https://doi.org/10.4081/ripppo.2021.541
Dreaming during COVID-19: the effects of a world trauma
Submitted: March 15, 2021
Accepted: July 29, 2021
Published: August 24, 2021
Accepted: July 29, 2021
Abstract Views: 3382
PDF: 870
HTML: 86
HTML: 86
Publisher's note
All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.
All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.
Authors
On March 11, 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared a state of health emergency affecting the entire world population. Given the serious practical and psychological difficulties and complications that have been experienced during this period, many scholars have created hypothesis, as a consequence, an increased possibility of developing post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) within the general population with significant implications for one’s dream activity. Participants in the study were recruited via the instant messaging application ‘WhatsApp’ for a period of 14 days. The study consisted of three phases: the first phase provided information on the purpose of the research and how to carry it out; in the second phase, each participant, using the Bionian model of dream experience as a focus, was asked to write down dreams, emotions and free connections/associations related to the dream. At the end of the collection, the texts obtained were analysed by means of a qualitative analysis performed with the aid of the MAXQDA software. The study confirms the computational and exploratory analysis of the text carried out in the research of Pesonen et al. (2020), finding also in our sample the presence of the hypothesized clusters going to explain the manifestation of imagery related to COVID-19 also within the dream activity. To confirm this, the nightmare of participant number 6 of the study is reported. The following qualitative research has offered an insight into the traumatic nature of the COVID-19 pandemic, showing how many unmetabolized ‘daytime elements’ have been reproposed in the dream scenario, recalling the symptomatology of PTSD through the presence of distressing content that affect the quality of sleep and the daily life of the individual.
Abdel-Khalek, A. M. (2017). The Association between Reported Nightmares and Depressive Symptoms in a Non-Clinical Large Sample of Arab Students. Sleep Medical Diseases International Journal, 1(2), 00010.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.15406/smdij.2017.01.00010
Ajilore, O., Stickgold, R., Rittenhouse, C. D., & Hobson, J. A. (1995). Nightcap: Laboratory and home-based evaluation of a portable sleep monitor. Psychophysiology, 32(1), 92-98. doi: 10.1111/j.1469-8986.1995.tb03410.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1469-8986.1995.tb03410.x
Akkuş, Y., Şahin, S., Kanbay, Y., & Ünlü, A. A. (2021). Determination of the factors affecting sleep quality in the general population during the early phase of the COVID-19 Pandemic. Journal of Turkish Sleep Medicine, 8(2), 142.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.4274/jtsm.galenos.2021.93063
Barrett, D. (2020). Dreams about COVID-19 versus normative dreams: Trends by gender. Dreaming, 30(3), 216-221. doi: 10.1037/drm0000149.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1037/drm0000149
Barrett, D., & Behbehani, J. (2003). Post-traumatic nightmares in Kuwait following the Iraqi invasion. In Krippner, S. & Teresa McIntyre, M. (Eds.), Psychological effects of war on civilians: an international perspective (psychological dimensions to war and peace) (pp. 135-144). Amityville, NY: Praeger Publishing.
Belanger, J., & Kirsten, D. (2006). The Nightmare Encyclopedia (I. Appino, trad.). Milano: Gruppo Editoriale Armenia, 2007.
Bion, W. R. (1992). Cogitation. A cura di Bion F. Londra: Karnak Books.
Bion, W. R. (1994). Clinical seminars and four papers. A cura di Bion F. Londra: Karnak Books. 2008.
Bion, W. R. (1980). Discussions with W. R. Bion. Rome: Curcio Publisher, 1984.
Boldrini, T., Schiano Lomoriello, A., Del Corno, F., Lingiardi, V., & Salcuni, S. (2020). Psychotherapy during COVID-19: How the clinical practice of Italian psychotherapists changed during the pandemic. Frontiers in psychology, 11, 2716.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.591170
Bolognini, S. (a cura di, 2016). Il sogno cento anni dopo. Milano: MIMESIS Edizioni.
Bromberg, P. M. (2006). Awakening the dreamer: Clinical journeys. El Dorado Hills, CA: Analytic Press.
Bulkeley, K., & Kahan, T. L. (2008). The impact of September 11 on dreaming. Consciousness and Cognition, 17(4), 1248-1256. doi: 10.1016/j.concog.2008.07.001.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.concog.2008.07.001
Caccamo, F., Ghedin, S., & Marogna, C. (2017). Evaluation of burnout and alexithymia in a group of nurses in palliative care: a pilot study. Giornale italiano di medicina del lavoro ed ergonomia, 39(4), 249-255.
