How to analyze our dreams?
Faced with this question, people tend to take quite polarized positions. Some directly reject the idea that dreams can be a valid source of information, considering them absurd and meaningless, and claiming that there is nothing mystical about them and that it is better to forget them and move on. Others, however, show absolute and unquestionable faith in dream dictionaries that tell them precisely what each symbol means and even what it predicts. And although at first the suggested interpretation does not fit us too much, with a little imagination, we usually make sense of it.
The point is that there are many misconceptions about this topic and neither of these two positions comes close to the reality of dream work. If done correctly, analyzing our dreams can help us understand and know ourselves better. We often think that we know ourselves and it is not until we undertake work on ourselves that we realize how little we know. And it is easier to maintain the idea that we have built of ourselves because looking within can sometimes be scary and / or embarrassing. I'm jealous of my sister? Never ! » Dreams allow us to express emotions that are painful or difficult to admit, in a safe space. They reveal our deepest wishes, hurts and fears. They also help us to elaborate events and emotions. According to the Gestalt view, dreams they manifest unfinished or unresolved issues and contain existential messages about infighting.
Guide to analyze our dreams:
One of the most common myths is to think that there are predetermined rules for analyzing dreams. But the truth is, there is no magic formula. Well, each person is unique, and Although it is true that there are universal symbols, the meaning we attribute to a symbol does not always coincide with the meaning that another person attributes to it. The important thing is to understand what the dream means to each one. The symbols that appear or that we choose are the reflection of our personal history. However, I would like to recommend some guidelines to help you deepen the meaning of your dreams, and thus achieve a better self-knowledge.
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Write down your dreams in a journal.
This first step is essential due to the volatile nature of dreams. We are often convinced that we will remember what we just dreamed of and yet it takes only a few hours for our dream to evaporate, sometimes completely. Therefore, the sooner you do it, the better. That is why it is advisable to have a journal and a pen at your fingertips when you wake up. You don't have to write a whole story, if you only remember fragments, write down individual words or phrases. Or even if you prefer, you can draw your dream or some part of your dream that has particularly caught your attention. Don't worry about it being consistent for now either. The important thing in this phase is that the abstract and unconscious content crosses the bridge into the world of the concrete and conscious. If you think that you rarely dream or that you generally do not remember your dreams, nothing happens, write: "I have not dreamed anything" or "I do not remember my dream." After a couple of weeks, you will likely start to remember your dreams. Even seemingly insignificant dreams can provide us with interesting information.
- The second step consists of identify the emotions or feelings associated with the dream. How did you feel during your dream? What emotions prevailed? Fear, joy, anxiety, surprise, frustration, relief, anger, curiosity, confusion, etc. ? Do you remember feeling that emotion in the previous days? What part of your dream has caught your attention the most? Because ?
- What thoughts appear in your dream? For example: "I'm not going to get it", "I'm important", "I don't have time", "It's endless", "I can't escape", "I can fly", "They want to hurt me", "I'm invincible" , "I don't understand", and so on. Then ask yourself if you've been having these kinds of thoughts lately. If so, in what situation or situations?
- What elements appear in your dream? According to the Gestalt approach, each element represents a projection, an aspect of ourselves. Let's imagine, for example, that you dreamed that you were in a car with your dog, while a villain was chasing you. Tell the story first from your person, then from your dog's perspective, from your car's perspective, and finally from the villain's. What would each say? Conflicts in dreams actually represent internal conflicts.
- If you could propose an ending to that dream, how would it end?