> The idea, Tyler says, was to use technology to imitate something service dogs were already doing — recognizing a traumatic nightmare and then nudging or licki

> The idea, Tyler says, was to use technology to imitate something service dogs were already doing — recognizing a traumatic nightmare and then nudging or licking the person to disrupt the bad dream. He thought the smartwatch could do this with a gentle vibration. > But the tricky part was to provide "just enough stimulus to pull them out of the deep REM cycle and allow the sleep to continue unaffected," Tyler says > With constant fine-tuning as his dad slept in the next room, Tyler eventually perfected the algorithm. "Having someone that close to you and knowing exactly when those nightmares happen was super important to training a model like that," Tyler says. > For Patrick, once they got the formula right, the watch was life changing. "It was night and day when I put that watch on and it started working." The vibrations, he says, were "little miracles." > An investor purchased the rights to the app and started a company called NightWare[1]. > Last month, the Food and Drug Administration approved the app[2], which works with an Apple Watch, to treat PTSD-related nightmare disorders. It will soon be available by prescription through the VA. 1. https://night-ware.com/ https://night-ware.com/ 2. https://www.fda.gov/news-events/press-announcements/fda-permits-marketing-new-device-designed-reduce-sleep-disturbance-related-nightmares-certain-adults https://www.fda.gov/news-events/press-announcements/fda-perm...