Dreams

According to what I have recently read, we don't yet fully understand the purpose of sleep or the functions of rapid eye movement (REM) sleep when most dreaming happens. 

Dr.  J. Allan Hobson believes that dreams are physiological rather than psychological, and in REM sleep the brain is activated and "warming up" in anticipation of the sights, sounds and emotions upon waking. While dreams may serve a psychological function; since they sometimes reflect a person's problems, anxieties and hopes; one should not read to much into them. Research on lucid dreams suggests that only 20% of dreams are about people or places the dreamer knows.

Many theories have been proposed, and some scientists believe that dreaming is essential to mental, emotional and physical health. It has long been thought that dreams have psychological functions, such as consolidating emotional memories, processing experiences and working out problems.  

Another theory postulates that dreams are the result of our brains trying to de-clutter our mind, freeing up space for the next day.  

I thought it might be interesting to see if my dreams had anything to say to me. The trouble is, I rarely remember my dreams. So, in the event that I wake up with a dream still in my conscious, I have placed a pen, small notebook and flashlight next to my bed so that I can record it before it disappears. 











 While some scientists believe that dreaming has no function, the Contemporary Theory of Dreaming feels that whilw dreaming, "activation patterns are shifting and connections are being made and unmade constantly in our brains, forming the physical basis for our minds. There is a whole continuum in the making of connections that we subsequently experience as mental functioning. ... the process is not random, however, and that it is instead guided by the emotions of the dreamer. When one clear-cut emotion is present, dreams are often very simple. Thus people who experience trauma -- such as an escape from a burning buiding