Skip to main content
Key Specialties
Cardiology Diabetology Endocrinology Gastroenterology Geriatrics and Gerontology Gynecology and Obstetrics Hematology Infectious Disease Internal Medicine Nephrology Neurology Oncology Pediatrics Respiratory Medicine Rheumatology Surgery
Congress Coverage
2024 ACC Congress 2023 ESMO Congress 2023 EASD Congress 2023 ERS Congress 2023 ESC Congress
Clinical Collections
Advances in Alzheimer’s

Keynote webinar | Spotlight on medication adherence

LIVE: Thursday 27th June 2024, 18:00-19:30 (CEST)
Join our expert panel to discover why you need to understand the drivers of non-adherence in your patients, and how you can optimize medication adherence in your clinics to drastically improve patient outcomes.
ADVANCED SEARCH
Log in
Top
BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth
Published in: BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth 1/2016

Open Access 01-12-2016 | Research article

Nightmare frequency in last trimester of pregnancy

Authors: Michael Schredl, Maria Gilles, Isabell Wolf, Verena Peus, Barbara Scharnholz, Marc Sütterlin, Michael Deuschle

Published in: BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth | Issue 1/2016

Login to get access

Abstract

Background

Pregnancy-related dreams are often found in pregnant women but also the number of negatively toned dreams seems to be increased in this challenging phase of a woman’s life.

Methods

Nightmare frequency and subjectively experienced stress was elicited via questionnaires. The mothers-to-be were approached during their application visit about 4–8 weeks prior to delivery in three obstetric hospitals. The present analysis included 406 women aged 16–40 years in the last trimester of their pregnancy. Women with severe somatic illnesses and/or psychiatric disorders were excluded. The representative sample included 496 women (age range: 14–93 years.).

Results

The findings clearly indicate that pregnant women report nightmares more often compared to a representative sample and that nightmare frequency is closely related to subjectively experienced stress during daytime. Moreover, baby-related dreams were correlated with nightmare frequency but not with day-time stress.

