The Alarming Nightmare-Suicide Link: Review just published
In my continuing bid to get the word out about the alarming link between frequent nightmares and increased suicide risk, I wrote a review paper that was just published. In it, I cover the growing body of research documenting evidence of this strong connection. I also explore the potential mechanisms at work that make nightmare
Dreams and Psychedelics: Similarities and potential therapeutic benefits
Research into the therapeutic potential of psychedelic (serotonergic) substances is experiencing a resurgence after lying dormant in North America for more than 50 years. Early research suggests these once-vilified substances show great promise in treating depression, anxiety, alcohol addiction, and potentially many other challenging conditions. This emerging area is ripe for the use of dreamwork
With AI flooding the world with all kinds of applications, of course there are now several AI apps on the market for recording and interpreting dreams – my current favorites are Elsewhere and Temenos. Some of the questions that immediately arise: Does AI do a good job with helping us explore our dreams? What are
REM Rebound: Dream Intensification in Early Recovery in NOT a Bad Sign
The road to recovery from addiction has many challenges, but the intensification of dreams does not have to be one of them. The return of one’s dreams is normal, a good sign, and can be an ally in processing the upwelling of emotion that occurs during the recovery process. Those who vow abstain from using
Dream to remember, dream to forget, dream to feel better…
Dreaming after an emotional experience might help us feel better in the morning Although dreaming has been implicated in the consolidation of memories, it seems we also dream to forget. In a similar way that sleep has been shown to clean our brains of clutter, a recent study supports the notion that dreaming helps us
Trauma-Related Nightmare Type Linked to Higher Suicide Risk
Adding to the robust literature linking nightmares to suicide risk, a new study offers an important distinction for clinicians: of the 3 nightmare types identified by researchers, only trauma-related nightmares are linked to a greater risk of suicide (Youngren et al., 2024). Idiopathic and complex nightmares (comorbid with sleep and breathing problems) do not lead
Feel into the dream images to arrive at your own answers Yes, you read that correctly. So many people come to me with a dream image or story and want an immediate answer to the question: what does it mean? It’s natural to want to know this because dream images are often so strange and
Dream Program Doubles Confidence in Working with Dreams
The reviews are in! Those who just completed the year-long Embodied Experiential Dreamwork program last year said their confidence in tending dreams is now at 8 out of 10 – up from a class average of 3.7 at the start of the program. If you are considering taking this program, you may be interested in
Sleep Paralysis… curse or blessing?
A first encounter with sleep paralysis (SP) is usually terrifying. But for those who experience it often and learn to stay calm, it can be entryway to lucid dreaming and extraordinary states. Ryan Hurd, a sleep paralysis expert, has experienced hundreds of episodes himself and offers a road map for those who experience it. The