Project 3 – Brain Zzzzz’s

Sleeping Position Experiment

 

Sleeping on my back:

I never sleep on my back so it was difficult to fall asleep. According to the Psychology Today article, sleeping on your back is associated with self confidence and stubbornness. Back sleepers are more likely to have nightmares and have trouble recalling their dreams. I experienced exactly what the article described in terms of dreaming for back sleepers. I had an unsettling dream that disturbed my sleep in the middle of the night. When I woke up I had trouble remembering my dream. In my drowsy state in the night I forgot about my experiment and switched to the stomach position I normally sleep in. 

 

 

Sleeping on my side:

I normally sleep on my side when I watch a movie on my laptop before I fall asleep. I don’t usually sleep in this position but it is one I am familiar with. Tonight I slept on my left side which is linked to creativity and open mindedness based on the Psychology Today article. Studies show that sleeping on your left side can cause more nightmares than sleeping on your right side. I did not have a dream that I can recall but I did not feel startled or unsettled when I woke up so I assume I did not have a nightmare.

 

Sleeping on my stomach:

This is the position I normally sleep in, so this wasn’t difficult for me. Based on the Psychology Today article, sleeping on your stomach is linked to defensiveness and perfectionism. People who sleep on their stomach normally feel overwhelmed and a lack of control. Stomach sleepers tend to have intense, vivid dreams. Tonight, I woke up not remembering what I dreamt or if I even dreamt at all. My experience sleeping on my stomach goes against what was said in the article.

 

Conclusion:
Although my experiment was to test how various sleeping positions can impact dreams, I realized that there are so many other factors that play into the way one dreams. It is difficult to test only one factor without neutralizing the rest like daily stress levels and sleep duration. I believe my experiment could have been improved if I made sure I stuck to the same routine every day of the experiment and monitored my emotions to see if they were consistent.

 

———————————————————————————————————————————————————————

 

How the way you sleep affects the way you dream:

https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/sleep-newzzz/201903/your-sleep-position-affects-much-more-you-think

Inspiration:

Felix Gonzalez-Torres, “Untitled” (billboard of an empty bed)
This billboard portrays a bed with indents in the pillows to show that two people were once sleeping there. The billboard was placed in the middle of the city which makes viewers feel a sense of intimacy, like one is peering into an apartment window a bit too closely. Having this artwork presented largely in an urban area is impactful because the stillness and purity of the photo juxtaposes beautifully with the chaos of the city.