Introduction
A fever dream is an intense dream experience that can be remembered in the context of a feverish illness. It is therefore a memorable event during sleep that is associated with the existing rise in temperature. The fever dream can have both positive and negative contents and can be both coherent in its subject matter and completely meaningless. For the definition it is only important that the dream was experienced within a fever phase. Subjectively, however, affected persons often perceive fever dreams as stressful or confusing.
Causes
The basic mechanism for the development of fever dreams is the combination of an increased need for sleep and the increased body functions of the sick person. Who was already once ill with a typical flu knows that the body needs much rest and sleep for recovery. Not rarely however pathogens cause so substantial inflammation and defense reactions of the body that as consequence the metabolism and the blood circulation are increased.
The body temperature is also raised to kill the pathogens. Purely metaphorically speaking, the body functions run at full speed in order to render the pathogens harmless. Now it is possible that the areas in the brain responsible for sleep are irritated by the increased metabolic functions.
Normally, the body reduces all functions during sleep. If there is a dysbalance between bodily functions such as the pulse or body temperature and the activity of brain areas, this can lead to false perceptions. Fever dreams are very intense dreams that are perceived as “really experienced”. However, this impression is mainly caused by the fact that the body does not come to rest properly during sleep.
What happens in a fever dream?
A feverish dream usually only occurs when the body temperature has risen significantly, and thus tends to indicate a more serious course of the disease. If the body temperature rises significantly, the heartbeat frequency is increased reflectively. In this way, the body achieves that all organs in the body are sufficiently supplied with nutrients and oxygen despite the stress situation “illness”.
At the same time, this signals to the body that it is in an active performance phase. If the affected person is weakened by his or her illness and understandably tries to sleep, it is possible that areas of the brain responsible for sleep are irritated by the increased metabolism. In addition, the affected person often only reaches a dream-like stage because he is too stressed by the disease.
As a result, the subconscious can send out disordered signals and lead to so-called fever dreams. At the peak of the fever curve, the discrepancy between the need for rest and physical exertion is greatest, so that the probability of occurrence is highest here. Unconscious thoughts mix with memories and then express themselves to the person affected as a fever dream.