Sleep researchers around the world have started to notice that people are having more vivid dreams and nightmares these days, according to professor Markku Partinen from the Helsinki-based sleep clinic Uniklinikka.
As uncertainty about the impact of the coronavirus epidemic continues to spread, people appear to be dreaming increasingly intensely and remembering their dreams more, according to a BBC interview with Harvard University sleep researcher Deirdre Leight Barrett.
In her interview with the BBC, Barrett said people tend to dream more in the midst of major life changes, but also noted that the recent reports of increased vivid dreams could be linked to people sleeping more.
Partinen said having more dreams is not necessarily a bad thing, noting that they help people to process life events and emotions.
“[The increase] could be related to fears or anxieties. We don’t know yet, but one might assume that people who are otherwise prone to anxiety or worry about things are now having more lively dreams,” Partinen explained.
He said that an international sleep survey will be carried out during May and June to evaluate the connections between the increase in dreams and the world’s current situation.
Shared phenomenon gets own hashtag
The recent uptick in unusual dream patterns have also emerged on social media. Using the hashtag #pandemicdreams, Twitter users reported having intense dreams of tsunamis, scary animals or even winding up in the wrong video chat sessions.
Partinen said that one patient's unsettling dreams about his dog began making him wonder whether the dog really liked him. But the professor noted that an increase in dreams, insomnia and nightmares is common for people dealing with crisis situations and that having occasional nightmares is quite common and nothing to be afraid of.
Sleep specialist from health firm Coronaria, Henri Tuomilehto, said that other common disorders include talking or walking during sleep.
According to data from the activity watch manufacturer Polar, people in Finland have been sleeping about 10 minutes more per day than they were a year ago. But according to the health-promoting centre UKK Institute, users of activity monitoring tech are more active than the general population and the sleep data may not be in line with that of the general population.
Tuomilehto said he does not think that Finnish residents are catching up on their sleep in lieu of cancelled business trips, for example.
Sleep pattern shifts
However, according to professor Partinen, a study carried out in Norway found there has been a sort of “social jet lag” observed among participants. This sort of change to circadian rhythms are caused by going to bed - and waking up - later than usual. The professor said this could be due to people working from home and not commuting to and from work every day, and that the same phenomenon has been seen at his clinic.
“If you can also sleep longer, and get enough sleep, there is no terrible disadvantage to this,” Partinen explained.
However, sleep specialist Tuomilehto underscored the important role sleep plays during exceptional times, saying that sleep is a person’s most important way to rejuvenate.
He said people should make the effort to get enough rest during these uncertain times so that they are well-prepared for the eventual end of the epidemic.
“When times are difficult you should invest in your own recovery. Then, when the time is right, we’ll be ready to strike and get society rolling again,” Tuomilehto said.