Can nightmares be dangerous? Many people will always ask this question. Nightmares will only damage you if you allow them to. Of course a repetitive nightmare which wakes you night after night in a cold sweat of terror is worrying, and if it persists over a long period there is no doubt that it can have an effect on your confidence and self-assurance. The answer is not to give in to it; go to bed, not fearful of the dream that is waiting for you, but ready to face up to it, to ask what it is trying to say to you and to answer its statement.

Nightmares are not the product of overeating, overdrinking, or any other physical activity. They are the result of some waking anxiety which is so acute that it bursts into your dreams. Childhood, in particular, is full of such anxieties, often attached to the process of getting used to the world and facing problems which may seem stupidly minute to those who have forgotten what it was like to be five years old. If your child wakes screaming in the night, it will usually be the result of a 'bad dream' which has been forgotten by the time you reach the bedside. There is nothing you can do other than comfort the child, reassure her, tell her that 'it won't happen again' - which will probably be true, for she is very unlikely to have another nightmare the same night. If nightmares occur night after night, the problem is more serious, and you must look for the waking problem which is prompting them. Your child may feel insecure at school or at home; may be being bullied by a fellow-pupil or even a teacher; or may be distressed at your response to something she has done or not done.

Most importantly, consider your relationship with your partner. Children are remarkably susceptible to atmosphere, and often (especially if they do not have enough vocabulary, or feel they cannot discuss things with you) pick up tension or stress. Loneliness or jealousy can also be turned inwards and emerge in frightening nightmares. Recurring nightmares in adults also deserve careful study. Jungians would suggest that nightmares are the work of your shadow; instincts which for some reason you don't feel you can show to the world during your waking life break into your dream world and show their anger at being repressed.

Further reading:
1.Counselling with Dreams and Nightmares by Delia Cushway & Robyn Sewell

Nightmares

Introduction
Problems of Sleeplessness
Nightmare
Sleep-walking & Sleep-talking
Snoring