Adaptive effects of the dreams of Ukrainian female refugees to Poland after February 24, 2022: Some remarks on the emotion-regulation theories of dreaming

Abstract

According to the most influential theories, the emotion-regulation mechanism of dreaming is based on hyper-connectivity, i.e. the connections made in dreams between the dreamer’s traumatic and non-traumatic experiences. Dream reports obtained from 50 Ukrainian female refugees to Poland after the Russian invasion of Ukraine confirm the importance of hyper-connectivity in adaptive dreams, but they also indicate other ways in which dreams can positively influence the dreamer’s mood. In this study, the following categories of adaptive dreams are proposed and described: 1) dreams of return in which the dreamer comes back to Ukraine and/or meets her loved ones; 2) pleasant dreams that cause the feelings of joy, powerfulness, and delight; 3) metaphorical dreams experienced as self-evident and depicting a positive ending of the dreamer’s difficult life situation; 4) dreams that are simply understood as good omens, and 5) problem-solving dreams that help the dreamer make an important decision in her waking life. The dreamers’ emotional benefits possibly stem from the dream content and not just from sleep. The occurrence of adaptive dreams is positively correlated with a person’s level of traumatization.