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Sometimes our dreams can feel like a movie, with intense imagery and emotions that stay with you throughout the day. We explore why these vivid dreams happen and whether they have any special meanings.
7 Min Read | By Nicholas Barber
Last Modified 11 February 2025 First Added 31 October 2022
Vivid dreams can be so lifelike that they leave you wondering whether it really happened. Here, we look at what the experts say about vivid dreams and why we have them.
Vivid dreams are exceptionally detailed and lifelike dream experiences that can feel incredibly real to the dreamer. Unlike the hazy or fragmented quality of typical dreams, vivid dreams are often intense, with clear visuals, strong emotions, and sometimes a sense of vivid realism that can make them hard to distinguish from waking experiences. You may experience a wide range of sensations, such as touch, taste, smell, and sound, with an intensity that rivals waking life. The imagery within vivid dreams is also exceptionally clear, and the dream scenarios may play out in a manner that closely mirrors how events unfold in reality.
As with all dreams, vivid dreams happen during Rapid Eye Movement (REM) sleep. These cycles start about an hour and a half after you fall asleep, and they tend to be longer and deeper toward morning. That’s why you may be more likely to experience vivid dreams just before your alarm rings and one of the reasons why we’re more likely to remember them.
Although we don’t completely understand the specific function of dreams, it’s believed that they’re a natural part of our emotional processing and memory formation. This is especially believed to be the case for vivid dreams, which are thought to point to unresolved feelings of stress or intense emotions that need addressing in your waking life.
Spiritually, vivid dreams are sometimes seen as messages from your higher self or the universe. They could symbolise personal growth, transformations, or insights you’re being guided toward.
The exact meaning behind a vivid dream will depend on the content of that dream, such as whether it was positive or negative, who was in it and what you were doing and feeling in the dream. To find out what your vivid dream could mean, read our article on the most common dreams and their meanings.
Vivid dreams are dreams that feel incredibly lifelike, intense, and often emotionally charged. But what are vivid dreams a sign of? These types of dreams can signal various things, from stress and sleep deprivation to underlying emotional or physiological changes. They may reflect your mental state, physical health, or even lifestyle habits.
Have you been experiencing prolonged sleep deprivation? Gone through a significant emotional event, like a breakup or a stressful life change? Are you starting a new medication or dealing with hormonal shifts? These factors, among others, can contribute to the occurrence of vivid dreams.
Let’s explore some of the most common causes of vivid dreams and their potential meanings:
If you’re experiencing stress, emotional trauma or a mental illness like anxiety or depression, you may be more prone to vivid bad dreams. Evidence suggests that if you suffer anxiety symptoms during the day, you’ll be more likely to experience vivid and upsetting dreams at night.
Some prescription drugs can affect the vividness of dreams. For example, SSRIs (a category of antidepressant) can decrease how often patients remember their dreams, according to one study that also suggested the drugs increase the vividness of dreams.
Vivid dreams may be upsetting or disturbing and may even stop you getting enough good quality sleep. A study found that participants deprived of REM sleep one night then went through longer periods of REM sleep with higher dream intensity the next evening. Nightmares are vivid dreams that are frightening or unsettling and can lead to nightmare disorder. This sleep disorder prevents you from getting enough sleep. If you’re experiencing sleep deprivation due to chronic nightmares, it’s time to speak to your doctor.
Because vivid dreams usually happen during REM sleep, waking up during or right after REM sleep increases the chances that you will remember your dream more vividly.
Physical and hormonal changes during pregnancy can cause insomnia and sleep disturbances. A research study found that women in the third trimester of pregnancy experienced more upsetting dream imagery compared with non-pregnant women. So, if you’re expecting, hormonal changes or the stress of growing and eventually delivering a tiny human could be the cause of your vivid dreams.
Unlike most dreams, sometimes vivid dreams can feel so intense that they may harm your mental health and well-being. Vivid dreams will usually eventually go away on their own, but there are some ways you can reduce your chances of having them. These include:
A vivid dream is defined as being very similar to waking life; you often don’t realise that you are dreaming at the time when the dream is happening, and unfortunately, there’s not always a guarantee that you’ll remember once you wake up.
Whereas, a lucid dream can be scary, as you know you are dreaming but can potentially become paralyzed. Even if you want to wake up, it can be difficult to do anything to remove yourself from the situation except wait it out.
While vivid dreams can be startling or a bit unsettling, they’re usually harmless and often just a sign that you’re waking up during REM sleep. They can even highlight areas of your life to focus on, like mental health or your sleep routine. But if these dreams start affecting your daily life, it might be worth chatting with a doctor to uncover the cause and find ways to help put those vivid dreams to bed.
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