Dreams
Theories attempting to explain the origin and functions of REM sleep
include: (1) that REM sleep provides stimulation for the development of the
brain; (2) that it performs a chemical restoration function, since during REM
dreaming neuro-protein synthesis occurs along with the restoration of other
depleted brain chemicals; (3) that it provides oculomotor (eye movement)
coordination, since during non-REM sleep the eyes move independently of each
other; (4) that it provides a vigilance function, since REM sleep (stage I) is
characterized by a level of consciousness close to the awakened state; (5) in a
more recent and controversial theory, REM dreaming performs a neurological
erasure ...
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brain cells in the primitive brain stem spontaneously fire about every 90
minutes, sending random stimuli to cortical areas of the BRAIN. As a
consequence, memory, sensory, muscle-control, and cognitive areas of the brain
are randomly stimulated, resulting in the higher cortical brain attempting to
make some sense of it. This, according to the research, gives rise to the
experience of a dream. Now, as in the past, the most significant controversy
centers on the question of whether dreams have intentional, or actual personal,
meaning. Many psychotherapists maintain that while the neurological impulses
from the brain stem may activate the dreaming process, the content or meaningful
representations in dreams are caused by nonconscious needs, wishes, desires, and
everyday concerns of the dreamer. Thus, such psychotherapists subscribe to the
phenomenological-clinical, or "top-down," explanation, which holds that dreams
are intentionally meaningful messages from the unconscious. The ...
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Dreams. (2006, July 3). Retrieved November 30, 2024, from http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Dreams/48543
"Dreams." Essayworld.com. Essayworld.com, 3 Jul. 2006. Web. 30 Nov. 2024. <http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Dreams/48543>
"Dreams." Essayworld.com. July 3, 2006. Accessed November 30, 2024. http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Dreams/48543.
"Dreams." Essayworld.com. July 3, 2006. Accessed November 30, 2024. http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Dreams/48543.
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