<ol><li>You forget 90% of your dreams.</li><li>Your dreams are like a mirror. They reflect your innermost feelings about the world and the people around you.</li><li>Psychology says, when a person appears in your dreams, they want to see you.</li><li>70% of our dreams contain secrets.</li><li>There is about a 52% chance that your dream come true.</li><li>People with higher IQ levels dream more than an average.</li><li>A study found that before finding a man of her dreams, the average woman will experience four disaster dates and two heartbreaks.</li></ol>

 7 Psychological Facts About DREAMS😴

Communication

<figure><picture class="css-16pk1is"><source srcset="https://i0.wp.com/post.healthline.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/Whale_Airplane_Clouds_1296x728-header-1296x728.jpg?w=1575 750w" media="(min-width: 1190px)"><source srcset="https://i0.wp.com/post.healthline.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/Whale_Airplane_Clouds_1296x728-header-1296x728.jpg?w=1575 750w" media="(min-width: 990px)"><source srcset="https://i0.wp.com/post.healthline.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/Whale_Airplane_Clouds_1296x728-header-1296x728.jpg?w=1845 879w" media="(min-width: 768px)"><img src="https://i0.wp.com/post.healthline.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/Whale_Airplane_Clouds_1296x728-header-1296x728.jpg?w=1155&amp;h=1528" alt="" width="690" height="388"></picture><figcaption dir="auto">Share on Pinterest</figcaption></figure><p>Whether you remember it or not, you dream every night. Sometimes they’re happy, other times sad, often bizarre, and if you’re lucky, you’ll get a sexy dream once in a while. </p><p dir="ltr">They’re a normal part of sleep — something we spend <hl-trusted-source source="PubMed Central" rationale="Highly respected database from the National Institutes of Health" dir="ltr"><a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21056174" rel="noopener noreferrer" dir="ltr">one-third</a></hl-trusted-source></p><p> of our life doing. While experts are still divided on what our dreams mean, research has given us some very eye-opening information about dreams.</p><p>Here are 45 surprising facts about dreams, ranging from interesting to the stuff of nightmares.</p><div><a name="how-we-dream">How we dream</a></div><h3>1. REM is the sweet spot</h3><p dir="ltr">Our most <a href="https://www.healthline.com/health/vivid-dreams-causes" dir="ltr">vivid dreams</a> happen during <a href="https://www.healthline.com/health/deep-sleep" dir="ltr">rapid eye movement (REM) sleep</a>, which happens in short episodes throughout the night about 90 to 120 minutes apart.</p><h3>2. Morning is better</h3><p>Longer dreams occur in the morning hours.</p><h3>3. Weekends help you remember</h3><p>You’re more likely to remember your dreams on weekends or days when you sleep in, because each episode of REM sleep is longer than the last. </p><h3>4. Your muscles are paralyzed</h3><p>Most of your muscles become paralyzed during REM sleep to prevent you from acting out your dreams.</p><h3>5. Pictures are most common</h3><p>We dream mostly in pictures, with the majority of dreams being mainly visual with little sound or movement.</p><h3>6. Recurring dreams have themes</h3><p>Recurring dreams in children are mostly about:</p><UL><LI>confrontations with animals or monsters</LI><LI>physical aggressions</LI><LI>falling</LI><LI>being chased</LI></UL><h3>7. We don’t all dream in color</h3><p dir="ltr">Around <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1053810008001323?via%3Dihub" rel="noopener noreferrer" dir="ltr">12 percent</a> of people dream in black and white.</p><div><a name="what-we-dream">What we dream</a></div><h3>8. Strange is normal</h3><p>Many of our dreams are strange because the part of the brain responsible for making sense of things shuts down during dreaming.</p><h3>9. Our day informs our dreams</h3><p>Most of our dreams are linked to thoughts or events from the previous day or two.</p><h3>10. Faces are familiar</h3><p dir="ltr">You likely only dream about faces you’ve already seen in person or on TV, according to <a href="https://neuroscience.stanford.edu/news/can-sleeping-brain-create-unique-people-waking-brain-has-never-seen" rel="noopener noreferrer" dir="ltr">Stanford University</a>.</p><h3>11. Low stress means happy dreams</h3><p>You’re more likely to have pleasant dreams if you’re experiencing low stress and feel satisfied in your real life.</p><div>HEALTHLINE CHALLENGE</div><div>Sponsored by</div><div>Build a routine for better sleep</div><p>Most of what affects your sleep happens when it’s still light. Learn healthy habits for superior shut-eye in our 12-day Clean Up Your Sleep Challenge.