You miss those nights where you could sleep oh so peacefully and wake up calmly and smiling rather than terrified and sweating? Then you have to find a way to stop having nightmares.
Nightmares can have many origins, but when they are particularly recurrent, it is important to have solutions to fight them.
Indeed, knowing how to avoid nightmares will help those who suffer from them to get back to sleep and not to worry about going to bed.
Related Reading: Music to stop nightmares and fall asleep
First step: Determine the origin of nightmares
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To fight effectively a pathology or a problem, it is important to find the origin of said problem (insofar as the cause did not appear to you spontaneously).
As we know, nightmares are usually due to stress and lack of sleep:
- permanent, because it’s in your nature.
- punctual, if you have decisions of particularly heavy consequences to take or complicated problems to manage.
- following a shock (physical or emotional).
- old, for example resulting from childhood.
Moreover, nightmares can also be related to taking some medications (some cause this type of side effects). They also occur during periods of withdrawal (including alcohol withdrawal).
Nightmares can be related as well to a particular event such as physical or mental exhaustion, a change of climate, etc. If it’s due to anxiety, a weighted blanket can be an excellent remedy.
Second step: Treat the origin of nightmares
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As much as possible, you have to find a way to treat the nightmares by getting back to their origin.
Regarding nightmares related to stress
If nightmares are due to stress, there are several options available depending on the cause.
If you suffer from permanent stress, you should consider going to a sophrologist or doing yoga to learn how to better manage your stress. You can also occasionally take a course of magnesium chloride.
On the other hand, if you suffer from one-time stress, whether it is because you are making a decision or because you have complicated problems to manage, use NLP (Neuro-Linguistic Programming) practitioners to help you get the most out of your thinking, management and analysis skills.
When it comes to post Traumatic Stress, you can use an eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) practitioner, follow Ericksonian hypnosis sessions, or work with a biodecoder (biological disease decoding practitioner).
And if your nightmares are caused by stress you have been carrying with you since childhood:
Call a psychologist or psychotherapist (or child psychiatrist for children). Or try turning to a hypnotherapist or a biodecoder. You can also use magnesium chloride as it helps in reducing stress.
Regarding nightmares related to taking medication
In case of nightmares related to taking medication, read their instructions carefully. Ask your doctor or pharmacist for an alternative to this treatment.
Note: Many medications can cause nightmares, such as medication for treating asthma, some anti-HIV treatments, and even some anxiolytics and sleeping pills.
Nightmares related to a withdrawal period
If your nightmares are related to a withdrawal period, do not give up and get help from specialists in centers or by an addictologist. They can take care of you and take into account your nightmares in addition to your withdrawal related difficulties.
Also you can find out on the internet – especially on forums – people who live or have lived the same thing as you to help you cross this course.
Nightmares related to a particular event
Identify the event that is causing your nightmares and make sure you fix it as best you can.
If possible, take a little rest to get off your feet and stop getting tired.
Again, participating in sophrology or yoga sessions could help you.
Third step: Prevent the appearance of nightmares
If you tend to be subject to nightmares, some basic precautions are necessary:
Avoid horror movies or stories that may scare you, especially if you are sensitive. Unconsciously, these stories may resurface during your REM sleep.
For children who are easily worried in the dark, leave a night light on or open the door with the light in the hallway lit while they fall asleep.
For slightly larger children, it is possible to draw monsters or a representation of what children see in their nightmares. By enclosing the drawings in a drawer or in a “magic” box, the child can feel safer.
In addition, it is possible to limit nightmares by putting children to bed at a regular time, reading them a story or stroking their head gently to help them fall asleep.
Fight against nightmares with aromatherapy
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Several essential oils are interesting to fight against nightmares, especially when spread for a quarter of an hour before going to bed:
- True lavender essential oil (Lavandula angustifolia or officinalis) or with that of lavandin;
- sandalwood essential oil;
- Patagonian pine essential oil associated with twice the amount of Rosewood essential oil.
For kids :
Make a mixture with 1 drop of Angelic essential oil and 1 drop of Bitter Orange essential oil.
Apply it in a gentle massage on the solar plexus at bedtime for two weeks.
For adults:
Mix 1 drop each of the following essential oils: Roman chamomile, Marjoram with shell.
Apply this preparation on the solar plexus at bedtime for two weeks.
Another possibility :
Make a preparation with 2 ml of Patagonian pine essential oil, 4 ml of Rosewood essential oil and 15 ml of hazelnut vegetable oil.
Apply 3 drops of this mixture on the solar plexus or the spine.
Take dietary supplements
Some of the interesting dietary supplements to help avoid nightmares include those which treat anxiety:
- Aluminum (in small quantities) found in water, salt, flour, mushrooms, green vegetables, dairy products;
- Lithium found in algae, fish, crustaceans, whole grains or beet;
- Magnesium (magnesium chloride, maximum 300 mg per day), present in legumes, dark green leafy vegetables, seeds, nuts, chocolate and banana;
- Zinc, found mainly in oysters, but also in nuts, vegetables, whole grains and meats.
- Side vitamins, especially vitamin B1 (thiamine, 1 to 1.6 mg per day) that you can found in pork, liver and kidney, dairy products, egg yolk, brewer’s yeast, cereals, pulses, fresh fruits, nuts (make sure to avoid prolonged cooking so as not to destroy it); or vitamin B2 (riboflavin or E101 dye, at a rate of 1.6 mg per day for an adult) that you can more or less find in the same food as the food containing B1 vitamins, but also in oily fish, cocoa, mushrooms, sausages, whole wheat bread, spinach, chicory, dandelions … It resists heat better than thiamine, but it is sensitive to light.
References:
- https://www.dreams.co.uk/sleep-matters-club/how-to-avoid-nightmares/
- https://thinkoily.com/essential-oils-for-nightmares/