Dreams anyone?

[vunil as guest]

Since I discovered this board, I have been having a recurring dream:

I am trying to do something, like finish building a dam or rearrange some items in a big china cabinet or feed some baby chickens or some other behavior that in real life I never do.  Along comes one of my parents, my sister, or some combination of them.  They make it impossible to do whatever I am doing.  If I'm sewing something, they insist I use twine instead of thread, even though it doesn't fit in the sewing machine, weird things like that.  Then they insult me in some outrageous way.  I become furious with them and yell at them.  Then I either wake up or start on some long involved "running away" plot where I escape them through fantastical journeys.


Talk about your obvious dream!  But I have it pretty much regularly-- maybe three times a week.  I think my subconscious is finally getting some stuff off its chest     It started when I started reading books about N families and when I started posting here.  Or maybe it started when I tried confronting them and got nowhere-- I don't remember the exact timing.

Anyway-- it would be good for a dreams 101 class!

And it shows that you guys and your wisdom are making it all the way back into the recesses of my mind.

[bliz]

I almost forgot the frustration/voicelessness recurring dream.  It reminded me of Vunil's.  I am doing something and someone is repeatedly thwarting me or not listening as I am explaining the danger, project whatever.  In the dream I get pretty mad and even jump up and down soemtimes. Pretty funny if it werent so real.  Like Vunil said, not too diffiuclt to figure out.

[vunil]

as I am explaining the danger

Oh, I have that one, too, where the bomb is coming, or the house is on fire, or there is an earthquake only I know about.  But when I tell people, no one listens.  Instead of going out the window, they put curtains up over it or lock it or something.

That is a heck of a frustrating dream!  I'm sorry to hear someone else has it, too.

I read once that this particular type of dream means that someone is likely "overfunctioning" (Harriot Lerner's term-- she wrote the Dance of Intimacy).  In other words, they take on too much responsibility for themselves.  Usually folks who do this grew up in situations where others were underfunctioning, not taking on enough responsibility, and they had to fill in.  So now their subconscious is constantly trying to fix stuff and worried that others won't listen (since in the past they didn't).

It's interesting to ponder.  I would admit that I definitely need to stop trying to rescue people in my awake life.

[Bliz]

The over functioning is another interesting interpretation.  I have had to over funciton in some family projects because I would like to see them realized and have been told they wont unless I do the work.  It isnt a very healthy situation but I would like to reap the benefits of the project also..getting a new trailer at our family camp.  

I will keep this in mind.  I am sure I was the over funcitoner in my youth as I was the oldest and only girl.  YOu know ,take care of everybody, including your dysfunctional parents.  Thanks for the heads up, Vunil, I dont want to over funciton forever and drive myself into the ground.

[Anonymous]

Bliz,

That does seem a bit all compassing. All men are jerks!!(?) All younger men are Jerks!!(?)

Take it from one of us. We're all jerks, some of us are just domesticated.

Mud

[Bliz]

Didnt realize mudpup was a guy, interesting to get your feedback. I refuse to be bitter and think all men are jerks, domesticated or otherwise...hahaha!  I guess I would have full reason to think they are based on the nar male family members and my dating history.  But, I chose to remain optimistic, though guarded and hopefully enlightened as to what would be good choices in friends, dates, etc.  

I would think that a recently divorced man would not be a good choice.  I know it took me about a year after disengaging from the Nbeau before I really felt ready.  I do enjoy his friendship though as we have been friends for about ten years.

[Bliz]

Replying to myself, (kind of funny), because I had another dream about the ex. This one not too diffiuclt to figure out.  I was supposed to meet him at a restaurant and he was spewing his rageul crap, so I left.  Later ran into his sisters and they wanted to do an intervention to get him some kind of help.  What kind of help I do not rememeber.  

Thrown into the mix was a classic insecurity dream of being back at college and missing a class several times.  The exam is coming up and I realize I have never been to the class so I start thinkng about how I am going to graduate if I miss this exam.  I have this dream in different versions often when fearful about something.  Many times even in the dream I am saying, "Wait a minute.  I graduated already."

[Anonymous]

Hi Ya'll:

Hey Bliz!  I just want to reply to you so you don't have to keep replying to yourself   (although you'll probably do a better job of interpreting your dreams than I will).   I'm not even going to do try because I'm feeling quite dopey this morning.

