Biomaterial Database

Working with dreams in a clinical setting. 2006

Herma Reeskamp

Centrum '45, Oegstgeest, the Netherlands. h.reeskamp@centrum45.nl

A disturbed sleep pattern, nightmares, and anxiety-filled dreams form a cluster of symptoms belonging to the DSM- IV diagnosis of Post-traumatic Stress Disorder. A psychotherapeutic group approach aimed at reducing these symptoms was undertaken in the form of a workshop. The workshop was not a regular part of the treatment program, but an experimental endeavor, offered to the patients during special occasions in the year (around holidays). The therapist was primarily interested in investigating possibilities for improving the quality of sleep and influencing the patterns of recurring anxiety-filled dreams and nightmares. The method has both structured and psychodynamic elements. The work carried out during the dream group was embedded in the total treatment program. This was crucial to allow personal themes to be continued in the regular treatment program.

UI	MeSH Term	Description	Entries
D004325	Dreams	A series of thoughts, images, or emotions occurring during sleep which are dissociated from the usual stream of consciousness of the waking state.	Nightmares,Dream,Nightmare
D005260	Female		Females
D006801	Humans	Members of the species Homo sapiens.	Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D012720	Severity of Illness Index	Levels within a diagnostic group which are established by various measurement criteria applied to the seriousness of a patient's disorder.	Illness Index Severities,Illness Index Severity
D013313	Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic	A class of traumatic stress disorders with symptoms that last more than one month.	Moral Injury,Neuroses, Post-Traumatic,PTSD,Post Traumatic Stress Disorder,Post-Traumatic Stress Disorders,Acute Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder,Chronic Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder,Delayed Onset Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder,Neuroses, Posttraumatic,Posttraumatic Stress Disorders,Stress Disorder, Post Traumatic,Stress Disorders, Posttraumatic,Acute Post Traumatic Stress Disorder,Chronic Post Traumatic Stress Disorder,Delayed Onset Post Traumatic Stress Disorder,Injury, Moral,Moral Injuries,Neuroses, Post Traumatic,Post Traumatic Stress Disorders,Post-Traumatic Neuroses,Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder,Posttraumatic Neuroses,Posttraumatic Stress Disorder,Stress Disorder, Post-Traumatic,Stress Disorder, Posttraumatic
D033262	Narration	The act, process, or an instance of narrating, i.e., telling a story. In the context of MEDICINE or ETHICS, narration includes relating the particular and the personal in the life story of an individual.	Narrative Ethics,Ethics, Narrative,Narrations
D039721	Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders	Categorical classification of MENTAL DISORDERS based on criteria sets with defining features. It is produced by the American Psychiatric Association. (DSM-IV, page xxii)	DSM-IV,DSM-II,DSM-III,DSM-V