In this Huberman Lab Essentials episode, I explain the important role that sleep and dreams have in learning, regulating emotions, and recovering from trauma. I discuss how dreams during rapid eye movement (REM) sleep contribute to emotional learning and the processing of traumatic experiences. I also discuss the similarities of REM dreams to clinical treatments like ketamine and EMDR therapy. I explain how non-REM dreams function differently to support other types of learning. Additionally, I describe science-backed strategies to optimize both types of sleep for improved learning, mood and emotional regulation. Episode show notes: Huberman Lab Essentials are short episodes focused on essential science and protocol takeaways from past full-length Huberman Lab episodes. Watch The full-length episode: Watch more Huberman Lab Essentials episodes: *Timestamps* 00:00:00 Huberman Lab Essentials; Dreaming, Learning & Un-Learning 00:01:04 Types of Sleep 00:02:57 Slow-Wave Sleep, Motor Learning 00:06:54 Rapid Eye Movement (REM) Sleep, Paralysis, Unlearning of Emotional Events 00:11:21 Lack of REM Sleep, Emotionality 00:13:54 REM Sleep, Learning & Meaning 00:17:46 EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization & Reprocessing) Therapy, Trauma 00:24:25 Ketamine Therapy, PCP, Trauma 00:27:30 REM Sleep as Therapy, Emotions 00:29:47 Tool: Improve Slow-Wave & REM Sleep 00:33:12 Recap & Key Takeaways Disclaimer & Disclosures: