What Do Our Brains Do When We're Dreaming?- with Mark Solms

Sigmund Freud was the first scientist to support the popular notion that dreams are meaningful. Fifty years later, the discovery of REM sleep thoroughly discredited the notion.

Mark Solms explores the mechanisms behind the dreaming brain and what dreams really mean. He discusses where the research on sleep, generated like clockwork by the ‘mindless’ brainstem, stands today.

Mark Solms has spent his entire career investigating the mysteries of consciousness. Best known for identifying the brain mechanisms of dreaming and for bringing psychoanalytic insights into modern neuroscience, he is director of neuropsychology in the Neuroscience Institute of the University of Cape Town, honorary lecturer in neurosurgery at the Royal London Hospital School of Medicine, and an honorary fellow of the American College of Psychiatrists.

This talk was recorded on 4th May 2021.

---
A very special thank you to our Patreon supporters who help make these videos happen, especially:
---


Product links on this page may be affiliate links which means it won't cost you any extra but we may earn a small commission if you decide to purchase through the link.

[ToxopIasmosis]

I always keep a notebook next to my bed so that I can capture the fleeting memories of my dreams. It's amazing because after months you essentially have a bunch of short stories based virtually on your unconscious and re-reading them is quite a wonderous experience.

[mygvmtnamepublicallyavailable]

If you have bongos, play a beat to this while you listen; it really enhances the lecture. It also gives the subject matter the intensity it deserves.

[karlfimm]

As a child, I had frequent nightmares where I had no control. Then, one night, it was as if the 'logic' part of my mind suddenly switched back on. I remember thinking "I'm being pursued, but my legs won't move and I'm stuck. However, my arms still work, so what can I grab as a weapon." From that night on, my dreams changed, and nightmares became extremely rare. I'm sure this is related to the mental state I find when I have a lucid dream.

[StasherDragon]

I have wild, detailed dreams.

I would watch my cat sleep. I would see her REM. When she wakes up right after and sees me, she pleasantly meows at me. I wonder, "Are you telling me your dream? Are you happy to see me? What are you trying to tell me?"

[user]

58:28 I love the way the child has drawn little thought clouds that bend down to the large dream thought cloud. Good little artist there.

[HappyRainbow]

Came here to find out what our brains do when we're dreaming ... Left understanding the function of dreams. Unbelievable presentation. Loved it!

[malectric]

I've dreamed every night I've been asleep for as long as I can remember. When I was young, I found it easy to remember my dreams in a waking state. I could also control what I was dreaming to an extent. And what I dreamed in many ways actually predicted some key events in my life, some of which happened literally by chance and not by actively seeking them out. In my later years I still dream but am no longer aware at any time during dreaming and can only remember snippets of some dreams when I am awake.
If I had one waking aspiration it would be that some day what a person is dreaming could (with their permission - ethical) be rendered on a computer screen. I really think it would be possible (and my hunches are usually correct).
Thankyou very much for a most interesting and enthralling presentation.

[CNBlaze-qjfg]

Had a brain injury about 17 years ago. Car accident. My dreams have been almost non-existent since then. I have maybe 2 per year.
I have also suffered from depression or lack of motivation, basically a lack of dopamine from what I understand.
This talk finally brought the two together! Brilliant!

[ORagnar]

You've got to hand it to Freud. His reputation will grow by leaps and bounds thanks to Mark Solms' brilliant work.

[LiLi-orgm]

I'm going to listen to this tonight as I fall asleep. I dream a lot and often remember them. I have a few recurring themes, and often, my dreams take place in the same locale- my dream city and its surrounding areas. I've drawn maps of it, even. I often fly, float (levitate), and swim in my dreams. Every night I look forward to falling asleep and experiencing the next set of my dreams- it's like visiting a weird and fascinating existence that I know is wholly within my mind.

[alkascottus]

Absolute badass. Thanks for having Solms on.

[peshkybee]

I've been lucid dreaming since I was about 12 (30 now). Something interesting I've noticed is that the further "off path" I take my dream the more obstacles are put in place to stop me/redirect me to the narrative. If I push it too far I wake up without fail. I can also recount 99 percent of my dreams with the same accuracy as telling someone about my waking experiences. Even days, weeks, or months later

[CharlieMorley]

Great talk. I shared the stage with this guy about 10 years ago in SA and he was so generous and kind as I stumbled through a talk on lucid dreaming 🤓🙏🏼

[riojauregui]

Bringing the psyche back into neuropsychiatry is a wonderful and pithy way to describe this research!

This talk was incredibly insightful and I found it encouraging to see the ways that we can use new tools to bring falsifiability to old ideas. They should be adequately falsified (or not falsified) instead of just seen as ideas of less advanced people from an earlier time. Intuition is powerful, and bringing new tools to old ideas is brilliant!

[nintendowiirulz]

Absolutely brilliant talk! REM sleep being an incredibly ancient process produced by the the switching on-and-off of the brain stem which produces signals that are then translated by the the more evolved cortex into dreams instead of causing us to wake up. Truly mind-blowing stuff, thank you!

[doublekvideos]

I truly wish I could find a doctor like you in the states!
I have been through TBI, many concussions, then misdiagnosed Bi-Polar & treated for 18 years.
4 years ago, I weakened off medication. I wish your science & knowledge could extend to more patients!
My dream & sleep states have obviously changed in past years.
Thank you for this video; as it is another to shed light on the true answers I'm searching so hard for

[evolutionaryadvantage]

I have consistent nightmares/night terrors, where I can wake up and it takes a white to reorientation myself to my own room and sometimes the line between dreams and reality are blurred.

[firehot]

An absolutely fascinating talk. I went through a period of experiencing extremely vivid dreams and found that I didn't feel as refreshed when I woke up from them. So although I have no doubt that dreams help good sleep I think the depth of ones sleep while dreaming is also important to feel fully rested.

[EmilyTienne]

Why are the most fascinating dreams, ones that tell an elaborate story become lost from memory even fifteen seconds after waking? It’s as though someone has hit the delete key.

[stephanieparker]

Just finished your book, Hidden Springs. It’s fantastic! Very deep into the science, evolution and mechanics, not an ounce of metaphysics.. which I loved lol