1 00:00:04,440 --> 00:00:09,280 Speaker 1: Hello everybody, and welcome back to the Psychology of Your Twenties, 2 00:00:09,920 --> 00:00:12,280 Speaker 1: the podcast where we talk through some of the big 3 00:00:12,520 --> 00:00:16,880 Speaker 1: life changes and transitions of our twenties and what they 4 00:00:16,960 --> 00:00:26,720 Speaker 1: mean for our psychology. Hello everybody, Welcome back to the show. 5 00:00:27,000 --> 00:00:31,320 Speaker 1: Welcome back to the podcast. New listeners, old listeners, wherever 6 00:00:31,360 --> 00:00:34,160 Speaker 1: you are in the world, Thanks for tuning in. It's 7 00:00:34,159 --> 00:00:37,680 Speaker 1: so great to have you here. Today. We're going to 8 00:00:38,040 --> 00:00:40,800 Speaker 1: cover a topic that's a little bit different from our 9 00:00:41,000 --> 00:00:45,080 Speaker 1: usual content on this show, less relatable to our twenties, 10 00:00:45,240 --> 00:00:49,440 Speaker 1: more of the psychology. But I know that you all 11 00:00:49,680 --> 00:00:53,519 Speaker 1: enjoy some of my more science based episodes, so if 12 00:00:53,560 --> 00:00:56,000 Speaker 1: you are one of those people, this one is for you. 13 00:00:56,720 --> 00:01:00,840 Speaker 1: We're going to be talking about the psychology of dreams 14 00:01:00,880 --> 00:01:04,959 Speaker 1: and daydreaming, where our mind tends to go when we 15 00:01:05,000 --> 00:01:08,640 Speaker 1: are both asleep and awake and really dig deep into 16 00:01:08,959 --> 00:01:12,280 Speaker 1: what exactly goes on inside our brains when we enter 17 00:01:12,360 --> 00:01:18,720 Speaker 1: this nice, cozy fantasy space. Dreams are like this massive metaphor, 18 00:01:18,760 --> 00:01:21,800 Speaker 1: I think, and this massive concept in our lives. They 19 00:01:21,880 --> 00:01:25,080 Speaker 1: show up in music, in literature, in art, in movies 20 00:01:25,240 --> 00:01:31,039 Speaker 1: all the time as this incredible imaginative landscape and symbol 21 00:01:31,160 --> 00:01:37,440 Speaker 1: and metaphor, but surprisingly very little is actually known. Very 22 00:01:37,480 --> 00:01:40,800 Speaker 1: little is known about dreams, and this topic has been 23 00:01:40,840 --> 00:01:42,920 Speaker 1: on my list for a while, but it just kind 24 00:01:42,920 --> 00:01:46,759 Speaker 1: of keeps getting buried amongst some of the more relevant 25 00:01:46,760 --> 00:01:49,280 Speaker 1: things that have been going on in my life. However, 26 00:01:49,440 --> 00:01:52,360 Speaker 1: today is the day that we get into it and 27 00:01:52,400 --> 00:01:55,800 Speaker 1: we give it its time in the sun. Dreams are 28 00:01:55,840 --> 00:01:58,320 Speaker 1: a really interesting concept to me, but also a really 29 00:01:58,320 --> 00:02:03,480 Speaker 1: interesting concept in psycholog because a not much is known, 30 00:02:03,960 --> 00:02:08,200 Speaker 1: but b there are so many schools of thought. Some 31 00:02:08,600 --> 00:02:12,639 Speaker 1: say that dreams are our brain's way of sorting through information, 32 00:02:13,520 --> 00:02:18,400 Speaker 1: of consolidating our memories. Others say that it's our subconscious 33 00:02:18,480 --> 00:02:22,040 Speaker 1: coming to the surface. And there are some other really 34 00:02:22,320 --> 00:02:28,320 Speaker 1: weird pseudoscientific theories about future telling about what our dreams 35 00:02:28,360 --> 00:02:31,520 Speaker 1: can tell us about what we're thinking about and our 36 00:02:31,600 --> 00:02:35,800 Speaker 1: repressed desires and what's going to happen to us. Ancient civilizations, 37 00:02:35,800 --> 00:02:40,840 Speaker 1: they used to think that dreams contained like certain prophecies, 38 00:02:41,560 --> 00:02:44,840 Speaker 1: and it was Freud who came up with the idea 39 00:02:44,960 --> 00:02:49,520 Speaker 1: that they are really our repressed desires coming to the surface. 40 00:02:49,720 --> 00:02:54,760 Speaker 1: So some of these theories are obviously more valid than others. 41 00:02:55,400 --> 00:02:59,680 Speaker 1: But what's also fascinating is how scientists and researchers have 42 00:02:59,800 --> 00:03:04,320 Speaker 1: learned to study our dreams. We obviously cannot peer into 43 00:03:04,400 --> 00:03:09,080 Speaker 1: someone's unconscious mind and watch their dreams from a computer screen, 44 00:03:09,120 --> 00:03:12,920 Speaker 1: at least not yet anyways, So a huge amount of 45 00:03:12,960 --> 00:03:18,920 Speaker 1: this research is based on subjective reporting from basically asking 46 00:03:18,960 --> 00:03:22,560 Speaker 1: people what do you remember? And then people have slowly 47 00:03:22,720 --> 00:03:26,120 Speaker 1: begun using things like MRI machines and tracking our I 48 00:03:26,360 --> 00:03:30,840 Speaker 1: movements and eeg. But even then, there are so many 49 00:03:30,919 --> 00:03:35,280 Speaker 1: unanswered questions, and they have found that everyone dreams, which 50 00:03:35,360 --> 00:03:38,960 Speaker 1: is why this topic I think will be universally accepted 51 00:03:39,000 --> 00:03:42,720 Speaker 1: and loved and interesting and a few different things kind 52 00:03:42,760 --> 00:03:45,760 Speaker 1: of go on in our brain when this happens, which 53 00:03:45,800 --> 00:03:48,800 Speaker 1: I really want to touch on today. Some of those 54 00:03:48,800 --> 00:03:52,000 Speaker 1: big questions still remain unanswered. We're going to do our 55 00:03:52,040 --> 00:03:55,600 Speaker 1: best to answer them today. Why do we dream? Why 56 00:03:55,680 --> 00:04:00,160 Speaker 1: are everyone's dreams different? Why are they so illogical? What 57 00:04:00,240 --> 00:04:03,680 Speaker 1: can they tell us about reality? And what is the 58 00:04:03,800 --> 00:04:07,680 Speaker 1: deal with nightmares and lucid dreaming. We are going to 59 00:04:07,800 --> 00:04:11,320 Speaker 1: explore all of that today, starting in the brain, working 60 00:04:11,400 --> 00:04:15,520 Speaker 1: our way into our subconscious and out towards some of 61 00:04:15,560 --> 00:04:18,400 Speaker 1: the major theories. We are also going to cover the 62 00:04:18,480 --> 00:04:22,240 Speaker 1: role of daydreaming as a little kind of side quest, 63 00:04:22,279 --> 00:04:25,640 Speaker 1: a little bit of a bonus bonus episode within an episode. 64 00:04:26,200 --> 00:04:30,480 Speaker 1: And although daydreaming isn't technically dreaming because we are awake, 65 00:04:30,920 --> 00:04:34,960 Speaker 1: it's still incredibly important to cover and I think equally fascinating. 