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Why Do We Dream? There are many theories.

Scientists say that the brain receives stimuli from many different sources all day long. There are far too many stimuli for it to process, so the mind prioritizes the stimuli and makes you aware of those that need immediate attention (the crying baby, the out-of-control car, your boss’s request), so that you can react appropriately. The stimuli that you are not consciously aware of are alos noted by the brain, but are stored in the brain at a subconscious level (the drip of a water faucet, the remark by a coworker at the coffee machine while you were on the telephone.)

Meanwhile, you feel emotions all day. Some you acknowledge and act on (as when you automatically say thank you and smile when you are complimented). Some you repress or do not allow yourself to act on. For example, you don’t punch your boss in the nose when he tells you the report you worked on for a week is no longer needed.)

Some traumatic experiences may be so emotionally painful that you refuse to experience them at the time. Instead you send them deep into your subconscious (repression.)

In addition to processing all these emotions and stimuli the brain every day, your brain also keeps your body functioning. It remembers names and faces. It enables you to talk and walk and chew gum (sometimes all at the same time). And it controls or enables many other activities that you take for granted. You must admit — that’s a lot to do. 

At night, when your body must rest, your mind continues working.  When it is no longer being used to type letters and do the grocery shopping, the brain processes all of those subconscious stimuli and emotions (while still maintaining body temperature and breathing, and so on). Scientists say that is why we dream. 

Only you are not awake to receive the signals at a conscious level. You cannot hear or see or touch (at a conscious level) while you are sleeping. The brain must resort to other means to get the signals through to your conscious mind. Supposedly that is why we dream the way we do.

The mind uses everything at its disposal (which is everything it has ever been exposed to) to get the message across. Dreaming is the minds way of processing all of the stimuli and emotions it has received during the day or repressed over time, so that you can act on them.

All in all, it’s a pretty neat system. But unless you are remembering and making sense of your dreams, you are missing countless opportunities to learn about yourself and experience life to its fullest.

Even though we’ve mentioned it before, it is important enough to repeat: Why should you try and remember your dreams? Because they contain important messages from your won subconscious mind to yourself. Dreams can tell you important things that your waking mind may have overlooked.

Respect your dreams as the tremendous resource for knowledge that they are. And pay attention. You may learn something incredibly valuable from your own dreams.

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Image by mliu92 via Flickr

Car dreams can be scary. And they can have a lot of meanings. For example, if you are obsessed with getting a new car, you may dream about them at night. That much is obvious.

But some automobile dreams are puzzling. What caused them is not clear, and you may start thinking that they are premonitions of disaster. But their meaning may not be so simple.

Some people dream of car crashes. Those could be warnings. But if there has been a rash of spectacular wrecks on TV news, we may write off the whole idea. Still it is good to be extra careful when driving anytime.

Dreaming of a malfunctioning car, though, may have very different meanings: metaphor for the body, business or relationships; automobile malfunctions not yet consciously noticed, or…?

Car as metaphor for the body. Your car is your vehicle—-and so is your body. Pay attention to such dreams carefully. They can be warnings about the state of your health.

Car as metaphor for a marriage. I used to dream that I was in the backseat of a speeding car—-and no one was driving. That was during a bad marriage that was lacking in partnership. My spouse was driving our lives recklessly forward with no input from me—and no apparent plan. It was scary.

Car as a metaphor for business or career. Just as we sometimes know there is something wrong with our body or relationships but ignore the signs, we may also miss signs of problems in our company or career. Malfunctioning car dreams may be the tipoff.

Car malfunction as a subliminal perception. Some of us are very aware of our cars on an unconscious level but do not consciously pay enough attention to keeping them in good repair. As Freud said, when speaking of metaphors in dreams, ” Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar.”

If the brakes are wearing out, the tires are a tiny bit lumpy (indicating dangerous wear), or the engine is running rough or using too much gasoline, part of your mind registers that. And dreams are when our unconscious minds have the best chance of communicating with us. So you may be warning yourself to get your car checked before you have a wreck or get stranded somewhere because of a breakdown.

So before you start worrying that your dream of a sputtering engine means that the love of your life is about to leave you, or that the rusty car dream means you could have cancer, check on the obvious. Take care of any car repairs you have been putting off—before they get worse.

The peace of mind is well worth the time and trouble. Once you know your car is safe, you can sleep better—and concentrate on figuring out what your sputtering car dreams mean—-if you still have them. With the car fixed, the troubling car dreams may very well stop.

To ease your mind about finding a good mechanic, take practical steps. Go to the Repair Pal website to find customer reviews and ratings for mechanics and repair shops in your local area, with a list of services and specializations for each one.

So for Chicago auto repair, for example, you can find out which mechanics in your neighborhood specialize in your type of car, such as Toyota Corolla, and other information, such as, for example, why you may need a new water pump.

So if you are having scary car dreams, check it out. It will help you sleep better.

After all, you have better things to dream about.

Robert Moss, the dream researcher, teacher and author that I keep talking about, has a radio show on dreams! You can listen over the Internet on the second Tuesday of each month, from 11 am to noon Central Time.

Here is the link: http://www.healthylife.net/RadioShow/archiveWD.htm

There is even an 800 number so that you can call in with questions during the show as he interviews other dreamworkers and dream researchers. 

What a blessing for all of us!

