Free nightmare hotline still active

Halloween in the USA: basically it’s a nationwide sugar rush and an good excuse to dress up in a sexy costume. But don’t forget the origins of the holiday – that’s some scary stuff. Turn on the tube tonight and you”re likely to see more than your fair share of slasher flicks too. So whether or not you consciously subscribe to the idea that the boundary between the living and the dead is flimsier than usual tonight, horror is “in the air.”

Times like this, it’s good to remember that the Int”l Association for the Study of Dreams still offers its free nightmare hotline. This service is staffed by professionals with decades of experience with frightening dreams and nightmares.

Here’s what the IASD suggests before making the call:

Nightmares and their associated feelings are normal reactions to non-normal, traumatic events. The Nightmare Response Line’s experienced dreamworkers offer debriefing, not counseling.

Research shows that a conscious focus on nightmares once they”ve occurred (just telling them to someone) can speed up coming to grips with the trauma and have a positive effect on an individual’s well being. Under “nightmares,” Cyberdreamwork loosely classify all dreams with strong overtones of fear, devastation, overwhelming shame, guilt, humiliation, or mutilation, as well as dreams of falling, burning, and so on. Calling the hotline, you’ll have the opportunity to tell your nightmare safely and anonymously.

Trick or treat!