Casagrande, M., Favieri, F., Tambelli, R., & Forte, G. (2020). The enemy who sealed the world: effects quarantine due to the COVID-19 on sleep quality, anxiety, and psychological distress in the Italian population. Sleep medicine, 75, 12-20.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sleep.2020.05.011
Cullen, W., Gulati, G., & Kelly, B. D. (2020). Mental health in the COVID-19 pandemic. QJM: An International Journal of Medicine, 113(5), 311-312. doi: 10.1093/qjmed/hcaa110.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/qjmed/hcaa110
Dondi, A., Fetta, A., Lenzi, J., Morigi, F., Candela, E., Rocca, A., Cordelli, D. M., & Lanari, M. (2021). Sleep disorders reveal distress among children and adolescents during the COVID-19 first wave: results of a large web-based Italian survey. Italian Journal of Pediatrics, 47(1). doi: 10.1186/s13052-021-01083-8.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s13052-021-01083-8
Ferro, A. (2002). Fattori di Malattia, fattori di guarigione. Milano: Raffaello Cortina Editore.
Frewen, P. A. (2006). Toward a Psychobiology of Posttraumatic Self-Dysregulation: Reexperiencing, Hyperarousal, Dissociation, and Emotional Numbing. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 1071(1), 110-124. doi: 10.1196/annals.1364.010.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1196/annals.1364.010
Giardino, D. L., Huck-Iriart, C., Riddick, M., & Garay, A. (2020). The endless quarantine: the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak on healthcare workers after three months of mandatory social isolation in Argentina. Sleep medicine, 76, 16-25.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sleep.2020.09.022
Gorgoni, M., Scarpelli, S., Alfonsi, V., Annarumma, L., Cordone, S., Stravolo, S., & de Gennaro, L. (2021). Pandemic dreams: quantitative and qualitative features of the oneiric activity during the lockdown due to COVID-19 in Italy. Sleep Medicine, 81, 20-32. doi: 10.1016/j.sleep.2021.02.006.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sleep.2021.02.006
Guo, H., & Shen, H. (2021). Media exposure to COVID-19 epidemic and threatening dream frequency: A moderated mediation model of anxiety and coping efficacy. Dreaming, 31(1), 1-19. doi: 10.1037/drm0000159.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1037/drm0000159
Gupta, M. A. (2020). Spontaneous reporting of onset of disturbing dreams and nightmares related to early life traumatic experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic by patients with posttraumatic stress disorder in remission. Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine, 16(8), 1419-1420. doi: 10.5664/jcsm.8562.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.5664/jcsm.8562
Hedrich, R. (2003). Book ReviewThomas Metzinger, Being No One: The Self‐Model Theory of Subjectivity. Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press (2003), xiv + 699 pp., Philosophy of Science, 70(3), 634-637. doi: 10.1086/376931.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1086/376931
Herrero San Martin, A., Parra Serrano, J., Diaz Cambriles, T., Arias Arias, E. M., Muñoz Méndez, J., del Yerro ÁLvarez, M. J., & González Sánchez, M. (2020). Sleep characteristics in health workers exposed to the COVID-19 pandemic. Sleep Medicine, 75, 388-394. doi: 10.1016/j.sleep.2020.08.013.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sleep.2020.08.013
Hobson, J. A (2002) Dreaming: an introduction to the science of sleep. (2003). Choice Reviews Online, 40(11), 40-6718. doi: 10.5860/choice.40-6718.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.5860/CHOICE.40-6718
Innocenti, P., Puzella, A., Mogavero, M. P., Bruni, O., & Ferri, R. (2020). Letter to editor: COVID-19 pandemic and sleep disorders - a web survey in Italy. Neurological Sciences, 41(8), 2021-2022. doi: 10.1007/s10072-020-04523-1.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10072-020-04523-1
Kilius, E., Abbas, N. H., McKinnon, L., & Samson, D. R. (2021). Pandemic Nightmares: COVID-19 Lockdown Associated With Increased Aggression in Female University Students’ Dreams. Frontiers in Psychology, 12. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.644636.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.644636
Kohut, H. (1977). The Restoration of the Self. New York, NY: Int. Univ. Press.
