Prolonged loneliness predicts how often you get nightmares and how intense they are, Whitworth University study finds

Waking up in the middle of the night from a nightmare may have something to do with how lonely a person feels, a new Whitworth University study has found.

Though it is too soon to say loneliness causes nightmares, the pair of studies points to feelings of social isolation in predicting how often a person gets nightmares and how intense they get. Researcher and Whitworth Professor of Communication Alan Mikkelson said the two concepts have a “moderate relationship.”

“Vivid and often horrifying dreams can interrupt sleep for many. We found a link between those nightmares and loneliness. And we believe that loneliness can be a factor in predicting who will have nightmares.”

The research builds on work finding loneliness is a contributing factor to poor sleep. Spokane Regional Health District early childhood specialist Rumyana Kudeva said loneliness and social isolation can affect a whole host of physical processes, including sleep.

“Feeling lonely can really impact our bodies in ways we may not realize, such as impacting sleep. Typically, it doesn’t cause insomnia, but the quality of sleep decreases. You wake up in the morning and do not feel fully rested,” Kudeva said.

Though funded by Whitworth’s Flora Family Fund, Mikkelson’s research is a collaboration between Whitworth and researchers at several universities across the country.

Across two studies, about 1,600 individuals were sampled. Data for the studies were self-reported by the participants, who answered questions targeted at their level of loneliness, nightmares and related factors. These questions could be answered on a seven-point scale and were already developed by researchers.

One study focused on the frequency of nightmares, the other on their intensity. Both studies found the link between nightmares and loneliness.

Mikkelson and his coauthors are working off of an evolutionary theory of loneliness that has been detailed by other researchers. The idea is that loneliness developed in human beings because it helps us to survive and reproduce.

“Just as evolution selects for physical traits beneficial to our survival, psychological traits are also selected for. Loneliness is an evolved mechanism that alerts us when we don’t have strong or meaningful connections and therefore could be in danger. It is a warning for us to develop connection in order to survive,” Mikkelson said.

Though more research is needed, Mikkelson and his partners hypothesize nightmares may provide a similar function.

“Nightmares could be a similar adaptation indicating to us that we need to develop stronger social ties,” he said.

Loneliness is increasing in recent decades. Last year, Surgeon General Vivek Murthy released a public health advisory detailing an ongoing “epidemic of loneliness and isolation.”

According to the report, prolonged feelings of loneliness and social disconnection have similar negative physical health impacts to smoking 15 cigarettes a day.

“In recent years, about one-in-two adults in America reported experiencing loneliness. And that was before the COVID-19 pandemic cut off so many of us from friends, loved ones, and support systems, exacerbating loneliness and isolation,” Murthy wrote in the report’s forward. “Loneliness is far more than just a bad feeling – it harms both individual and societal health. It is associated with a greater risk of cardiovascular disease, dementia, stroke, depression, anxiety, and premature death.”

Between 2003 and 2020, before the onset of the pandemic, the average American began spending an additional 24 hours alone each month. That problem is exacerbated for those between the ages of 15 and 24, whose in-person time with friends decreased by nearly 70% over that same time period, the report found.

Through analyzing data, the surgeon general found a feeling of social connection “increases the odds of survival by 50%.”

Murthy’s warnings even spurred a new recommendation for doctors to screen for loneliness at routine exams.

Kudeva said the pandemic “opened the eye” to many about the risks of social isolation.

“And that actually makes me hopeful, because we want those in our community … to use it as an opportunity to reach out to others,” she said.