The importance of dreams
Psychologist and sleep expert Dr Rubin Naiman has been highlighting the importance of dreams in an article on Times Online.
Modern, busy lifestyles means it has become harder for people to dream. Light and noise pollution, and even taking sleeping pills can stop the rapid eye movement which helps stimulate dreams.
Dr Naiman says that dreams are important for maintaining a healthy mind and processing thoughts. Not doing this can mean struggling to deal with major life events, such as a death.
He said: “An essential function of dreaming is psychological stretching, a kind of yoga for the soul: gently expanding, releasing, opening, and softening. Like stretching a muscle, a dream can release emotional pain, tightness from earlier in the day – or even hurt from childhood. Dreaming provides “a poetic cushion” for our sharply literal lives.”