</p><div><button type="submit"><span><span>JOIN IN</span></span></button></div><div><a name="sex-dreams">Sex dreams</a></div><h3>12. Not everything is what it seems</h3><p dir="ltr"><a href="https://www.healthline.com/health/mens-health/morning-wood" dir="ltr">Morning wood</a> has nothing to do with sexy dreams or stimulation. Nocturnal penile tumescence causes men to have three to five erections every night, some lasting 30 minutes.</p><h3>13. Women can have wet dreams</h3><p dir="ltr">Men aren’t the only ones who have <a href="https://www.healthline.com/health/healthy-sex/wet-dreams" dir="ltr">wet dreams</a>. Women can release vaginal secretions from arousal and even <a href="https://www.healthline.com/health/healthy-sex/types-of-orgasms" dir="ltr">orgasm</a> when having a sexual dream.</p><h3>14. Sex dreams aren’t that common</h3><p dir="ltr">Approximately 4 percent of men and women’s dreams are about sex, according to <a href="https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/06/070614085118.htm" rel="noopener noreferrer" dir="ltr">research</a>.</p><h3>15. Sex dreams are usually about one thing</h3><p>Most sex-related dreams are about intercourse.</p><h3>16. Sleep position matters</h3><p>You’re more likely to dream about sex if you sleep facedown.</p><h3>17. This might also make you dream about other things</h3><p>Sleeping facedown isn’t just associated with more sex dreams, but also dreams about:</p><UL><LI>being locked up</LI><LI>hand tools</LI><LI>being naked</LI><LI>being smothered and unable to breathe</LI><LI>swimming</LI></UL><h3>18. Men dream about variety</h3><p>Men dream of sex with multiple partners two times more than women.</p><h3>19. Women dream about celebrities</h3><p dir="ltr">Women are twice as likely to have <a href="https://www.healthline.com/health/healthy-sex/sex-dreams" dir="ltr">sex dreams</a> about public figures compared to men.</p><h3>20. Sleep sex is real</h3><p dir="ltr"><a href="https://www.healthline.com/health/sleep-sex" dir="ltr">Sleep sex</a>, also called sexsomnia, is a sleep disorder much like sleep walking, except instead of walking, a person engages in sexual behavior like masturbation or intercourse while asleep.</p><div><a name="nightmares">Nightmares and other scary stuff</a></div><h3>21. Kids have more nightmares</h3><p dir="ltr"><a href="https://www.healthline.com/symptom/nightmares" dir="ltr">Nightmares</a> usually begin <a href="https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/articles/pediatric-nighttime-fears/nightmares" rel="noopener noreferrer" dir="ltr">between the ages of 3 and 6</a>, and decrease after the age of 10.</p><h3>22. Women are more prone to scary dreams</h3><p>Women have more nightmares than men during their teen and adult years.</p><h3>23. Nightmares occur at a similar time at night</h3><p>Nightmares occur most frequently in the last third of the night.</p><h3>24. You could have a condition</h3><p>If you have recurring nightmares that happen often enough and are distressing enough to impact your ability to function, you may have a condition called nightmare disorder.</p><h3>26. Your feelings come out in dreams</h3><p>For example, you’re more likely to experience negative dreams about a lost loved one if you’re suffering from post-traumatic symptoms, guilt, or blame over their death.</p><h3>27. The holidays can be rough</h3><p>Grief dreams, which are dreams about deceased loved ones, are more common during the holidays.</p><h3>28. Night terrors can be frightening</h3><p dir="ltr"><a href="https://www.healthline.com/health/night-terrors" dir="ltr">Night terrors</a> are episodes of intense fear, screaming, and even running around or acting aggressive while asleep.</p><h3>29. Children have them more frequently</h3><p dir="ltr">Almost <a href="https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/sleep-terrors/symptoms-causes/syc-20353524" rel="noopener noreferrer" dir="ltr">40 percent</a> of children have night terrors, though most outgrow them by their teens.</p><h3>30. Adults can still have them</h3><p dir="ltr">Around <a href="https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/12133-parasomnias--disruptive-sleep-disorders" rel="noopener noreferrer" dir="ltr">3 percent</a> of adults have night terrors.</p><h3>31. Eating late isn’t helpful</h3><p>Eating before bed makes nightmares more likely, because it increases your metabolism, signaling your brain to be more active.</p><h3>32. Medications play a role</h3><p>Certain medications, such as antidepressants and narcotics, increase the frequency of nightmares.