66 00:04:35,440 --> 00:04:37,240 Speaker 1: I'm going to pop a little study in here, but 67 00:04:38,160 --> 00:04:40,800 Speaker 1: there have been particular studies that have shown that we 68 00:04:40,880 --> 00:04:45,880 Speaker 1: spend up to forty seven percent of our time awake daydreaming, 69 00:04:46,160 --> 00:04:49,320 Speaker 1: So let's try and account for what actually goes on 70 00:04:49,480 --> 00:04:52,560 Speaker 1: during that time, because it's a massive portion of our 71 00:04:52,640 --> 00:04:55,719 Speaker 1: waking hours, So what's going on there. I've also been 72 00:04:55,760 --> 00:05:00,720 Speaker 1: seeing this idea of maladaptive daydreaming all over my for 73 00:05:00,880 --> 00:05:04,560 Speaker 1: you pages recently, and I'm so fascinated by it. It's 74 00:05:04,600 --> 00:05:08,480 Speaker 1: definitely something I've succumbed to in the past, so why 75 00:05:08,520 --> 00:05:12,360 Speaker 1: not talk about it, particularly the role of daydreaming as 76 00:05:12,400 --> 00:05:17,599 Speaker 1: a form of escapism without further ado, let's jump into 77 00:05:17,640 --> 00:05:23,720 Speaker 1: the psychology and the science behind why we dream, including 78 00:05:24,240 --> 00:05:34,600 Speaker 1: the unknown role and interesting role of daydreaming. Even if 79 00:05:34,640 --> 00:05:37,400 Speaker 1: you don't remember your dreams or you think that you 80 00:05:37,440 --> 00:05:41,640 Speaker 1: don't dream, the chances are that at some stage, whilst 81 00:05:41,680 --> 00:05:46,599 Speaker 1: you're asleep, your brain has fallen into this imaginative fantasy 82 00:05:46,640 --> 00:05:50,240 Speaker 1: state at least three or more times, and most of 83 00:05:50,279 --> 00:05:55,240 Speaker 1: these distinct dreams last for like five to twenty minutes. 84 00:05:55,360 --> 00:05:59,480 Speaker 1: And the reason behind why this occurs has a lot 85 00:05:59,520 --> 00:06:03,600 Speaker 1: to do with both our psychology and our neurology. Dreams 86 00:06:03,760 --> 00:06:07,880 Speaker 1: they are essentially an involuntary hallucination that occurs when our 87 00:06:07,920 --> 00:06:11,560 Speaker 1: brains are recharging and resting, and they of course exist 88 00:06:11,640 --> 00:06:14,839 Speaker 1: on a spectrum. Some of our dreams can be incredibly 89 00:06:14,920 --> 00:06:18,600 Speaker 1: pleasant and sweet, and on the other hand, we have 90 00:06:18,640 --> 00:06:24,159 Speaker 1: people who are haunted by constant nightmares. Regardless of the 91 00:06:24,240 --> 00:06:28,400 Speaker 1: content of your dreams, the same process actually occurs. So 92 00:06:29,080 --> 00:06:34,200 Speaker 1: in general, our brain goes through four main stages of sleep, 93 00:06:34,680 --> 00:06:37,839 Speaker 1: and the main distinction between the first three stages and 94 00:06:37,920 --> 00:06:42,160 Speaker 1: the final stage, which is when dreaming occurs, is actually 95 00:06:42,200 --> 00:06:46,520 Speaker 1: determined by what our eyes are doing. That may seem 96 00:06:46,680 --> 00:06:49,200 Speaker 1: a little bit strange that our eyes have something to 97 00:06:49,279 --> 00:06:50,960 Speaker 1: do with this, but let me explain it a little 98 00:06:51,000 --> 00:06:55,200 Speaker 1: bit further. So stage one to three of sleep they 99 00:06:55,240 --> 00:06:59,000 Speaker 1: are all characterized by no eye movement. So beginning at 100 00:06:59,040 --> 00:07:01,960 Speaker 1: stage one, this only lasts like five to ten minutes. 101 00:07:02,000 --> 00:07:06,760 Speaker 1: It's that like weird transition period between wakefulness and sleep, 102 00:07:07,240 --> 00:07:09,960 Speaker 1: and then we move into stage two, where I think 103 00:07:10,040 --> 00:07:14,360 Speaker 1: sleep like technically begins. Our brains begin to slow down, 104 00:07:14,920 --> 00:07:18,600 Speaker 1: our heart rate slows down, our body temperature drops, and 105 00:07:18,840 --> 00:07:23,200 Speaker 1: our brain starts to produce these really short bursts of 106 00:07:23,320 --> 00:07:26,640 Speaker 1: rapid activity as it shuts down. And the next stage, 107 00:07:26,840 --> 00:07:31,360 Speaker 1: stage three. This is where our deepest sleep occurs. This 108 00:07:31,400 --> 00:07:34,160 Speaker 1: is where our body repairs itself and it is the 109 00:07:34,160 --> 00:07:37,640 Speaker 1: most crucial component of our sleep when we talk and 110 00:07:37,680 --> 00:07:41,280 Speaker 1: we think about the body repairing itself and the mind 111 00:07:41,440 --> 00:07:46,679 Speaker 1: regenerating itself. But stage four is where all the action 112 00:07:46,920 --> 00:07:50,360 Speaker 1: is really going on. This is the show stopper. Our 113 00:07:50,520 --> 00:07:53,880 Speaker 1: eyes they begin to move rapidly, which is why it's 114 00:07:53,920 --> 00:07:57,000 Speaker 1: also known as rapid eye movement. Sleep rem for short, 115 00:07:57,440 --> 00:08:02,320 Speaker 1: and our brain activity most close resembles our activity during 116 00:08:02,520 --> 00:08:07,240 Speaker 1: waking hours because of course, this is where our dreams occur. 117 00:08:07,360 --> 00:08:10,720 Speaker 1: So we've gone through this, these previous stages of our 118 00:08:10,880 --> 00:08:13,800 Speaker 1: brain and our body shutting down, but then when we 119 00:08:13,840 --> 00:08:18,400 Speaker 1: reach stage four rem sleep, everything fires back up, except 120 00:08:18,440 --> 00:08:21,720 Speaker 1: for our muscles actually, which become entirely paralyzed, which I 121 00:08:21,800 --> 00:08:24,520 Speaker 1: didn't know that. But there we go, and we begin 122 00:08:24,600 --> 00:08:28,080 Speaker 1: to have our most vivid dreams. You are most likely 123 00:08:28,160 --> 00:08:31,000 Speaker 1: to remember your dreams if you are woken up during 124 00:08:31,160 --> 00:08:36,240 Speaker 1: this period. And interestingly, a study conducted at Harvard Medical 125 00:08:36,240 --> 00:08:41,280 Speaker 1: School proposed that REM sleep and dreaming during that time 126 00:08:41,800 --> 00:08:45,360 Speaker 1: can be viewed as almost like a virtual reality that's 127 00:08:45,400 --> 00:08:49,280 Speaker 1: been created by our brain. In other words, we sense, 128 00:08:49,520 --> 00:08:52,880 Speaker 1: we act, and we feel what we are dreaming. The 129 00:08:53,280 --> 00:08:55,960 Speaker 1: rapid movement of our eyes, which is now used to 130 00:08:56,040 --> 00:08:59,320 Speaker 1: identify when someone is dreaming, It used to confuse people 131 00:08:59,679 --> 00:09:02,720 Speaker 1: because they used to think back in the day, back 132 00:09:02,760 --> 00:09:06,440 Speaker 1: in even as early and recent as the nineteen hundreds, 133 00:09:06,880 --> 00:09:10,400 Speaker 1: that when people were dreaming they were actually partially seeing 134 00:09:10,520 --> 00:09:13,520 Speaker 1: our dreams on the back of our eyelids because our 135 00:09:13,559 --> 00:09:15,719 Speaker 1: eyes were moving, as you know, as if we were 136 00:09:15,800 --> 00:09:20,200 Speaker 1: scanning our environment, which we now know is not true, 137 00:09:20,920 --> 00:09:25,480 Speaker 1: but we still do undertake a lot of visualization. So 138 00:09:25,520 --> 00:09:29,280 Speaker 1: although our eyes aren't getting direct input, meaning that we're 139 00:09:29,320 --> 00:09:35,160 Speaker 1: not technically seeing anything, we are almost vividly visualizing what 140 00:09:35,559 --> 00:09:40,400 Speaker 1: our brain is creating. For us, scientists, they use REM 141 00:09:40,440 --> 00:09:44,320 Speaker 1: to