Hi Vunil:

Anyway-- it would be good for a dreams 101 class!

         I love it!!

It's good that all of this isssss coming out in your dreams, I think.  

As to me.......I've been doing the same thing for the last couple of nights.  I'm having strange dreams and I don't know if I can even say I'm sort of waking up.....but I'm having the thought......"Jeepers that's a weird one" but I am unable to wake up enough to grab that pencil beside my bed or anything.  In the morning........no conscious memory of the dream except that I had it and it was odd.

The pressure's too much!   I start a thread listing GFN as the user name, for the first time, and now I must subconsciously feel obligated to come up with weirdo dreams to post, and even more subconsciously embarassed   or something   about posting them and so......I promptly forget whatever strange-o dreams I do have.

Oh well......I am enjoying reading about other's dreams and other's interpretations.  Maybe I just need to chill a little???

GFN

[Anonymous]

Hi Bliz,

Didnt realize mudpup was a guy

That's a real ego booster.

Working in such close proximity, do you dream about your brother much, especially after a particularly unpleasant day?(are there any pleasant ones?)

mudpup[/quote]

[Bliz]

Mudpup,
Please forgive me.  (For not realizing you are a guy).  You know I do dream about my broher sometimes.  Often I dream he is that sweet little kid he was at one time when we were younger.  Being 12 years older than him he did not really effect me so much.  I felt more like his guardian than his sister.   I have had the frustrating dream where I try to tell him of impending doom and he is naturally ignoring me or making fun of my concerns.  Not very validating. But, when you come right down to it, I dont need his validaiton.  Just that he be fair in the work assignments.

[delphine]

Hi Bliz and everyone,
I've been remodelling so I haven't checked in here but OMG Bliz, I have that never studied for the exam dream, too. Also, can't remember my locker combo. And in the dream, I have to remind myself that I already graduated.
I TOTALLY believe that some of our dreams are actually meeting others in spirit (dream) bodies. There are differences between these and regular sleep dreams. They are more vivid, always in color, and the background does not shift as in regular dreams. Scenes do not overlap. Voices are more real. Did you ever notice that in many dreams the "voices" of the other people actually appear in our own heads, or as if from a loudspeaker positioned above?
I had very vivid dreams about my college BF for many years in which he usually told me off or picked a fight. Then i finally dreamed that he was nice to me. He said he was marrying a woman with 6 kids and wanted me to know. He told me the town he was living in and said he was moving but didn't say where.
That dream haunted me and finally I called information in the town he'd said in my dream. The operator said that number has been disconnected. I asked and found out that a person with his name (and its highly unusual) had that listing but had it disconnected 6 days prior. Well, I'm waiting fopr the next dream to tell me how its going with his 6 new kids....

Delphine

[mum]

Delphine: my mom told me she also had the not studying for an exam dream, which I believe is universal for anyone who has been in school.  
I haven't had it in a while, but can remember what they were like (awful).

We teachers have a common dream, and for me it happens most at the end of summer break, right before we return for the school year...it's a classroom full of kids (too full) who will not stop talking long enough to even hear me (I usually wake up practically screaming).  It's the every teacher's nightmare class nightmare!
Another twist to the not studying dream, is having to teach a class I'm not prepared for, and another twist on that one, is performing in a play when I haven't memorized my lines (old actress dream) or worse yet, I have to DANCE in a performance and try to fake it (which sometimes works!) BTW, dancing is NOT my forte (understatement!)

Ok, here's a few  for the dream interpreters (October?):  repeated themes throughout my life: (although not lately, hmmmm):

a horse or other animal that I have forgotten I even owned (but really wanted), barely alive from my neglect when I finally remember it's there....(such sadness and guilt)

running with great ease, and gazelle like springing steps....and saying to myself, "I knew I could run like this....but I always think it's a dream, but here I am and it's not" (oh, the irony).....

and falling from a great height (like off a diving board and I don't go down but WAY up first) , but then I realize I'm flying and the dream becomes about trying  to control the panic in my gut over it (I never crash or hit the earth).

