FRIGHTENING DREAMS AND DOSAGE SCHEDULE OF TRICYCLIC AND NEUROLEPTIC DRUGS

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Abstract
Psychiatric inpatients on bedtime-only doses of tricyclic or neuroleptic drugs reported more frequent frightening dreams than did those on divided daily doses. To determine whether differences in frequency of frightening dreams were a function of differences in total dream recall, a questionnaire was adminstered to outpatients in a Veterans Administration Hospital Mental Hygiene Clinic, asking about frequency of dream recall, frequency of frightening dream recall and doses and times of any medications taken. Questionnaire reports of medications were checked with the medical record of the patient; for 48 patients on tricyclic or neuroleptic drugs the reports agreed. More frequent frightening dreams occurred in patients on bedtime-only dosage schedules. No significant difference between the 2 groups with respect to frequency of dream recall was found. A difference in the affect of dreams, rather than a difference in quantity of dream recall, apparently constituted the difference between the 2 groups. When a patient on bedtime doses of tricyclic or neuroleptic drugs has undesirable frightening dreams, the clinician should consider a change to divided daily doses.

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