What causes nightmares? Top scary films that keep you awake at night featuring Slumberdown

It's no secret that we've struggled with bad dreams with our boys. We went through, what can only be described as, a hellish 18 months of night terrors with Sammy. Every night with almost no exception, we would have to console a sobbing, wet, sweaty mess every 2 hours. Nothing helped and we became completely exhausted with the situation. Exhausted and frustrated. I cringe when I think of how cross I got on a number of occasions at 4am when we'd only just got back to sleep.  It wasn't his fault, he couldn't help it and we felt powerless to stop it.

We tried it all, dream catchers, changing the temperature of his room, letting him sleep with us (which led to 18 months of Richard sleeping in the spare room - I promise that is not a good recipe for a happy marriage) and anything else Dr Google came up with.

It is horrible to watch your child have a nightmare, it's horrible having one yourself, but at least we can calm ourselves down. We know it's not real within a few seconds. They can't and it's heartbreaking. 

I'd like to think ours have never watched a film they shouldn't. Even the Lego movie felt a step too far. They are so impressionable, so vulnerable. I on the other hand, am a hopeless romantic. My ideal film finishes with two people getting married and having babies with a fast forward to the future to show that they did indeed have a happy ending! 

You feel like you are in a hopeless cycle, unable to soothe your most precious person who is literally screaming for your help. As one of the Slumberdown Ambassadors I am pleased that I have a way to share our experiences, to try and help other parents who are awake in the middle of the night with a distraught child, to know you are not alone. 

I ended up consulting our health visitor who as helpful as she tried to be, talked about this awful period as a phase, but it felt like a never ending phase! Two years on the bad dreams are back to a manageable amount. Once a week we will hear a scream, an inconsolable cry for one or both of us. The heat doesn't help. This muggy, sticky heatwave that is sweeping across Britain just leads to a soaking mess at 2am for us. Hot and bothered and full of vivid dreams that leave them confused and tearful.

But nightmares aren't just for children. I suffer occasionally, so does Richard and I've even woken up to a text message from a friend saying "I had a terrible dream about you last night, I just wanted to check all was ok." 

So I wanted to do something different on the blog, to get the boys opinion. 

Here they are...

Slumberdown recently carried out a study to try and find out what films make us adults petrified in the night. My sister is totally in the 25% category who need some sort of light on at night. For years she slept with the tv on on mute! 

We all kiss our children goodnight and often whisper sweet dreams as we leave their rooms. That's what we all want, the sweetest of dreams.

Have you seen any of these films?! I don't think I could get through any of them!

I'd love to know if your children suffer from nightmares too and what you have down to help them. Literally as I finished typing this at 11.54pm we heard a familiar sound... help!