Do we grow out of nightmares?

[Champion RD92 8,658]

I don't think I have nightmares quite as much as I did as a kid, but I definitely still have nightmares once in a while. Mostly involving me running away from some random crazy person trying to kill me or something lol

[Fluttershy4life 150]

You don't grow out of nightmares, but you do grow out of what scares you and find new things that frighten you. I don't think you probably are scared of the monster under your bed anymore but perhaps are scared of things such as murder or losing a loved one. People will always have fears and with that nightmares will occur. 

I have nightmares every single night, but I've lived through my worst nightmare already so while i'm very jumpy all the time there really isn't anything that TRULY scares me to the point of mental breakdown. Of course there are things that may make me a bit frightened but when it comes to the scariest thing ever, there really isn't anything anymore. (P.S. That nightmare was losing all of my friends at once, and though it's over and done with I have PTSD which means I'll never forget it)

[Mightymags 1,053]

I think having nightmares depends on a variety of different things. The biggest is probably as simple as whether or not you wake up from it. If you don't wake up during a dream you won't remember it. I don't have dreams very often but when I do they're usually nightmares and I think it's because I wake up in the middle of them and so those are the ones I remember. 

 

I don't think you grow out of them because my parents still tell me about nightmares they have because they're usually about something bad happening to me or one of my siblings. 

 

Finally, I think that when we are younger our fears are more irrational and our minds are able to twist almost anything to make us scared. As we get older we recognize that most of these fears were not logical at all and we are no longer afraid. As our fears diminish (or become more rational) our nightmares subside. 

[Princess Periwinkle 3,775]

According to my mom pregnant women have a lot of nightmares. 

 

You never really grow out of them, but you can go through phases where you don't remember any of them. Take me, for example. I haven't remembered one in years, but I'm sure I'll have them again at some point.

[Thrashy 2,800]

It all depends on one's definition of a nightmare. Many of your definitions are probably relative to my own, but here's my personal breakdown:

 

Any dream that spooks or disturbs me is just a bad dream. Being chased by monsters, blood and gore, the Apocalypse, and all that generic horror movie stuff.

 

A nightmare is something that brings me a true sense of despair that lingers for hours after I've woken up. Usually involving someone I really care about either dying or betraying me in some profound way. Or involving me committing atrocities that I'd never perform in real life, often accompanied by a vivid sense of uncharacteristic blind rage.

 

That said, I've had plenty of bad dreams in recent years, but it's been quite some time since I've had a proper nightmare. I think the frequency of nightmares generally lessens as you grow older, but if you're going through times of great stress, they can most definitely resurface at any time.

[Scootalove 10,689]

I've grown out of my nightmares, but I do get some from time to time. Just not very gruesome nightmares with gore, so it basically takes some time.

[Thunderchild 875]

Well, I'm pretty old at this point-at least compared to most of you, and I still have them occasionally.

 

It may be that we don't scare so easily as adults, it may be about the self-centered nature of being a child. As an adult, you've usually got people you're responsible for-children or spouse-and as such don't have the luxury of being scared for no reason any more.

 

It may be as simple as the idea that we don't remember our dreams as well as we age-things usually seem more intense to kids anyway. Think of the drama of school and college life compared to regular adult life. Most adults are more emotionally stable than kids-unless something's gone wrong with their life that is.

[D1SC0RD 987]

I don't know the science behind it, but I can tell you that I have frightening nightmares at least once a week. Usually they're about making complex life-or-death decisions, evasion/being chased, and so on. I'm not quite an adult though, so maybe I am yet to grow out of nightmares.

[Clockwork Chaos 219]

you don't grow out of nightmares per say, nightmares work the same as dreams where the is no meaning behind them, it's just random neurones firing in the brain. people usually have 5 dreams a night, but just dont remember them, it's entirely possible that your brain just chooses not to remember the unpleasant ones.

 

at any rate, i'm 19 and i still have the occasional nightmare, people probably just forget them because now they know a nightmare can't hurt them, while as a child you still have that kind of residual fear, so you remember them more vividly.

