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Decipher my dreams


How to Interpret Your Dreams

By Katie Arnold-Ratliff

Photo: Kladyk/iStock/Thinkstock

During REM sleep, your subconscious puts on a fantastic show—but the plot can be tough to follow. (Why were you on a trampoline in Indonesia?) "A central function of dreams is to allow us access to thoughts and feelings we may not be aware of," says Mark Smaller, PhD, president of the American Psychoanalytic Association. We asked Smaller to explain the dream-deciphering process. Just grab a pencil and take a dip into your subconscious.

Step 1
As soon as you wake up, write down everything you can recall about your dream, recording as many objects, people and locations as possible. Says Smaller, "One of Freud's greatest discoveries was that tiny elements of your dreams can point to big issues. A lot of information gets condensed into a small detail."

Step 2
Write down the association each detail carries for you. For example, if the dream took place in your childhood home, consider what's significant about that place and how it might relate to the larger premise of the dream.

Step 3
Write down the emotions the dream sparked. Were you exhilarated, afraid, upset, giddy? How about when you woke up?

Step 4
Ask yourself what else in your life inspires these same emotions. For example, if your childhood home reminds you of being bullied by your older brother, think about what's happening in your life now that parallels that experience.

Step 5
Return to your list of associations and try to combine them into a single narrative. (Your childhood home reminds you of being bullied.... The orange you were eating reminds you of Florida.... Your boss, who grew up in Miami, was pretty aggressive with you in that meeting yesterday....) Then go forth into your waking life armed with greater insight into what's going on in your head.

To kick-start your analysis, Smaller shares the meanings of three common dreams. ..

Dream: Your Teeth Fall Out

Possible meaning: "If in the dream you can't speak, you may be feeling in waking life that there's something you don't want to—or can't—say. If you can't eat in the dream, it may be about unfulfilled desires (in fact, some interpret this dream as inherently sexual). Perhaps there's something you're hungry for."

Dream: You Cheat On Your Partner, Or Vice Versa

Possible meaning: "First off, why now? What's happening in your relationship that's bringing this to the surface? The dream may be a measure of your anxiety about your partner—or it could also be that you saw someone attractive on the bus. Not all dreams have a deeper meaning."

Dream: Seeing a UFO

Possible meaning: "Maybe it sounds obvious, but the key word here is invasion. Is something unwelcome intruding on your space right now? And consider what we know about heavy machinery: It doesn't have feelings. Does that describe you—are you feeling dulled, like you're on autopilot?"

From the September 2014 issue of O, The Oprah Magazine

NEXT STORY

Can You Analyze Your Own Dreams? Yes, and Here's How

Dream interpretation can offer new perspectives into the nature of your mind, but it isn’t backed by research and might be best practiced with the help of a psychotherapist.

Dreams may reveal information about your emotions and thoughts, although in ways open to interpretation.

A good starting place for dream analysis is identifying common symbols and understanding what they might mean for you specifically.

Interpreting your dreams is likely to result in better results when you work with a psychotherapist specializing in dream analysis.

To interpret your dreams is to identify specific elements and try to understand if they hold any significance to you.

Dream interpretation has been used as a therapeutic tool. It may serve as a self-awareness resource when digging deeper into your subconscious and emotional state, and when you’re working on finding peace of mind.

Both Jungian theory and Gestalt therapy, for example, have included elements of dream analysis in their therapeutic approaches.

Jungian dream analysis considers individual symbols of each dream to be of great importance. These symbols may relate to your childhood experiences, spiritual perspectives, or culture.

For example, dreaming of a red hat lying on the floor of your high school could represent a present concern about your appearance or a need for social appreciation, something that you may have also felt when you were a teen.

A large aspect of dream interpretation considers your associations and what each symbol means to you personally. In that sense, interpreting your own dreams can be very effective.

In Gestalt therapy, dreams may be considered messages from your subconscious mind. In this approach, dreams may be viewed as expressions of your personality that could require unification or attention.

Contrary to the Jungian analysis, Gestalt dream interpretation may not be about working with specific symbols but rather identifying the aspects of your personality that may need attention and bringing awareness to them.

Research on symbols or interpretations of dreams is limited and inconclusive, however.

The relationship between your mental health and what you dream about hasn’t been established yet, but some evidence suggests there is indeed a connection.

A 2018 study indicated that someone’s waking mental well-being might influence the content of dreams.

For example, researchers found that experiencing peace of mind before falling asleep was linked to a higher chance of pleasant dream experiences. On the other hand, anxiety typically led to negative dream affect.

Study authors suggested that based on these preliminary findings, dreams have the potential of being mental health markers, giving you insights into your mental well-being.

And since dreams do often involve emotional responses, it’s also been hypothesized that they may help you process and manage emotions. They would serve as a way to emotionally reset and could prepare you for any emotional challenges you may face the following day.

Some experts believe there’s a connection between the sleep cycle and your emotional state.

Lack of sleep may lead to mental health symptoms while achieving the REM cycle — a stage where you tend to experience vivid dreams — could be linked to mental health benefits.

In any case, more research on this topic may be needed.

You can explore dream interpretation by becoming familiar with common symbols. These symbols may mean many things, so keeping context and personal significance in mind is recommended.

Consider asking these questions when identifying symbols in your dreams:

  • What was the symbol or object doing in your dream?
  • What did it look like?
  • Where was it?
  • How did you feel about it while you were dreaming?
  • How do you feel now when you think of it?
  • What is the first thing that comes to mind when you think of this symbol in your dream?

Here are some of the most common symbols in dreams and what they could mean:

House or room

Houses and rooms can represent unexplored aspects of yourself.

