Pandemia changed Finnish nightmares Hs.fi

Nearly Every other Finnish adult sees nightmares at least once a month. About four percent of the population often sees them.

Nightmares are more common in women than in men, says Research Professor at the National Institute for Health and Welfare (THL) Timo Partonen. THL has been researching Finnish nightmares since 1972 through health surveys that have involved nearly 80,000 Finns.

Partonen Repeated nightmares may be due to depression, anxiety, substance abuse or traumatic experiences.

Nightmares often include escape and defense from unrealistic, physical threats, but they also experience real, everyday problems. For example, the corona pandemic came to the dreams of Finns and added nightmares this decade.

Pandemic nightmares saw clearly more serious threat of illness than usual.

« The pandemic changed the everyday life of people with all its restrictions. At first, it was not known how dangerous the disease it is and how it can protect it, which increased stress. Stress sensitively turns ordinary dreams into a nightmare, » Partonen says.

According to a study at the University of Turku, the Ukrainian war has also increased the nightmares of Finns. Only a few hundred Finns are involved in the study, but a senior researcher at the University of Turku Nils Sandman believes that the phenomenon is likely to be wider.

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« Stress sensitively turns ordinary dreams into a nightmare. »

Up Fear, stress and anxiety perceived in nightmares are combined with unconscious mind content, which can result in very special nightmares, says Timo Partonen.

« An exception to this is the nightmares of traumatic stress disorder. If a person has had a life -threatening situation, he or she may live in a very similar nightmare over and over again, » Partonen says.

According to Nils Sandman, personality features have an impact on seeing nightmares. For some people, things that are awake cause a stronger experience or reaction in both good and bad. These people remember more of their dreams and also get a nightmare when they experience something scary.

Sandman says that for example, certain blood pressure, anxiety and even sleeping pills can cause nightmares. If the nightmares appear after starting a new medication, it would be a good idea to discuss this with your doctor.

Man Wakes up from a nightmare, usually anxious, and it can be difficult for him to catch the sleep again. The intermittent sleep does not refresh, resulting in daily fatigue and everyday challenges, says Partonen.

« Attention and concentration are impaired, the attention is narrowed, the memory is cut down, the reactions slow down and the irritation increases. These cognitive disadvantages expose them to quarrels, errors and accidents, » Partonen describes.

According to Sandman, sleep deprivation also increases the risk of infections and exposes the long-term to a variety of diseases such as type two diabetes and cardiovascular disease.

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For some, everyday things cause a stronger experience. These people are also more sensitive to nightmares when they experience something scary.

Single Nightmares are common and cannot be completely avoided, as there are different concerns in life. If you have a nightmare several times a week for several weeks, it may be a nightmare disorder that would be good to seek help, says Partonen.

« Applying for help is particularly important if the nightmares start to influence the ability to deal with everyday life. »

If you have depression, anxiety disorder or a traumatic stress reaction, scary dreams often decrease when you get a good treatment balance. According to Partonen, the primary treatments for these diseases are psychotherapy, the most effective of which has proven to be cognitive behavioral therapy. Nightmares can be treated in therapy, even if they do not involve any diagnosed mental disorder.

Partonen points out that when examining the nightmares of the elderly, the possibility of brain diseases, such as Parkinson’s disease, should also be remembered.