Conclusions

Future studies should investigate the prevalence of nightmare disorders in pregnancy and study whether brief interventions like Imagery Rehearsal Therapy are beneficial for pregnant women suffering from nightmares.
Literature
1.
Avise JC. Evolutionary perspectives on pregnancy. New York: Columbia University Press; 2013.CrossRef
2.
Raphael-Leff J. Psychological processes of childbearing. London: Chapman and Hall; 1991.
3.
Mindell JA, Cook RA, Nikolovski J. Sleep patterns and sleep disturbances across pregnancy. Sleep Med. 2015;16(4):483–8.CrossRefPubMed
4.
Schredl M. Sleep and dreaming. In: Bassetti CL, Dogas Z, Peigneux P, editors. ESRS European sleep medicine textbook. Regensburg: European Sleep Resarch Society; 2014. p. 63–71.
5.
Davis PM. Dreams and visions in the Anglo-Saxon conversion to christianity. Dreaming. 2005;15:75–88.CrossRef
6.
Maybruck P. Pregnancy and dreams. In: Krippner S, editor. Dreamtime and dreamwork: decoding the language of the night. Los Angeles: Jeremy P. Tarcher; 1990. p. 143–51.
7.
Perry DF, DiPietro J, Costigan K. Are women carrying “basketballs” really having boys? testing pregnancy folklore. Birth. 1999;26(3):172–7.CrossRefPubMed
8.
9.
Gillman RD. The dreams of pregnant women and maternal adaption. Am J Orthopsychiatry. 1968;38:688–92.CrossRefPubMed
10.
Backe J. Wovon Schwangere träumen - Traumanalysen bei neun schwangeren Frauen und Übersicht über die Literatur [Dreams of pregnent women - Dream analyses of nine pregnant women and a literature overview]. Geburtshilfe Frauenheilkd. 2004;64:271–8.CrossRef
11.
Van P, Cage T, Shannon M. Big dreams, little sleep: dreams during pregnancy after prior pregnancy loss. Holist Nurs Pract. 2004;18:284–92.CrossRefPubMed
12.
13.
Blake RL, Reimann J. The pregnancy-related dreams of pregnant women. J Am Board Fam Pract. 1993;6:117–22.PubMed
14.
Dagan Y, Lapidot A, Eisenstein M. Women’s dreams reported first pregnancy. Psychiatry Clin Neurosci. 2001;55:13–20.CrossRefPubMed
15.
Krippner S, Posner NA, Pomerance W, Barksdale W, Fischer S. An investigation of dream content during pregnancy. J Am Soc Psychosom Dent Med. 1974;21:111–23.PubMed
16.
Cortopassi E, Dalle Luch R, Cascella N, Maggini T. Some features of dreams in the last trimester of pregnancy. Assoc Study Dreams Newsl. 1989;6(4):1–3.
17.
Coo S, Milgrom J, Trinder J. Pregnancy and postnatal dreams reflect changes inherent to the transition to motherhood. Dreaming. 2014;24(2):125–37.CrossRef
18.
Hall CS, Nordby VJ. The individual and his dreams. New York: New American Library; 1972.
19.
Schredl M. Continuity between waking and dreaming: a proposal for a mathematical model. Sleep Hypn. 2003;5:38–52.
20.
Siegel AB. Pregnant dreams: developmental processes in the manifest dreams of expectant fathers. Diss Abstr Int. 1982;43:1639-B.
21.
Lara-Carrasco J, Simard V, Saint-Onge K, Lamoureux-Tremblay V, Nielsen T. Disturbed dreaming during the third trimester of pregnancy. Sleep Med. 2014;15(6):694–700.CrossRefPubMed
22.
Hertz G, Fast A, Feinsilver SH, Albertario CL, Schulman H, Fein AM. Sleep in normal late pregnancy. Sleep. 1992;15(3):246–51.PubMed
23.
Van de Castle RL, Kinder P. Dream content during pregnancy. Psychophysiology. 1968;4:375.
24.
Winget C, Kapp FT. The relationship of the manifest content of dreams to duration of childbirth in primiparea. Psychosom Med. 1972;34:313–20.CrossRefPubMed
25.
Schroer T. Archtypal dreams during the first pregnancy. Psychol Perspect. 1984;15:71–80.
26.
Mancuso A, De Vivo A, Fanara G, Settineri S, Giacobbe A, Pizzo A. Emotional state and dreams in pregnant women. Psychiatry Res. 2008;160:380–6.CrossRefPubMed
27.
Sabourin C, Duchesne-Perusse A, De Koninck J. Dreams during pregnancy and postpartum depression: Further explorations. Sleep Suppl. 2009;32:A422.
28.
American Academy of Sleep Medicine. The international classification of sleep disorders. (ICSD-3). Darien: AASM; 2014.
29.
Hedman C, Pohjasvaara T, Tolonen U, Salmivaara A, Myllylä VV. Parasomnias decline during pregnancy. Acta Neurol Scand. 2002;105:209–14.CrossRefPubMed
30.
Saisto T, Halmesmäki E. Fear of childbirth: a neglected dilemma. Acta Obstet Gynecol Scand. 2003;82:201–8.CrossRefPubMed
31.
Schredl M. Nightmare frequency and nightmare topics in a representative German sample. Eur Arch Psychiatry Clin Neurosci. 2010;260:565–70.CrossRefPubMed
32.
Schredl M. Nightmare disorder. In: Kushida C, editor. The Encyclopedia of Sleep. Waltham: Academic; 2013. p. 219–24.CrossRef
33.
Schredl M. Nightmare frequency in a representative German sample. Int J Dream Res. 2013;6:119–22.
34.
Schredl M. Dream recall frequency in a representative German sample. Percept Mot Skills. 2008;106:699–702.CrossRefPubMed
35.
Schredl M. Effects of state and trait factors on nightmare frequency. Eur Arch Psychiatry Clin Neurosci. 2003;253:241–7.CrossRefPubMed
36.
Levin R, Nielsen TA. Disturbed dreaming, posttraumatic stress disorder, and affect distress: a review and neurocognitive model. Psychol Bull. 2007;133:482–528.CrossRefPubMed
37.
Schredl M. Reliability and stability of a dream recall frequency scale. Percept Mot Skills. 2004;98:1422–6.PubMed
38.
Stumbrys T, Erlacher D, Schredl M. Reliability and stability of lucid dream and nightmare frequency scales. Int J Dream Res. 2013;6:123–6.
39.
Gau ML, Lee TY. Construct validity of the prenatal attachment inventory: a confirmatory factor analysis approach. J Nursing Res (Taiwan Nurses Association). 2003;11(3):177–87.