track dream like states, and then essentially the only 142 00:09:44,360 --> 00:09:47,640 Speaker 1: thing they can do is ask people what did you 143 00:09:47,760 --> 00:09:50,480 Speaker 1: dream about? And that's one of the major reasons why 144 00:09:50,559 --> 00:09:54,400 Speaker 1: our knowledge of dreaming and dreams is so limited because 145 00:09:54,400 --> 00:09:59,280 Speaker 1: we cannot directly observe them in an experimental setting. But 146 00:09:59,559 --> 00:10:03,920 Speaker 1: of course, there have been some recent advances in our technology, 147 00:10:03,960 --> 00:10:09,240 Speaker 1: including the emergence of EEG machines and magnetic resonance imaging, 148 00:10:09,720 --> 00:10:12,400 Speaker 1: which allows us to kind of take a deeper look 149 00:10:12,640 --> 00:10:16,559 Speaker 1: into what exact parts of our brains are lighting up 150 00:10:16,880 --> 00:10:20,160 Speaker 1: when we enter this kind of fantasy slumber. And they've 151 00:10:20,200 --> 00:10:23,040 Speaker 1: found that actually all of our brain is active, from 152 00:10:23,160 --> 00:10:26,440 Speaker 1: the brain stem to most of the major areas of 153 00:10:26,520 --> 00:10:30,839 Speaker 1: the cortex, with the exception of the frontal lobe, which 154 00:10:30,960 --> 00:10:34,880 Speaker 1: is the least active area during our dream like state. 155 00:10:35,000 --> 00:10:37,720 Speaker 1: So the frontal lobe front it's at the very front 156 00:10:37,720 --> 00:10:41,559 Speaker 1: it's the biggest lobe in the brain, and its relative 157 00:10:41,840 --> 00:10:46,719 Speaker 1: inactivity actually makes a lot of sense. So our frontal lobe, 158 00:10:46,840 --> 00:10:52,439 Speaker 1: it controls things like judgment, logic, rational thinking, abstract thought, 159 00:10:52,520 --> 00:10:55,680 Speaker 1: and self control. It's kind of what allows us to 160 00:10:55,760 --> 00:10:59,319 Speaker 1: make sense of things in a rational way. So when 161 00:10:59,360 --> 00:11:03,040 Speaker 1: this part of our brain switches off, things get really weird, 162 00:11:03,160 --> 00:11:06,000 Speaker 1: and so do our dreams, and it's why our dreams 163 00:11:06,559 --> 00:11:11,720 Speaker 1: can be so implausible and strange and they can defy 164 00:11:12,360 --> 00:11:17,440 Speaker 1: everyday principles like continuity, like gravity, like linear storytelling. You know, 165 00:11:17,480 --> 00:11:20,280 Speaker 1: in our dreams we can do things we could never 166 00:11:20,360 --> 00:11:24,120 Speaker 1: do in everyday life, like fly or pass through walls, 167 00:11:24,600 --> 00:11:28,560 Speaker 1: because our frontal lobe is not as active in suppressing 168 00:11:28,640 --> 00:11:32,600 Speaker 1: these thoughts, letting our creativity and our imagination kind of 169 00:11:33,080 --> 00:11:37,120 Speaker 1: run wild with no real supervisor on board. So we 170 00:11:37,240 --> 00:11:40,319 Speaker 1: might think that dreams like this are not really anything 171 00:11:40,360 --> 00:11:44,040 Speaker 1: to write home about, you know, they're just funny, entertaining 172 00:11:44,160 --> 00:11:47,880 Speaker 1: stories to tell our friends or to forget about the 173 00:11:47,960 --> 00:11:52,480 Speaker 1: next morning. But the truth is that dreaming is actually 174 00:11:52,559 --> 00:11:57,240 Speaker 1: incredibly valuable for our brains and our minds, particularly how 175 00:11:57,360 --> 00:12:02,400 Speaker 1: memories are stored and how we process our emotions. So 176 00:12:02,559 --> 00:12:05,000 Speaker 1: I'm going to go through a couple of the major 177 00:12:05,080 --> 00:12:09,840 Speaker 1: theories that are well respected and accepted before we jump 178 00:12:09,880 --> 00:12:14,959 Speaker 1: into our friend Freud's ideas about what dreams meant, because 179 00:12:14,960 --> 00:12:17,839 Speaker 1: I think that those are the most well known, but 180 00:12:17,920 --> 00:12:23,079 Speaker 1: also the most complicated and a little bit confusing and 181 00:12:23,800 --> 00:12:28,280 Speaker 1: somewhat pseudoscientific. So the first major school of thought is 182 00:12:28,320 --> 00:12:32,320 Speaker 1: that dreams they exist to help us sort through the 183 00:12:32,360 --> 00:12:38,160 Speaker 1: information that we have encountered throughout the day and consolidate 184 00:12:38,640 --> 00:12:42,960 Speaker 1: those memories that we've made, so dreaming is almost like 185 00:12:43,400 --> 00:12:48,280 Speaker 1: mental spring cleaning. Each night. We pick up on so 186 00:12:48,400 --> 00:12:53,000 Speaker 1: much information during the day that we actually don't process 187 00:12:53,120 --> 00:12:56,200 Speaker 1: at all because our brain is so busy and it's 188 00:12:56,200 --> 00:13:01,360 Speaker 1: so selective and it only has limited capacity. However, that 189 00:13:01,440 --> 00:13:06,680 Speaker 1: information still exists, so when we're sleeping, our brain has 190 00:13:06,720 --> 00:13:10,040 Speaker 1: to sort out what information it wants to keep and 191 00:13:10,080 --> 00:13:13,920 Speaker 1: what it wants to kind of disregard, and dreams are 192 00:13:14,040 --> 00:13:20,120 Speaker 1: a byproduct of that activity because this unconscious visualization aids 193 00:13:20,160 --> 00:13:25,680 Speaker 1: in consolidating our memories by creating images and stories attached 194 00:13:25,679 --> 00:13:30,040 Speaker 1: to them. So dreams are often a reflection of things 195 00:13:30,040 --> 00:13:33,480 Speaker 1: that we have experienced whilst awake, and they help with 196 00:13:33,520 --> 00:13:37,360 Speaker 1: the consolidation of those memories. This is why you may 197 00:13:37,400 --> 00:13:41,200 Speaker 1: have heard these suggestions that every face we see in 198 00:13:41,200 --> 00:13:45,240 Speaker 1: a dream is actually someone we saw during the day, 199 00:13:45,880 --> 00:13:49,559 Speaker 1: and whilst it is very hard to prove that, it 200 00:13:49,600 --> 00:13:53,679 Speaker 1: is actually possible based on this theory, another theory that 201 00:13:53,800 --> 00:13:57,600 Speaker 1: is probably my favorite is that dreams are essential for 202 00:13:57,679 --> 00:14:01,920 Speaker 1: processing our emotions. Now, I really love this theory as 203 00:14:01,920 --> 00:14:05,880 Speaker 1: someone who has really vivid dreams that often reflect things 204 00:14:05,920 --> 00:14:09,000 Speaker 1: I've been going through in my life. It makes a 205 00:14:09,000 --> 00:14:12,360 Speaker 1: lot of sense for me. So storytime, i have really 206 00:14:12,400 --> 00:14:16,320 Speaker 1: bad claustrophobia, and I'm catching a flight to London in 207 00:14:16,400 --> 00:14:19,680 Speaker 1: like a few weeks, which from Australia is like two 208 00:14:19,840 --> 00:14:22,160 Speaker 1: thirteen hour flights, or like a fourteen hour and an 209 00:14:22,160 --> 00:14:26,000 Speaker 1: eight hour flight, and I'm actually I'm terrified. I'm petrified. 