Mike_Cherni wrote:...
People dream 365 days per year. During a normal night of sleep, humans usually experience about four or five periods of REM sleep (3)
For whatever it's worth, I don't think it is true that human beings only dream in the REM stages of sleep. I think this is a persistent myth that was established in the early stages of sleep studies.
This is a subject of great personal interest to me, and for whatever it is worth I have personally verified that our dreams (whatever they are) are in fact taking place at all times whether awake or asleep, like heartbeat or respiration. We are generally not aware of these dreams during waking hours because of the dominance of our physical sensations. During sleep, the awareness of our physical sensations is greatly reduced (or removed altogether) and thus it is much easier to become aware of the dreams taking place.
Many people, because of various conditions, cannot sufficiently disconnect from their physical sensations until within full REM sleep. This is how I believe the myth that "one only dreams in REM" was established.
Anyway welcome, glad to know I'm not the only new guy.