Interpreting dreams is an interesting way to gain insight into the unconscious mind. Many people also believe that dreams can help you better understand what is happening in your waking life. If you want to interpret your dreams, you need to take a notebook and dedicate it to recording your dreams. You can then analyze each element in your dream to determine what is important to you. Finally, you can determine what your dream meant.
How to interpret dreams
a. Have a notebook for recording dreams
1. Place your note next to your bed. You have dreams every night, even if you don’t remember them. Writing can help you remember your dreams. Place a pencil or pen next to your notebook. In this way, as soon as you wake up, you will write down the dream you had.
* Don’t forget to take the sleep log with you on your trip.
* It is better to include the date of all the notes. If you wish, you can leave a blank section under each note to write the dream interpretation.
2. The moment you wake up, keep your eyes closed and try to remember as much as you can about the dream you had last night. Then write them down. Get into the habit of recording your dream every morning while you are still in bed. After you wake up, you remember most parts of your dream. If you wait a few minutes, the dream will gradually fade in your mind and disappear.
– Don’t even go to the bathroom, because this will give your mind time to forget about sleep!
– You will have a meaningful interpretation if you remember more details.
3. Record everything you remember. For example, what you were doing in your dream, who was with you, and how you felt. Anything you see can be a symbol. Write as much as you can. Some people even paint what you have seen in your dreams! Things that can be written are:
– The feeling you had in your dream
– People you have seen in a dream
– Animals
– Where were you in the dream?
– Colors
– If you went somewhere in a dream, what was the means of transportation?
– If you went on a trip, where was the destination?
– What was the topic of your dream, of course, if it had a topic
4. If your dream had no theme or story, never make up a story from yourself. It is quite normal that sleep and dreams have no subject. However, your conscious mind wants to create its own story from the dream you had. Resist the urge! Just write down what you remember, even if it’s just a bunch of random feelings and images that come to mind. In this way, you will have a correct interpretation of your dream and you will not tell stories in vain.
– If you are tempted to turn your dream into a story, just focus on how you felt, what you saw, and adjectives to describe the scenes.
– For example, you may dream that you are lost in the forest, being chased by a wolf. In addition to writing down what happened and how you felt, you might draw several trees to represent the forest you saw in your dream, along with words like “lost,” “wanted,” and “wolf.”
5. Do not try to interpret the dream while recording it. This can affect what you wrote and change or omit important details from the dream. First, try to write down everything that happened and you remember. You can interpret it later.
6. Choose a name for each dream. Identifying a specific topic or whatever comes to your mind is a challenge for your brain. Don’t look for titles that are meaningful or purposeful. Just use whatever comes to your mind first. This can help you better understand how you really feel about your dream.
– For example, you can choose a title like “Chase”, “Scary Forest” or “Fear and Run” for the forest dream described above.
b. Analysis of dreams
1. Ask yourself about the dream you saw. The questions that come up are a great starting point because they help you break the dream down into separate parts. The questions you ask will vary depending on what your dream is, as you question the meanings and connections behind the individual elements in that dream. Here are some examples of questions you can ask about your sleep:
Was I alone in my dream?
– Who else was there? Did I feel someone’s presence?
– How did I feel?
– How do I describe the sleeping place?
What did sleeping place mean to me?
What does this image mean to me?
What does what I did in my dream mean to me?
– When was the last time I encountered this item in real life?
2. Identify the underlying emotions. The feelings you had in your dream can indicate that you have the same feelings in your real life. However, your dream situation may be different from reality. It may not seem like your dream has anything to do with your real life, but focusing on how you felt in the dream can help you find meaning.
For example, ask yourself questions like: “How did this dream make me feel?” and “Have I recently experienced these feelings in my waking life?”
– For example, you may have felt fear or panic in that dream where a wolf is chasing you in the forest. Such a dream could mean that you are trapped in a scary situation in your real life.
3. Check the sleeping place. The place where the dream takes place is very important, as well as the state of that place. For example, a forest can be bright and peaceful, or it can be dark and scary. In addition, it is important to how you personally felt about the place in the dream.
– Ask yourself these questions: Was your dream in a place that scared you? Does this place stress you out in real life? Is it your comfort zone? Has something like this happened to you in a place like the one you saw in your dream? Does the place you sleep remind you of a good time in your life?