[duidamasterXD 9,627]

I'm not sure. I rarely remember my dreams as it is, and I can't remember the last time that I had a nightmare. I definitely had them much more often when I was younger, but I doubt that I've grown out of them altogether or that you can make a general case about this. It probably depends on the person and what is happening in their life at the time. 

[Cwanky 17,572]

I doubt it. My dad is in his 50s and he still has the occasional nightmares. As for myself I forget 90% of my nightmares moments after I wake up so its as if they never even happened.

[Lunas Husband 2,777]

Ah I say no, I have had nightmares for 12years now. Started back when I was 11 years old.. here I'm am 23 still having those nasty nightmares from so long ago..

[GrauWitz 1,010]

I'm 13, I haven't had a nightmare since I was 10. Except earlier this year when I watched Budd Dwyer's public suicide (I'm a sick bastard), I had nightmare about it for 2 weeks straight. But, I'm pretty sure that I have grown out of nightmares at this point.

[Midnight Scribbler 1,705]

Unless I haven't grown out of them yet, I'd say we don't, but everyone's different. I have horrible nightmares to this day. Most of which, I'd rather not even talk about. I've had some that have made me question my mental state in real life. They can be quite intense.

Edited November 5, 2013 by Midnight Scribbler

[Sunlight 357]

I still have nightmares, and I'm fourteen. I only get them once every few weeks though, well ones I remember anyway. So I think you still get them when you're older, but just not as often.

[ChoroChii 284]

A nightmare is your subconscious way of telling you something is wrong in your life, so no. People don't grow out of them.

 

I've had so many. They've been pretty gruesome since my sophomore year in high school. I've gotten so used to them, though. The only way it could really affect me if it was a really, really bad one that hit emotions. 

[Photon Jet 5,491]

I had nightmare too, especially weird ones as well. They are usually created when someone is worried or afraid about something.

 

However, we must remember what Luna said to Scootaloo in one episode. "Everypony has fears. Everypony must face them in their own way. But they must be faced, or the nightmares will continue!"

Edited November 8, 2013 by Photon Jet

[Scootaloo Is Best Filly 578]

I don't think we ever really grow out of nightmares everyone has them because nightmares sometimes happen when you're fearful of something. What does happen I think is your nightmares for lack of a better word "mature". When you're a kid you can often be scared of tiny little things that you may have grown out of. But, I am getting off track, I believe that you never really grow out of nightmares, or at least I haven't.

[QuirkyUsername 1,576]

Not at all. There are quite a few testimonies here that show we don't. The only real way to outgrow a nightmare is to outgrow fear itself. We all are scared of something and from time to time it will manifest in our dreams. There's no real escaping it so have a friend/pet/plushie ready for "I nearly pissed myself" snuggles

[ZiggWheelsManning 10,049]

If nightmares have a message about real-life stuff, we gotta learn and face fears and challenges that go with it.  

[EpicEnergy 23,198]

I'm not too familiar with the psychological aspect of nightmares, but I do think that some people are more prone to them than others. I don't see how age would affect the frequency of nightmares, but two factors that might influence how often you have nightmares are how strong your fears are and how many fears you have.

[ZiggWheelsManning 10,049]

We have to think what's most important and deal with fear.  

[Sonic Shimmer 4,131]

No, I’m in my 30s and I still have dreams that make me wake up in a panic sometimes.

[Clawdeen 12,190]

I’m incredibly jealous of those who don’t still get them. I’ve had some terrifying ones

[Dreambiscuit 9,689]

I think everyone grows out of nightmares to a degree as they get older. Most people have them when they’re kids, probably because kids are more vulnerable and thus more susceptible to fear. As people get older they’re less likely to be rattled by products of the subconscious mind to the degree that it would cause legitimate concern after the dream ends. Most adults, if anything, would get fed-up with nightmares or being intimidated by them and simply say enough is enough. Adults can master their minds more readily than kids. When I was a child I had a recurring nightmare until I got tired of being dominated by it and resolved to conquer the dream then next time it occured. I did exactly what I intended to do and took control within the dream, effectively ending the mental menace that plagued me for years. I didn’t have many nightmares of any kind since then.