• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Dream Studies Portal

Dream research, lucid dreaming, and consciousness studies

Search

Search for:
  • Dream Studies Academy
  • Lucid Talisman Book
  • Interviews & Press
  • About
  • Contact
You are here: Home / Working with Dreams / Nightmares & Dream Terrors / Babies and Nightmares: New Research Findings

Babies and Nightmares: New Research Findings

By Ryan Hurd

Canadian dream researchers have confirmed a link between babies” personalities and their nightmare frequency later in childhood, as reported in the January 1, 2008 issue of the journal Sleep. In general, anxious babies are more likely to continue having bad dreams and nightmares as they reach preschool age.

This study backs up Ernest Hartmann‘s research with nightmares; over twenty years ago Hartmann catagorized nightmare sufferers not as neurotic people, but people with “thinner boundaries.” Interestingly, Hartmann has also suggested that nightmare sufferers are more likely to be creative and artistic people as well. The Canadian research, led by Dr. Tore Nielsen, combined with Hartmann’s widely approved findings, basically pushes the inception of anxiety and thinner boundaries (and possibly creativity along with it) back into early infancy.

Nielsen gave some helpful hints for parents who want to lessen the likelihood that their colicky baby will be plagued by bad dreams throughout their childhood. From the Reuters Health article by Amy Norton, Nielsen suggests:

“A good starting point would be to improve children’s early bonding, or “secure attachment,” with their parents. For older children who are having distressing dreams, Nielsen said he and his colleagues have found that having the children “draw the dream” and share it with their parents can be helpful.”

By the way, Nielsen is the keynote speaker this summer at the annual conference for the International Study of Dreams in Montreal.

Further reading:

Interview with Dr. Ernest Hartmann

More dream research by Dr. Tore Nielsen

Filed Under: Nightmares & Dream Terrors Tagged With: Nightmares & Dream Terrors

Download my free ebook and revitalize your dream life in less than a week!

Success! Now check your email to confirm your subscription.

There was an error submitting your subscription. Please try again.

Powered by ConvertKit

Primary Sidebar

Download my free ebook Enhance your Dream Life

Subscribe to the newsletter and instantly receive my ebook that has helped thousands sleep better and remember more dreams

Success! Now check your email to confirm your subscription.

There was an error submitting your subscription. Please try again.

Powered by ConvertKit

Brand new!

The Relic is back in stock

Lucid Talisman, the moon side with cosmic tree, reads Are You Dreaming?

My best selling book

Categories

Recent Posts

  • Dreaming of Fairies and Connecting to the Ecological Self
  • Dream Journaling is Mindfulness
  • Trauma in Drag: Dreams of LGBTQ+ Youth
  • 8 Common Signposts for Identifying Health-Related Dreams
  • Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door: The Line Between Realities
  • Lucidity is not the same as Dream Control
  • 2022 Year in review: Renewal

Search

Search for:

Copyright © 2023 Ryan Hurd  WordPress · Log in