So here is the myth: if you are having a dream and you are about to die or be killed, you better wake up. If not, you will die in the dream and remain in that eternal slumber. The reality is that you can die in a dream and be perfectly okay. Death dreams are not extremely common, but the do occur.
There are, however, some reports of true “killer dreams”. It is known that emotional stress can cause an increase in heart rate and that this can occur during sleep, especially in REM sleep when dreams occur. It is also known that approximately 20 percent of heart attacks and 15 percent of sudden cardiac deaths occur between midnight and 6 A.M. Now, not all of these events are sleep- or dream-related, but there may be some risk for those with underlying heart disease.
For those of us who are healthy of heart, an article in the Canadian Journal of Cardiology described four cases of people without known heart disease for whom the emotional stress of nightmares caused their premature demise.
So should we sleep with one eye open for fear of a death dream? No, we didn’t intend to scare you; you are much more likely to have a wet dream than a death dream, so enjoy your sleep.
Next: Does ginger have any medicinal qualities?
Previous: Illinois Institute of Technology
"Can people die in a dream?" was posted on Tuesday, November 6th, 2007 at 10:39 pm.