News Psychology

A new treatment for debilitating nightmares offers sweeter dreams

A boost from a memory-enhancing technique improves the standard therapy for nightmare disorder

A photo of a women asleep in a bed

In a small study, a new treatment for nightmare disorder left people with fewer nightmares over a longer period than the standard treatment.

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By Jackie Rocheleau

For people haunted by recurring nightmares, untroubled sleep would be a dream come true. Now in a small experiment, neuroscientists have demonstrated a technique that, for some, may chase the bad dreams away.

Enhancing the standard treatment for nightmare disorder with a memory-boosting technique cut down average weekly nightmares among a few dozen people from three to near zero, researchers report online October 27 in Current Biology.