Record
Speak or type the nightmare in your own words. Your voice is transcribed privately.
Image Rehearsal Therapy, reimagined
Dream Doctor listens to the dream that keeps waking you, then gently guides you to a new ending you can rehearse before sleep — grounded in the clinical gold standard for nightmare relief.
Why it matters
For people living with trauma — combat veterans, assault survivors, first responders — recurring nightmares fracture sleep and follow them into the day. The hopeful part: the dream itself can be changed. Decades of research show that rehearsing a rewritten version of a nightmare while awake reduces how often, and how intensely, it returns.
The method
Dream Doctor walks you through the Image Rehearsal Therapy protocol at your own pace — nothing sudden, nothing forced.
Speak or type the nightmare in your own words. Your voice is transcribed privately.
An AI trained on IRT principles gently maps the dream's patterns, emotions, and sensory detail.
Two rounds of soft, sensory questions help you notice what the dream is really about.
You choose a new ending — Mastery, Transformation, or Safety — and shape the dream you'd rather have.
Your rewritten ending becomes a short, personal video to rehearse before sleep.
A 10-day rehearsal builds the new dream into memory, with a quiet tracker to mark your progress.
Three ways to rewrite
Each path is a clinical direction, not decoration — a different way to give the dream back to you.
Mastery
The threat that once overwhelmed you is met with agency. You act, you stand your ground, you decide how it ends.
Transformation
What frightened you shifts and softens. The dream turns toward wonder instead of dread.
Safety
The dream carries you to shelter and calm — a place where nothing can reach you and rest is allowed.
The evidence
Image Rehearsal Therapy is recommended by the American Academy of Sleep Medicine for the treatment of nightmare disorder and post-traumatic nightmares. Dream Doctor is technology-enhanced IRT — the same protocol, made easier to practice every night.
Based on Image Rehearsal Therapy protocols validated by Krakow & Zadra (2006) and Aurora et al. (2010), AASM Best Practice Guide for the Treatment of Nightmare Disorder. Dream Doctor is developed in collaboration with Dr. Michael Breus, PhD.
Clinical partner · The Sleep Doctor
A double board-certified clinical psychologist and sleep specialist, Dr. Breus brings the clinical frameworks, nightmare research, and IRT protocol detail that keep Dream Doctor grounded in real science. Every part of the experience is shaped to be safe and steady for people carrying trauma.
Care & trust
Dream Doctor is designed for people at their most vulnerable. Privacy and safety are not features here — they're the foundation.
What you share about your dreams is deeply personal. We treat it that way.
A real person will help you. Whether it's a question about the app, your data, or access for a veteran or clinic, reach out any time.
Try the experience, or request access for yourself, a veteran, or a clinic.
Legal
Last updated: February 2026
Dream Doctor ("Dream Doctor", "we", "us") provides an AI-guided Image Rehearsal Therapy experience that helps people transform recurring nightmares into gentler endings. This policy explains what information we collect, how we use it, and the choices you have.
We do not sell your personal information, and we do not use your dream content for advertising.
To analyze dreams and generate endings, your session content is processed by trusted AI providers strictly to deliver the feature you requested. Providers act on our instructions and are not permitted to use your content to train their own models or for their own purposes.
You may request access to, correction of, or deletion of your personal data at any time by emailing support@thedreamdoctor.com. We retain data only as long as needed to provide the service or as required by law.
Dream Doctor is intended for adults and is not directed at children under 13. We do not knowingly collect information from children.
Dream Doctor is a wellness and self-help tool that applies established therapeutic principles. It is not a medical device and is not a substitute for professional diagnosis or treatment.
We may update this policy as the product evolves. Material changes will be reflected by the "last updated" date above.
Questions about this policy or your data? Email support@thedreamdoctor.com.