Kramer, M. (2014). An overview of the dreaming process and the selective affective theory of sleep and dreams. Psychotherapie Forum, 19(3-4), 130-137. doi: 10.1007/s00729-014-0028-x.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00729-014-0028-x
Levin, R., & Nielsen, T. (2009). Nightmares, bad dreams, and emotion dysregulation. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 18(2), 84-88. doi: 10.1111/j.1467-8721.2009.01614.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8721.2009.01614.x
Levin, R., & Nielsen, T. A. (2007). Disturbed dreaming, posttraumatic stress disorder, and affect distress: A review and neurocognitive model. Psychological Bulletin, 133(3), 482-528. doi: 10.1037/0033-2909.133.3.482.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.133.3.482
Lin, Y. Q., Lin, Z. X., Wu, Y. X., Wang, L., Zeng, Z. N., Chen, Q. Y., ... & Wei, S. C. (2021). Reduced sleep duration and sleep efficiency were independently associated with frequent nightmares in chinese frontline medical workers during the coronavirus disease 2019 outbreak. Frontiers in Neuroscience, 14, 1437.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fnins.2020.631025
MacKay, C., & DeCicco, T. L. (2020). Pandemic dreaming: The effect of COVID-19 on dream imagery, a pilot study. Dreaming, 30(3), 222-234. doi: 10.1037/drm0000148.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1037/drm0000148
Maggiolini, A., Lazzaroni, E., & Crippa, F. (2012). I contenuti tipici dei sogni. Una ricerca su sogni e narrative diurne di adolescenti e giovani adulti [Typical contents of dreams. A research on dreams and waking narratives of adolescents and young adults]. Infanzia e Adolescenza, 11(2), 113-124.
Mellman, T. A., David, D., Bustamante, V., Torres, J., & Fins, A. (2001). Dreams in the acute aftermath of trauma and their relationship to PTSD. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 14(1), 241-247. doi: 10.1023/a:1007812321136.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1007812321136
Messina, I., Calvo, V., Masaro, C., Ghedin, S., & Marogna, C. (2021). Interpersonal Emotion Regulation: From Research to Group Therapy. Frontiers in Psychology, 12. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.636919.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.636919
Miller, K. E., Brownlow, J. A., Woodward, S., & Gehrman, P. R. (2017). Sleep and dreaming in posttraumatic stress disorder. Current psychiatry reports, 19(10), 1-10.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11920-017-0827-1
Milstein, G. (2019). Disasters, psychological traumas, and religions: Resiliencies examined. Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy, 11(6), 559-562. doi: 10.1037/tra0000510.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1037/tra0000510
Mota, N. B., Weissheimer, J., Ribeiro, M., de Paiva, M., Avilla-Souza, J., Simabucuru, G., Chaves, M. F., Cecchi, L., Cirne, J., Cecchi, G., Rodrigues, C., Copelli, M., & Ribeiro, S. (2020). Dreaming during the COVID-19 pandemic: Computational assessment of dream reports reveals mental suffering related to fear of contagion. PLoS One, 15(11), e0242903. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0242903.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0242903
Musse, F. C. C., Castro, L. D. S., Sousa, K. M. M., Mestre, T. F., Teixeira, C. D. M., Pelloso, S. M., Poyares, D., & Carvalho, M. D. D. B. (2020). Mental Violence: The COVID-19 Nightmare. Frontiers in Psychiatry, 11. doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2020.579289.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2020.579289
Nielsen, T. A., & Zadra, A. (2005). Nightmares and other common dream disturbances. Principles and practice of sleep medicine, 4, 926-935.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/B0-72-160797-7/50084-7
Nielsen, T. A., Stenstrom, P., & Levin, R. (2006). Nightmare frequency as a function of age, gender, and September 11, 2001: Findings from an Internet questionnaire. Dreaming, 16(3), 145-158. doi: 10.1037/1053-0797.16.3.145.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1037/1053-0797.16.3.145
Nielsen, T., & Levin, R. (2009). Dreams, dreaming theories and correlates of nightmares. In L. R. Squire (Ed.), Encyclopedia of Neuroscience, Vol 3 (pp. 663-669). Oxford: Academic Press.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-008045046-9.00045-0
Nissen‐Lie, H. A., & Stänicke, E. (2014). ‘Yes, of course it hurts when buds are breaking’: therapist reactions to an adolescent client’s sexual material in psychodynamic psychotherapy. Journal of clinical psychology, 70(2), 160-169.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/jclp.22067
Okada, H., Matsuoka, K., & Hatakeyama, T. (2005). Individual differences in the range of sensory modalities experienced in dreams. Dreaming, 15(2), 106-115. doi: 10.1037/1053-0797.15.2.106.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1037/1053-0797.15.2.106
Pesonen, A. K., Lipsanen, J., Halonen, R., Elovainio, M., Sandman, N., Mäkelä, J. M., ... & Kuula, L. (2020). Pandemic dreams: network analysis of dream content during the COVID-19 lockdown. Frontiers in Psychology, 11, 2569.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.573961
Presti, G., Dal Lago, B., Fattori, A., Mioli, G., Moderato, P., Sciaretta, L., & Costantino, M. A. (2020). Mental health support to staff in a major hospital in Milan (Italy) during the COVID-19 pandemic: a framework of actions. General Psychiatry, 33(4).