</p><h3>33. Negative emotions take a toll</h3><p dir="ltr">Confusion, disgust, sadness, and guilt are more often the driving force behind nightmares than fear, according to <a href="https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2014-01/uom-udm012714.php" rel="noopener noreferrer" dir="ltr">research</a>.</p><div><a name="cool-facts">Random cool facts</a></div><h3>34. We all see things</h3><p>Blind people see images in their dreams.</p><h3>35. Fido dreams, too</h3><p>Everyone dreams, including pets.</p><h3>36. We are forgetful</h3><p dir="ltr">People forget <a href="https://www.sleep.org/articles/how-often-dreams/" rel="noopener noreferrer" dir="ltr">95 to 99 percent</a> of their dreams.</p><h3>37. We dream a lot</h3><p>People over the age of 10 have at least four to six dreams every night.</p><h3>38. We may be prophetic</h3><p>Some believe dreams can predict the future, though there isn’t enough evidence to prove it.</p><h3>39. We dwell on the negative</h3><p>Negative dreams are more common than positive ones.</p><h3>40. You may be able to control your dreams</h3><p dir="ltr">You may be able to learn to control your dreams by using <a href="https://www.healthline.com/health/healthy-sleep/how-to-lucid-dream" dir="ltr">techniques for lucid dreaming</a>.</p><h3>41. Sleep talking usually isn’t nice</h3><p dir="ltr">Swearing is a common occurrence in sleep talking, according to a <a href="https://academic.oup.com/sleep/article/40/11/zsx159/4345704" rel="noopener noreferrer" dir="ltr">2017 study</a>.</p><h3>42. Sudden muscle spasms aren’t your imagination</h3><p dir="ltr"><a href="https://www.healthline.com/health/hypnagogic-jerk" dir="ltr">Hypnic jerks</a> are strong, sudden jolts, or the feeling of falling that occurs just as you’re falling asleep.</p><h3>43. This may cause falling sensations</h3><p>Hypnic jerks may be the cause of dreams about falling, which is one of the most common dream themes.</p><h3>44. Tooth dreams could have a bigger meaning</h3><p>Dreams about your teeth falling out may be caused by undiagnosed dental irritation, like bruxism, rather than a premonition of death like old folklore suggests.</p><h3>45. By far the most mind-boggling fact of all</h3><p>Though they’ve been trying to figure it out since the beginning of time, researchers don’t know why we dream or what purpose it serves, if any.</p><div><a name="psychology-of-dreams">The psychology of dreams</a></div><p>Everyone, at one time or another, has wondered what their dreams mean. </p><p>Dreaming is the most extensively studied cognitive state. While some experts believe that dreams have no meaning and serve no function, others believe that our dreams do mean something. </p><p>A number of theories exist on what dreams mean, some of the more recognized theories include:</p><UL><LI><strong dir="ltr">Psychoanalytic theory.</strong> In this theory, dreams are believed to represent unconscious desires, wish fulfillment, and personal conflicts. Dreams give us a way to act out unconscious desires in the safety of an unreal setting, because acting them out in reality would be unacceptable.</LI><LI><strong dir="ltr">Activation-synthesis theory.</strong> Popularized in the 1970s, this theory suggests that dreams are just a byproduct of your brain trying to process random signals from your limbic system, which is involved in your memories, emotions, and sensations.</LI><LI><strong dir="ltr">Continual activation theory.</strong> This is the idea that our brains are continuously storing memories, even when we’re asleep. It suggests our dreams provide a place to hold our memories while they make the transition from our short-term memory to our long-term memory.</LI></UL><p>These barely begin to scratch the surface of dream interpretation theories. Here are some other interesting theories on the meaning of dreams:</p><UL><LI>Dreams are threat simulations that help prepare you when faced with threats in real life.</LI><LI>Dreams are your brain’s way of collecting and clearing out useless information from the day to make room for new information the next day.</LI><LI>Dreaming goes back to an evolutionary defense mechanism of playing dead to fool enemies. This explains why our bodies are paralyzed while dreaming, but our minds remain highly active. </LI></UL><div><a name="takeaway">The bottom line</a></div><p dir="ltr">Experts may not have any concrete answers as to <a href="https://www.healthline.com/health/why-do-we-dream" dir="ltr">why we dream</a> and what function dreams serve.</p><p>What we do know is that everyone dreams, and even our really strange dreams are perfectly normal. </p>

