There are many theories that state why people dream, however, the reason as to why dreams occur is not scientifically proven. Some researchers believe dreams do not function while other researchers believe they perform to operate emotions or enable representations that connect with an aspect of real life. Other theories suggest that people dream …show more content…
These are often referred to as “NREM and REM sleep. NREM sleep occurs before dreaming, meanwhile, REM sleep occurs when the sleeper is dreaming. NREM stage one is the first stage the sleeper starts off at. Stage one concludes of light sleep and slower breathing. After approximately one to ten minutes, NREM stage two begins, where the body activity reduces to prepare to go into a deep sleep which includes the heart rate, body temperature, blood pressure, and other metabolic functions. Waking up then becomes more difficult, and larger brain waves begin to form. Once stages one and two passes by, the sleeper falls into the next stage known as “deep sleep”. Heavy sleep begins in NREM stage three while slow delta waves take place after thirty-five to forty minutes since the person fell asleep. Electroencephalograms, a system to measure brain activity, show that brain waves slow down more and become significantly larger. The dreamer sleeps through the noise and disruptions without any physical response. If woken up during the third stage of NREM sleep, the sleeper will probably feel perplexed for a few minutes. REM sleep then occurs, the final stage of the sleep cycle. Eyes start to rapidly move in all directions and dreams transpire. The heart and respiration rates increase while rhythms become inconsistent. Although a majority of the muscles do not perform any movement, brain …show more content…
This is when the dreamer is in a conscious state and has control over their dream roles, story, surroundings, etc. The term “lucid” means to express and understand clearly. In a lucid dream, the dreamer must be aware that they are dreaming. A major part of the brain is involved and active when lucid dreaming. The dorsolateral prefrontal cortex stimulates in the brain when a dream is recognized. It is a section of the frontal lobes that are usually connected with other functions such as concentrating on a particular detail. “... Dr. Ursula Voss found heightened activity in both the frontal areas of the brain. These are the areas where mental functions associated with self-awareness is home to” (Lucid Dreaming). This feature in the brain deactivates when awake or in REM sleep since it is not possible for the sleeper to identify. Consequently, everybody’s ability to control their dream varies. However, lucid dreaming control can improve with