The word REM consists of the initials of the term “rapid eye movement”. It can be simply expressed by saying, “the stage of sleep that dreams are seen”. In fact, there is still a discussion about whether this simple expression is correct or not. Do you wonder ‘do you dream in rem sleep?’ Because according to some scientists, dreams occur at every stage of sleep, but only dreams during REM sleep can be remembered (1). Have you ever wondered about ‘do you only dream in rem sleep?’ In other words, all the dreams that you tell your relatives about the next day or research the term online are dreams that are seen during REM sleep. Do you dream during rem sleep? The fact that dreams in other sleep stages cannot be remembered only supports the view that dreams are dreamed during REM sleep.
Why do i get so much rem sleep?
People wonder about ‘do we dream in rem sleep?’ During sleep, a person usually goes through 3 stages of non-REM sleep before going into REM sleep. This lasts about 1 to 2 hours after falling asleep. This cycle repeats three or four times every night. An adult spends more time on NREM sleep than REM sleep. A baby usually spends about half of their sleep time in NREM and half in REM stages. People can ask ‘do you only dream during rem sleep?’. The answer is yes because we only remember dreams which are seen during sleep.
Another feature that makes REM sleep interesting and causes it to be called “paradoxical sleep” in the medical world is the signals emitted by the brain during this sleep phase. It is also seen in the examination, which is referred to by physicians as “electroencephalography” with the abbreviation “EEG”; signals of the same characteristics are produced by the brain while awake and during REM sleep. You’re actually asleep, but your brain acts like you’re awake.
When REM sleep was scheduled for phase times and subjects were awakened to prepare reports before large-scale editing or forgetting dreams, the subjects accurately reported the length of time they dreamed in a REM sleep state. It is a subject that ‘do we dream during rem sleep?’ Some researchers have speculated that the effects of “time dilation” seem to occur only on in-depth thinking and do not actually occur in dreams (2). The earliest series of publications explaining the nature of dreaming were based on the intimate association between REM sleep and dream experience. Cycles occur in all humans about every 60-90 minutes throughout life.
REM sleep phases and accompanying dreams grow longer and longer throughout the night, the first part is the shortest, lasts about 10–12 minutes, and the second and third episodes increase to 15-20 minutes. The dreams which are seen at the end of the night can last 15 minutes. However, these can be experienced as several different sections that interrupt sleep due to instant arousal when the night ends. Dream reports can be reported 50% more accurately than normal subjects when they are awakened before the end of the first REM phase. When people are awakened from the last REM phase of the night, this recall is increased to about 99%. The increase in the ability to remember dreams appears to be related to the concentration throughout the night in the vitality of dream vision, colors, and emotions.
In summary, all the dreams you have come true during REM sleep. Therefore, dreaming during REM is a possible way.
References:
1: https://www.uofmhealth.org/health-library/hw48331
2: https://www.webmd.com/sleep-disorders/sleep-101