210 00:14:26,520 --> 00:14:29,560 Speaker 1: The last few weeks, like every night I have been 211 00:14:29,640 --> 00:14:33,520 Speaker 1: dreaming about being stuck on an airplane, or a friend 212 00:14:33,520 --> 00:14:35,760 Speaker 1: of mine promising me that they're going to catch a 213 00:14:35,760 --> 00:14:38,280 Speaker 1: flight with me, and then they get lost, so I'm 214 00:14:38,280 --> 00:14:41,680 Speaker 1: all alone and the plane's taking off. Like even talking 215 00:14:41,680 --> 00:14:44,440 Speaker 1: about it right now, my stomach is like twisting and turning. 216 00:14:44,960 --> 00:14:48,600 Speaker 1: And so the idea that our dreams are a way 217 00:14:48,640 --> 00:14:51,920 Speaker 1: of confronting the emotional chaos on or you know, fears 218 00:14:51,960 --> 00:14:56,280 Speaker 1: in our life, especially those that we may be suppressing, 219 00:14:57,320 --> 00:15:01,640 Speaker 1: makes a lot of sense. Anecdotally from mis active research 220 00:15:01,800 --> 00:15:06,960 Speaker 1: also shows that negative emotions are more commonly manifested in 221 00:15:07,040 --> 00:15:12,120 Speaker 1: dreams than our positive emotions because our negative emotions our 222 00:15:12,240 --> 00:15:16,120 Speaker 1: uncomfortable emotions. These are normally the ones that we refuse 223 00:15:16,200 --> 00:15:19,800 Speaker 1: to kind of confront when we're awake, causing them to 224 00:15:19,960 --> 00:15:24,160 Speaker 1: surface when we are in an unconscious state because our 225 00:15:24,200 --> 00:15:27,200 Speaker 1: brains cannot or our minds. I guess our conscious mind 226 00:15:27,800 --> 00:15:32,920 Speaker 1: cannot intercept those bad thoughts from happening. That's the explanation 227 00:15:33,000 --> 00:15:36,160 Speaker 1: I guess for the existence of nightmares. There are a 228 00:15:36,160 --> 00:15:39,560 Speaker 1: few other ideas, though, such as that dreaming helps us 229 00:15:39,640 --> 00:15:44,240 Speaker 1: problem solve and rehearse certain situations. Although I had a 230 00:15:44,320 --> 00:15:46,160 Speaker 1: dream the other night that I was Spider Man, and 231 00:15:46,200 --> 00:15:48,200 Speaker 1: I really don't think that is ever going to happen. 232 00:15:48,240 --> 00:15:51,720 Speaker 1: There's no need to rehearse that situation. But they're also 233 00:15:51,800 --> 00:15:56,800 Speaker 1: good for creativity, and some theories even suggest that they 234 00:15:57,000 --> 00:16:00,560 Speaker 1: There isn't an explanation. They're just really random. It's just 235 00:16:00,600 --> 00:16:04,560 Speaker 1: a byproduct of different neurons being fired in our brain 236 00:16:04,760 --> 00:16:08,440 Speaker 1: and our brain just being active during sleep. And they 237 00:16:08,440 --> 00:16:12,240 Speaker 1: have no purpose, they have no meaning. But before we 238 00:16:12,280 --> 00:16:14,920 Speaker 1: move on to this next idea of why everyone dreams 239 00:16:14,920 --> 00:16:18,560 Speaker 1: differently and some of the more interesting concepts like nightmares, 240 00:16:19,240 --> 00:16:22,880 Speaker 1: we cannot do an episode on dreams without talking about 241 00:16:22,880 --> 00:16:26,560 Speaker 1: Freud and his theory, I think is perhaps one of 242 00:16:26,600 --> 00:16:30,720 Speaker 1: the most well known theories about dreams, but the least accepted. 243 00:16:30,960 --> 00:16:35,960 Speaker 1: So in the nineteen hundreds, Freud introduced this idea of 244 00:16:36,320 --> 00:16:41,720 Speaker 1: dream interpretation, so he argued that dreams are really just 245 00:16:42,120 --> 00:16:47,160 Speaker 1: I guess, our repressed subconscious desires being given an outlet 246 00:16:47,160 --> 00:16:50,840 Speaker 1: when our brain isn't active enough to control or monitor 247 00:16:50,920 --> 00:16:54,480 Speaker 1: our thought patterns. It's like letting the intrusive thoughts win. 248 00:16:55,040 --> 00:16:59,000 Speaker 1: And by examining the private content of these dreams, we 249 00:16:59,040 --> 00:17:02,920 Speaker 1: can identify our true desires, but also what's really bothering us. 250 00:17:03,560 --> 00:17:07,399 Speaker 1: And this has created a lot of secondary theories, mainly 251 00:17:07,440 --> 00:17:11,840 Speaker 1: to do with interpreting certain symbols that show up in 252 00:17:11,880 --> 00:17:17,439 Speaker 1: our dreams. For example, you will find hundreds, if not thousands, 253 00:17:17,480 --> 00:17:21,479 Speaker 1: of articles from people who are professional dream analysts, and 254 00:17:21,520 --> 00:17:25,440 Speaker 1: they'll tell you that if you dream about snakes, you're 255 00:17:25,480 --> 00:17:29,600 Speaker 1: thinking about a toxic person in your life. Roses symbolized romance, 256 00:17:30,200 --> 00:17:35,440 Speaker 1: even some really bizarre ones like fiomen symbolizing chaos, or 257 00:17:35,560 --> 00:17:39,960 Speaker 1: aliens symbolizing that you feel abducted from your life. It's 258 00:17:40,000 --> 00:17:44,080 Speaker 1: all very weird, and I'll be honest, not true. There 259 00:17:44,160 --> 00:17:47,679 Speaker 1: is very little science backing this up. It's simply that 260 00:17:47,800 --> 00:17:52,199 Speaker 1: these symbols are common archetypes that we use in our 261 00:17:52,240 --> 00:17:56,560 Speaker 1: everyday life to kind of interpret our surroundings. And Freud said, 262 00:17:56,760 --> 00:17:59,000 Speaker 1: it's really not that complicated, Like, you don't need a 263 00:17:59,080 --> 00:18:03,080 Speaker 1: dictionary to interpret your dreams. If you dream about your mother, 264 00:18:03,720 --> 00:18:06,240 Speaker 1: you're thinking about your mother. If you're dreaming about a funeral, 265 00:18:06,320 --> 00:18:11,240 Speaker 1: you're dealing with grief. When very detached abstract symbols like 266 00:18:11,320 --> 00:18:15,280 Speaker 1: firemin and aliens come into play, we probably shouldn't read 267 00:18:15,400 --> 00:18:18,600 Speaker 1: much into it. This brings me to my next idea 268 00:18:18,680 --> 00:18:22,280 Speaker 1: that I am so fascinated by, and that is why 269 00:18:22,320 --> 00:18:26,760 Speaker 1: do people dream differently? Well, I think, to start off, 270 00:18:26,960 --> 00:18:32,320 Speaker 1: we are all innately different people. Personality and perspective have 271 00:18:32,480 --> 00:18:34,560 Speaker 1: a big role to play. In the same way that 272 00:18:34,600 --> 00:18:38,040 Speaker 1: we see the world differently when we're awake, we're going 273 00:18:38,080 --> 00:18:41,720 Speaker 1: to dream differently as well. But environmental factors are also 274 00:18:42,040 --> 00:18:46,360 Speaker 1: really important to consider. There are certain medications that make 275 00:18:46,480 --> 00:18:50,960 Speaker 1: our dreams incredibly vivid because they change the chemicals in 276 00:18:51,040 --> 00:18:54,960 Speaker 1: our brain, which will ultimately change how our neurons and 277 00:18:55,040 --> 00:19:01,160 Speaker 1: our brains interpret information, consolidate memories, and process our motions. 