Have you ever wondered, looking at your little angel, what he or she must be thinking while sleeping? Do babies dream? What do babies dream about? When do babies start dreaming? Do babies have bad dreams? In this blog, we will explore all the answers to these questions. So, if you are a new mom or dad or just curious to learn more about babies, you have hopped into the right place.
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What happens in the brain during dreaming?
To find out the answer to the question, “Do babies dream?”, we must first learn what happens in the brain when we dream. According to an article by Very Well Health, our sleep has four stages. The first three stages are for quiet sleep. These are NREM, or non-rapid eye movement sleep. The fourth stage, rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, is active sleep. We experience dreams at any stage, yet they are more vivid in the active stage. So, do you dream in REM sleep more than in NREM? The answer is yes.
Are dreams merely memories stored in our brains?
Dreams can be a way for the brain to organize information taken throughout the day. According to Scientific American, around 2% of dreams can contain memories that represent whole episodes. However, most of our dreams are fragments of memories combined with our interests or concerns.
Can babies dream?
Like adults, a baby sleep cycle also consists of active (REM) and (NREM) quiet sleep. A study by the American Academy of Pediatrics revealed that babies spend half of their sleep time in REM sleep. However, babies do not have the ability to imagine things as they do not have self-awareness. Baby REM sleep helps their brain develop pathways and connections. It also helps to learn languages at different stages of baby development.
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Do babies dream in the womb?
It is believed that babies start dreaming in the womb around week 23. National Library of Medicine confirms that an infant can dream about its life in the womb since it is the only experience stored in its memory. So, what do babies dream about in the womb? Their dreams are more about physical sensations. They are not related to imaginative or emotional thinking.
What do babies dream about?
Babies’ dreams are more about their fetal sensory experience.
- When they are smiling in their sleep – babies smile as a physical response to a pleasant feeling. This may be the heartbeat sound of their mothers or even the feeling of being rocked or even breastfeeding.
- When they cry in their sleep –Do babies have bad dreams when they cry in their sleep? Babies may cry because of passing from one stage of sleep to another. This is a form of communication for young babies. In the case of older babies, since their brains are better developed, they might have a bad dream.
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How do we know that babies dream?
You may notice babies’ eyes moving or hands or feet jerking. When babies start reflexing, they might have completed one stage of sleep. Crying in sleep does not mean a young infant is having a bad dream. But, continuous crying might signal the need for a diaper change or feed. The truth is, it is not possible to know whether a baby is dreaming until he or she is able to convey it to us.
What does dreaming mean for babies?
The psychologist David Foulkes, famous for his research in pediatric dreaming, concluded his book by stating that humans are unable to dream in the first few years of their lives. Young babies do not have the maturity to experience dreams. So, when do babies start dreaming? When does a baby’s brain develop enough to dream? Babies do not start dreaming vividly until they reach the age of two. It is the time when you can expect children to dream and to develop consciousness in them.
Do babies dream differently than adults?
Babies spend 50% of their sleep time in REM. But as discussed above, since baby brain development is totally different than that of adults, they do not technically dream. Yet baby REM sleep in a baby sleep cycle is important for their language development and cognitive skills.
Now that you have the answer to the question, “Do babies dream?”, you must not panic if you see your baby crying during sleep. You must make sure to make the baby sleep cycle as comfortable as possible for the overall development of your baby.