[d's mom]

Another twist to the not studying dream, is having to teach a class I'm not prepared for, and another twist on that one, is performing in a play when I haven't memorized my lines (old actress dream) or worse yet, I have to DANCE in a performance and try to fake it (which sometimes works!) BTW, dancing is NOT my forte (understatement!)

hey finally something i know something about. i do a ton of work in dreams. ive had that locker dream a million times..... and the being onstage forgetting lines dream.... i guess they are both archetypal sort of things.....

Ok, here's a few  for the dream interpreters (October?):  repeated themes throughout my life: (although not lately, hmmmm):

a horse or other animal that I have forgotten I even owned (but really wanted), barely alive from my neglect when I finally remember it's there....(such sadness and guilt)

running with great ease, and gazelle like springing steps....and saying to myself, "I knew I could run like this....but I always think it's a dream, but here I am and it's not" (oh, the irony).....

and falling from a great height (like off a diving board and I don't go down but WAY up first) , but then I realize I'm flying and the dream becomes about trying  to control the panic in my gut over it (I never crash or hit the earth).

there are so many fun ways to work with dreams. the 'abandoned animal' dream could be so many different things. but when i have dreams like that, they represent a part of myself that i am forgetting to nurture...

with me it is fishtanks. i dream all the time about fishtanks. i can tell my emotional state by the health of the fish. somtimes the fish are plump and healthy- water clear - they have lots of food. sometimes i will come on groups of fish that i know i havent seen in years, they have been starving, i am getting there just in time to save them. personally i have come to always interpret those dreams as parts of my emotional being.

could be lots of things though depending what horses mean to you personally.

the gazelle dream - that is a nice image.  could be lots of things there. how nice you have good feelings though. thats always nice.

the falling/flying dream.... hmmmm! its been so long since ive had a flying dream. i associate them with fun and happiness, not panic.. so i guess its an individual thing. i guess i cannot help much with those :} but the 'abandoned animal' dream rung a big bell.

take care
Anna

[Bliz]

My father also said he had the exam dream.  His version was not being able to find the classroom.  Many years ago I used to have the tornado was coming to blow apart the house. For years I would dream this when worried or fearful.  Finally several years ago I would dream the tornado came and the house and I survived.  That seemed like a good sign.

I also have had the prophetic dream and even the occasional waking prophetic realization....(not sure what else to call those).  They used to totally freak me out but now I kind of enjoy them.  Havent had one for awhile. LIke when I thought somebody would contact me after many years and they did.  

One of my weirdest waking dreams, (sort of) was thinking I saw somebody from high school in the grocery store.  I thought to myself there is _____, and even kind of thought I should try to avoid them as the person had gotten a little "out there" in recent years.  This wasnt even a close friend, not even actually in my class.  

So I think I see this person in the store and then turn around and nobody is there.  Found out later that person died that day.  (cue in the Twilight Zone music).  I have a few more of those stories if the thread takes that turn.

[delphine]

Good morning, Can't remember dreams from last night but its a fav topic for me. I've studied dreams from many perspectives- classic (each thing is an archetypal symbol), Jungian (dreams are emotional/spitritual energy trying to find balance), Psycho-Synthesis (dreams are our many inner personae having free reign) Cherokee (dreams are a journey of instruction with our spirit guides or angels) and Taoist (dreams are the shoreline- they have no existance except as the contact point of 2 realms of being).
So you can take a dream like the dying horse. Freudians would say you are a man hater (killing an animal known for its big schlong). Jungians would say youhave not been accepting the animalistic aspects of sexuality and are trying to nuture them back to life.  For Psch-syn , you'd have to explore the personal meaning of a horse to reveal the meaning, Cherokee, the horse is a totem animal bringing freedom, and your guides have brought you to it for healing meaning there is a cause involving liberation, may be your own or not, that you are being guided to help, Taoist is look to examine if the experience of the healer/dying horse replicates any other dynamic in your life and pay closer attention to what's going on there.

The emotional energy in a dream is as important as the symbols so if you post what you were feeling in the dream it gives a better clue of interpretation.

By working with dreams I've seen clearly how my mind invents and stages experential events and I think that, to a large part, my interpretation of what is happening in waking life is what I call "real". Studying dreams has helped me to stay open to other interpretations. Sometimes changing one's mind changes the world (but not always).

The dream dreams the dreamer
(Taoism)

Delphine