Nightmares

I was intrigued to learn, from Dr. Ray Peat, that nightmares are triggered by nerve stress caused by falling blood sugar levels.  Basically, if the liver function is not optimal, blood sugar will tend to drop during sleep as a result of not eating.  As Dr. Peat describes it, when the blood sugar drops, it's like suffocation to the nerves.  When that happens, the stress hormones, including cortisol, are released in order to increase the glucose level, which is not ideal, as that creates stress in and of itself.  The nerves become desperate, in a sense, and so create experiences that will wake you up, whether a nightmare or perhaps thoughts or aromas of food.  Either way, you wake up with hunger or a desire to take in nourishment, and the body gets what it needs. 

Another fine example of how the body functions as a coherent whole in order to adapt to some form of stress.  Low blood sugar may be the most frequent cause of physiological stress for the average person.  That being said, I find it helpful to have some juice before bed in order to stave off low blood sugar during the night.