PTSD Nightmares: Why do we have them and why do they often persist after PTSD treatment?

Most adults and even many animals have nightmares, but why do we have them? Dr. Harry McCleary (licensed clinical psychologist and Navy Veteran) breaks down what nightmares are, why we have them and why they sometimes persist even after PTSD treatment. Our brains never turns off and this is the main reason people have nightmares. If our brains did turn off we would have a much bigger problem.


There are many theories about why we have nightmares, but most theories fall into one of two camps: unprocessed thoughts and biological misfires.

The problem with unprocessed traumatic experiences is many times people try their best not to think about their trauma during the day, but when they are sleeping the brain can go back to those traumatic memories that it wants to process.


Nightmares are often lessened by evidence based trauma treatment, but not always. Why is that??? Part of the reason is that most evidence-based treatments for PTSD do not give focus to the symptom of nightmares.


So what can you do? Medication and Imagery Rehearsal Therapy (IRT) are common and effective ways to reduce to frequency and intensity of nightmares.


If you are experiencing chronic nightmares PLEASE CONSULT YOUR MENTAL HEALTH CLINCIAN OR PHYSICIAN and remember that you are not alone.


Dr. Harry McCleary is a licensed clinical psychologist and Navy Veteran. His channel is dedicated to educating Veterans, service members and their families about mental health.

#nightmares #ptsd #veteranmentalhealth #veteranshelpingveterans

Want to learn more about PTSD? Click this link    • PTSD Explained  



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