*The information in this podcast is intended for Healthcare Practitioners.

Dreams have been a source of fascination across seemingly all cultures over the history of humankind. Likewise, there has been numerous suggestions throughout the ages on the purpose of dreams and the interpretation of dreams. Over the past three decades, sleep and dream researcher Prof Bob Stickgold has developed an ingenious model of the purpose and benefits of dreaming. To understand dreaming, we first need to understand sleep.

In this episode, Prof Stickgold describes how sleep is vital for memory evolution – a process not simply to consolidate information of the past with perfect fidelity, but to help guide us better in the future. From here, we explore how dreaming helps reinforce memory evolution, above and beyond sleeping.

Finally, the conversation explores how disturbed sleep and dreaming plays a role in the persistence of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and how this may be addressed.

Useful Links:
When Brains Dream: Exploring the Science and Mystery of Sleep