It is not uncommon for people to have the same dream every night. People’s everyday encounters may be processed and integrated through dreams, and it is believed that meaningful events of a person’s life form the basis of their night-time visions. Recurring dreams happen during stressful situations or over extended periods of time. These dreams can repeat the same story night after night and also have a consistent theme. It is important to identify the causes behind this phenomenon before we look for ways to cope with it.
A study published in the Motivation and Emotion journal aimed to find the link between psychological need-based experiences and recurring dreams. In order to prove their hypothesis, the researchers took a two-pronged approach. In the first study, the team used a cross-sectional design to assess how these long-lasting experiences are reflected in dreams by looking at the relationship between general psychological need fulfilment and frustration and significant recurrent dreams. The second study, employed a diary design to investigate whether needs-based experiences throughout the day would appear in the following night’s dreams.
According to the results of the first study, those who experienced greater psychological dissatisfaction in their lives generally reported experiencing recurring dreams that had slightly more negative themes and higher levels of unpleasant emotions.
Interestingly, satisfaction of needs was not found to be related to positive dreams or emotions in individuals. The second study concluded that people reported having more negative emotions in their dreams on days when they were very upset. Additionally, people who were going through more psychological distress in their regular lives generally also recalled more unfavourable feelings in their dreams.
How to cope with recurring dreams:
- ExerciseRegular exercise makes people emotionally resilient and more equipped to handle stressful situations easily. It also seems to improve the quality of sleep. Relaxation techniques that have been proven to lower stress levels include breathing exercises, meditation and guided visualisations.
- Therapy and counsellingIf these dreams occur for a prolonged period, try discussing them with an expert who can use different dream interpretation techniques to help you unravel the mystery. These therapies can target the causes of your frustration and help you lead a better life.
- Sleep hygieneA good sleep routine can boost your productivity during the day and make you less frustrated and fatigued.
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