How to interpret a dream

[rondo987]

Ok, I realize this is completely off topic, unrelated to the celtics, and kind of silly, but this dream I had last night is freaking me out...

Basically, I was living in world where every person knew the date and time they were going to die. My dream took place in the days leading up to that date, and this is present day (as in I'm 22 years old in this dream as well). As the day drew closer, I was basically freaking out and just saddened by the whole thing. Finally the day I was suppose to die came, and I woke up before anything actually happened. I don't remember specifics of the dream, but that was the jist of it.

At first I just brushed it off. But my mother and grandmother are really big on interpretting dreams and what they could mean for the future. When I asked my mom, it was her reaction to it that kind of scared me, telling me she was worried and that I should stay in the next couple nights. My grandmother disagreed and said it was a sign of new life for me, but possibly something bad that could happen to someone else I know. I kind of think this whole thing is stupid and no indication of the future whatsoever, and I told my mom that. But she then told me the following story: basically, her sister passed away of skin cancer in January of 09. My mom is a breast cancer survivor. About six months before my aunt passed away, my mom had a dream that her and her sister were sitting next to Jesus. Jesus told her that he was thinking about taking her, but opted to take my aunt instead. The rest is history. Yes my mother is a very religious woman.

I know this is wierd and stupid, but is there anyone out there that knows how to interpret dreams? I always just figured they could symbolize your subconscience thoughts and current feelings, whether it be stress, happiness, or worry. I never thought that they are any indication of the future.

Anyways, any insight on this would be appreciated. I guess it should also be noted, whether it is relevant or not, that my other grandmother passed away last month

Go Celtics!!!

[BballTim]

  It could mean that you watch FlashForward...

[fairweatherfan]

I'm a psychologist, but not the dream analysis kind - dream analysis isn't really widely done by legit psychologists anymore. So don't take any of this as gospel, just a somewhat educated guess.

Without knowing anything about you, my best guess is that you're reaching the point where you've truly realized that you're going to die someday.  As a kid or an adolescent, sure, we're aware that everyone dies and that includes us, but the reality of it doesn't "click" for most people until a later age.  For a lot of people that's early adulthood.  Your grandma passing might've brought a lot of these thoughts to the surface too.

Your dream sounds like anxiety about the inevitability of death, which was expressed by knowing the actual date in the dream.  Real life isn't so clear-cut of course but whatever the day is, we know it's getting closer, which can be pretty deeply troubling.  But it can also be liberating - no matter what we do, we'll all be dead in 100 years, so might as well enjoy what we've got while we've got it. 

Just my thoughts anyway.  At the least I wouldn't worry that this somehow is foreshadowing that something bad will happen to you soon. 

[Fan from VT]

  It could mean that you watch FlashForward...

or a Logan's Run type film.

[rondo987]

TP for your explanation of what you think it might be. That probly sounds about right, although I've always been the type thats thought about the inevitability of death. I guess my grandmothers passing has just brought some of those thoughts back recently.

I'm a psychologist, but not the dream analysis kind - dream analysis isn't really widely done by legit psychologists anymore. So don't take any of this as gospel, just a somewhat educated guess.

Without knowing anything about you, my best guess is that you're reaching the point where you've truly realized that you're going to die someday.  As a kid or an adolescent, sure, we're aware that everyone dies and that includes us, but the reality of it doesn't "click" for most people until a later age.  For a lot of people that's early adulthood.  Your grandma passing might've brought a lot of these thoughts to the surface too.

Your dream sounds like anxiety about the inevitability of death, which was expressed by knowing the actual date in the dream.  Real life isn't so clear-cut of course but whatever the day is, we know it's getting closer, which can be pretty deeply troubling.  But it can also be liberating - no matter what we do, we'll all be dead in 100 years, so might as well enjoy what we've got while we've got it. 

Just my thoughts anyway.  At the least I wouldn't worry that this somehow is foreshadowing that something bad will happen to you soon. 

[looseball]

There is a book called EINSTEIN'S DREAMS that might interest you.  In it, Einstein is a young man who has a series of dreams of different worlds where the idea of time changes from one world to the next.  In one world it goes real fast, real slow in another, stands still in yet another, and even goes in circles in one.  This all lead up to his theory of relativity.

It's not really about interpreting individual dreams, but a version of your dream comes up in it.

Finally, here's a quote from a book on dream interpretation:

"Usually, dreams involving death are not literal warnings of impending physical death, but represent the decay and destruction of a stage in life.  Death is transformation from one state to another;  it is necessary so that rebirth and renewal can take place."

[Chris]

I know this is wierd and stupid, but is there anyone out there that knows how to interpret dreams? I always just figured they could symbolize your subconscience thoughts and current feelings, whether it be stress, happiness, or worry. I never thought that they are any indication of the future.

While there are lots of books out there on interpreting dreams, ultimately, its all theory.  We don't even really know what dreams actually are, let alone know how to interpret them. 

Ultimately, I would suggest not reading too much into how other people interpret your dreams, but ask yourself how YOU interpret them.  These are being created in your own mind, and only you know what is going on in there.

I do think it can help give you insight into your subconscious mind, but it is a completely personal thing.  Everyone has different experiences, and different thoughts, so IMO, it is impossible to compare one persons dreams to another persons, and have them mean the same thing.

Another interesting thing I always like to point out from a sleep research point of view.  In general, most people do not remember most of their dreams.  Your short term memory does not consolidate into longterm memory when you are sleeping.  And generally, you do most of your dreaming in REM sleep.  You usually do not wake up directly from REM sleep, unless you are awoken unnaturally.  Most people only remember their dreams if they wake up directly from the dream, and think about it immediately, replaying it, and then consolidating it into longterm memory.

The point of this is...it seems that your brain does not want you to remember dreams.  From a evolutionary standpoint, I would suggest that this may mean that remembering them, and then analyzing them does not really do us much good.  We forget them for a reason.

[BballTim]

  It could mean that you watch FlashForward...

or a Logan's Run type film.

  I guess, since he woke up too soon, we'll never know which one. Bummer.

[Kwhit10]

I once had a dream where I was fighting zombies and I was bit.  I eventually turned into a zombie, but so did everyone else in the world.  So life went on just everyone was now a zombie instead of "alive."

I don't read too much into dreams since a lot of mine include things I'm doing the next day or did that day.  I've had a few lucid dreams where I controlled pretty much everything.

[fairweatherfan]

I once had a dream where I was fighting zombies and I was bit.  I eventually turned into a zombie, but so did everyone else in the world.  So life went on just everyone was now a zombie instead of "alive."

You should read "I am Legend" (don't watch the movie, it completely ruined the point of the story).  Great book, with a similar idea.

[cdif911]

its funny I teach psych and we're just starting our consciousness/dreaming unit

A) fairweather is pretty dead on from what I can see

B) the reason it startled you and you remembered it is you woke up during it - you probably have dozens of other similar and more scary dreams which you don't acknowledge b/c you don't wake up during them

I do think sometimes the subconscious/unconscious (depending on who you believe) is trying to tell us stuff in dreams - I've had dreams where something goes wrong with my car and in real life I have low tire pressure or even get a flat that sort of thing

but a lot of dreaming is just random, working out problems, going through data we've seen, and not much to worry about really - if anythings symbolic, it's personal to you, not universal

[celts55]

Probably has something to do with wanting to be with your mother. At least that's what Freud would say.