Nightmare vs. Night Terrors
On the surface night terrors and nightmares appear to be pretty much the same, but there are important differences. Whereas nightmares torment the mind, night terrors affect both the mind and body. I’ve purposely dug deep into this topic, interpreting hundreds of nightmares and putting them side by side to night terrors of my own, and those who’ve suffered with this affliction for decades.
Night terrors are characterized by vocalizations and flailing of the dreamer during the first half of the dream cycle. They’re related to panic attacks and often cause dreamers to suddenly sit up and contort their faces with fear. When the dreamer experiences a nightmare, on the other hand, They experience psychological torment. They may overflow into the dreamer’s life with manifestations such as sleep paralysis.
The difference might appear negligible, but when you drill down the differences between the two, you begin to realize there’s something more sinister going on here.
One important way night terrors differ from nightmares is in their intensity. Night terrors are described as more fierce than their counterpart in that they affect the physical state of the dreamer, as well as their psychological and their emotional state. Night terrors are known to occur in about 40% of children in the U. S.and have such an impact that a number of those children often conclude things like “If this is what dreaming is about, I don’t ever want to dream again”. Who can blame them, night terrors are terrifying.
A long term of night terrors in children is they frequently make vows that shut down their dream life for decades in the future. I interact with hundred of dreamers every year and a number of those dreamers are quick to tell me they don’t dream anymore. They hadn’t dreamed in decades. Once I dig deeper I discover most of these dreamers experienced night terrors as children.
On the other hand, the dreamers who’ve had intense nightmares, the vow to dream again is lower. Most of the dreamers who’ve experienced nightmares tell me they’ve learned to live with them and simply accept them as a normal part of their dream life. In this way dreamers have deemed nightmares are more acceptable than night terrors.
The physical movements of night terrors aren’t confined to flail around in bed. Lots of dreamers sleepwalk as they’re having night terrors. As a sleepwalker I can confirm how this aspect can add terror to terror. When I was eleven I remember spending the night at with a friend who lived next door to me. I remember bits and pieces of a night terror that night, but what terrified me was when I woke up and found myself standing in the middle of my neighbor’s dark living room. I didn’t remember that I was spending the night and thought I broke in while I was out sleepwalking. This was terrifying because my friend next door had a dad who didn’t like me very much and I remember thinking how mad he was going to be when he discovered I was trespassing in his house. I quietly snuck out and went back home.
The next morning my friend and his parents panicked when they couldn’t find me. I hadn’t flailed around in bed as far as I knew, but I did sleep walk. My terror came when I awoke in an unfamiliar place. Not every night terror looks the same, although they consistently allow movement during sleep., terrorize and traumatize the dreamer.
Night terrors are closely associated with the first stages of sleep which allows dreamers to move around. One of the most prominent differences between night terrors and nightmares is that nightmares occur durning the REM stage of sleep and does not allow the dreamer to physically move.
Nightmares and Sleep Paralysis
If night terrors are known for flailing and sleepwalking, nightmares are known for sleep paralysis. Sleep paralysis doesn’t occur every single time a dreamer has a nightmare, but it happens often enough. I go into great detail explaining nightmares have with sleep paralysis in my blog __________.
Nightmares are a slow and steady terror. Most sleep paralysis episodes only last a few seconds, however, I’ve met dreamers who’ve experienced it for as long as ten to fifteen minutes. Why so long? My research into their dreamer’s waking lives and dream lives indicates they’re more open to dark and terrifying things. Openness to death and darkness creates a door of access a dreamer’s life. Close the door by getting rid of dark entertainment and it’ll shut off the authority darkness has to access your life.
How to get Rid of Nightmares and Night Terrors
Sleep scientists have made a number of breakthroughs understanding the specific differences between nightmares and night terrors, but they offer no explanation of their origin. One must understand the origin of these terrifying dreams to be able to get rid of them. The long and short of it is this pair of tormentors are weapons formed against the dreamers who have them.
Most children. have purpose dreams that will communicate their life callings at a young age. If a child suffer from night terrors or nightmares these purpose dreams get buried beneath fear and dread. If a child makes a vow of some sort regarding their dream life, their life purpose dreams risk being shut down with the rest of their dream life.
Here are some pragmatic steps you can take today to greatly decrease the torment in your dreams, if not get rid of it altogether.
Get intentional about your dream life. Ask for life giving dreams of light as your drifting off to sleep tonight.
Ask for all darkness to be dispelled from your dream life.
Ask for peace to be abundant in your dream life.
