How many people have colored dreams, is this normal? Isn't this a sign of mental disorders?

1. What do scientists think about the colors of dreams?
2. If dreams are black and white, then why do some people see them in color?
3. If dreams are colored, why do some people say they are black and white?
4. Can you make your dreams more colorful?

Many people wake up for some time under the influence of their dream. It happens that we remember for a long time what we dreamed, while plunging into the atmosphere of a dream. Someone at this moment realizes that they had a colorful dream , as colorful pictures emerge in their memory. Most people (according to some experts, their number reaches 75-80%) have black and white dreams . Are these figures true and, in general, why is it that someone has access to a range of sleepy colors, while others are content with black and white pictures? Can a person himself regulate his dreams and influence the color of dreams?

Features of sleep and dreams

All people's sleep consists of the following 4 stages:

1. The activity of the brain decreases, the person falling asleep falls into a doze, and natural and short-term hallucinogenic thoughts arise;
2. Tonic muscle activity continues to decrease, and body temperature drops slightly. It is this stage that takes up most of the sleep time (up to 55%);
3. This stage is called slow-wave sleep. The only difference from the fourth stage is that the EEG shows the dominance of delta oscillations of the brain rhythm;
4. Deep sleep sets in. It is during this time that the vast majority of people dream. At the fourth stage, the risk of sleepwalking increases.

The most interesting thing is that the fourth stage of sleep does not last long. It takes up 12% of the entire brain rest process. But it seems to a person that he has seen a rather long process of dreaming. Perhaps this is due to the transience of events occurring in dreams closer to the morning.

Who sees them

Who most often dreams in color and what does it mean? As a result of numerous studies, it turned out that anyone can see them, regardless of age and intelligence. However, people in certain categories watch them more often than others.

Age

It turned out that young people see colorful images more often than older people. The older generation usually sees faded dreams, not colored with colorful paints. With age, many people lose their zest for life and become less emotional, which is also reflected in their night dreams.

Young people lead a more active lifestyle, strive to gain new experiences, and visit unfamiliar places. The world they saw during their vacation appears in brighter colors.

Intelligence

Tests have shown that people with developed intelligence more often dream of colorful visions. This is due to the fact that they have a larger number of neural connections. They remember new information better, and, if necessary, easily use the data that is stored in the bins of memory.

Thanks to their developed memory, intellectuals dream of events from the distant past they experienced.

Creative streak

It is believed that creative people, when relaxing, see colorful pictures more often than those who are far from creativity. They see the world in bright emotional colors, and these sensations are transferred to night dreams.

Many brilliant authors created their works based on night dreams. Thus, Salvador Dali transferred his colorful visions to canvases.

Mental disorders

Scientists have found that healthy people have vivid dreams 20 times less often than people with psychological illnesses or those who are on the edge. It must be taken into account that the majority of images seen by mentally ill patients are nightmares.

Women are by nature more emotional than men; they have colorful dreams more often.

Color and black and white dreams

Surveys have shown that almost 80% of people dream in black and white . But these statistics have many opponents. They believe that awakened people simply do not remember the color of the “night movie” that the brain shows them. This may well be true. After all, many people have difficulty remembering the plot of a dream, since brain activity is reduced during rest. Therefore , it is possible that everyone sees colorful dreams, they just don’t remember their colors.

Proponents of the predominance of black and white dreams offer other arguments in response. The simple fact is that in reality a person sees the world in color, and when he wakes up, he tries to remember his dreams and can unconsciously color them in suitable shades.

The nature of dreams

Dreams are the result of the active work of the cerebral hemispheres during a person’s night rest. They are inextricably linked with reality and come at moments of strong experiences, emotional outbursts, and are the result of hidden desires. The stronger the emotions and excitement experienced in reality, the more emotional and colorful the dreams will be.

Most often, colored dreams are presented in dark shades and have a negative connotation. This is due to the fact that negative emotions prevail over positive ones - they disturb the sleeper for a long time. Subconsciously, a person tries to solve a real problem in a dream and sometimes it succeeds - even if he cannot remember what exactly he dreamed about at night, the solution is reliably stored in memory.

Color dreams come in the fast-wave rest phase, when the body is psychologically unloaded. The sleeper may not remember this, but during the night he sees several different dreams with a period of one and a half hours, which corresponds to the cyclical nature of sleep. Usually, moments from the last dream remain in the memory after waking up.

