by Yuri Bacas Hosaka

- a succession of images, thoughts, or emotions passing through the mind during sleep
- an aspiration; goal; aim
- a wild or vain fancy
- something of an unreal beauty, charm, or excellence
- someone of something wonderful

The Sleep Cycle
One sleep cycle comprises of four stages and last between 1 1/2 - 2 hours.

Dreams can occur in any of the four stages of sleep but the most vivid and memorable dreams occur in the last stage of sleep (also referred to as REM sleep, which stands for Rapid Eye Movement, because your eyes move rapidly back and forth under the eyelids).

The Stages of Sleep

Stage 1:
You are entering into light sleep. This stage is characterized by Non-rapid eye movements (NREM), muscle relaxation, lowered body temperature and slowed heart rate. The body is preparing to enter into deep sleep.

Stage 2:
Also characterized by NREM, this stage is characterized by a further drop in body temperature and relaxation of the muscles. The body's immune system goes to work on repairing the day's damage, the endocrine glands secrete grown hormone and blood is sent to the muscles to be reconditioned. In this stage, you are completely asleep.

Stage 3:
Still in the NREM stage, this is a deeper sleep still. Your metabolic levels are extremely slow.

Stage 4:
In this stage of sleep, your eyes move back and forth erratically. Referred to as REM sleep or delta sleep, this stage occurs at about 90-100 minutes after the onset of sleep. Your blood pressure rises, heart rate speeds up, respiration becomes erratic and brain activity increases. Your involuntary muscles also become paralyzed. This stage is the most restorative part of sleep. Your mind is being revitalized and emotions is being fine tuned. The majority of your dreaming occurs in this stage.

These stages repeat themselves throughout a night's sleep.

Research have shown that people who are deprived from entering the dream phase of sleep (i.e. REM stage), exhibit symptoms of irritability and anxiety. Some researchers believe that dreams help us tackle stress. It is clear that dreaming help recharge the mind and revitalize the body. Dreaming is a necessity.

- Apparently, there are a diverse number of dream types* -

Dream facts*
1. One-third of your lives is spent sleeping.

2. In an average lifetime, you would have spend about six years of it dreaming.

3. Back in the Roman Era, striking and significant dreams were submitted to the Senate for analysis & interpretation.

4. Everybody dreams. EVERYBODY! Simply because you do not remember your dream does not mean that you did not dream.

5. Dreams are indispensable. A lack of dream activity can mean protein deficiency or a personality disorder.

6. We dream on average of one or two hours every night. And we often even have 4-7 dreams in one night.

7. Blind people do dream. Whether visual images will appear in their dream depends on whether they where blind at birth or became blind later in life. But vision is not the only sense that constitutes a dream. Sounds, tactility, and smell become hypersensitive for the blind and their dreams are based on these senses.

8. Five minutes after the end of the dream, half the content is forgotten. After ten minutes, 90% is lost.

9. The word dream stems from the Middle English word, dreme which means "joy" and "music".

10. Men tend to dream more about other men, while women dream equally about men and women.

11. Studies have shown that our brain waves are more active when we are dreaming than when we are awake.

12. Dreamers who are awakened right after REM sleep, are able to recall their dreams more vividly than those who slept through the night until morning.

13. Physiologically speaking, researchers found that during dreaming REM sleep, males experience erections and females experience increased vaginal blood flow - no matter what the content of the dream. In fact, "wet dreams" may not necessarily coincide with overtly sexual dream content.

14. People who are giving up smoking have longer and more intense dreams.

15. Toddlers do not dream about themselves. They do not appear in their own dreams until the age of 3 or 4.

16. If you are snoring, then you cannot be dreaming.

17. Nightmares are common in children, typically beginning at around age 3 and occurring up to age 7-8.

Wanna remember your dreams?*
Remembering your dreams will require some effort on your part. But what your dreams can offer and tell you about yourself will be well worth it.

Here are some tips in helping your dream recall:

1. Before going to bed, keep a clear mind. Tell yourself that "I will remember my dream when I wake up". This is actually a proven and effective way to help dream recall. Having too many thoughts on your mind can distract you from remembering your dream in the morning.

2. Have a regular bedtime and wake up time. Make this your routine. Going to bed and waking up at a regular time every day aids in dream recollection.

3. Avoid alcohol consumption and taking medication before going to bed. These things may hinder you from remembering your dream. Eating fatty foods too close to bedtime can also divert bodily resources away from the brain and hinder dream recollection.

4. Keep a pencil/notebook or tape recorder next to your bed so that it will be within reach as soon as you wake up. You want to make recording your dreams as easy a task as possible.

5. Do not get out of bed immediately. (I like this one!!) Upon waking from a dream, lay still in your bed, keeping your eyes closed and moving as little as possible. Wake up slowly and stay relax. Hold on to the feelings you have and let your mind wander to the images of what you have just dreamt. Were you frustrated, terrified, or happy?

6. Write down as many details in your dream as you can, no matter how minute or seemingly unimportant it may be. Do not judge the content or worry if it makes sense. The idea is to get it down on paper so you can evaluate it later. Make it a habit that this is the first thing you do.

7. Sometimes it may help to draw pictures. Even if you are not an artist a simple drawing can help to jolt details of your dream.

8. Keep a consistent dream format. Date your dreams.

9. Write down every possible details of you dream. Location, colours, sounds, objects, characters, and your emotions are all important aspects of your dream. You may want to ask yourself the following questions.

· What are the significant images or symbols in your dream?
· Where was the dream located?
· How did the dream make you feel? What was your mood when you first woke up from the dream?
· How does your dream parallel a situation or experience in your waking life?

10. After you have recorded your dream, make a little footnote on any major concerns or issues that are going on in your waking life. As your journaling grows, you will hopefully see a correlation and pattern between your dream and reality.

- And.. if you want to understand your dreams better, go to the dream dictionary

* Sources: wikipedia & dreammoods.com

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