Psychological Disturbance Young adults with a mean age of 20 years | 2002 | Prospective observational study | n = 116 |
| Long-term effects of extreme situational stress on sleep and dreaming Survivors of traumatic events who complained of sleep disturbances, compared with... | 1987 | Case-control study | n = 11 |
| The relationship of nightmare frequency and nightmare distress to well‐being Adults who reported dreams | 2004 | Observational cohort | n = 147 |
| Dreaming in NREM Sleep: A High-Density EEG Study of Slow Waves and Spindles Healthy human subjects | 2018 | Observational cohort | n = 14 |
Citations in the library
Cited by 19
- Dreaming in NREM Sleep: A High-Density EEG Study of Slow Waves and Spindles Journal of Neuroscience September 10, 2018
- DREAM: A Dream EEG and Mentation database May 16, 2023
- Enhancing and advancing the understanding and study of dreaming and memory consolidation: Reflections, challenges, theoretical clarity, and methodological considerations Consciousness and Cognition June 27, 2024
- A dream EEG and mentation database. Nature Communications August 13, 2025
- Different Patterns of Sleep-Dependent Procedural Memory Consolidation in Vipassana Meditation Practitioners and Non-meditating Controls. Frontiers in Psychology January 23, 2020
and 14 more in the library
Cites 18
- Amygdala and hippocampus volumetry and diffusivity in relation to dreaming Human Brain Mapping August 25, 2010
- Practicing a Motor Task in a Lucid Dream Enhances Subsequent Performance: A Pilot Study The Sport Psychologist June 1, 2010
- Dream Recall: State or Trait Variable? Part I: Model, Theories, Methodology and Trait Factors Imagination, Cognition and Personality October 1, 1996
- Is sleep-dependent memory consolidation of a visuo-motor task related to dream content? heiDOK (Heidelberg University) 2010
- Infrequent dream recall associated with low performance but high overnight improvement on mirror-tracing. Journal of Sleep Research August 1, 2015
and 13 more in the library