External conditions also affect night visions. So, for example, if a person dreams that he unbearably wants to go to the toilet and cannot find it, then there is a high probability that he really should wake up and visit the restroom. People who fall asleep to music, a TV series or a movie see their echoes in their dreams, as the hearing organs continue to receive the information entering them.

Interesting facts about sleep

There are several interesting facts related to sleep:

• Women are more emotional people. Therefore, they more often see colorful dreams with eventful events;
• There are no people who don't dream. This is a natural brain process that even some animals have. It is part of the work of assimilating the information received during the day. It’s just that many people forget their dreams when they open their eyes in the morning;
• A survey of former smokers showed that they have very vivid dreams associated with cigarettes. It seems to them that they have again taken up an old habit and an unpleasant feeling of guilt weighs on them until they wake up;
• For people who cannot solve some complex problem for a long time, sometimes it is during the rest period that a suitable solution comes. Scientists explain such insights by the function of sleep to process information received during the day;
• A night's rest will help not only restore mental and physical strength. The influence of sleep on the activation of T-lymphocytes has been proven. If a person gets enough sleep regularly, then his immunity will be much stronger than someone who likes to stay awake until late at night;
• Sleep triggers the processes of removing toxic substances from the brain;
• Insomnia triggers the development of mental problems. If a person is deprived of sleep for a long time, especially due to severe stress, then he sometimes experiences short-term hallucinations. By the way, there is a film on this topic called “The Machinist”, in which K. Bale starred.

The meaning of color in a dream

To correctly interpret the images, it is necessary to take into account the specific meaning of color in a dream . Remember which shades predominated and refer to the following information for interpretation:

• The color purple speaks of the desire to free yourself, to break down barriers that exist only in the head. This is a sign that a person is about to have an insight that will completely change his life. In addition, the image hints at the emerging truth, understanding, and the fight against deception. Purple also indicates creativity, inspiration and new discoveries. In the near future, something unusual and wonderful awaits the dreamer.
• Blue is the personification of spiritual qualities. Often it hints at kindness, happiness and sincere feelings. Other details of the dream will help reveal the exact meaning of the color. Sometimes blue shades indicate a desire to get rid of daily worries and difficulties. This may be a sign that a person needs rest, solitude and peace. Perhaps you feel a desire to be alone for at least a little while to think about everything that is happening. This color also represents depth of thought.
• Blue objects also represent positive character traits. This light tone indicates openness, clarity, joy. It may hint at a desire for peace, harmony, and tranquility. Blue hints at taking time for the spiritual component.
• White color embodies innocence and purity. Most often it relates to a person’s thoughts and speaks of inner harmony. It may mean that you are just trying to find peace, or have already been able to achieve it. To accurately interpret night dreams, they take into account whether the white objects were clean or had dirt on them. In this case, the image is associated with bad deeds, internal imbalance, and depression.
• Traditionally, yellow is the color of joy and happiness. This is a shade of the sun that represents summer, warmth, and a new harvest. But when interpreting, they take into account the form in which this tone appeared. For example, autumn leaves rarely mean anything good. They symbolize internal decline, sadness, longing for the past. This image may hint at mental anguish and torment, a feeling of hopelessness.
• Green is traditionally the color of renewal and happiness. Green things in visions can indicate hopes and desire for a better life. The origins of the interpretation are related to grass and tree leaves. Green is a symbol of spring and the beginning of a new happy period. The shade may hint that the sleeping person is striving for change. This is a sign of fatigue from the past, a desire to start doing what will make you happy. Green can indicate dissatisfaction with what is happening in the present. In this case, it encourages action. But it is important to take into account what exactly acquired an emerald tone in the night plot. If we are talking about green eyes, this is considered a subconscious personification of deception, danger and risk. Perhaps a person will actually encounter unscrupulous people.
• The red tone is associated with pleasure, passion, strong feelings and emotions. The presence of objects of this color in a dream indicates the unbridled nature of the dreamer, that he cannot resist his passions. This is the desire to indulge one's own desires and seek pleasure. Another option for interpreting red things is to desire a luxurious life. This can be indicated by the bright scarlet car that you had in your vision. If red flowers appeared and you presented them as a gift, this may be a hint of the strong feelings that you actually experience.
• Black is traditionally interpreted as a symbol of grief, depression, misfortune or trouble. In the dark, secrets are hidden from a person that cannot be solved without bright light. And the unknown often warns of risk and danger. We can talk about internal disagreements, imbalance, lack of peace. Often black objects are a reflection of the depression into which a sleeping person plunges. This is a sign of despair, suppressed emotions, unfulfilled ambitions. The color may hint at a longing for the past.
• Pink and pastel shades are the personification of naivety, inner purity, and sublime feelings. But this meaning can intensify, and in this case it will indicate infantility, being in a fictional world, and lack of connection with reality. Sometimes the color hints at the desire to live a simple life, devoid of difficulties and problems. The person who dreams about it is not attracted to complex goals. He craves ease in life. True, this leads to a lack of responsibility and a desire to shift responsibilities to other people. Daydreaming, which is characteristic of a person, alienates him from reality. It is necessary to find a balance between internal desires and external circumstances. It is impossible to constantly live in your own fantasies.

