Piano Chords Can Decrease Nightmares

 
Study Summary

This study used imagery rehearsal therapy (IRT) to reduce nightmares for 36 patients diagnosed with nightmare disorder. All participants were asked to imagine a more positive version of their nightmares using IRT. Half of the participants also heard the piano played on a C29 key during their IRT. The piano key was then played every ten seconds during REM sleep using targeted memory reactivation (TMR). Before therapy the control group that only used IRT had an average of 2.58 nightmares per week, and the group that used IRT and TMR had an average of 2.94 nightmares per week. By the end of the study, the control group's nightmares decreased to 1.02 per week, and the TMR group decreased to 0.19. The TMR group also reported an increase in happy dreams.

 
Study Citation

Schwartz, S., Clerget, A., Perogamvros, L. (2022). Enhancing imagery rehearsal therapy for nightmares with targeted memory reactivation. Current Biology, DOI:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2022.09.032