The University of California researchers conducted a study in which they analyzed the processes taking place in the human brain during sleep. Thus, the researchers found that dreams help us to calm down, relax, organize the information we heard and saw during the day, and also forget unpleasant memories, writes Headinsider.
35 volunteers were recruited to participate in the study. For some time, American scientists monitored the brain activity of subjects during different periods of sleep, using a magnetic resonance imager.
According to the results of the study, experts concluded that the period of REM sleep, when a person sees dreams, has the most beneficial effect on the human body. The human brain, being at this stage of sleep, structures the information received over the past day and gets rid of negative experiences. In addition, the study authors noticed that dreams can help a person solve emotional problems.
The findings from the study explain why people with PTSD (post traumatic stress disorder) have recurring nightmares. For example, this is typical of war veterans.
The authors of the study argue that the beneficial effect of dreams under the influence of stress is disrupted, because of this, the brain begins to work against the person. Dreams containing information about unpleasant moments in a person's life are repeated, since stress prevents the brain from erasing these data.