Do you often wake up with nightmares in winter or suffer from lack of sleep during cold weather? Well, you are not alone as many people have nightmares during winters and while cold weather is not directly responsible for your sleepless nights, it does play a part in it. Often your dreams are influenced by your surroundings or not and it can be due to many reasons that you are not paying attention. For example, if you are sleeping and your blanket slips and you feel cold, distressed – this can lead to a nightmare. And, the best way to avoid such night terrors is to check the temperature of the room before sleeping.
According to several studies, depression is also a stressor for nightmares because people suffering from mental health problems are more vulnerable to night terrors.
Another reason for having nightmares in winter is sleeplessness or insomnia. And, more often or not, your sleeplessness may be triggered by seasonal affective disorder (SAD). Common causes of SAD are insomnia (inability to sleep) or hypersomnia (excessive sleepiness) and both conditions result in nightmares.
According to Dr. Jalpa Bhuta, Consultant-Psychiatrist at Global Hospital, Mumbai, “SAD is a mood disorder with seasonal patterns.”
“Symptoms of SAD often begin in the autumn and go away in the spring. Symptoms of SAD include lack of energy with depressive mood as well as hypersomnia and increased appetite,” Dr Bhuta told Hindustan Times.
Dr Bhuta further said that nightmares are more common in evening people than in morning people. In explaining the above point, the psychiatrist also emphasized that the reason why night owls are more vulnerable to night terrors is their “more sensitive” circadian system.
And here are some ways to avoid night terrors:
- See a therapist to help you out of SAD or depression
- You Can Avoid Nightmares By Controlling Your Sleep Habits
- Avoid Screen Time After Sleeping
- Reduce caffeine intake before bedtime
- don’t take your work home
- avoid overthinking in bed
- Breathing exercises can help you fall asleep on time
- Light therapy also proves effective in such cases.
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