On the surface dreams may seem unimportant and worthless to some people. Individuals may superficially over look the depth and degree that dreaming affects us, but I have concurred from my reading, in section two, that dream research is important. Research has shown that we learn while we are dreaming. Dream research is an area of study that has proved to be beneficial to the physical and emotional well being of all people.
We would all benefit to ask ourselves, is dreaming worthless, a passing blip in our sleeping minds? Or is it a complex, mind boggling voyage in our life long learning journey? Dream research and the discovery of Rapid Eye Movement (REM) is such an enlightening and astounding topic that I feel is beneficial to our physical and emotional health. .
For many years it was believed that during sleep our minds would click off, as much as a light, and rested, totally oblivious and basically dark, except for an occasional flash here and there. Nothing was really known about "how" we dream let alone why. Not until 1953, Eugene Aserinsky of Chicago University discovered REM and dreaming are related. By his experiments on sleep, with the help of an old electroencephalograph (EEG) he was able to dispel the popular beliefs and prove that our brains do not "sleep.".
Further research by Allen Hobson of Harvard medical school, showed the neurophysiology of dreams. Clusters of REM-on and REM-off cells where located in the brainstem. REM-on cells do their work by releasing a chemical that triggers dreaming. The REM-off cells are less capable of submission to their testing.
To some of us who just like to sleep and dream, this may seem unimportant. However this information can benefit every individual. Researchers have found that without proper sleep, REM dreaming, people exhibited symptoms of anxiety, panic, fatigue, irritability, inability to concentrate, and to remember. If a person is depressed, the symptoms worsen.