For example, a beach can mean different things to two different people based on their experiences. A beach can be a fun place for someone who has spent an enjoyable vacation there, but the same place can be a symbol of fear for someone who has been on the verge of drowning.
4. Think about other characters or animals that were present in your dream. Consider the background with the person or animal and what it might symbolize for you. It is also important to how you felt about that person or animal in the dream. Did you fight with him? Were they trying to help you? Or were they just in your dreams? Answer these questions in your analysis.
Have you had a fight with this person recently? Maybe your dream is related to the same controversy.
– Or, for example, does this person reveal something to you? For example, your favorite teacher can appear in your dream because your subconscious mind wants to teach you something.
– The people you see in your dream show you more than that person. For example, seeing your sister in college in your dream may represent your desire to learn and pursue opportunities and have nothing to do with your sister herself.
– If you are afraid of dogs, a dog in your dream may represent some kind of threat. And on the other hand, if you have a dog to protect you in your real life, seeing a dog in your dream can mean feeling safe.
5. Identify the images or symbols in the dream you saw. They can be anything that appears in your dream. Think about what these images or symbols are trying to convey to you. How do they make you feel? What do they think of? What are their uses for you in real life or how do you use them? Think carefully and see which symbol or image can mean something to you.
If you remember several images or symbols, focus on the one that seems more meaningful than the others.
– If you come across the same images or symbols repeatedly, it’s a good idea to create a key to understand their meaning. In this way, you can interpret your dreams faster. For example, you may find that you often dream of a free-roaming bird when you’re feeling good about a situation, but when you’re in trouble, you may see a bird in a cage.
6. Look for recurring themes in your dreams. This recurring theme could be a thought that occurred to you in a dream, an emotion that you have always experienced during your dreams, or a symbol that you keep seeing, etc. Think about how this relates to your waking life. In some cases it may be obvious that your dream is related to your real life, but sometimes the dream may act as a metaphor, in which case you need to investigate further.
– For example, the recurring thought in your dream may have been that you were losing things and not being able to keep the things you have in your hands. You can relate this feeling to a real life situation where you lost an important item that you needed for work or school.
On the other hand, you may have a dream in which you are constantly being chased and threatened. This can be a metaphor for the feeling of insecurity you have at work or school.
7. Use the dream interpretation book only if you have a problem understanding the meaning of your dream. Dream books are a popular tool for analyzing dreams, but many experts say that they are not very useful because the same symbol can mean different things to different people. It is better to focus on what you felt in your dream and what each item in your dream means. However, you may want to consult a dream interpretation book to gain more insight or find other interpretations.
– You can find dream interpretation books in print or online.
– For example, you may have had several dreams in which the same key was in all of them. In that case, you might want to look up common meanings for the key symbol.
P. Understanding common sleep metaphors
1. If you dreamed of death, be careful and see if something has just ended in your life. Maybe these dreams are scary, but seeing death in a dream usually does not mean real death. If you dream of death, think about what happened in your life. Death in a dream means that something in your life has ended and the conditions are ready for a new beginning.
For example, you may have just graduated from school. Although this is an end, it is actually a wonderful beginning for a new phase in your life.
2. Think about the vehicle you traveled within your dream. Dreaming of moving or traveling usually means the direction your life has taken, the amount of control you have over your life, and the obstacles you have in the way of your journey. If you are driving yourself, it means that you are in control, but if someone else is behind the wheel, it means that you are not in control.
– For example, a broken car can mean that you have troubles and problems in your life.
3. Relate flying in your sleep to taking control of your life. Pay attention to how you felt while flying in your sleep. If you are flying high and feeling good, you will probably get rid of some stress in your life. This dream can also mean being in control of things. However, flying at a low altitude and trying to climb can mean that you are under pressure and that you have lost control of something.
4. Think about how you felt when you dreamed of falling. Falling can have several meanings. It could mean that you feel out of control. Falling down in a dream can also mean that you have to give up something or have to give something up.
– If you felt relaxed, it may mean that something unpleasant has affected you in your life.
– If you felt fear in your dream, it may mean that you feel unable to control things in your life.
5. If you dream that someone is following you, you may be constantly avoiding something in your real life. Being chased in a dream usually means that there is something in your real life that you desire or need to control. This dream may metaphorically mean that you are running away from the problem but your subconscious mind wants you to face it.
