You’ve heard of a nightmare. You’ve had a nightmare. The dream where you suddenly jolt awake. You wake up in a cold sweat and it just felt SO real.

My most recent was of me and my best friend a few years ago. We’re on a walk on these bluffs that allow us to look down on the beach without touching the sand or rocks below us. After a few minutes we turn and look at the beach and lean on the railing; we keep talking as were looking down. Suddenly the wooden railing falls apart and I’m falling face first onto the rocks.

I hit the ground. My body jolts awake, my eyes open in my dark room looking left and right just trying to see my surroundings and find out where I am.

It was a nightmare

They’re terrible, I know.

The thing is, we all know about nightmares, but you may not have heard of a night terror so I’ll be explaining what it is along with how it differs from a typical nightmare.

First, sleeping stage and your awareness. They happen during different stages during the night so you’re ability to comprehend what is happening is very different. Nightmares happen in the REM (or rapid-eye movement) stage of sleep. During this stage is when typical dreams happen and you’re more aware of your surroundings. You can wake up and realize the nightmare is over because you can remember every moment of your nightmare. You can realize that its over and that you’re safe now.

Night terrors on the other hand happen during the first few hours of when you’re asleep and do not happen during the REM phase of sleep. You’re not fully conscious of whats happening and you stay asleep until its over. Night terrors are intense so there could be screaming, crying, or thrashing. Also, since you’re not as conscious during the terror, you don’t remember anything that happened so when you wake up you’re just as stressed and worried. You don’t know if you’re safe.

The causes and frequency are also key differences.

A nightmare is usually caused from something that happens throughout the day. This could be high amounts of stress, over-stimulation, or something more emotional like a scary movie or a big change happening in life. This means that unless you watch a lot of scary movies, you’re probably safe from a nightmare. Nightmares aren’t frequent.

Night terrors can be passed down genetically, but sleep deprivation and illness can cause night terrors too. Since it’s not a moment throughout the day that would cause them to happen, they would likely be more frequent than if you had nightmares. (They also last like 20 minutes)

All in all.. I think I’d take a nightmare over a night terror any day. You can’t remember anything that happens in a night terror and they last so much longer. You wake up terrified with no clue with what happened. At least with a nightmare you can remember what happened and know you’re fine.