278 00:19:01,320 --> 00:19:06,800 Speaker 1: So the main offender is SSRIs, otherwise known as antidepressants, 279 00:19:07,440 --> 00:19:12,000 Speaker 1: which are known to cause especially vivid dreams or even 280 00:19:12,119 --> 00:19:16,240 Speaker 1: nightmares because they make more serotonin available to the brain, 281 00:19:16,720 --> 00:19:20,560 Speaker 1: which whilst it may improve your mood, also causes your 282 00:19:20,640 --> 00:19:24,200 Speaker 1: dreams to be more intense. Now the exact link isn't known, 283 00:19:24,640 --> 00:19:28,760 Speaker 1: but the observation has been made. Alcohol is another one. 284 00:19:29,280 --> 00:19:32,960 Speaker 1: We all know that alcohol can shut down brain functioning, 285 00:19:33,040 --> 00:19:37,400 Speaker 1: particularly memories, hence why we use the term blackout. It's 286 00:19:37,400 --> 00:19:40,000 Speaker 1: not like you are physically blind when you drink too 287 00:19:40,080 --> 00:19:43,239 Speaker 1: much alcohol, or that you're not experiencing those things when 288 00:19:43,280 --> 00:19:46,880 Speaker 1: you're really drunk, just that alcohol intercepts how our brains 289 00:19:46,880 --> 00:19:49,320 Speaker 1: are able to store the memories that we've made during 290 00:19:49,320 --> 00:19:52,080 Speaker 1: that time, which is why if you've had a particularly 291 00:19:52,119 --> 00:19:56,040 Speaker 1: big night, you're less likely to remember what you've dreamt about. 292 00:19:56,320 --> 00:19:59,840 Speaker 1: And of course there is Stress has its fingers in 293 00:20:00,119 --> 00:20:04,440 Speaker 1: literally everything when it comes to psychology, even our subconscious 294 00:20:04,480 --> 00:20:09,760 Speaker 1: and unconscious states. When we are highly stressed, this affects 295 00:20:09,800 --> 00:20:12,440 Speaker 1: the areas of our brain that are highly active during 296 00:20:12,480 --> 00:20:16,880 Speaker 1: rem sleep, and it also makes our emotions much more heightened, 297 00:20:17,240 --> 00:20:21,639 Speaker 1: which is why it's massively correlated with having nightmares. So 298 00:20:21,800 --> 00:20:26,120 Speaker 1: people with anxiety or depression, they tend to be more 299 00:20:26,560 --> 00:20:31,320 Speaker 1: more likely to report having intense nightmares or bad dreams. 300 00:20:31,400 --> 00:20:37,000 Speaker 1: So in twenty eighteen, this journal reported that people who 301 00:20:37,040 --> 00:20:40,920 Speaker 1: were more at peace in their life, and who reported 302 00:20:41,119 --> 00:20:46,359 Speaker 1: lower emotional distress, they had better dreams, Whereas those who 303 00:20:46,440 --> 00:20:49,760 Speaker 1: had anxiety, those who were reporting that they were really 304 00:20:49,760 --> 00:20:51,960 Speaker 1: anxious that something was going on in their life that 305 00:20:52,080 --> 00:20:55,080 Speaker 1: was bothering them, they were more likely to have dreams 306 00:20:55,520 --> 00:21:00,439 Speaker 1: that contained negative emotions or reactions like being fearful or 307 00:21:00,520 --> 00:21:04,919 Speaker 1: scared or upset. So nightmares are essentially disturbing dreams and 308 00:21:04,960 --> 00:21:09,440 Speaker 1: they result in feelings of terror, feelings of fear, and 309 00:21:09,680 --> 00:21:13,040 Speaker 1: can affect like The estimates are strange, but around six 310 00:21:13,119 --> 00:21:17,600 Speaker 1: percent of the population, although I think that we've all 311 00:21:17,640 --> 00:21:19,919 Speaker 1: had a nightmare, so I would put that into question. 312 00:21:20,520 --> 00:21:23,800 Speaker 1: And here's our second fun fact for the day, which 313 00:21:23,840 --> 00:21:29,080 Speaker 1: is that children are actually more likely to have nightmares 314 00:21:29,119 --> 00:21:32,639 Speaker 1: compared to adults. And there has been suggestions that this 315 00:21:32,800 --> 00:21:36,720 Speaker 1: is evolutionary. So children, they are smaller, they are more 316 00:21:36,800 --> 00:21:42,159 Speaker 1: vulnerable to more threats than adults, so nightmares may partially 317 00:21:42,200 --> 00:21:46,560 Speaker 1: reflect this vulnerability. They say that children like somewhere in 318 00:21:46,560 --> 00:21:50,200 Speaker 1: the forty percent range of children have nightmares that are 319 00:21:50,200 --> 00:21:55,439 Speaker 1: ongoing or occur more than once. Alongside age as a factor, 320 00:21:55,600 --> 00:21:59,840 Speaker 1: trauma is also a big contributor. And we know this 321 00:22:00,240 --> 00:22:04,840 Speaker 1: because people with PTSD, unfortunately, are much more likely to 322 00:22:04,960 --> 00:22:09,040 Speaker 1: experience nightmares. There was a study conducted by Harvard on 323 00:22:09,320 --> 00:22:12,680 Speaker 1: veterans who had served in Vietnam, and they found that 324 00:22:13,119 --> 00:22:17,840 Speaker 1: fifty two percent of them experienced repeated nightmares, compared to 325 00:22:17,920 --> 00:22:22,200 Speaker 1: that six percent of the civilian and normal civilian population. 326 00:22:23,040 --> 00:22:25,120 Speaker 1: The thing is, though, I will say, you don't need 327 00:22:25,160 --> 00:22:28,160 Speaker 1: to have gone to war to still have frequent nightmares. 328 00:22:28,640 --> 00:22:32,439 Speaker 1: Trauma is subjective. We say that all the time. And 329 00:22:32,520 --> 00:22:37,080 Speaker 1: if you've ever experienced something that has activated the regions 330 00:22:37,119 --> 00:22:40,560 Speaker 1: of your brain involved in fear behaviors, you are going 331 00:22:40,600 --> 00:22:43,840 Speaker 1: to be particularly sensitive. And I think it just goes 332 00:22:43,880 --> 00:22:48,479 Speaker 1: to show how our brain, and more importantly, our subconscious 333 00:22:48,600 --> 00:22:52,800 Speaker 1: is really out of our control at times, except for 334 00:22:53,280 --> 00:22:57,879 Speaker 1: in the case of lucid dreaming. I'll be honest, I 335 00:22:58,040 --> 00:23:02,080 Speaker 1: didn't know much about this. I was actually quite skeptical 336 00:23:02,560 --> 00:23:05,439 Speaker 1: whether this was even a real thing at first, But 337 00:23:06,000 --> 00:23:09,200 Speaker 1: according to the National Institute of Health, it is real. 338 00:23:09,760 --> 00:23:16,720 Speaker 1: It's essentially the experience of achieving conscious awareness whilst dreaming 339 00:23:17,240 --> 00:23:20,720 Speaker 1: and being asleep, and people can be trained to experience 340 00:23:20,760 --> 00:23:24,399 Speaker 1: this to the point where they can actually guide everything 341 00:23:24,440 --> 00:23:27,360 Speaker 1: that's happening to them whilst they're dreaming, so I did 342 00:23:27,359 --> 00:23:29,639 Speaker 1: a little bit of digging. It has its origins in 343 00:23:29,680 --> 00:23:33,919 Speaker 1: Buddhism and Greek philosophy. There are all of these accounts 344 00:23:34,040 --> 00:23:39,040 Speaker 1: of these people who are able to direct their unconscious imagination. 