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1136/gpsych-2020-100244
Revonsuo, A. (2000). The reinterpretation of dreams: An evolutionary hypothesis of the function of dreaming. Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 23(6), 877-901.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0140525X00004015
Scarpelli, S., Alfonsi, V., Mangiaruga, A., Musetti, A., Quattropani, M. C., Lenzo, V., Freda, et.al. (2021). Pandemic nightmares: Effects on dream activity of the COVID‐19 lockdown in Italy. Journal of Sleep Research. [Epub ahead of print]. doi: 10.1111/jsr.13300.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/jsr.13300
Schredl, M., & Bulkeley, K. (2020). Dreaming and the COVID-19 pandemic: A survey in a U.S. sample. Dreaming, 30(3), 189-198. doi: 10.1037/drm0000146.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1037/drm0000146
Scott, J. C., Harb, G., Brownlow, J. A., Greene, J., Gur, R. C., & Ross, R. J. (2017). Verbal memory functioning moderates psychotherapy treatment response for PTSD-Related nightmares. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 91, 24-32. doi: 10.1016/j.brat.2017.01.004.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.brat.2017.01.004
Shatri, H., Putranto, R., Faisal, E., Fitrianti, F., Adhiatma, K., Zulmiyusrini, P., Diba, S. F., & Lukman, P. R. (2021). Psychotherapy for healthcare provider during COVID-19 pandemic: an evidence based clinical review. Acta Medica Indonesiana, 53(2), 225-232.
Solomonova, E., Picard-Deland, C., Rapoport, I., Pennestri, M., Saad, M., Kendzerska, T., … Robillard, R. (2021, May 11). Stuck in a lockdown: dreams, bad dreams, nightmares, and their relationship to stress, depression and anxiety during the COVID-19 pandemic. PsyArXiv Preprint, doi: 10.31234/osf.io/hbm84.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.31234/osf.io/hbm84
Sterpenich, V., Perogamvros, L., Tononi, G., & Schwartz, S. (2019). Fear in dreams and in wakefulness: Evidence for day/night affective homeostasis. Human Brain Mapping, 41(3), 840-850. doi: 10.1002/hbm.24843.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/hbm.24843
Stickgold, R. (2005). Sleep-dependent memory consolidation. Nature, 437(7063), 1272-1278. doi: 10.1038/nature04286.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/nature04286
Stickgold, R., Pace-Schott, E., & Hobson, J. A. (1994). A new paradigm for dream research: mentation reports following spontaneous arousal from REM and NREM sleep recorded in a home setting. Consciousness and Cognition, 3(1), 16-29.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1006/ccog.1994.1002
Valli, K., Revonsuo, A., Pälkäs, O., Ismail, K. H., Ali, K. J., & Punamäki, R. L. (2005). The threat simulation theory of the evolutionary function of dreaming: Evidence from dreams of traumatized children. Consciousness and cognition, 14(1), 188-218.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/S1053-8100(03)00019-9
Van Der Helm, E., & Walker, M. P. (2012). Sleep and affective brain regulation. Social and Personality Psychology Compass, 6(11), 773-791.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1751-9004.2012.00464.x
VERBI Software. (2019). MAXQDA 2020 [computer software]. Berlin, Germany: VERBI Software. Avaible from: maxqda.com.