For example, if the house or room was frightening, it could represent an aspect of yourself that you may feel fearful about exploring.

Looking into other symbols in the same dream scene may help you develop possible personal meanings.

Dog

As a source of affection for many people in the waking state, dogs can represent a need for love or affection.

If you’re fearful of dogs or dream of an aggressive one, it may mean you’re sensing danger about a specific situation or person, or you may feel hurt by someone and haven’t yet become aware of it.

Teeth

Teeth can be symbols of aggression, assertiveness, or your “bite.”

Dreaming of falling teeth may indicate you’re experiencing intense stress or anxiety. It could also mean you’re fearful or concerned about a lack of control and power in your life.

Guns

Weapons such as guns typically involve themes surrounding personal power or control.

Dreaming of using weapons may be linked to the desire to hurt someone or have them disappear from your life. If you’re being hurt in the dream, it could mean you feel vulnerable in a situation or with a person.

Friends and family

People who appear in your dreams may reflect parts of your own personality. Analyzing these dreams may help to think about what the person was doing in the dream and what part of yourself you think may be shown to you through the other person.

Water

Water may be a symbol of your emotions. If the water appears still and murky, it could represent a disconnect from your emotional state or the need to explore your own emotions.

Driving

Driving can be thought of as a type of forward momentum. If the car doesn’t start, you may feel stagnant or stuck. If the car is running smoothly, maybe you feel you’re making good progress on your life path.

Falls

If you dream about falling, you may be dealing with control challenges in your life.

If you felt relieved about falling, or it was a pleasant sensation in the dream, you may be letting go of some emotional weight and may now feel relieved.

If you felt scared while falling in your dream, you could be having a hard time not being able to control everything around you. It could also mean that you feel you’re letting someone down.

Interpreting your dreams takes patience, practice, and an open mind. It may be a good idea to remember that you give meaning to your own dreams by identifying symbols and thinking about what they mean to you personally.

The same dream can mean different things to different people in this sense. The same dream could also mean different things to you, depending on when you dream it.

Here are some tips to start analyzing your dreams:

1. Try to recall your dreams every day

The best time to recall your dreams is as soon as you wake up, while the dream is still fresh.

If you tend to wake up during the night, it might help to have a notebook next to the bed to record your dream before you fall asleep again. Recording a voice memo on your phone may also help.

It’s natural to only remember fragments of your dreams at first. They may seem vague or meaningless. The more you practice recalling them, the more details you’ll remember from your dreams.

2. Consider keeping a dream diary

In addition to writing or recording aspects of your dreams as soon as you wake up, keeping a more in-depth diary may help you with dream interpretation.

Based on your notes when you wake up, try to write down as much detail as you can remember. As you write every aspect of the dream, include how you feel or felt about those symbols or scenes.

If any ideas or memories come to you while you write about your dream, make a special note. These ideas, memories, or emotions give you more clues about what the dream may mean to you.

3. Telling someone about your dreams can help

Sometimes, it’s about how you describe a dream more than the dream itself.

As you tell someone else about your dream, try to become aware of how you describe specific symbols that may not be as clear at first.

Talking about your dreams with a psychotherapist may be particularly beneficial when trying to analyze them. They may be able to give you feedback about specific words you used or facial expressions you made, which could also add to the dream interpretation.

4. Try to identify symbols and associations

Once you write details about your dreams, try to read your notes again to identify hidden symbols that you may have missed at first.

Maybe you dreamed about cooking with your grandmother, which you wrote in your notes.

On a closer look, you may remember it wasn’t your grandmother’s kitchen or that all the windows were open and the wind was blowing inside the kitchen.

These aspects of your dream may also hint at the possible meaning of the dream.

Dream analysis can become an interesting tool for exploring your mental and emotional health.

You can interpret your dreams by learning more about common symbols, keeping a dream diary, and trying to identify personal associations.

Dream analysis may be better achieved by working with a psychotherapist. They might be able to link different aspects of your dreams and ask you specific questions that could lead to more profound insight.

Decipher My Dreams (ErStudio version) — Prosto Band

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Decipher my dreams.

.. - Glimpse - LJ ?

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Some masters of Russian Rock think that publishing lyrics separately from music is an absolutely empty and unnecessary exercise. In fact, poetry (graphomania, rhyming) is the most dead form of art today, which, apparently due to low costs, is practiced by all, even from afar, creative people. Music, melody, of course, draw poetry to the light, but immediately plunge it into a pool of cheerful idleness. Perhaps someday this situation will break down when people begin to experience the thrill of understanding.
I open my eyes.
I see a new morning.
Decipher my dreams,
I'm unrequitedly in love with them.
I don't seem to be able to become
Competent and wise.
But who needs
Wise men at the end of time?

It's dangerous to be stupid here
It's fatal to be honest


And it's kind of awkward
To confess your dreams.
Dry lips
Shouting manifestos,
But like an evil mockery -
A smile in burning eyes.

Can sing about love,


Sighing between lines?
Monotonously, not believing in himself...
Changing nothing,
And not creating
Appealing to feelings,
Stepping out of darkness into darkness.

I close my eyes.
I see a fabulous island.
To its coast
The calendar urges me on.
Without telling anyone,
Avoiding questions,
On its shores
I drown sadness in dark waters.

Decipher my dreams.
Draw them on the walls.
Cross all boundaries.
Hear if I call.
Too little spring,
To wait for a change.
But since I'm dreaming,
So it can be like this in reality.

So I can sing,
Breathless from Love,
Even if I have to
I sing for myself.
Red-hot copper,
Will fill the space to the brim
And the Holy Smile
Will help to endure everything.

Learn more