The message of dreams

The message of dreams is as confusing as it is mysterious. We would love to be able to understand what is behind those dream images, behind those seemingly meaningless stories and those sensations that often leave us more intrigued and even scared. Neuroscientists tell us that dreams mean nothing, other specialists, however, do not point out that they could be telling us things.

Dreams have fascinated human beings since the beginning of time, there is no doubt. In ancient Egypt, for example, those with the ability to experience vivid dreams were seen as figures with a special gift. They were those men and women who could receive messages from the gods.

Starting in the 19th century, Sigmund Freud and Carl Jung offered us the first theories about this dream universe.. Thus, in works such as The interpretation of dreams, We now obtain the first data, analysis and studies from a psychoanalytic perspective. Within this perspective, it was stated that our conscious minds sleep, unconscious minds produce images that can give us a special vision of our deepest being.

“The dream is an involuntary art of poetry”

-Immanuel Kant-

What are dreams for?

When we sleep we go through different states and phases of dreams. First, non-rapid eye movement sleep (non-REM sleep), which has 4 phases, progressing in depth. Phases III and IV are called slow wave sleep (SOL) or deep sleep.

Rapid eye movement (REM) sleep then continues, with Phase V of sleep or paradoxical sleep. It is precisely in this phase where daydreams or dreams appear. It is common for 4 to 6 periods of REM sleep to occur during the night.

Dreaming is the process of dreaming or having a dream. Dreams are mental manifestations of images, sounds, thoughts and emotions.usually symbolically related to the reality of the person who dreams.Dreaming is therefore an involuntary mental process., in which emotions related to lived experiences appear without censorship. And where information stored in our memory is re-elaborated. The memories that remain upon waking can be minimal or very elaborate.

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It has been proven that there can be dreams in any of the sleep phases, however, more dreams are remembered in the REM phase.

What then is the message of dreams?

Psychologists Carey Morewedge and Michael Norton, from Boston University, conducted an interesting study in 2009 where they concluded something interesting. It is very common for each person to interpret dream messages according to their perspective. And so Depending on the meaning we give it, it will have a greater or lesser impact on our lives.

For Psychoanalysis it is important to distinguish the manifest content of dreams, that is, the history or events of the dream and the symbols that appear, as well as the latent content, that is, the interpretation of the manifest content, its meaning.

All dreams mean something, since they are always related to emotions and symbols. They relate to present or past experiences. Knowing how to interpret them can be very enriching and can allow us to see parts of ourselves that we consciously ignore.

Types of dreams

The types of dreams that can occur are nightmares, which contain frightening emotions, and which influence us in the day after having it. These are related to trauma, childhood abandonment, stress, fears, insecurities, dissatisfaction and health or relationship problems.

And healing dreams, of these, dream therapy is known, since they are “lucid” dreams, where the person knows that they are dreaming, and manages the dreams to modify negative emotions.

How do we know the meaning of our dreams?

There are many hypotheses and explanations for the symbols that appear in dreams. However, they may not fit the reality of the person who dreamed it, since in order to understand the specific meaning of a dream for the dreamer, it is necessary to know the emotions that that dream produced.

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Emotions

If you want to know its meaning, pay attention to the emotions that dream made you feel. Also take into account if this is repetitive, frequent, which tells you that there is something to work on and overcome psychologically speaking.

If the emotions are pleasant and positive, This shows us the path to follow, the satisfaction of living how I want to live, and also shows desires, desires, hopes and projects that we would like to achieve.If, on the other hand, the emotions we feel when dreaming are unpleasant, uncomfortable or painful, the meaning of that dream is important and revealing.since it shows us a subconscious part of ourselves, pending resolution or overcoming, such as traumas, fears, worries, etc…

Where do our dreams come from?

Dreams activate subconscious content, stored and saved since early childhood. Hence the importance of knowing how to interpret our dreams, since it is very useful information about how we feel from our most intimate and deep self.

It would be very useful, for example, to keep a dream diary, writing down every image, story and emotion felt.The next step would be to analyze these images and become aware of our possible blockages or fears.

Although dreams will never reveal anything to us about the future, They are often an ideal barometer of our mood. Anxiety, stress and problems find a canvas on which to be represented in this scenario. Likewise, if we are experiencing a continuous flow of negative and distressing dreams, we should never hesitate to consult a professional.

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The technique of psychoanalysts to know the message of dreams

One of the techniques used in psychoanalytic therapy is dream analysis, whose function is investigate the repressed affections and desires that can be expressed in dreams.

Psychoanalytic theory believes that repressed affects often manifest in our dreams. This happens because our defenses are reduced when we sleep.

Thus, Dream analysis is an effective tool for uncovering this unconscious material. (latent content).

Dream analysis takes place when the patient and therapist discover the disguised content within the real or manifest content.either. Usually this involves identifying the symbolic meaning in the dream. Sometimes, In the process, free association is used with different elements of the dream.

Free association means that the patient must express all his thoughts, feelings, fantasies and mental productions in general, as they arise in his head and without any exclusions or restrictions. Sometimes the analyst urges the patient to associate from the elements that the patient himself generates in his own discourse.

Through free association the subject is told that communicate any idea or memory, no matter how insignificant, absurd or disgusting it may seem to you, which brings up an element of his own dream. For example, if the person dreamed about a hole, the therapist will ask him or her to say the first thing that comes to mind when thinking about that item. Thus, little by little they reconstruct its latent meaning.