THE secret dreams of Brits have been revealed in a bizarre “sleep census”; – and then recreated with AI.
It reveals common themes that keep popping up, including in the “primal fears”; in our nightmares.
Thousands of Brits had their tracked and logged over the course of a week.
And a quarter of the participants found themselves “trapped in anxiety-driven dreams”;.
That included being chased, finding themselves lost, or running late for something important.
“Dreams are the brain’s way of processing emotions, memories, and stress,”; said Lisa Artis, deputy chief at The Sleep Charity, which helped organise the probe into Britain’s dreams.
“The fact that so many people are dreaming about being late, being chased, or feeling trapped suggests that high levels of daily anxiety and stress are carrying over into sleep.”;
SLEEP SPLIT
The investigation also found that women appeared to be more likely to experience high-stress dreams – at 30% to men’s 20%.
But men were “more prone to surreal or fantastical dream worlds”; at 19% versus 12% of women.
It also showed that the most common UK nightmares “reflect deep-seated anxieties and primal fears”;.
As well as being chased, lost, or trapped, a further 16% of British adults experienced nightmares about falling or their falling out.
Financial stress was listed as affecting a nearly a quarter of Brits in their dreams.
And 19% had their dreams influenced by TV, films, and books viewed before bed.
There was also a phenomenon dubbed a “Dream Surge”;, where Saturday had the highest volume of recalled dreams.
That meant more people remembered their dreams on Sunday morning compared to any other day in the week.
“Dreams are a reflection of our deepest subconscious,”; said Steve Reid, chief of sleep-tech firm Simba.
“Now, by bringing this research to life with cutting-edge AI, we can start to make connections to our lives out of bed.
“Ultimately, being more aware about what fuels our dreams helps us understand ourselves and how we can better .”;
Around 2,000 UK adults took part in the Dream Census, which also reported that 13% of Brits recall a dream almost every night – though a third “rarely remember them at all”;.
NIGHT FRIGHTS
According to the NHS, night terrors and nightmares can be caused by a whole host of things.
That includes:
- Being tired or unwell
- Sudden noises at night
- Needing to pee during the night
- Something that's frightened you (like a scary film)
- Something that's made you stressed, anxious, or worried
But the NHS also noted that nightmares can be caused by certain medicines (like anti-depressants), conditions that affect sleep like restless legs syndrome or , mental conditions, and conditions that affect the brain like .
“Night terrors are more common in people with family members who have had night terrors or who sleepwalk,” the NHS added.
The Sun recently revealed some clever worth trying if you're struggling to nod off.
And last year, we tested an that tracks your sleep.
