{"id":30430,"date":"2025-07-29T06:22:10","date_gmt":"2025-07-29T06:22:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/30430\/"},"modified":"2025-07-29T06:22:10","modified_gmt":"2025-07-29T06:22:10","slug":"i-suffered-incredibly-vivid-nightmares-and-even-lashed-out-violently-at-my-wife-while-asleep-i-had-no-idea-it-was-an-early-warning-sign-for-this-serious-condition","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/30430\/","title":{"rendered":"I suffered incredibly vivid nightmares and even lashed out violently at my wife while asleep – I had no idea it was an early warning sign for this serious condition"},"content":{"rendered":"

Martin Pickard awoke in a state of terror. He had been dreaming that he was in the back of a London<\/a> taxi, interviewing DJ Tony Blackburn<\/a>. The back seat of the cab was littered with McDonald\u2019s cartons which, to his horror, began to move.<\/p>\n

\u2018The rubbish was covered in spiders,\u2019 Martin recalls<\/a>. \u2018They were getting bigger and bigger, and when one the size of a wastepaper basket launched itself at my face, I threw open the cab door and jumped out \u2013 headfirst into the bedside cabinet.\u2019<\/p>\n

Martin, a retired chartered surveyor from Cranfield in Bedfordshire, came to with blood pouring down his face. His wife, Penny, 61, a retired soft furnishings business owner, rushed into the room to find him with a deep cut and a black eye.<\/p>\n

It wasn\u2019t the first such frightening incident caused by the increasingly vivid and violent dreams he had been experiencing for over a decade \u2013 but it was the first time he had ended up in A&E as a result.<\/p>\n

What Martin, now 70, didn\u2019t know was that these nightmares were, for him, an early warning sign of Parkinson\u2019s disease, a progressive disease of the brain and nervous system.<\/p>\n

Martin\u2019s nightmares were due to rapid eye movement sleep behaviour disorder (RBD), which typically causes \u2018vivid dreams that are often distressing \u2013 for instance, involving dangerous situations \u2013 together with acting-out behaviours, such as lashing out, kicking, punching, shouting, talking and even singing or whistling,\u2019 explains Dr Laura P\u00e9rez-Carbonell, a consultant neurologist and sleep medicine specialist at Guy\u2019s and St Thomas\u2019 NHS<\/a> Foundation Trust in London.<\/p>\n

As the name implies, this happens during rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, \u2018the stage when we typically have more vivid dreams and that is also thought to play a role in memory consolidation\u2019, says Dr P\u00e9rez-Carbonell.<\/p>\n

In Martin\u2019s case the nightmares could be so vivid that at times he has been too scared to sleep.<\/p>\n

\"Martin\u2019s <\/p>\n

Martin\u2019s nightmares were due to rapid eye movement sleep behaviour disorder (RBD), which typically causes \u2018vivid dreams that are often distressing’ and can be an early sign of Parkinson’s disease<\/p>\n

\u2018They were straight out of a Stephen King horror novel: skin peeling off, insects moving under my skin, cats eating my feet,\u2019 he says.<\/p>\n

Often they were accompanied by what he describes as \u2018active dreaming\u2019, where he was acting out whatever he was doing in his dreams. \u2018If you\u2019re kicking a football in your dream, you\u2019re kicking your wife in the bed,\u2019 he explains. \u2018The dreams weren\u2019t just dangerous for me, they were also dangerous for Penny.\u2019<\/p>\n

Normally during REM sleep, our muscles become atonic (temporarily immobile). \u2018But people with RBD act out their dreams due to a loss of this atonia,\u2019 says Dr P\u00e9rez-Carbonell.<\/p>\n

RBD is caused by changes in parts of the lower brain: these areas can also be affected by the accumulation of a protein called alpha-synuclein, which occurs in those with Parkinson\u2019s, she adds.<\/p>\n

Parkinson\u2019s \u2013 which affects around 166,000 people in the UK \u2013 occurs due to progressive loss of cells in the brain which produce dopamine, a chemical messenger crucial to movement.<\/p>\n

Symptoms can include tremor, muscle stiffness, balance problems, loss of smell, anxiety, depression and sleep disturbances.<\/p>\n

Not everyone with RBD goes on to develop Parkinson\u2019s, and vice versa. But as Dr P\u00e9rez-Carbonell explains: \u2018People with RBD are at a particularly increased risk of developing Parkinson\u2019s.\u2019<\/p>\n

Around 50 per cent of patients diagnosed with Parkinson\u2019s also have RBD, \u2018with about 20 per cent of these RBD cases actually having preceded their Parkinson\u2019s diagnosis\u2019, she says. \u2018Sleep problems are extremely common in patients with Parkinson\u2019s.<\/p>\n

\"\u2018RBD <\/p>\n

\u2018RBD can start years or even decades before the typical Parkinson\u2019s mobility issues,’ says\u00a0Dr Laura P\u00e9rez-Carbonell,\u00a0a consultant neurologist and sleep medicine specialist at Guy\u2019s and St Thomas\u2019s NHS Foundation Trust in London<\/p>\n

\u2018Studies show that up to 80 per cent of patients with Parkinson\u2019s have sleep issues such as insomnia and restless legs syndrome five years post-diagnosis, but RBD can start years or even decades before the typical Parkinson\u2019s mobility issues.<\/p>\n

