What Do My Dreams Mean?!
Veronika Rivero
When dreaming, have you ever found yourself running for dear life from a serial killer? You know he’s right behind you, and you NEED to get away. No matter how hard you try, you just can't seem to take a step. Or better yet, you’re face to face with a bully. No matter how hard you swing, your arms feel like fifty pound weights. If you have experienced these dreams, you may have brushed them off as silly delusions—chalking it up to the randomness of sleep. However, modern research is helping to prove that dream occurrences might not be as random as we think.
Throughout time, humans have been unsure of what dreams are or why they happen. In ancient Mesopotamia and Egypt, dreams were thought of as messages that required interpretation and decoding. There were even methods used to decode dreams. One such method was called incubation. A dreamer would sleep in a sacred place to induce a specific dream that would provide guidance. In addition, people were given jobs as professional dream interpreters. These dream interpreters could be both female or male and commonly created “dreambooks.” Dreambooks listed dream images and a description of what guidance they offered. Many dream symbols of the time were associated with religious figures or gods. There are even modern African languages today that translate the word “dream” as “alternate reality.” This suggests that certain groups think of dreams as being just as “real” as reality. Evidently, various cultures throughout time have emphasized the importance of dreams.
Humans have always pondered dreams and even looked to them for guidance. In conversation with classmates, I’ve realized that most people think dreams are random information that have no significant meaning. They are wrong... Kind of.
Essentially, there are two basic types of sleep: REM sleep and non-REM sleep. During non-REM sleep, humans undergo very light dream phases. These dreams are typically not too complex. THIS is where most people experience vague, incomprehensible, and insignificant dreams. During REM sleep, “meaningful” dreams happen. These are simply longer, more complex dreams. However, due to inconsistent sleep cycles, caffeine intake, and other variables, most people rarely experience a full REM cycle. Thus, most people rarely experience meaningful dreams. This is why my classmates, perhaps even you, do not consider dreams significant or meaningful.
If you don't experience these kinds of dreams, it may be difficult to consider my next point: nearly all dreams reflect a major aspect of your waking life. A popular method utilized to uncover the hidden messages of dreams is to separate the setting and characters from the overall emotions within the dreamer.
For instance, the dream I mentioned about running away from a serial killer doesn't actually reflect that there is someone chasing you in the real world. Instead, when you isolate the situation, the dream truly just reflects anxiety and trepidation. The serial killer is the problem, and you running away from them reflects you avoiding the problem.
Of course, there are countless methods used to interpret dreams, and they cannot all be covered in today's article. If you are interested in dream interpretation, and even ways to change the way you dream, read on in the future to learn more! Happy sleeping!
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