The dual origins of affect in nightmares: the roles of physiological homeostasis and memory

Medical Hypotheses
Georg Schulze

Abstract

Strong negative affect is a key and distressing ingredient of nightmares. Affect in nightmares arises either from the new generation of affective states due to physiological imbalances that occur during sleep or from the reactivation of affect-laden memories. The disruption of physiological balance produces a negative hedonic state, restoration of this balance produces a positive hedonic state, and when balance is attained, a neutral hedonic state results. As a result, hedonic states provoke behaviors in defense of homeostasis, then guide and terminate them. When, due to inadvertent behavior, a pronounced disruption of homeostasis occurs after sleep onset, the resultant strong negative hedonic state is likely to precipitate a nightmare and may lead to awakening. During normal wakefulness, associations of the interplay between stimuli and behaviors that disrupt homeostasis, those that restore homeostasis, and the affective states generated in the process, are committed to memory as affecto-cognitive ensembles. Sleep serves to build or rebuild neural architecture to effect development or to compensate for use- or disease-related wear (e.g. repair oxidative damage). Dreaming serves to synchronize or resynchronize such modified neu...Continue Reading

References

Jan 19, 2002·Journal of Clinical Psychopharmacology·Fletcher Taylor, Murray A Raskind
Jan 18, 2003·Human Psychopharmacology·J F Pagel, P Helfter
Apr 2, 2003·Psychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences·Mehmet Yucel AgargunSongül Kiran
Sep 5, 2003·Psychosomatics·Roy R Reeves, Vincent Liberto
Apr 1, 2004·Learning & Memory·Christopher K CainMark Barad
Jul 9, 2004·Medical Hypotheses·Georg Schulze
Sep 1, 2004·Consciousness and Cognition·Mark R SmithRebecca N Emery
Oct 1, 2005·International Review of Psychiatry·Constantin R Soldatos, Thomas J Paparrigopoulos
Oct 1, 2005·International Review of Psychiatry·Iannis M Zervas, Constantin R Soldatos

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