Can babies have nightmares? The answer and what you can do.
You awaken to your baby crying hysterically in the middle of the night. After running through the usual checklist to relieve their discomfort, you are left none the wiser about what is troubling your little one. Sound familiar?
They aren’t wet or hungry, and the soothing familiarity of your touch is not settling them as promptly as usual. As you desperately search for the cause of your baby’s distress, a question comes to mind… can babies have nightmares?
The truth is, scientists are still researching the phenomenon of baby nightmares, so the verdict is still out. In this post, we will explore what the latest research reveals and what you can do to calm your kiddo during these unexplained episodes of distress.
The mystery of baby nightmares
Night awakenings are frequent during infancy. Sometimes the reason for a baby’s distress is apparent, but the cause remains a mystery at other times.
We know that babies need a lot of sleep and that encouraging a healthy sleep routine from an early age can improve their sleep quality. However, there’s still insufficient technology to answer in what ways can babies have nightmares or even dreams.
Dreaming occurs during the REM (rapid eye movement) stage of sleep. Approximately 50% of an infant’s sleep is spent in the REM stage. Neuroscientists believe that REM plays a role in consolidating and integrating memories and maintaining and establishing new connections in early brain development.
While there has been a lot of research into brain pattern activity in babies during sleep cycles, scientists have been unable to confirm if your little one experiences dreams and nightmares as we do. A leading expert in pediatric dreaming, David Foulkes, theorized that our experiences drive dreams and nightmares. Given that babies have such limited experiences, they’re unlikely to dream for the first few years of life.
However, Foulkes’ theory was challenged recently as our understanding of infant psychology has evolved. For example, when the director of the Center for Sleep Medicine at a New York medical center was asked whether babies dream, he answered, “Yes, as far as we can tell. It is a well-based inference.”
When nightmares are expected to start
While the jury is out on whether baby nightmares occur in infants, researchers believe that identifiable nightmares might start between the ages of 2 to 4 years.
Throughout these toddler years, your little one makes sense of the world around them. An event that frightened them during the day may be revisited during the REM sleep stage at night. If your toddler wakes from a nightmare, it can be helpful to encourage them to talk about what happened in their nightmare and any troubling feelings.
In addition, having a consistent bedtime routine can help kiddos relax and lower stress hormones that might contribute to a night of restless sleep.
What to do to calm your baby
As parents, we instinctively want to provide comfort and reassurance when our baby is distressed. While we may not be able to solve the mystery of “Can babies have nightmares?” for sure, the reality is that whether your baby is having a nightmare or not, they are upset and need your love and attention to soothe them.
So, how can you calm your baby in these moments of distress?
Create a quiet and dark environment – a distraction-free environment will assist your baby in focusing on your presence and comfort, and a dark room will help your little one’s brain to produce the hormone melatonin that encourages sleep.
Give your baby a massage – the rhythmic pattern of your touch can relax your baby enough to get back to sleep.
Feed your baby until they become sleepy – the connection experienced when feeding your child may help them to unwind and drift back off to sleep. Just be mindful of placing your baby down to sleep when they are drowsy, as they may be more easily startled during this state.
Avoid your baby becoming overtired – if your little one is highly stressed or over-tired before bed, it can impact the quality of their sleep. Establishing good sleep patterns with an evening routine and encouraging your baby to unwind will help regulate their circadian rhythm.
Get a good night’s rest
So, can babies have nightmares? Maybe. We have all experienced nightmares throughout our lives and are familiar with the feelings of anxiety and fear that can accompany them. Thinking your little one is scared and possibly experiencing baby nightmares is enough to break any parent’s heart.
Navigating sleep with your baby can be challenging, but you are not alone, and help is available. My Sweet Sleeper can support you in establishing a good sleep routine with your baby. We offer one-on-one coaching personalized to your family’s needs and the opportunity to connect with other parents who understand the journey in group coaching sessions.
Reach out to us today to learn how we can support your family.
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