How dreaming boosts our mind (3 benefits, explained)

Also known as 3 plausible methods to convince your parents to allow you to sleep in on a Saturday afternoon.

By Kaitlyn Liu

If one could wage a war with merely the eyes, then you’d be fighting a battle to the death with the pristine sheet of paper resting inconspicuously on the desk. Your hands tremble as you lift the corner of the report card—the simple, yet formidable document that could dictate your fate with a single letter—and turn it over.

And then you’re falling—swallowed up by the ground and plummeting into an endless abyss. A monstrous figment of your imagination lunges after you, its distorted figure seemingly an embodiment of your every childhood fear. And just as the creature’s ravenous jaws are about to close on you…

You wake up.

What Are Dreams?

Now that I’ve caught your attention with my delightful example of a dream sequence, it’s time to dive into the question of “What are dreams?” Unfortunately, dreams are not jellybean-looking people acting out a script under a reality filter like in the Disney film Inside Out. Despite how intriguing that portrayal is, dreams are actually stories that our mind conjures up while we sleep.

The most vivid dreams occur during a phase of sleep known as REM sleep. This stage occurs during the final hours of sleep and it is when brain activity has reached its highest; the dreams we recall after waking up are the ones that occur during this phase.

While there has been extensive research regarding the benefits of sleep, there are yet to be studies depicting the role of dreams. Some scientists believe that dreams are but a byproduct of sleep, especially considering its nonsensical nature. However, others have found that dreams do, in fact, have a multitude of benefits.

1. Dreams are therapeutic

There’s no need to spend money on therapy sessions when sleep exists.

According to Matthew Walker, a Professor of Neuroscience and Psychology at the University of California and author of the book, Why We Sleep, “dreaming is like overnight therapy.” His research shows that REM sleep is the only phase of sleep where the brain does not produce noradrenaline, a hormone that induces anxiety. REM sleep reactivates emotion and memory-related structures in the brain; therefore, with the absence of noradrenaline, it allows us to “re-process upsetting memories in a safer, calmer environment.”

2. Dreams help you solve problems

Many famous inventors and authors attribute their works to dreams. After all, dreams consist of an unpredictable nature that elicits ideas one may not formulate during waking hours.

A study conducted by several Harvard University students revealed that dreaming plays a role in creative problem-solving. In the experiment, volunteers navigated a virtual maze through trial and error—once before and another time after a short break. As expected, the individuals who slept during the break were significantly better at solving a maze than those who did not. However, interestingly enough, the volunteers who reported dreaming about the maze performed 10 times better at their task than those who slept and did not dream.

Therefore, when someone tells you to “sleep on it,” just remember that there is actual science behind that expression.

3. Dreams train you for fight-or-flight situations

How often do you dream of sunshine and rainbows and cotton candy clouds? In most instances, dreams contain negative emotions. While waking up to a palpitating heart and a sudden fear of going to the bathroom at night may be undesirable, these sorts of dreams may actually prime our minds to cope with real-life threats.

The amygdala is among the emotional structures in the brain that are reactivated during REM sleep. It is often associated with survival instincts and the fight-or-flight response. Therefore, as counterintuitive as it may seem, dreams that contain negative emotions can help prepare us for real-life situations.

If you’re running away from zombies in your nightmares, you can take it as training for a future Resident Zero apocalypse.

The Takeaway?

Sleep lots, kids.

We often convince ourselves that we are superior to sleep. But in reality, without a proper 8 hours, we lose out on the advantages of entering our dream state. So the next time you find yourself fighting an excruciating mental war with your finger hovering over the “next episode” button, put the hand down and consider diving under your covers.

… Or alternatively, share this article and convince your parents to let you sleep in on weekends.