Waking up exhausted after many disturbing dreams is a common experience for many depressed people.

 

It has been shown that depressed people dream up to three times as much as non-depressed people and feel so short of energy first thing in the morning.

 

The latest scientific understanding of dreams tells us that we dream for specific biological and psychological purposes.

Emotionally arousing ruminations which are unfulfilled at sleep onset (i.e. the concern is still a worry) get ‘dreamed out’ metaphorically during dreaming. This is done to leave the ‘higher brain’ (neo-cortex) free for dealing with the next day's events.

 

Dreaming literally takes the ‘charge’ out of a concern. However dreaming is a very distinct part of sleep. It’s called ‘paradoxical sleep’ because it is not the part of sleep which provides us with rest. During the dream phase of sleep (REM), we actually have more of the ‘stress hormones’ such as adrenaline in our systems.

 

So over-dreaming stresses the system leaving us exhausted when we awaken. If a depressed person is woken every time they show rapid eye movement (which generally coincides with dreaming) then the symptoms of clinical depression can lift. But they may become extremely anxious or manic as the negatively arousing ruminations are still occurring but no longer being ‘flushed out’ by the dream process.

 

Nature sometimes tries to prevent the person over-dreaming by causing them to awaken in the early hours of the morning so that they spend less time in dream sleep. This is known as early morning waking syndrome.

 

So why do depressed people dream more?

Depressed people dream more because they have more emotional arousal to ‘dream out.’ Depression causes (and is caused by) a lot of emotionally-arousing introspection, or rumination, that endless sort of worrying that never seems to go anywhere and just makes you feel bad.

 

The importance of this discovery cannot be overstated. We now know why most of the symptoms of depression occur, and what to do about them.

 

If you are depressed, there are clear things you must do:

• Learn about depression, so you can stop worrying about that (follow the Depression Learning Path).

• Get some deep relaxation as often as you can to help your system recover from the effects of over-dreaming. (When I use relaxation techniques in my clinic, depressed people will often stay in a deeply relaxed state for up to an hour and a half, often needing to be 'woken up'. This shows clearly a missing need. They regularly report afterwards feeling 'better than they have in months'.

• Do anything that stops you ruminating. Make an appointment for a consultation with myself, who can help you get some perspective on your problems, and recommend a course of action. Depression can make things seem hopeless, in fact convince you of it, when in fact they are not. My help may make all the difference.

 

Antidepressants have the effect of reducing dreaming, but as a consequence of the reduced REM, the person may then experience more anxiety or agitation. The arousal-dreaming-exhaustion cycle is not properly broken because as soon as drugs are discontinued the person then dreams even more.

 

Here are 5 of the most common physical symptoms that often accompany depression.

 

1) "I can't sleep!"/"I can't stop sleeping!"

So many depressed people report not being able to sleep or sometimes sleeping 'all the time'.

Worry and negative thoughts and feelings increase the levels of the stress hormone cortisol in the bloodstream. This response is really designed to keep us awake, alert, and safe during physical danger. Because if we fell asleep while we were in real physical danger, it could be disastrous.

 

2) "I have all kinds of aches and pains, but the doctor can't find anything physically wrong with me!"

There's no physical test that can show whether someone is depressed. Pain and depression are closely related. Depression can cause pain — and pain can cause depression. Sometimes pain and depression create a vicious cycle in which pain worsens symptoms of depression, and then the resulting depression worsens feelings of pain.

In many people, depression causes unexplained physical symptoms such as back pain or headaches. This kind of pain may be the first or the only sign of depression.

Pain and the problems it causes can wear you down over time, and may begin to affect your mood

 

3) "I have completely lost interest in sex!"

Although it's not often discussed or asked about, temporarily losing interest in sex is also common with depression. And, unhelpfully, it's also a common – but often unknown – side effect of antidepressants.

Again, because a depressed person's bloodstream is so full of cortisol and stress hormone levels rise when the body perceives a physical threat, any physical function not directly connected with immediate survival tends to get 'switched off'.

 

4) "I seem to be catching colds all the time..."

As with sex drive, increased stress hormone is designed to lower the function of any physical responses that don't have to do with fending off an immediate physical attack.

So cortisol has an inhibiting effect on the immune system. By contrast, not surprisingly, relaxationenhances the immune system.

 

5) "I've lost my appetite and am losing weight..."  /  "I eat all the time and am putting on weight!"

Appetite changes often occur with depression. And, just like with sleep, these changes can seem contradictory.

On the one hand, stress suppresses appetite and depression steals motivation to look after yourself, so eating can be neglected.

On the other hand, stress can also make us behave compulsively.

 

 

If you are feeling anxious and depressed, act NOW - Make an appointment - and keep your mind & body healthy