I have always been fascinated by the idea that we spend a third of our lives asleep, seemingly offline, but then our brains create these fascinating worlds inside our heads that can be amazing or really scary. Dreams offer us a unique insight into the brain – a glimpse of it in its purest form, not influenced by the outside world. (Text continues below).
Did you know that your interest in dreams influences how well you remember your dreams? I remember having many nightmares as a child. I think that's what sparked my interest in the brain and how it works.
My work at the Donders Institute focuses on understanding the functions of dreams. For example, do dreams help us consolidate memories? At the Donders Institute, we conducted a large study that collected over 3,000 dream reports from 95 people, a process that took over 1.5 years. It also came at a personal cost: I spent over 1,000 hours in the lab, divided over 100 sleepless nights. But it was all worth it, as it resulted in one of the largest dream datasets ever collected. Analysing the data is a big challenge, but the prospect of uncovering new insights into the functions of dreams is incredibly exciting.
There are still many misconceptions about dream research. Some people assume that if you research dreams, you're Freudian, but that’s far from true. Our approach is the scientific method: We collect extensive data and analyse it quantitatively to produce evidence-based insights. Another common myth is that some people don’t dream at all. When these people are invited into the sleep lab, and I wake them up in the middle of the night to ask about their dreams, they remember at least some dreams.
I am proud to contribute to our understanding of dreams, and I’m equally proud that our research follows the principles of open science. We are committed to transparency, so we registered beforehand precisely how we will do our study and followed this plan exactly. This ensures that our findings are robust and reproducible.
Even after all my research, I’m still amazed by the brain’s capacity to create such rich and complex dream worlds. It is a reminder of just how powerful and mysterious the human brain is.
I want to encourage everyone to be curious about their own brain. There is still so much we don't know. Maybe you'll find something that fascinates you as much as dreams fascinate me, and perhaps one day you'll become a researcher yourself. The brain is full of mysteries waiting to be uncovered, and curiosity is the first step toward discovery.
People of Donders
Behind every scientific discovery lies a story. A story of scientists and staff driven by curiosity and perseverance. What motivates them to delve into the complex world of the brain day in and day out? What continues to fascinate them? What challenges do they face? And what does their work mean to them personally? In the People of Donders series you will meet the people behind the science, discover their passions, and learn what they think is most fascinating about our brains.