"I am standing up at the water’s edge in my dream
I cannot make a single sound as you scream…" — Peter Gabriel
Usually, we hate nightmares, but would we be better off without them? This was the question I asked myself as I did research on the hormone melatonin, which is available in most health food stores and websites. It is usually recommended for jet lag. However, it is noted for producing incredibly vivid nightmares.
Could this be the reason why I have had vivid nightmares all of my life? Too much melatonin being put out by my pineal gland? Probably, there are more reasons than just an overproduction of melatonin. For the sake of argument, let’s assume nightmares are caused by the pineal gland’s overproduction of melatonin. How about if I could take a pill to suppress the melatonin production that I could afford? Would I take it? No, because as much as they annoy us, there are benefits to nightmares.
Nightmares Help Us Prioritize
There’s nothing like being convinced that you are falling off of a cliff to sort out the priorities in your life really fast. If you were plummeting through the air, would you have any regrets? (Besides, "I wish I hadn’t fallen off of this cliff.")
Then, when you wake up, you realize that you have been given a second chance. It could be your unconscious warning you that you can take the good dreams you have and bring them out into the waking world. In other words, sometimes we all need a swift kick in the pants in order to go in the right direction. Nightmares certainly provide a powerful kick. Even though the kick is painful, the advice is one of the best benefits to nightmares we can get.
Nightmares Help Us Practice Survival Skills
Although we can exercise our muscles, we can’t really exercise survival skills like running away from a vampire or arguing with a mother-in-law until we actually go through the experience. There are just some things that you can’t learn in a classroom or from a textbook. You either learn from experience, or you’re screwed.
But how many times do you get to practice such potentially lethal activities like getting chased by a vampire or arguing with your mother-in-law? Not often — in the waking world. But with the benefit of nightmares, you can all the practice you need, in case you ever do run into the real thing.
Nightmares Are Just So Darn Entertaining
A famous novel you might have heard of by Mary Shelly, Frankenstein, was inspired by a nightmare. The incredible song quoted above, Red Rain, by my hero Peter Gabriel, was also inspired by a nightmare. And who is the best selling author today? If you have guessed Stephen King, than you can go have a cookie.
When you have a nightmare, you are faced with a choice. You can either be scared by it, or use the images and feelings provoked in you to help creates something — whether it’s a work or art or a decision. Not all nightmares are worth delving into, but those that stick in your memory or that keeps repeating are usually the ones to look into.
With all of these benefits to nightmares, I think I’m better off sticking with them.
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