345 00:23:39,440 --> 00:23:41,879 Speaker 1: If you're a lucid dreamer, can you like send me 346 00:23:41,920 --> 00:23:44,159 Speaker 1: a DM? I would love to hear your experience, because 347 00:23:44,640 --> 00:23:47,959 Speaker 1: I don't think I've ever had a lucid dream like 348 00:23:48,440 --> 00:23:50,760 Speaker 1: I don't know. The thing is that sometimes you can't 349 00:23:50,760 --> 00:23:53,880 Speaker 1: even tell, So if you are someone who lucid dreams 350 00:23:54,000 --> 00:23:57,040 Speaker 1: or has taught themselves how to lucid dream, I really 351 00:23:57,080 --> 00:24:00,359 Speaker 1: want to hear your story. That sounds so fascinating. You know. 352 00:24:00,400 --> 00:24:02,960 Speaker 1: All I can get from this is people's reports. They 353 00:24:03,040 --> 00:24:06,840 Speaker 1: say that it's not scary, and the only thing that 354 00:24:06,920 --> 00:24:09,159 Speaker 1: kind of happens is that you can feel trapped in 355 00:24:09,240 --> 00:24:13,400 Speaker 1: your subconscious where time is slower and sometimes things are 356 00:24:13,400 --> 00:24:17,280 Speaker 1: super strange, almost like a bad trip. But apparently it 357 00:24:17,280 --> 00:24:20,639 Speaker 1: won't last for long, and some people do not even 358 00:24:20,840 --> 00:24:24,480 Speaker 1: remember it when they wake up, which is so fascinating 359 00:24:24,560 --> 00:24:28,399 Speaker 1: to me. That you can literally be guiding yourself like 360 00:24:28,440 --> 00:24:30,960 Speaker 1: you're in a video game and then have no recollection 361 00:24:31,040 --> 00:24:35,080 Speaker 1: of it. Okay, we've spent a lot of time focused 362 00:24:35,119 --> 00:24:38,639 Speaker 1: on the science behind dreaming, but for a bit of 363 00:24:38,640 --> 00:24:43,440 Speaker 1: a bonus segment, I really want to discuss daydreaming, because 364 00:24:43,880 --> 00:24:46,560 Speaker 1: although it's a little bit more nuanced, there are some 365 00:24:46,640 --> 00:24:51,080 Speaker 1: really surprising links to not only our unconscious dream states, 366 00:24:51,480 --> 00:24:54,240 Speaker 1: but also our well being. So all of that and 367 00:24:54,359 --> 00:25:04,520 Speaker 1: more in just a second. Daydreaming obviously has one main 368 00:25:04,600 --> 00:25:09,000 Speaker 1: difference to normal dreaming. It says in the name day. 369 00:25:09,280 --> 00:25:13,960 Speaker 1: It occurs when we're awake, and it essentially involves a 370 00:25:14,359 --> 00:25:21,600 Speaker 1: dissociation from reality by entering into some imagined scenario or 371 00:25:21,600 --> 00:25:26,480 Speaker 1: some past event or experience, almost spontaneously. And it's a 372 00:25:26,520 --> 00:25:30,359 Speaker 1: form of imagination or a stream of consciousness that actually 373 00:25:30,440 --> 00:25:33,879 Speaker 1: allows us to take a break from reality for just 374 00:25:33,920 --> 00:25:38,440 Speaker 1: a brief period. So daydreaming is normally fairly relaxing. It's 375 00:25:38,520 --> 00:25:41,760 Speaker 1: actually quite pleasant, and that's because it allows our brain 376 00:25:42,320 --> 00:25:46,280 Speaker 1: to shut off and entertain itself for a moment without 377 00:25:46,359 --> 00:25:50,160 Speaker 1: needing external stimulation. We get to create these nice stories, 378 00:25:50,200 --> 00:25:52,560 Speaker 1: We get to comfort ourselves with our day dreams, think 379 00:25:52,600 --> 00:25:56,040 Speaker 1: about our future, and it can be for five seconds 380 00:25:56,160 --> 00:25:59,880 Speaker 1: or five minutes. But the reason that research is bela 381 00:26:00,160 --> 00:26:03,320 Speaker 1: if it takes up so much of our time, roughly 382 00:26:03,520 --> 00:26:06,280 Speaker 1: forty seven percent. Like we said before, don't know where 383 00:26:06,320 --> 00:26:09,320 Speaker 1: they got that number, but forty seven percent sounds I 384 00:26:09,320 --> 00:26:13,119 Speaker 1: don't know about right. The reason is because a most 385 00:26:13,119 --> 00:26:17,240 Speaker 1: of the time we don't even consciously recognize when it's happening. 386 00:26:17,760 --> 00:26:21,639 Speaker 1: You know, it's five seconds. We just are suddenly thinking 387 00:26:21,680 --> 00:26:24,840 Speaker 1: about our trip a few weeks ago, or something that's 388 00:26:24,840 --> 00:26:29,240 Speaker 1: happening in the future, and b it gives our brain 389 00:26:29,400 --> 00:26:36,480 Speaker 1: a chance to pause, restore, recharge, and refocus. We cannot 390 00:26:36,480 --> 00:26:40,240 Speaker 1: spend hours and hours focused on only one thing. Our 391 00:26:40,280 --> 00:26:44,320 Speaker 1: brain just doesn't have the resources. So when it's mentally 392 00:26:44,359 --> 00:26:49,000 Speaker 1: fatigued or the brain becomes bored, it uses daydreaming to 393 00:26:49,080 --> 00:26:52,800 Speaker 1: break things up, which I thought was really interesting. It 394 00:26:52,840 --> 00:26:58,160 Speaker 1: doesn't mean that the brain is necessarily idle. Actually, neuroimaging 395 00:26:58,200 --> 00:27:02,440 Speaker 1: techniques have shown that the brain is really alive when 396 00:27:02,440 --> 00:27:06,479 Speaker 1: we're daydreaming. It's just that we're temporarily resting from the 397 00:27:06,520 --> 00:27:10,320 Speaker 1: task at hand, so breaking up our days making them 398 00:27:10,320 --> 00:27:15,200 Speaker 1: more interesting and nuanced. It may also explain why we 399 00:27:15,600 --> 00:27:19,160 Speaker 1: daydream a lot more when we're bored. I remember in 400 00:27:19,359 --> 00:27:22,280 Speaker 1: one of the first jobs I had, when we would 401 00:27:22,320 --> 00:27:24,560 Speaker 1: have slow days. I would literally just sit near the 402 00:27:24,560 --> 00:27:28,480 Speaker 1: counter and daydream like all day because I couldn't use 403 00:27:28,480 --> 00:27:31,840 Speaker 1: my phone, which is normally what we use to entertain ourselves. 404 00:27:31,840 --> 00:27:35,399 Speaker 1: Because the manager would like check the CCTV every five minutes, 405 00:27:35,920 --> 00:27:37,439 Speaker 1: and I would look up at the clock and like 406 00:27:37,480 --> 00:27:41,119 Speaker 1: twenty minutes had gone by, because my brain wanted to 407 00:27:41,119 --> 00:27:43,359 Speaker 1: be entertained, so it kind of dropped me into this 408 00:27:43,480 --> 00:27:48,840 Speaker 1: fantasy landscape where I could entertain myself. Findings from neuroscience 409 00:27:49,000 --> 00:27:53,600 Speaker 1: Research Australia has also found that most of the time 410 00:27:53,640 --> 00:27:57,800 Speaker 1: we are daydreaming, we are thinking about the future. This 411 00:27:58,080 --> 00:28:03,320 Speaker 1: process helps orientate our towards our goals, towards our intentions. 