40.
Muller ME, Mercer RT. Development of the Prenatal Attachment Inventory. West J Nurs Res. 1993;15(2):199–215.CrossRefPubMed
41.
Körner A, Geyer M, Roth M, Drapeau M, Schmutzer G, Albani C, et al. Personlichkeitsdiagnostik mit dem NEO-Fünf-Faktoren-Inventar: Die 30-Item-Kurzversion (NEO-FFI-30) [Personality diagnostic using the NEO-Five-Factor-Inventory: The 30-Item short version (NEO-FFI-30)]. Psychother Psychosom Med Psychol. 2008;58(6):238–45.CrossRefPubMed
42.
Cohen S, Kamarck T, Mermelstein R. A global measure of perceived stress. J Health Soc Behav. 1983;24:386–96.CrossRef
43.
Laux L, Glanzmann P, Schaffner P, Spielberger CD. Das state-trait-angstinventar [The state-trait-anxiety-inventory]. Weinheim: Beltz; 1981.
44.
Cox JL, Chapman G, Murray D, Jones P. Validation of the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) in non-postnatal women. J Affect Disord. 1996;39(3):185–9.CrossRefPubMed
45.
Cox JL, Holden JM, Sagovsky R. Detection of postnatal depression. Development of the 10-item Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale. Br J Psychiatry J Ment Sci. 1987;150:782–6.CrossRef
46.
Bergant AM, Nguyen T, Heim K, Ulmer H, Dapunt O. German language version and validation of the Edinburgh postnatal depression scale. Dtsch Med Wochenschr. 1998;123(3):35–40.CrossRefPubMed
47.
Sarason IG, Johnson JH, Siegel JM. Assessing the impact of life changes: development of the Life Experiences Survey. J Consult Clin Psychol. 1978;46(5):932–46.CrossRefPubMed
48.
Wittchen HU, Boyer P. Screening for anxiety disorders. Sensitivity and specificity of the Anxiety Screening Questionnaire (ASQ-15). Br J Psychiatry Suppl. 1998;34:10–7.
49.
Yali AM, Lobel M. Coping and distress in pregnancy: an investigation of medically high risk women. J Psychosom Obstet Gynaecol. 1999;20(1):39–52.CrossRefPubMed
50.
Lancee J, Schrijnemaekers NCML. The association between nightmares and daily distress. Sleep Biol Rhythms. 2013;11(1):14–9.CrossRef
51.
Valli K, Sandman N, Kronholm E, Revonsuo A, Laatikainen T, Paunio T. Factors associated with frequent nightmare among the general Finnish adult population. Sleep. 2014;37(Suppl):A72.
52.
Blagrove M, Farmer L, Williams E. The relationship of nightmare frequency and nightmare distress to well-being. J Sleep Res. 2004;13:129–36.CrossRefPubMed
53.
Robert G, Zadra AL. Measuring nightmare and bad dream frequency: impact of retrosepective and prospective instruments. J Sleep Res. 2008;17:132–9.CrossRefPubMed
54.
Zadra AL, Donderi DC. Nightmares and bad dreams: their prevalence and relationship to well-being. J Abnorm Psychol. 2000;109:273–81.CrossRefPubMed
55.
Zunker M, Althoff HK, Apel J, Lässig HS, Schültke L, Schredl M. Comparing questionnaire and diary measures for eliciting nightmare frequency. Int J Dream Res. 2015;8:129–34.
56.
Lynn FA, Alderdice FA, Crealey GE, McElnay JC. Associations between maternal characteristics and pregnancy-related stress among low-risk mothers: an observational cross-sectional study. Int J Nurs Stud. 2011;48(5):620–7.CrossRefPubMed
57.
Lawson A, Murphy KE, Sloan E, Uleryk E, Dalfen A. The relationship between sleep and postpartum mental disorders: A systematic review. J Affect Disord. 2015;176:65–77.CrossRefPubMed
58.
Beck CT. Post-traumatic stress disorder due to childbirth: the aftermath. Nurs Res. 2004;53:216–24.CrossRefPubMed
59.
Kron T, Brosh A. Can dreams during pregnancy predict postpartum depression? Dreaming. 2003;13:67–81.CrossRef
60.
Riemann D, Löw H, Schredl M, Wiegand M, Dippel B, Berger M. Investigations of morning and laboratory dream recall and content in depressive patients during baseline conditions and under antidepressive treatment with trimipramine. Psychiatr J Univ Ott. 1990;15:93–9.PubMed
61.
Krakow B, Zadra AL. Imagery rehearsal therapy: principles and practice. Sleep Med Clin. 2010;5:289–98.CrossRef
62.
Hansen K, Höfling V, Kröner-Borowik T, Stangier U, Steil R. Efficacy of psychological interventions aiming to reduce chronic nightmares: a meta-analysis. Clin Psychol Rev. 2013;33(1):146–55.CrossRefPubMed
Metadata
Title
Nightmare frequency in last trimester of pregnancy
Authors
Michael Schredl
Maria Gilles
Isabell Wolf
Verena Peus
Barbara Scharnholz
Marc Sütterlin
Michael Deuschle
Publication date
01-12-2016
Publisher
BioMed Central
Published in
BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth / Issue 1/2016
Electronic ISSN: 1471-2393
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1186/s12884-016-1147-x

Other articles of this Issue 1/2016

BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth 1/2016 Go to the issue

Research article

An interview study of pregnant women who were provided with indoor air quality measurements of second hand smoke to help them quit smoking

Case report

Postpartum sacral stress fracture: a case report

Research article

Comparison of birth certificates and hospital-based birth data on pregnancy complications in Los Angeles and Orange County, California

Study protocol

Metformin in women with type 2 diabetes in pregnancy (MiTy): a multi-center randomized controlled trial

Research article

A qualitative study of gestational weight gain goal setting

Research article

Maternal hepatitis B virus carrier status and pregnancy outcomes: a prospective cohort study