Interpreting Dreams..

[Theo]

  I had a weird, and somewhat disturbing, dream last night and it got me to thinking: what does that mean or what is my subconscious trying to tell me?  I wondered how you all felt about interpreting dreams and if there's more to them than what happens to be floating around in your subconscious mind?

  Discuss.. 

[Theo]

  I'll start off by telling you all of my dream last night:

  I was in a shopping mall, where there were lots of escalators (all seeming to go the wrong direction [i.e. not the direction I wanted to go]) and I came upon this young man who had been stabbed and he was bleeding out..  I knelt down and put a hand on the wound to stop the bleeding..  I said something like, "You'll be fine..  I've stopped the bleeding."

  Here's what I've found on the internet about blood in dreams:

- To dream that others are bleeding signifies an emotional cry for help.

- Dream meaning of blood deals with life, fluidity, passion and that which sustains us. Blood dreams get right down to the nitty gritty of emotional issues that have been coagulating deep beneath surface life experience, those aspects that dwell in the deepest fathoms of our awareness. Some messages that may manifest from blood include a sense of guilt (dreaming of blood on our hands), overburdened or weak and needing to take rest (loosing blood in our dreams), challenges with making social connections or emotional ties (seeing someone else's blood).

  Here's what I found on escalators in dreams:

- To see an escalator in your dream indicates movement between various levels of consciousness.  If you are moving up in the escalator, then it suggests that you are addressing and confronting emotional issues. You are moving through your spiritual journey with great progress and ease.  If you are going down the escalator, then it implies repression and descent back into your unconscious. You may be experiencing a setback.

- to see an escalator in your dream, indicates movement
between various levels of consciousness. if you
are moving up in the escalator, then it suggests that you
are addressing and confronting emotional issues. you
are moving through your spiritual journey with great progress and ease. if you
are going down the escalator, then it implies repression and descent
back into your unconscious. it may be indication of a setback.

  I often dream of someone drowning..    And of babies..    Not necessarily together, but those are two common themes in my dreams..

[Athelas]

  I'm of the mind that most dreams are triggered by something that happened to you recently, then your unconscious mind runs with it.  These dreams are just the result of some recent imprint and really mean very little. Other dreams, though, may be more telling.
    I've had a recurrent dream where by concentrating, I was able to levitate myself to a great height, but if my concentration broke, I would plummet. I don't think I would have had the dream if I hadn't ever heard the story of Icarus, but it could also be interpreted that I don't like being out of control. Hmm.

[Akira]

After the last year I suffer from nightmares or vivid dreams almost every night and I have also pondered the reasons for this, alot of it I figured is I suppressed alot of feelings thoughts and hurt
For a very long time and I find that I don't have that control at night so my fears tend to haunt me at night, I also find that alot of little things that happen throughout the day, things I've seen on telly ect creep their way Into my dreams also, things that seem insignificant but my mind has obviously recorded and played back at night...

Often games I've played alot during the evening get replayed in my dreams (its like I never rest lol) such as angry birds, gears of war ect... It's exhausting so Im careful what I watch or do before bed now...

The weirdest dream I've had lately was due to me accepting being pregnant I suppose, I had a large belly and I felt the urge to feed the baby so I decided the quickest and best way to do this was to swallow a whole carton of milk... Which I did, then I looked down and saw the carton poking out of my stomach which made me feel I needed to cut it out, so I slit across my stomach and pulled it out ( no blood or mess or pain came with this) a doctor appeared and said "this baby isn't ready to come out" I was standing up at this point holding my skin together again without pain or mess, just like holding a top lol the doctor then said lay down and sewed me up, then I woke up, and yes I'm aware how weird that is 

[Theo]

  I agree wholeheartedly that dreams are often times just a reflection of what we've been doing, thinking, or seeing..  But sometimes, and only sometimes, do I dream of something more significant..

  I have two recurring dream elements, not usually together, and that is of water or someone drowning; the other is of flying/ floating at a great height and suddenly falling/ plummeting towards the ground..  When I hit the ground I usually wake up with a jerk.. 

