We need sleep. When we sleep, we restart our bodies, rest and wake up ready for the next day.
And when we close our eyes, dreams soon follow. Everyone dreams, although not everyone remembers what they see in those dreams. Dreaming is pleasant for some, while for others it's a terrifying experience.
But no matter the kinds of visions our consciousness witnesses, we accept dreams as something normal. There are however, several facts about them that few know, that would seem practically impossible for the majority of people.
Read on to find out what these are, as they will make you look at your dreams in a completely new light.
Dreaming in sound and smell
How do those with impaired vision dream? Well, individuals who have been blind since birth don't dream like the rest of us. They have the same realistic dreams like us but perceive them through sound, smell, touch and emotion. This is difficult to imagine for someone who can see but the fact is that the body's need of dreams is so great that it can overcome practically any physical situation.
Dreams or psychosis?
A recent study has proven that lack of sleep can lead to severe psychosis. People who sleep less than 8 hours a day experience difficulties concentrating, irritability and lack motivation.
If the lack of sleep continues for over a week, hallucinations and psychosis occur. When the person finally has the opportunity to sleep as needed, their brain experiences much more intensive dreams, in order to restore itself.
We only dream things we're familiar with
One may often have dreams where strangers bump into them in various situations. However, the brain does not invent new characters, instead it projects those that have made an impression on us, even when this happens subconsciously.
That evil murderer in your nightmares isn't a total stranger, it might be an IRS tax collector or someone you knew as a child, for example. Over the course of our lives, we've seen hundreds of thousands of people, so our brain has a large database to choose from.
Not everyone dreams in color
About 12% of adults dream in black and white. Everyone else dreams in color. Researchers have found that more emotional dreams manifest in color, while more ordinary dreams, related to everyday life, are black and white. What's also interesting is that most people don't realize this until it's pointed out to them.