Vindegaard, N., & Benros, M. E. (2020). COVID-19 pandemic and mental health consequences: Systematic review of the current evidence. Brain, Behavior, and Immunity, 89, 531-542. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bbi.2020.05.048
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bbi.2020.05.048
Zadra, A., & Donderi, D. C. (2000). Nightmares and bad dreams: their prevalence and relationship to well-being. Journal of abnormal psychology, 109(2), 273.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-843X.109.2.273
Zadra, A., Pilon, M., & Donderi, D. C. (2006). Variety and intensity of emotions in nightmares and bad dreams. The Journal of nervous and mental disease, 194(4), 249-254.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1097/01.nmd.0000207359.46223.dc
How to Cite
Marogna, C., Montanari, E., Contiero, S., & Lleshi, K. (2021). Dreaming during COVID-19: the effects of a world trauma. Research in Psychotherapy: Psychopathology, Process and Outcome, 24(2). https://doi.org/10.4081/ripppo.2021.541
Copyright (c) 2021 the Author(s)
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
PAGEPress has chosen to apply the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC 4.0) to all manuscripts to be published.
Similar Articles
- Guido Giovanardi, Patricia Spangler, Introduction to the Special Section on Working on dreams, from psychotherapy to neuroscience , Research in Psychotherapy: Psychopathology, Process and Outcome: Vol. 24 No. 2 (2021): SPECIAL ISSUE "Working on dreams, from psychotherapy to neuroscience"
- Cristina Marogna, Chiara Masaro, Vincenzo Calvo, Simona Ghedin, Floriana Caccamo, The extended unconscious group field and metabolization of pandemic experience: dreaming together to keep cohesion alive , Research in Psychotherapy: Psychopathology, Process and Outcome: Vol. 25 No. 3 (2022): SPECIAL ISSUE: "Group psychotherapy: between settled benchmarks and new horizons"
- Giorgio Caviglia, Working on dreams, from neuroscience to psychotherapy , Research in Psychotherapy: Psychopathology, Process and Outcome: Vol. 24 No. 2 (2021): SPECIAL ISSUE "Working on dreams, from psychotherapy to neuroscience"
- CV Vijayapriya, Rameshbabu Tamarana, Effectiveness of dialectical behavior therapy as a transdiagnostic treatment for improving cognitive functions: a systematic review , Research in Psychotherapy: Psychopathology, Process and Outcome: Vol. 26 No. 2 (2023)
- Ilaria Maria Antonietta Benzi, Nicola Carone, Laura Parolin, Gabriel Martin-Gagnon, Karin Ensink, Andrea Fontana, Different epistemic stances for different traumatic experiences: implications for mentalization , Research in Psychotherapy: Psychopathology, Process and Outcome: Vol. 26 No. 3 (2023)
- Lidia Borghi, Claudio Cassardo, Elisa Mingarelli, Elena Vegni, The relevance of social dreaming for action research: exploring jail workers’ unconscious thinking of the changes in the prison organization , Research in Psychotherapy: Psychopathology, Process and Outcome: Vol. 24 No. 2 (2021): SPECIAL ISSUE "Working on dreams, from psychotherapy to neuroscience"
- Osmano Oasi, Laura Buonarrivo, Alberto Codazzi, Margherita Passalacqua, Gio Matteo Risso Ricci, Francesca Straccamore, Roberto Bezzi, Assessing personality change with Blatt's anaclitic and introjective configurations and Shedler-Westen Assessment Procedure profiles: two case studies in psychodynamic treatment , Research in Psychotherapy: Psychopathology, Process and Outcome: Vol. 20 No. 1 (2017)
- Federica Bonazza, Lidia Borghi, Eugenia Cao di San Marco, Kyrie Piscopo, Francesca Bai, Antonella d’Arminio Monforte, Elena Vegni, Psychological outcomes after hospitalization for COVID-19: data from a multidisciplinary follow-up screening program for recovered patients , Research in Psychotherapy: Psychopathology, Process and Outcome: Vol. 23 No. 3 (2020)
- Brigitte Holzinger, Franziska Nierwetberg, Larissa Cosentino, Lucille Mayer, DreamSenseMemory - a Gestalt-based dream-work approach embracing all our senses , Research in Psychotherapy: Psychopathology, Process and Outcome: Vol. 24 No. 2 (2021): SPECIAL ISSUE "Working on dreams, from psychotherapy to neuroscience"
- Katharina T.E. Morken, Morten Øvrebø, Charlotte Klippenberg, Therese Morvik, Elisabeth Lied Gikling, Antisocial personality disorder in group therapy, kindling pro-sociality and mentalizing , Research in Psychotherapy: Psychopathology, Process and Outcome: Vol. 25 No. 3 (2022): SPECIAL ISSUE: "Group psychotherapy: between settled benchmarks and new horizons"
<< < 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 > >>
You may also start an advanced similarity search for this article.