More on the topic: Why do I have the same dream?

Are colorful dreams a sign of schizophrenia?

It is believed that colored dreams are an alarming sign. Allegedly, this indicates the presence of a mental pathology in a person. This is an erroneous statement, which is based on a not entirely correct analysis of scientific observations.

Many supporters of the relationship between colored dreams and schizophrenia refer to Dr. B. Stent. He observed three groups of people: schizophrenics, patients with borderline mental disorders and those without mental health problems. It turned out that representatives of the first group most often talk about colored dreams. They even remember them in detail.

This result should not be interpreted as the fact that vivid dreams are characteristic only of mentally ill people. All people sometimes dream in colors. They just don’t attach any importance to them and forget. While sick people, being constantly in an excited state, are able to get fixated even on banal and meaningless dreams.

To say that only schizophrenics see colorful dreams is equivalent to considering all suicides to be mentally ill. Patients in psychiatric clinics often attempt suicide. But even a completely healthy person can commit suicide due to severe shock or an endless series of bad events.

Therefore, not a single psychiatrist will mistake a person for a schizophrenic just because of colorful dreams.

Causes

The appearance of colorful dreams is associated with events that occurred in a person’s life in recent days. The stronger the emotions experienced, the more unusual and unexpected situations occurred, the greater the likelihood of seeing colorful visions.

In some cases, events that happened several weeks or even months ago are affected. This happens if the event is vividly imprinted in a person’s memory.

Dreams are not logical and quickly replace each other. In this case, the sleeper’s attention is directed to understanding their essence.

Analysis of one’s feelings and general emotional coloring are also replaced by colors. As a result, more than 60% of respondents doubt which dream they saw, color or monochrome.

Memorizing the colorfulness of night dreams is facilitated by:

• emotional coloring;
• focusing on color.

Even from childhood, the foundations of color perception are laid in a person. Thus, the child is taught that the color red represents danger, and green symbolizes joy, hope, and a pass to somewhere.

These mechanisms are deeply embedded in the brain and continue to operate during rest. As a result, visions that are strong in an emotional sense are brightly colored. And this color corresponds to the emotional load.

Pleasant images are often colored in green and yellow, while nightmares are often black and red.

If the sleeper paid attention to the color of the object, after waking up he will be sure that he saw a color vision. Color spots attract attention - it could be green grass, blue sky, bright flowers. If none of the conditions are met, the person will not answer whether the pictures and images he saw had color.

Is it normal to have colorful dreams?

If you had a colorful dream full of pleasant events, then you can simply rejoice at it and then safely forget it. This is quite normal and does not indicate problems in the mental sphere.

You should only worry if such dreams are frightening. A person wakes up in a cold sweat and then cannot fall asleep for a long time. This often happens with hidden psychological or unresolved family problems, phobias, etc.

Musicians, artists and actors see colored dreams more often. This is probably due to the activity of the right hemisphere of the brain, which is involved in the formation of dream images. It is the right hemisphere that is well developed in people with a creative mindset.

Every person has at least once had dreams painted in bright colors. You should not be afraid of such dreams if they are not associated with nightmares. Typically, such dreams are the result of an eventful day or a person’s developed creative thinking.

Tips: how to change your dream color

If you don’t like the dull two-color pictures that you remember after waking up, try to correct the situation.

1. Develop your right hemisphere. Try to do work with your left hand as often as possible: writing, cutting, holding a spoon.
2. Take every day with joy, look for the positive in every situation.
3. Lead an active lifestyle so that the pictures before your eyes change as often as possible throughout the day.
4. Get enough time to sleep. The body must rest fully.

Try to follow these tips and you will have vivid dreams at night.