The more time you spend scrolling Facebook, TikTok or Instagram, the greater the possibility of having unpleasant dreams, or even nightmares.
These are defined as dreams about social media, such as cyberbullying, trolling, online hate, and cyberstalking, which are dominated by negative emotions. They are primarily characterised by themes of helplessness, loss of control, inhibition, victimisation, and making mistakes.
The study, which surveyed 595 Iranian adults on their use of social media, found that the most common nightmares involved the “inability to log in to social media and the disruption of relationships with other users.”
Researchers noted the intensity of social media use predicted the frequency of social media-related nightmares. These nightmares were linked to “increased anxiety, lower peace of mind, poor sleep quality, and nightmare distress.”
This is similar to other nightmares associated with serious psychological problems, such as anxiety, depression or suicidal thoughts.
“Social media-related nightmares have the potential to function as stressors, disrupting the sleep cycle of users and potentially causing awakenings during the night,” the study said.
“Moreover, these nightmares may compromise the functionality of the sleep period, influencing processes such as the consolidation of information collected throughout the day.”
“Consequently, the disruptions arising from social media-related nightmares could contribute to a lowered cognitive and affective well-being in waking life.”
The study was conducted by a group of researchers from Australia, U.S., Iran, and Hungary. It used a Social Media Nightmare-Related Scale (SMNS) to quantify how social media could contribute to our nightmares.
Reza Shabahang, researcher from the department of psychology in Flinders University, said while social media-related nightmares are relatively rare, people who use social media more during their daily lives are more likely to experience them.
Mr. Shabahang also called for a responsible and mindful use of social media to mitigate the occurrence of social media-related nightmares.
“With the rapid advances in technology and media, including artificial intelligence (AI) and virtual reality, along with the increasing dependency on these technologies and deeper integration, it is anticipated that dreams featuring technological and media content will become more frequent,” he said.
Social Media, Sleep, Mental Health
A plethora of research has shown that extensive use of social media can affect sleep directly and indirectly, which may lead to low life satisfaction in problematic social media users.
It found that for children experiencing bullying, rumination may disrupt other forms of coping—such as positive cognitive distractions—that could instead lessen the distress.
The study noted some of the beliefs and concerns stemming from social media use include fear of rejection, a desire for social approval, and fear of vulnerability in social media.
Meanwhile, nightmares have been found to be intertwined with psychological problems, such as depression and anxiety, and can lead to anxiety disorders and suicidal thoughts.