– For example, you may be behind in your work and you need to plan to get back in order.
6. If you dream that you are lost, you should look for reasons in your life. Feeling lost in a dream or searching for something that is lost usually means that you are feeling anxious and helpless in your real life. It is possible that you are feeling confused at a certain point in your life.
For example, you may be trying to find a job, but you don’t have the necessary qualifications or experience to get that job.
7. If you dream that you are at the exam session but you don’t know anything, think about your performance. Sitting in front of the exam without preparation is one of the most common and stressful dreams. This dream can mean that you feel that you are not functioning properly in your life. It may mean that you feel like you haven’t learned a lesson you should have.
8. Being naked in a dream often indicates vulnerability. Being naked is actually a way of exposing yourself to the world, something that leaves you vulnerable. If you dream that you are naked and you don’t feel good about it, there is probably something in your real life that you want to hide or you may not have received the necessary support on an issue. This dream probably means that you are worried.
9. If you dream that your tooth fell out, don’t be afraid! This dream usually means that you are anxious, incompetent, or powerless. For example, you may feel that you are not ready to take on a new responsibility. The reaction of you and other characters in your dream to the falling out of the tooth will tell you how you feel about the situation.
For example, if you see your mother in this dream and she does not care that your teeth are falling out, it means that you feel that your mother does not care about your feelings about a problem that you are dealing with recently. . This dream could also be an acknowledgment from your subconscious mind that your mother believes you are competent enough to take on the new responsibility.
d. Determining the meaning of sleep and dreams
1. Understand that dreams are not predictions of the future. Some people believe that dreams can predict the future. However, experts believe that this is not true. Instead, dreams are stories you tell yourself while you sleep. In some cases, sleep and dreams may help you get past a situation in your waking life or deal with your emotions.
– If you sometimes have an unpleasant dream that scares you, don’t worry. Instead, focus on the feelings you had in the dream. Maybe a real situation in your life has caused you to feel this way.
2. Put all the separate parts of your dream together. Once you have analyzed each part of your dream, you can combine them all together. In this way, you can have a deeper interpretation of your dream.
– What is the relationship between the place of the dream and the characters and symbols you saw?
What effect does each part of the dream have on the other parts of the dream?
– If you put all the parts of the dream together, what meaning is formed for you?
3. Connect the dream to your real life situation. Some dreams are simple and easy to interpret. You may have encountered the person or place you saw in your dream on the same day. However, other dreams may serve as a metaphor for something happening in your life. Use your own analysis to determine the connection between your dream and your waking life.
– For example, dreaming about something that happened the previous day may have a simple answer. If you had a fight with your mother and saw the same in your dream, it is clear that your dream depicted the same fight.
On the other hand, if you dream that your house is on fire and you cannot escape, this dream is probably a metaphor for something that is happening in your life.
4. Listen to your inner voice. No one knows you better than you! This makes you the best person to interpret your dreams. If you think your dream has some meaning, accept it.
5. What does it mean to be in love and see sex in a dream? These dreams rarely relate to your feelings of love and sex in your real life. Often, love and sex in a dream mean intimate relationships in real life. You may have approached your desired person in a dream. This dream can also indicate a feeling of worry in you.
For example, you may dream that you are having sex with an acquaintance. Ask yourself what this person can reveal to you. Maybe you like this person’s funny personality and sociability. Your dream could mean that you are sad about the lack of these qualities in yourself.
6. Pay attention to recurring dreams or patterns. If you are having the same dream over and over again, it is likely that your subconscious mind is trying to tell you something. Another possibility is that you may be struggling with a situation in your waking life recently. Pay special attention to these dreams or recurring patterns.
– Note when these dreams occur, how often they occur and is there anything that causes you to have these dreams?
Analyze these dreams as usual, but pay special attention to how this dream can relate to your real life.
If this dream disturbs your sleep, you may need to talk to a psychologist, who can help you deal with this recurring dream.
7. Talk to a therapist if your dreams are bothering you. In rare cases, dreams can negatively affect your waking life. For example, some people have recurring nightmares that may be frightening. Although a nightmare is nothing more than a dream and not real, it can still be very scary. Fortunately, a therapist can help you get through these nightmares.