Impact of Imagery Rehearsal Treatment on Distressing Dreams, Psychological Distress, and Sleep Parameters in Nightmare Patients

@article{Germain2003ImpactOI,
  title={Impact of Imagery Rehearsal Treatment on Distressing Dreams, Psychological Distress, and Sleep Parameters in Nightmare Patients},
  author={Anne Germain and Tore Nielsen},
  journal={Behavioral Sleep Medicine},
  year={2003},
  volume={1},
  pages={140 - 154}
}
We investigated the impact of imagery rehearsal treatment (IRT) on nightmare frequency, psychological distress, and sleep quality using polysomnography (PSG). 12 chronic nightmare patients completed prospective dream logs, measures of psychological distress, and underwent PSG prior to and 8.5 weeks following a single IRT session. Post-treatment, significant reductions were observed in retrospective nightmare frequency (d = 1.06, p = .007), prospective bad dream frequency (d = 0.53, p = .03… 
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TLDR
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IRT reduced the frequency of nightmares in the treated group compared to the waiting-list group and this reduction was maintained over a 9-month follow-up, and retrospective trait nightmare distress was not significantly reduced.
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Research in understanding the role of sleep on the development, course, and treatment of PTSD is expanding and longitudinal investigations are needed to further elucidate these relationships and identify treatments most effective in ameliorating symptoms.
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By demonstrating the effectiveness of TMR during sleep to potentiate therapy, these results have clinical implications for the management of ND and plausible relevance for learning-based therapies in other psychiatric diseases, and show that TMR applied during REM sleep can modulate emotions in dreams.
Effectiveness of imagery rehearsal therapy for the treatment of combat-related nightmares in veterans.
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TLDR
It is demonstrated that it is possible and promising to combine IRT with CBT for PTSD, with a significant decrease in the level of distress associated with his post-traumatic nightmares.
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TLDR
In a cross-state, multilevel model of dream function and nightmare production, the authors integrate findings on emotional memory structures and the brain correlates of emotion.
Clinical Management of Chronic Nightmares: Imagery Rehearsal Therapy
TLDR
Of the treatments proposed, imagery rehearsal therapy (IRT) has received the most empirical support and an up-to-date account of this cognitive-imagery approach shows how to treat nightmares during 4 roughly 2-hr sessions.
Efficacy of psychological interventions aiming to reduce chronic nightmares: a meta-analysis.
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