  Sometimes my dreams are very vivid and can be quite disturbing to think about when awake, but generally they're harmless and mean nothing..

  My question is: how do we tell when a dream means something more?  How do we know when it's not just a reflection of our daily ins and outs?

[Akira]

Those ones sound like fears, again I have these..those dreams put you in a situation that you are uncomfortable with... Maybe in a weird way it's your mind trying to combat your fears?

I've had two recurring dreams that started years ago (haven't had these in a while with all the other crap taking up my mind)

1 is someone using a weapon (often different each dream ) to get into my house, although the weapon had changed from chainsaw to axe ect, the general concept is the same the fear of someone invading my safe space..

Another again is being chased, getting my phone out to call for help but when I try to dial my fingers keep pressing different buttons, if I try scream nothing comes out I can't get help in any way, although these things haven't happened they are obviously situations I fear to be in

When you say meaning more, what do you mean?

[Theo]

  I guess I mean: how can we know when our dreams are trying to tell us that there's some unresolved issue that we need to face and to deal with?

  It just occurred to me: I also dream a lot about being in an uncontrollable vehicle, sometimes I'm driving sometimes it's someone else driving..

  Here's what I've been able to find about dream meanings:

Driving :

To dream that you are driving a vehicle signifies your life's journey and your path in life. The dream is telling of how you are moving and navigating through life. If you are driving and cannot see the road ahead of you, then it indicates that you do not know where you are headed in life and what you really want to do with yourself. You are lacking direction and goals. Similarly, to dream that you are driving at night suggests that you are unsure of where you are headed in life. You are experiencing obstacles toward your goals. Perhaps you do not want to see what is ahead for you or you are afraid to confront certain issues. You may be feeling apprehensive about the future. If your view is blocked or obstructed while you are driving, then it symbolizes your lacking awareness of something in your life. You are overlooking certain aspects in your life. Alternatively, the dream indicates dangers or problems that are not yet made known to you. If you are driving on a curvy road, then it indicates that you are having difficulties in achieving your goals and accepting the changes associated with it. If you are driving in the snow, then it means that you need to be extra cautious about how your approach your goals. Metaphorically, driving a car in your dream is analogous to your sex life and sexual performance. Consider how you are driving and what kind of car you are driving and how it relates to your waking sex life. Or the dream may be a pun on your "drive" or ambition.

To dream that someone else is driving you represents your dependence on the driver. You are not in control of your life and following the goals of others instead of your own.  If you are driving from the passenger side of a car, then it suggests that you are trying to gain control of the path that your life is taking. You are beginning to make your own decisions.

To dream that you are driving a cab or bus suggests that menial tasks are providing little opportunities for advancement. Interpretations by DreamMoods.com

To dream that you are driving a car in reverse suggests that you are experiencing major setbacks in your goals. In particular, if you drive in reverse into a pool of water, then it means that you emotions are literally holding you back.

To dream that you are driving drunk indicates that your life is out of control. Some relationship or somebody is dominating you.

To dream that you drive off a mountain road suggests that the higher you climb in life, the harder it is to stay at the top. You feel that your advanced position is a precarious one. It takes hard work to remain at the top. You may also feel that you are not able to measure up to the expectations of others.

To dream that you are a backseat driver means that you have problems relinquishing control. You have power issues.

Drowning :

To dream that you are drowning indicates that you are feeling overwhelmed by emotions. Repressed issues may be coming back to haunt you. You may be proceeding too quickly in trying to discover your unconscious thoughts. You should proceed more cautiously and slowly. If you drown to death, then is refers to an emotional rebirth. If your survive the drowning, then it means that a waking relationship or situation will ultimately survive the turmoil.

To see someone drowning in your dream suggests that you are becoming too deeply involved in something that is beyond your control. Alternatively, it represents a sense of loss in your own identity. You are unable to differentiate who you are anymore.

To dream that you rescue someone from drowning indicates that you have successfully acknowledged certain emotions and characteristics that is symbolized by the drowning victim.