412 00:28:03,840 --> 00:28:07,240 Speaker 1: It's more fun than thinking about the past because we 413 00:28:07,280 --> 00:28:10,080 Speaker 1: don't know what's going to happen. But it also helps 414 00:28:10,160 --> 00:28:13,600 Speaker 1: us rehearse certain instances that are coming up. You know, 415 00:28:13,680 --> 00:28:16,359 Speaker 1: there is no timeline for how far into the future 416 00:28:16,400 --> 00:28:18,960 Speaker 1: we can be thinking. We can be thinking about, you know, 417 00:28:19,000 --> 00:28:21,840 Speaker 1: a date that we're going on tomorrow, to what our 418 00:28:21,920 --> 00:28:25,040 Speaker 1: grandkids are going to look like. It's all very nuanced, 419 00:28:25,119 --> 00:28:28,520 Speaker 1: but it's a rehearsal mechanism. It kind of plays a 420 00:28:28,640 --> 00:28:32,199 Speaker 1: role in priming us for what to expect in the 421 00:28:32,200 --> 00:28:37,360 Speaker 1: future or what we may be anticipating or desiring. Another 422 00:28:37,520 --> 00:28:43,400 Speaker 1: explanation is that daydreaming is a coping mechanism for dealing 423 00:28:43,400 --> 00:28:49,080 Speaker 1: with anxiety by allowing our brain to relax and escape. 424 00:28:49,160 --> 00:28:52,520 Speaker 1: If your brain is going a million miles a minute 425 00:28:52,600 --> 00:28:56,480 Speaker 1: about an upcoming decision or something that is stressing you 426 00:28:56,560 --> 00:29:00,960 Speaker 1: out at work or in your relationship, a nice cozy 427 00:29:01,240 --> 00:29:05,280 Speaker 1: daydream about your next holiday or whatever you're thinking about 428 00:29:05,840 --> 00:29:08,960 Speaker 1: it gives our brain the chance to switch off. And 429 00:29:09,000 --> 00:29:13,520 Speaker 1: this is where we get the idea of maladaptive daydreaming. 430 00:29:13,880 --> 00:29:16,600 Speaker 1: I know we've teased it a few times, but this 431 00:29:16,800 --> 00:29:20,000 Speaker 1: concept is definitely worth the weight, because not only is 432 00:29:20,000 --> 00:29:23,000 Speaker 1: it fascinating, but I promise there are I think at 433 00:29:23,080 --> 00:29:25,720 Speaker 1: least a few of us out there who are going 434 00:29:25,760 --> 00:29:31,640 Speaker 1: to see ourselves in this description. Maladaptive daydreaming is essentially 435 00:29:31,680 --> 00:29:37,120 Speaker 1: a form of escapism, whereby a person spends an excessive 436 00:29:37,240 --> 00:29:41,920 Speaker 1: amount of time daydreaming, often becoming immersed in their imagination 437 00:29:42,080 --> 00:29:45,600 Speaker 1: in a manner that is at times deliberate and voluntary, 438 00:29:45,960 --> 00:29:49,400 Speaker 1: as opposed to our usual daydreams that are spontaneous, and 439 00:29:49,520 --> 00:29:53,560 Speaker 1: sometimes it even occurs without our conscious awareness. So When 440 00:29:53,600 --> 00:29:57,680 Speaker 1: I say a form of escapism, what I mean is 441 00:29:57,720 --> 00:30:04,160 Speaker 1: that maladaptive daydreaming is kind of a mental distraction from 442 00:30:04,480 --> 00:30:08,320 Speaker 1: the unpleasant aspects of our life, whereby we allow ourselves 443 00:30:08,320 --> 00:30:10,719 Speaker 1: to be engulfed in our fantasies, where it is safe, 444 00:30:11,120 --> 00:30:14,560 Speaker 1: where we are in control, and it's normally quite peaceful. 445 00:30:15,160 --> 00:30:19,680 Speaker 1: So this behavior, it's especially common as a coping mechanism 446 00:30:19,840 --> 00:30:25,160 Speaker 1: amongst people who have mental health conditions like anxiety. People 447 00:30:25,240 --> 00:30:31,120 Speaker 1: who repeatedly engage in maladaptive daydreaming, they tend to almost 448 00:30:31,560 --> 00:30:37,720 Speaker 1: lose themselves in detailed and vivid daydreams, almost like reading 449 00:30:37,720 --> 00:30:40,880 Speaker 1: a book, and they can often pause their daydream and 450 00:30:41,000 --> 00:30:43,400 Speaker 1: come back to it where they left off because of 451 00:30:43,440 --> 00:30:48,320 Speaker 1: how compulsive this behavior is. Another thing is that the 452 00:30:48,400 --> 00:30:51,320 Speaker 1: links to anxiety, right, and the links to depression. If 453 00:30:51,360 --> 00:30:54,040 Speaker 1: you are not happy with your life, if something is 454 00:30:54,120 --> 00:30:58,200 Speaker 1: bothering you, if you wish things were different, there's a 455 00:30:58,280 --> 00:31:01,120 Speaker 1: really easy way to create that reality, and that's by 456 00:31:01,200 --> 00:31:04,760 Speaker 1: just imagining it. So if you're having a hard time 457 00:31:04,840 --> 00:31:08,480 Speaker 1: and you find that you're spending hours lying in bed daydreaming, 458 00:31:08,800 --> 00:31:11,640 Speaker 1: it's a coping mechanism, not just because it distracts you, 459 00:31:12,520 --> 00:31:16,280 Speaker 1: but it allows you to escape and think about this 460 00:31:16,480 --> 00:31:21,840 Speaker 1: better version of your life. Now, let's not get confused here. 461 00:31:22,080 --> 00:31:25,320 Speaker 1: Daydreaming it is a normal part of our cognitive functioning 462 00:31:25,440 --> 00:31:28,600 Speaker 1: and at times it's helpful. But when we use it 463 00:31:29,000 --> 00:31:33,600 Speaker 1: to ignore confronting experiences or events, or we allow it 464 00:31:33,680 --> 00:31:37,320 Speaker 1: to interrupt the things that we need to prioritize, this 465 00:31:37,520 --> 00:31:41,720 Speaker 1: is when psychologists begin to see it as a problem. 466 00:31:41,960 --> 00:31:45,560 Speaker 1: So although the term is relatively new, it only came 467 00:31:45,600 --> 00:31:50,080 Speaker 1: about in the early two thousands and there is limited research, 468 00:31:50,280 --> 00:31:53,960 Speaker 1: of course, but some initial studies have suggested that about 469 00:31:54,440 --> 00:31:58,840 Speaker 1: four percent of people engage in maladaptive daydreaming, but that 470 00:31:58,960 --> 00:32:04,040 Speaker 1: increases for adults with anxiety or ADHD and it rises 471 00:32:04,080 --> 00:32:07,960 Speaker 1: to about twenty percent of these people. So one of 472 00:32:07,960 --> 00:32:11,040 Speaker 1: the theories is that maladaptive daydreaming can actually be a 473 00:32:11,080 --> 00:32:15,520 Speaker 1: subtle symptom of ADHD, especially amongst girls and women, because 474 00:32:15,560 --> 00:32:19,320 Speaker 1: we know that symptoms are expressed differently amongst this group 475 00:32:19,360 --> 00:32:23,400 Speaker 1: of people. And the reason why is because people with 476 00:32:23,520 --> 00:32:29,560 Speaker 1: ADHD often have hyperfocus, they are more easily distracted, and 477 00:32:29,640 --> 00:32:33,640 Speaker 1: their ability to self regulate is sometimes impaired. So it 478 00:32:33,720 --> 00:32:36,760 Speaker 1: doesn't mean that if you are a big daydreamer you 479 00:32:36,800 --> 00:32:40,000 Speaker 1: can self diagnose yourself here and now. It's just one 480 00:32:40,000 --> 00:32:42,680 Speaker 1: of the less well known symptoms. And I found that 481 00:32:42,720 --> 00:32:46,040 Speaker 1: explanation to make a lot of sense right when we 482 00:32:46,120 --> 00:32:48,600 Speaker 1: think about it logically, that makes a lot of sense 483 00:32:48,640 --> 00:32:54,280 Speaker 1: why maladaptive daydreaming and conditions like ADHD or anxiety would 484 00:32:54,280 --> 00:32:59,080 Speaker 1: be linked. There is no official way to diagnose this 485 00:32:59,560 --> 00:33:03,920 Speaker 1: condition or this behavior, because it's not even yet recognized 486 00:33:04,360 --> 00:33:08,400 Speaker 