Everyone dreams each night, but we may not remember most of it. Many people have tried to figure out the meaning of dreams, and we've collected 45 interesting facts from that research.

Science

<p>Whether you remember it or not, you dream every night. Sometimes they’re happy, other times sad, often bizarre, and if you’re lucky, you’ll get a sexy dream once in a while. </p>

<p dir="ltr">They’re a normal part of sleep — something we spend <hl-trusted-source dir="ltr" rationale="Highly respected database from the National Institutes of Health" source="PubMed Central"><a dir="ltr" href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21056174" rel="noopener noreferrer">one-third </a> </hl-trusted-source> </p>

<p>of our life doing. While experts are still divided on what our dreams mean, research has given us some very eye-opening information about dreams. </p>

<p>Here are 45 surprising facts about dreams, ranging from interesting to the stuff of nightmares. </p>

<p dir="ltr">Our most <a dir="ltr" href="https://www.healthline.com/health/vivid-dreams-causes">vivid dreams </a>happen during <a dir="ltr" href="https://www.healthline.com/health/deep-sleep">rapid eye movement (REM) sleep </a>, which happens in short episodes throughout the night about 90 to 120 minutes apart. </p>

<p>Longer dreams occur in the morning hours. </p>

<p>You’re more likely to remember your dreams on weekends or days when you sleep in, because each episode of REM sleep is longer than the last. </p>

<p>Most of your muscles become paralyzed during REM sleep to prevent you from acting out your dreams. </p>

<p>We dream mostly in pictures, with the majority of dreams being mainly visual with little sound or movement. </p>

<p>Recurring dreams in children are mostly about: </p>

<ul><li>confrontations with animals or monsters </li><li>physical aggressions </li><li>falling </li><li>being chased </li> </ul>

<p dir="ltr">Around <a dir="ltr" href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1053810008001323?via%3Dihub" rel="noopener noreferrer">12 percent </a>of people dream in black and white. </p>

<p>Many of our dreams are strange because the part of the brain responsible for making sense of things shuts down during dreaming. </p>

<p>Most of our dreams are linked to thoughts or events from the previous day or two. </p>

<p dir="ltr">You likely only dream about faces you’ve already seen in person or on TV, according to <a dir="ltr" href="https://neuroscience.stanford.edu/news/can-sleeping-brain-create-unique-people-waking-brain-has-never-seen" rel="noopener noreferrer">Stanford University </a>. </p>

<p>You’re more likely to have pleasant dreams if you’re experiencing low stress and feel satisfied in your real life. </p>

<p>Most of what affects your sleep happens when it’s still light. Learn healthy habits for superior shut-eye in our 12-day Clean Up Your Sleep Challenge. </p>

<p dir="ltr"><a dir="ltr" href="https://www.healthline.com/health/mens-health/morning-wood">Morning wood </a>has nothing to do with sexy dreams or stimulation. Nocturnal penile tumescence causes men to have three to five erections every night, some lasting 30 minutes. </p>

<p dir="ltr">Men aren’t the only ones who have <a dir="ltr" href="https://www.healthline.com/health/healthy-sex/wet-dreams">wet dreams </a>. Women can release vaginal secretions from arousal and even <a dir="ltr" href="https://www.healthline.com/health/healthy-sex/types-of-orgasms">orgasm </a>when having a sexual dream. </p>

<p dir="ltr">Approximately 4 percent of men and women’s dreams are about sex, according to <a dir="ltr" href="https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/06/070614085118.htm" rel="noopener noreferrer">research </a>. </p>

15. Sex dreams are usually about one thing

<p>Most sex-related dreams are about intercourse. </p>

<p>You’re more likely to dream about sex if you sleep facedown. </p>

17. This might also make you dream about other things

<p>Sleeping facedown isn’t just associated with more sex dreams, but also dreams about: </p>

<ul><li>being locked up </li><li>hand tools </li><li>being naked </li><li>being smothered and unable to breathe </li><li>swimming </li> </ul>

<p>Men dream of sex with multiple partners two times more than women. </p>

<p dir="ltr">Women are twice as likely to have <a dir="ltr" href="https://www.healthline.com/health/healthy-sex/sex-dreams">sex dreams </a>about public figures compared to men. </p>

<p dir="ltr"><a dir="ltr" href="https://www.healthline.com/health/sleep-sex">Sleep sex </a>, also called sexsomnia, is a sleep disorder much like sleep walking, except instead of walking, a person engages in sexual behavior like masturbation or intercourse while asleep. </p>

<p dir="ltr"><a dir="ltr" href="https://www.healthline.com/symptom/nightmares">Nightmares </a>usually begin <a dir="ltr" href="https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/articles/pediatric-nighttime-fears/nightmares" rel="noopener noreferrer">between the ages of 3 and 6 </a>, and decrease after the age of 10. </p>