Falling :

Falling dreams are another theme that is quite common in the world of dreams. Contrary to a popular myth, you will not actually die if you do not wake up before you hit the ground during a fall.

As with most common dream themes, falling is an indication of insecurities, instabilities, and anxieties. You are feeling overwhelmed and out of control in some situation in your waking life. This may reflect the way you feel in your relationship or in your work environment. You have lost your foothold and keep up with the hustle and bustle of daily life. When you fall, there is nothing that you can hold on to. You more or less are forced toward this downward motion without any control. This lost of control may parallel a waking situation in your life.

Falling dreams also often reflect a sense of failure or inferiority in some circumstance or situation. It may be the fear of failing in your job/school, loss of status, or failure in love. You feel shameful and a lost sense of self-esteem You are unable to keep up with the status quo and feel that you don't measure up.

According to Freudian theory, dreams of falling indicate that you are contemplating giving in to a sexual urge or impulse. You are lacking indiscretion.

Falling dreams typically occur during the first stage of sleep. Dreams in this stage are often accompanied by muscle spasms of the arms, legs, and the whole body. These sudden contractions are also known as myoclonic jerks. When you sometimes have these falling dreams, you may feel your whole body jerk or twitch and actually awaken from this jerk. It is thought that this jerking action is part of an arousal mechanism that allows you to wake up quickly and be on the alert to possible threats in the environment.

According to biblical interpretations, dreams about falling have a negative overtone.It is believed that such dreams relate to how you are acting and walking, according to his own way of thinking and not those of the Lord.

  I apologize for typos, I just copied and pasted.. 

[Athelas]

   Then again, ascribing deep meanings to dreams just might be alot of BS...

[Theo]

  That's possible, too..

[Pollzie]

I have very vivid dreams all the time. 

[Pipsqueek]

Does anybody remember the UK children's TV show 'Rentaghost'?

I dreamt recently that Mr. Meaker from Rentaghost was out to get me because I had been staging pro-crow demonstrations (as in the corvid bird), with placards and chanted slogans and the works.  I have no idea why I was promoting crows so fiercely, or why Mr. Meaker would be so opposed to this.  He ended up chasing me around what looked like a conference room in a hotel.  Even though the dream mystifies me, I can tell you for sure that if my mansion house ever needs haunting, I won't be calling on Meaker and his prancing jesters and frock-coated dandies.  He was most unpleasant.

[Anne]

  I remember Rentaghost - mainly because I was reading about how they were planning to remake it.  I'm not sure I'd remember it well enough to dream about it though.

I recently dreamt that I had gone bald and have been sneaking peaks in mirrors ever since just to check that it was a dream 

[Pipsqueek]

Last night I dreamt that I'd gone to Australia.  I didn't know where I was, I'd had to work it out from the landscape. 

[Theo]

  Sometimes my dreams are so very vivid that when I wake up it takes a moment or two to really become oriented..  But that's because of one of my medications; it causes vivid dreams.. 

[Theo]

 Well, I do know that in the Bible there were some who could interpret dreams..  So I don't know, there might be a possibility that some dreams do have more meaning than just what our subconscious is mulling over..  So then we get into the discussion of how to know the difference..  I'd actually be interested in getting a book about dream meanings..  I find the subject very interesting..

  My opinion is that the only way to tell is if you have a recurring dream that bites at you and gnaws at you in the waking world, then you might want to consider what it might mean..  I realize that if there's something going on in your life that's really bothering you it might become a regularly occurring dream, but it seems to me that you would know the difference between a dream that's common and one that's really bugging you..

  Genesis 40:8 ( the latter part of verse 8 ) says this : "'Interpreting dreams is God's business,' Joseph replied.  'Go ahead and tell me your dreams.'"

  So maybe those who are in God's will to be able to interpret dreams can tell us what they mean..  I think that prayer about dreams is a must..  God does speak to us, generally not in an actual voice, but through others or through our experiences or through one's conscious..  So we should pray and listen for His answers and we should seek His meaning for that dream..  Just my opinion..

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