Do Babies Have Nightmares?

Dreaming is a common experience for everyone. Some dreams are beautiful and worth relishing, while others are nightmares that make people afraid to fall asleep again. Do all people dream? What about infants and young children?

Let's talk about the physiology of sleep first. The process of sleep is not simply a two-stage cycle of falling asleep and waking up. Sleep can be divided into two main categories: rapid eye movement (REM) sleep and non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep. During REM sleep, although a person is asleep, their eyes move rapidly. This is the stage when dreaming occurs. The other stage is NREM sleep, during which eye movement stops, and heart rate and breathing exhibit normal and regular patterns. Throughout several hours of sleep, the period of rapid eye movement repeats several times.

In other words, during a single sleep session, multiple dreams have already occurred. If a person wakes up during NREM sleep, they may not remember having dreamed. However, if they are awakened during REM sleep, the dreaming stage, they may vividly recall their dream.

Babies also dream. This sleep cycle is present in fetuses at around eight months, so it is speculated that even newborn babies should dream. However, we do not know what dreams their little minds have.

Now, what about nightmares? Nightmares can be divided into two types. One is true nightmares, also known as night terrors, which occur during the REM sleep stage. About one-fifth of school-age children may experience these terrifying episodes. Children wake up from their sleep and remember the frightening dream, leading to loud crying and reluctance to fall back asleep. They often require the comfort and presence of their parents to calm down and sleep again. The saying "dreams during the day, nightmares during the night" holds true for these night terrors. Parents need not rush to ask their children what they fear in the middle of the night. Instead, providing immediate security and helping them relax is advisable. It is better to have a conversation with the children during the following day to understand their true fears and find ways to alleviate their psychological stress.

Waking up in the middle of the night does not always mean having had a dream. The other type of nightmare is called "nighttime arousal." It is not a real dream. Children experiencing nighttime arousal suddenly sit up, scream, or talk in their sleep. They may also have accelerated heartbeat, breathing, and sweating, with a vacant stare and no response to others. After a few minutes, the child calms down and falls back asleep, with no recollection of the episode the next morning.

Nighttime arousal occurs during NREM sleep, so it is not considered actual dreaming. It affects about 5% of children and has a familial genetic link, meaning other family members may have had similar experiences. This phenomenon can be alarming to family members who witness it, rather than the children themselves. They may be mistakenly thought to be possessed or in need of exorcism. In reality, it does not harm the child and usually occurs sporadically, rarely repeating. It only scares unknowing parents. If parents encounter this phenomenon with their children, there is no need to worry.

Comforting the child at the time of the episode has little effect; simply wiping away their sweat is enough. What is worth noting is that a small number of children may experience sleepwalking, where they get out of bed and walk around. If a child sleepwalks, it is important to keep an eye on them and prevent them from leaving the house and getting hurt. This is not a case of possession and is generally not a serious issue.