The World of Dreams: Common Dream Themes

As human beings, we share a number of the same hopes and dreams in life. We all want to be successful, have lots of money, and rear perfect children. Given that life is marked by imperfection, it stands to reason that we would also share many of the same fears and anxieties. Common dream themes often reflect, from a subconscious perspective, many of these fears.

Dreams about Being Chased

Chase dreams are commonly associated with anxious feelings or fearful situations in waking life and your dream responses often parallel your method of dealing with conflict in the real world. In chase dreams, the attacker can be a man with a gun, a vicious animal, an ugly monster, or any number of combinations of other evil dream characters. As you run, hide or try to outwit your pursuer in your dream, you may be able to recognize and translate that action as a habitual tendency to avoid coping with certain problems which are currently present in your life.

Dreams about Being Naked in Public

Often, in dreams, routine scenarios involving such things as catching a bus or walking down the street can turn into embarrassing nightmare s as you look down and discover that you are either partially, or completely naked. Surprisingly , in many people's dreams, onlookers are curiously indifferent to our nakedness. They seem to not notice or not care at all. In the world of metaphors, clothes are representative of something concealed, which leads to some obvious questions for the dreamer to consider: What are you concealing that you are afraid or ashamed to reveal? Do you have a hidden desire to be noticed in some way?

Dreams about Teeth Falling Out

Many professionals theorize that dreams which involve loose or rotting teeth, teeth crumbling in your hand, or teeth that fall out easily, may indicate anxiety surrounding an individual's personal appearance. Interestingly, many women going through menopause have dreams about teeth falling out, which may point to exaggerated negative emotions associated with aging and feeling unattractiveness.

Dreams about Not Being Unable to Run or Scream

Most professionals regard dreams of having some sort of paralysis, such as being unable to run or scream, as fairly transparent. Many times people experiencing this type of dream feel helpless, oppressed or otherwise unable to function properly in some aspect of their waking life. These people may feel like they are unable to change a negative situation or may feel like they cannot express themselves freely.

Dreams about Losing a Purse or a Wallet

Many people dream about losing some kind of personal effect like a handbag, wallet or briefcase. These people often report experiencing feelings ranging from slight concern to panic at not being able to locate the lost item. Many theorists postulate that the loss of an item like this corresponds to the loss of one's own personal power or identity. The reason for this is that items contained in purses or wallets like driver's license, social security cards, credit cards or money, are identifying elements. A person having recurring dreams of lost items may be not feelimg like life has much meaning and may be in search of a greater sense of purpose.

Dreams about Falling

As is true with many dream themes, falling dreams may be trying to point you toward a greater awareness of excessive insecurities or instabilities in your private waking life. You may be overwhelmed or feel out of control in personal relationships or working relationships. Usually in these dreams, people get a strong sense of rapid downward motion with nothing to grab onto to stop the freefall. These dreams may also reflect feelings of failure, inadequacy or low self-esteem.

When considering the meaning of dream themes, it is important to understand that dreams are deciphered from a unique language of symbols, emotions and metaphors. Although human beings have dreams that contain many common themes, it is essential to remember that dream interpretation is highly personal. While it is often enlightening and entertaining to consider the conclusions that researchers have procured, dreams cannot be deemed as one-size-fits-all. An accurate dream interpretation can only be ascertained by taking into account an individual's personality, as well as other distinctive details of their lives.

References:

Jung, C.G., Dreams. Bollingen Series 20. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1974.

Fosshage, James, and Clemens Loew. Dream Interpretation. New York: International Universities Press, 1984