1: in the DSM, so it is for now just a 487 00:33:08,560 --> 00:33:12,239 Speaker 1: term that is used as a descriptor rather than as 488 00:33:12,320 --> 00:33:16,280 Speaker 1: a diagnosis. However, you can do this test. It's called 489 00:33:16,800 --> 00:33:21,560 Speaker 1: the Maladaptive Daydreaming Scale, very original name. It's only fourteen 490 00:33:21,640 --> 00:33:27,520 Speaker 1: questions and it's designed to essentially help you identify if 491 00:33:27,600 --> 00:33:30,320 Speaker 1: this is a problem and if you have this propensity 492 00:33:30,840 --> 00:33:34,480 Speaker 1: to disengage. I think you can take it online, but 493 00:33:35,320 --> 00:33:38,400 Speaker 1: always be skeptical of self reporting tests that are not 494 00:33:38,440 --> 00:33:42,680 Speaker 1: administered by a professional. We often have a tendency to 495 00:33:42,720 --> 00:33:45,640 Speaker 1: answer questions so that we get the answer that we 496 00:33:45,760 --> 00:33:49,280 Speaker 1: wanted to hear, either that you do have maladaptive daydreaming 497 00:33:49,360 --> 00:33:52,360 Speaker 1: or that you don't. So if you're interested, have a 498 00:33:52,400 --> 00:33:55,440 Speaker 1: look into it. But I will say again, the research 499 00:33:55,560 --> 00:33:59,080 Speaker 1: is very new it's very fresh. It definitely needs a 500 00:33:59,120 --> 00:34:03,120 Speaker 1: lot more look into both dreaming and daydreaming. They are 501 00:34:03,200 --> 00:34:07,240 Speaker 1: such fascinating topics to me. Because there is some cool research, 502 00:34:07,320 --> 00:34:09,799 Speaker 1: I will say that, but there is so much that 503 00:34:10,040 --> 00:34:14,359 Speaker 1: is unknown. I think with most areas of psychology, we 504 00:34:14,440 --> 00:34:17,640 Speaker 1: tend to have somewhat of a good grasp about why 505 00:34:17,719 --> 00:34:22,000 Speaker 1: things happen, how they happen, what these mental phenomena look like. 506 00:34:22,560 --> 00:34:27,400 Speaker 1: But with dreams, we are so limited because they are 507 00:34:27,560 --> 00:34:32,480 Speaker 1: entirely internal and private in nature. And I think it's 508 00:34:32,520 --> 00:34:35,399 Speaker 1: the fact that they occur when we're unconscious that means 509 00:34:35,440 --> 00:34:38,560 Speaker 1: that we can't observe them how we would normal behavior. 510 00:34:39,160 --> 00:34:43,440 Speaker 1: But it's also really beautiful that our brains have been 511 00:34:43,440 --> 00:34:45,520 Speaker 1: able to create a way for us to build these 512 00:34:45,680 --> 00:34:51,280 Speaker 1: entirely private worlds and storylines and characters just for our enjoyment. 513 00:34:51,320 --> 00:34:56,440 Speaker 1: I think that's just so remarkable that we have evolved 514 00:34:56,680 --> 00:34:59,600 Speaker 1: to be able to dream, and that our brain can 515 00:34:59,640 --> 00:35:04,640 Speaker 1: be so creative even without our conscious input. Like I 516 00:35:05,120 --> 00:35:08,000 Speaker 1: just I think that's incredible. I think that's so beautiful 517 00:35:08,400 --> 00:35:12,080 Speaker 1: that we fall asleep and we have a whole new universe, 518 00:35:12,160 --> 00:35:15,520 Speaker 1: a whole new story, a whole new world. Waiting for 519 00:35:15,640 --> 00:35:18,279 Speaker 1: us there. Anyways, I think that is all we have 520 00:35:18,360 --> 00:35:21,560 Speaker 1: time for today, but I'm going to finish with one 521 00:35:21,560 --> 00:35:24,640 Speaker 1: more fun fact that I found really interesting. I didn't 522 00:35:24,680 --> 00:35:29,839 Speaker 1: know this, but blind people can actually see images in 523 00:35:29,880 --> 00:35:33,000 Speaker 1: their dreams, which is insane to me because well, they 524 00:35:33,560 --> 00:35:36,000 Speaker 1: have no point of reference. You know. If I could 525 00:35:36,040 --> 00:35:39,440 Speaker 1: make one scientific discovery in my life, I think it 526 00:35:39,440 --> 00:35:42,800 Speaker 1: would be being able to see other people's dreams because 527 00:35:43,280 --> 00:35:46,319 Speaker 1: I would love to see the kind of world that 528 00:35:46,360 --> 00:35:48,480 Speaker 1: it's created in the mind of someone who is blind. 529 00:35:48,560 --> 00:35:51,520 Speaker 1: That is so fascinating and I think it really goes 530 00:35:51,560 --> 00:35:54,680 Speaker 1: to show how much of it is really our brain 531 00:35:55,320 --> 00:35:58,960 Speaker 1: rather than us actually like seeing these images that it's created. 532 00:35:59,120 --> 00:36:03,359 Speaker 1: So so many fun facts today, so many interesting findings. 533 00:36:03,880 --> 00:36:06,799 Speaker 1: I love doing some of these more science based episodes. 534 00:36:07,400 --> 00:36:10,399 Speaker 1: I know there wasn't much in terms of its relationship 535 00:36:10,440 --> 00:36:14,359 Speaker 1: to our twenties, but there was so much fascinating psychology 536 00:36:14,600 --> 00:36:17,560 Speaker 1: behind this, and I just had to do it justice. 537 00:36:17,600 --> 00:36:19,839 Speaker 1: I had to cover this. I just think it is 538 00:36:20,160 --> 00:36:24,920 Speaker 1: so incredibly fascinating, and you know, everyone in their twenties dreams. 539 00:36:25,400 --> 00:36:28,160 Speaker 1: So there we go. There's the link that we needed today. 540 00:36:28,320 --> 00:36:31,680 Speaker 1: So I really hope that you enjoyed this episode. I 541 00:36:31,719 --> 00:36:34,080 Speaker 1: hope you learned something. I hope it's going to lead 542 00:36:34,160 --> 00:36:40,320 Speaker 1: to fun dinner table conversations or fun workplace conversations. Dreams 543 00:36:40,360 --> 00:36:42,600 Speaker 1: are just so cool. I said it before, but it's 544 00:36:42,680 --> 00:36:46,000 Speaker 1: just the most beautiful thing that our brain allows us 545 00:36:46,040 --> 00:36:48,600 Speaker 1: to do that. So thank you for joining me on 546 00:36:48,600 --> 00:36:52,919 Speaker 1: this fun little ride that we had. As always, if 547 00:36:52,960 --> 00:36:55,920 Speaker 1: you enjoyed this episode, please feel free to leave a 548 00:36:56,000 --> 00:37:00,880 Speaker 1: five star review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Heart, wherever you 549 00:37:00,920 --> 00:37:03,839 Speaker 1: are listening right now. It really does help the show 550 00:37:03,880 --> 00:37:07,160 Speaker 1: to grow and reach new people. If you have an 551 00:37:07,200 --> 00:37:12,000 Speaker 1: episode suggestion, please follow me at that Psychology podcast and 552 00:37:12,120 --> 00:37:14,480 Speaker 1: send me a DM. Tell me what you want to hear. 553 00:37:14,600 --> 00:37:18,040 Speaker 1: I love when people have had something going on in 554 00:37:18,080 --> 00:37:20,759 Speaker 1: their lives and they want to know the psychology behind it. 555 00:37:20,800 --> 00:37:23,560 Speaker 1: That's the whole purpose. So follow me over there if 556 00:37:23,560 --> 00:37:26,200 Speaker 1: you feel cold to do so, and we will be 557 00:37:26,320 --> 00:37:34,040 Speaker 1: back on Tuesday for another episode.