Dreams Poster  24 in. x 36 in.  
Buy at AllPosters.com

People talk a lot about dreams. Usually they don’t specify clearly what types of dreams they are talking about. There isn’t just one kind, or even two (good or bad. There are many kinds of dreams, and to be able to make sense when discussing dreams, we ought to define them.

Processing Dreams

Many people have been convinced that all dreams are just the body’s way of processing memories and experiences. In fact, that is a large category of dreams.

Sorting out our thoughts, experiences and ideas does seem to be one important purpose of dreaming.

Anxiety Dreams

Anxiety dreams are not exactly nightmares (usually), but they are unpleasant. They express our worries about things that may or may not ever happen. In some cases, anxiety dreams may be a way of preparing to deal with difficult situations. In others, they may be a symptom that we need to learn how to handle stress better—and maybe drink less caffeine?

Prophetic Dreams

People who consistently keep dream journals find that they often have prophetic dreams. Sometimes the dreams are quite trivial. Other times they prepare us for events we cannot prevent or prepare us for tragedies that we can avert by being ready.

Because of a prophetic dream (also called a precognitive dream), we have had a chance to think of what we would do, the shock has worn off, and when the event happens, we are calm enough to take action that can save lives or prevent serious injury. 

Clairvoyant Dreams

People over the centuries have witnessed events happening elsewhere, even thousands of miles away, in their dreams. There are records of people dreaming of plane crashes and natural disasters, recording the dreams, sometimes putting the dreams into official records, and then receiving verification via the news media. 

Dream, Explore, Discover  Art Print by Svensson, Torleif

36 in. x 24 in. Buy at AllPosters.com

Communication Dreams

People all over the world have experienced dreams of communication from a loved in times of crisis. Sometimes the loved one has been dead for many years. Other times the loved one appears at the moment of death to say goodbye. Sometimes the loved one appears with a message of warning or other important information, or even with reassurance that the loved one is safe.

Message Dreams

Sometimes dreamers receive messages that are actually intended to be given to others. Often the message dream is for a relative, friend, coworker or neighbor and can be given right away.

But sometimes it is for an acquaintance one has yet to meet. Then, when the recipient appears, the message is given, and the dream is fulfilled.

Astral Dreams

Astral dreams are said to occur on the inner planes of existence, in the spirit world. They tend to be symbolic, like a bare black stage set with only the most essential props and actors spotlighted. Some people may never have astral dreams. More likely most people simply do not recognize or remember them.

When you have an astral dream, it may be the mind’s way of dramatizing things that you subconsciously know but have been ignoring. Or they may be an indication that someone else is trying to communicate with you in your dreams.

Nightmares

Nightmares can occur in any of the dream forms. Most likely they are a dramatization of your fears, but they can also be the result of actual memories. Such memories may require therapy to make the dreams go away.

Nightmares caused by post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) can be crippling in their realistic sensations and intensity, and they definitely require professional treatment by a therapist who specializes in PTSD. Dreams can seem very real. They can be horrifying.

The fear of having PTSD dreams can cause people to avoid sleeping (which is dangerous) or to self-medicate with prescription (or nonprescription) drugs or alcohol. Doing that can also be dangerous.

Dreams Poster 62 in. x 24 in. Buy at AllPosters.com

Diagnostic Dreams

The body always knows when we are ill or hurt, but we may consciously ignore it, especially if there is no pain. Many people have dreams that tell them of serious undiagnosed problems such as cancer. Those who pay attention to their dreams and know how to interpret the images from their subconscious are warned.

Many a dream has caused someone to get a checkup that saved their life by resulting in early treatment of what could have been a fatal disease or condition.   

Healing Dreams

Occasionally people who are very ill have dreams that seem to bring healing. Is the dream healing in and of itself? Or is the dream announcing the healing? No one knows for sure.

Problem-Solving Dreams

As we have discussed before, problem-solving dreams can occur at any point in sleep or just before or after it. The solution can be literal and complete, or it can be symbolic, or just a hint.

Lucid Dreams

Lucid dreams are rare. They are dreams in which the dreamer becomes aware that he or she is dreaming and takes control of the dream. That last part is the most important. Dreams in which one simply becomes aware of being in a dream and wakes up or goes into a different dream are called prelucid dreams.

Many people have prelucid dreams. Few learn to gain control of them and turn them into lucid dreams. 

Lucid dreaming is a form of meditation for adepts of some spiritual belief systems. In those spiritual systems, people may study and practice for years to achieve it.

Yet in some cultures people have been trained from babyhood to take control of their dreams, and in those cultures virtually everyone can do it. 

Shaman Dreams

In some cultures shamans, or those with the potential to become shamans, are identified by the special dreams they have, dreams that contain specific imagery that only shamans see.

Shamans in many cultures do much of their work, including finding out information or finding cures for diseases or injuries, in lucid dreams or active dreaming.  

Mixed Dreams

Most dreams seem to be a mixture. Parts of a dream may be processing the day’s events, while other parts contain messages. Dreaming is complex. Dreams can and often do have several layers of meaning. 

Other Types of Dreams

Probably there are other kinds of dreams, but these definitions should be enough for discussion purposes and to help identify dreams for yourself and others. Talking about your dreams and working with others on their dreams is worthwhile. It can also be fun. And to me the ability to get and share information from dreams is a blessing.

Dream Clouds Plaque Photographic Print by Katano, Nicole

24 in. x 8 in.
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