Mateo is often a victim of bad dreams, frequently centered around being left at a store or getting lost at an amusement park. He sometimes wakes up from them, and calls for his parents to help him calm down. Mateo is experiencing

• A. night terrors.
• B. nightmares.
• C. REM behavior disorder.
• D. somnambulism.

Answer: (B)

Verified step by step guidance

1. Begin by understanding the key differences between nightmares and night terrors. Nightmares are vivid dreams that can cause feelings of fear, anxiety, or distress, and typically occur during REM sleep. Night terrors, on the other hand, occur during non-REM sleep and often involve intense fear, screaming, or thrashing without full awakening.
2. Consider the symptoms described in the problem. Mateo experiences bad dreams that he remembers and calls for his parents after waking up, which aligns more closely with nightmares rather than night terrors.
3. REM behavior disorder involves acting out dreams during REM sleep due to a lack of muscle atonia, which is not described in Mateo's case. Somnambulism, or sleepwalking, involves walking or performing other activities while asleep, which is also not mentioned.
4. Reflect on the emotional content of Mateo's dreams, such as being left at a store or getting lost, which are typical themes of nightmares that can cause distress upon waking.
5. Conclude that the correct term for Mateo's experience is nightmares, as they involve waking up and recalling the dream, seeking comfort, and experiencing distress, which matches the description provided.