Can babies have nightmares?

[14yrslater]

My ds woke up last night twice refusing to nurse and just freaking out! He did eventually calm down and go back to sleep but I wonder if he had nightmares. He always likes to nurse back to sleep and it is unusual that he refused the boob!

[Heather Micaela]

sounds more like a night terror. They half wake up and are disoriented. Bigger kids just scream. They are not even cognisant. Just comfort him and he will fall asleep :hug2

[Peridot]

I firmly beleive that babes can have bad dreams. dr. Sears talks about rem sleep. . .or was it E. Pantley?

babies have HUGE portions of REM(dream) slepp, and anything they've experienced they can drem about.


otoh, it could totally have been a night terror, too. :scratch

[zak]

Both of my boys (and my husband as a child as well) have had night terrors. :( I think www.askdrsears.com (http://www.askdrsears.com) has some good info there. :hug2

[aleigh]

it does sound like a night terror. my ds had them when he was overtired. they would get worse when i would try to touch him or comfort him. i either had to let it finish without touching him or take him outside or turn on the TV. those 2 things seemed to totally wake him up & the terror would stop.

hope you don't have to deal with anymore of them. they seem scary.