\u2018We need to do further scientific studies for more clarity on this.\u2019<\/p>\n

The link between Parkinson\u2019s and sleep problems is thought to be multifactorial, including in part due to damage to the brain\u2019s sleep\/wake cycle \u2013 but possibly also as a result of damage to the lower brain.<\/p>\n

Martin\u2019s sleep problems began in 2005. At the time working long hours due to his demanding job, he often struggled to sleep. And when he did finally drop off, he was increasingly plagued by vivid nightmares.<\/p>\n

In 2018, with Penny by then desperate to get a good night\u2019s sleep \u2013 impossible when Martin was thrashing about and shouting \u2013 the couple reluctantly decided to sleep in separate bedrooms.<\/p>\n

\u2018It felt really sad that we couldn\u2019t go to bed together any more,\u2019 says Martin.<\/p>\n

But it pushed him to investigate why he was having these dreams, and he came across information about RBD online, by which time he was getting by \u2018on two or three hours\u2019 sleep a night and making silly mistakes because I was so tired\u2019, he says. \u2018I paid my VAT twice; I booked a hotel for the wrong month.\u2019<\/p>\n

Martin saw a neurologist and underwent a sleep study, which confirmed he had RBD.<\/p>\n

\u2018I was warned that a high percentage of patients go on to develop Parkinson\u2019s,\u2019 he says.<\/p>\n

At that time Martin wasn\u2019t displaying the characteristic physical symptoms, such as a stiff gait or a tremor.<\/p>\n

However, over the next two years \u2018my Parkinson\u2019s bingo card was filling up\u2019, he recalls.<\/p>\n

\u2018I developed stiffness and experienced cognitive decline. I\u2019d lost my sense of smell way back in 1980, which I didn\u2019t then know can be a precursor to Parkinson\u2019s, too.\u2019 In these patients, loss of smell, or hyposmia, is thought to be a consequence of the degeneration of nerve cells in the brain responsible for processing smells.<\/p>\n

It was in 2020 that Martin\u2019s Parkinson\u2019s diagnosis finally came. While a shock, it also brought relief.<\/p>\n

\u2018At least I knew I wasn\u2019t going insane,\u2019 says Martin.<\/p>\n

\u2018I went through what I guess everybody who gets diagnosed with Parkinson\u2019s goes through: How long have I got? I\u2019d seen Muhammad Ali on the telly \u2013 am I going to be like that next year?\u2019<\/p>\n

Martin set about overhauling his work and lifestyle.<\/p>\n

\u2018I started working less and I took practical steps to make my home safer, so that if I had violent dreams I\u2019d be less likely to hurt myself \u2013 removing sharp objects from my bedroom and installing movement-activated night lights.<\/p>\n

\u2018I don\u2019t have a glass of water by the bed any more; it\u2019s in the bathroom, to be safe.\u2019<\/p>\n

Martin also embraced new routines to improve his sleep.<\/p>\n

\u2018I make sure I go to bed at the same time every night, and get up at the same time every morning,\u2019 he says. \u2018I avoid alcohol, coffee and blue screens before bed. Hydration helps, too \u2013 it helps my sleep and my constipation, which is a major issue in Parkinson\u2019s.\u2019<\/p>\n

These changes have made a significant difference: \u2018I now get four or five hours\u2019 good sleep a night,\u2019 he says. \u2018And when I\u2019ve had a good night\u2019s sleep, my Parkinson\u2019s symptoms are not so bad the next day.\u2019<\/p>\n

Becky Jones, from the charity Parkinson\u2019s UK, says greater understanding of how disturbed sleep might impact Parkinson\u2019s is needed.<\/p>\n

\u2018If we can start to understand the link, we may be able to trial new treatments that could slow down the progression of Parkinson\u2019s symptoms before diagnosis,\u2019 she says.<\/p>\n

Dr P\u00e9rez-Carbonell says lifestyle changes and improved sleeping habits can help patients with sleep-related problems, as can reviewing a patient\u2019s medication, as some of those used for Parkinson\u2019s may be implicated. For instance, drugs that mimic the action of dopamine can lead to nightmares, sleepiness and insomnia.<\/p>\n

But she adds: \u2018There are also some therapies used in Parkinson\u2019s which are known to improve certain sleep disturbances such as restless legs syndrome.\u2019<\/p>\n

Martin\u2019s condition continues to progress, but he has found solace in creativity and now runs a group called Poets with Parkinson\u2019s.<\/p>\n

These days, his dreams are surreal, rather than frightening: \u2018Recently, I dreamt I was on a raft made from marshmallows, while I tried to save Miley Cyrus from pirates,\u2019 he says.<\/p>\n

\u2018For some reason, my dreams often involve celebrities.\u2019<\/p>\n

To learn more about Parkinson\u2019s effect on sleep and how to manage it, visit: youtube.com\/watch?v=1S6GauUXVec<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Martin Pickard awoke in a state of terror. He had been dreaming that he was in the back…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":30431,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[97,59,102,388,18776,56,54,55],"class_list":{"0":"post-30430","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-health","8":"tag-dailymail","9":"tag-gb","10":"tag-health","11":"tag-london","12":"tag-tony-blackburn","13":"tag-uk","14":"tag-united-kingdom","15":"tag-unitedkingdom"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30430","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=30430"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30430\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/30431"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=30430"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=30430"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=30430"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}