<p>Women have more nightmares than men during their teen and adult years. </p>

23. Nightmares occur at a similar time at night

<p>Nightmares occur most frequently in the last third of the night. </p>

<p>If you have recurring nightmares that happen often enough and are distressing enough to impact your ability to function, you may have a condition called nightmare disorder. </p>

<p>For example, you’re more likely to experience negative dreams about a lost loved one if you’re suffering from post-traumatic symptoms, guilt, or blame over their death. </p>

<p>Grief dreams, which are dreams about deceased loved ones, are more common during the holidays. </p>

<p dir="ltr"><a dir="ltr" href="https://www.healthline.com/health/night-terrors">Night terrors </a>are episodes of intense fear, screaming, and even running around or acting aggressive while asleep. </p>

<p dir="ltr">Almost <a dir="ltr" href="https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/sleep-terrors/symptoms-causes/syc-20353524" rel="noopener noreferrer">40 percent </a>of children have night terrors, though most outgrow them by their teens. </p>

<p dir="ltr">Around <a dir="ltr" href="https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/12133-parasomnias--disruptive-sleep-disorders" rel="noopener noreferrer">3 percent </a>of adults have night terrors. </p>

<p>Eating before bed makes nightmares more likely, because it increases your metabolism, signaling your brain to be more active. </p>

<p>Certain medications, such as antidepressants and narcotics, increase the frequency of nightmares. </p>

<p dir="ltr">Confusion, disgust, sadness, and guilt are more often the driving force behind nightmares than fear, according to <a dir="ltr" href="https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2014-01/uom-udm012714.php" rel="noopener noreferrer">research </a>. </p>

<p>Blind people see images in their dreams. </p>

<p dir="ltr">People forget <a dir="ltr" href="https://www.sleep.org/articles/how-often-dreams/" rel="noopener noreferrer">95 to 99 percent </a>of their dreams. </p>

<p>People over the age of 10 have at least four to six dreams every night. </p>

<p>Some believe dreams can predict the future, though there isn’t enough evidence to prove it. </p>

<p>Negative dreams are more common than positive ones. </p>

40. You may be able to control your dreams

<p dir="ltr">You may be able to learn to control your dreams by using <a dir="ltr" href="https://www.healthline.com/health/healthy-sleep/how-to-lucid-dream">techniques for lucid dreaming </a>. </p>

<p dir="ltr">Swearing is a common occurrence in sleep talking, according to a <a dir="ltr" href="https://academic.oup.com/sleep/article/40/11/zsx159/4345704" rel="noopener noreferrer">2017 study </a>. </p>

42. Sudden muscle spasms aren’t your imagination

<p dir="ltr"><a dir="ltr" href="https://www.healthline.com/health/hypnagogic-jerk">Hypnic jerks </a>are strong, sudden jolts, or the feeling of falling that occurs just as you’re falling asleep. </p>

<p>Hypnic jerks may be the cause of dreams about falling, which is one of the most common dream themes. </p>

44. Tooth dreams could have a bigger meaning

<p>Dreams about your teeth falling out may be caused by undiagnosed dental irritation, like bruxism, rather than a premonition of death like old folklore suggests. </p>

45. By far the most mind-boggling fact of all

<p>Though they’ve been trying to figure it out since the beginning of time, researchers don’t know why we dream or what purpose it serves, if any. </p>

<p>Everyone, at one time or another, has wondered what their dreams mean. </p>

<p>Dreaming is the most extensively studied cognitive state. While some experts believe that dreams have no meaning and serve no function, others believe that our dreams do mean something. </p>

<p>A number of theories exist on what dreams mean, some of the more recognized theories include: </p>

<ul><li><strong dir="ltr">Psychoanalytic theory. </strong>In this theory, dreams are believed to represent unconscious desires, wish fulfillment, and personal conflicts. Dreams give us a way to act out unconscious desires in the safety of an unreal setting, because acting them out in reality would be unacceptable. </li><li><strong dir="ltr">Activation-synthesis theory. </strong>Popularized in the 1970s, this theory suggests that dreams are just a byproduct of your brain trying to process random signals from your limbic system, which is involved in your memories, emotions, and sensations. </li><li><strong dir="ltr">Continual activation theory. </strong>This is the idea that our brains are continuously storing memories, even when we’re asleep. It suggests our dreams provide a place to hold our memories while they make the transition from our short-term memory to our long-term memory. </li> </ul>

7 Psychological Facts About DREAMS😴

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