Spooked Sleeping? Identifying Nightmares and Their Causes
Dreaming of things that go bump in the night? Get some sleep.
Woman waking up from a bad dream  You wake up, panting, from a
deep sleep. You went to work naked. You fell into a bottomless
pit. You got swept into a tornado, and then fought off a wicked
witch and flying monkeys in an unfruitful trek to Oz. If any of
this sounds familiar, join the club. Research suggests that more
than 85 percent of adults occasionally experience nightmares—at
least once a month for 8 to 29 percent, and once a week for 2 to
6 percent. If you're someone who snoozes peacefully through the
night, understand that nightmares are no ordinary dreams.
They're "vivid, disturbing dreams, with an emotional connection
that tends to wake us up," says Matthew Mingrone, an
otolaryngologist and lead physician for EOS Sleep California
centers.  If your slumber resembles a bad horror movie, learning
about your nightmares and why they happen may help you sleep
better.  Nightmares vs. Slee