When your dreams incorporate reality
 

OK so I was inspired by the previous thread on dreams:

Do your dreams ever incorporate what's going on in your life? Does it provide a new outlook on the situation for you?

My experience:

Reality: I am applying to graduate programs; one of the professors at one of the programs emailed me (last week) asking if I could drive out to the campus (again) *before Christmas* to discuss doing the research for a grant proposal due in March.

My thoughts on reading the email: (1) no way am I doing your research for you before I'm enrolled in your program! (2) Not about to drive out at a moments notice during my holiday break for a meeting that most likely (based on experience from the previously mentioned meetings) the details can be conveyed via email or over the phone saving me at least 1/2 tank of gas and minimum 2 hours of drive time!!!

My emailed response: 'Unfortunately due to (insert recent event providing escape) my research schedule has been pushed back and my thesis research will continue into next term prohibiting me from taking on additional research projects until the completion of my Master's degree next semester' (hoping this will stop further attempts for me to 'meet' prior to enrollment, as I do not have vast amounts of spare time or gas $)
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My dream: While spending time w/ family (oddly, not in any home/location that exists in reality) I receive a call on my cell from another professor in the same Dept. as the one mentioned from the email. This Prof. says Prof. #1's wants me to work on his research for him. I don't recall what my 'dream-time' response was but I remember in the dream ending the call and thinking 'Wow, I *REALLY* don't want to go there, I hope I get into ANY of the other programs I've applied to.

When I woke up I realized that pretty much summed up my feelings; I hope I get into ANY of the other programs I've applied to (for a few different reasons!)!!!

When things were getting really bad in my first marriage, I knew I wanted to leave but was worried about what friends and family would think of me ending my marriage just over a year after it started. I prayed for guidance and that night had the following dream:

I was at a wedding, my own, in a wedding dress, band, hall, wedding cake.. everything. However, there was no groom. I danced alone and my family and friends danced in a circle around me and came in around me to give me a huge group hug. It gave me the courage to tell some of my closest friends and family just what was going on and that I had made a plan to leave before he really hurt me. Of course, everybody was supportive of me making a move to keep myself safe.

That's the most significant one, but this kind of thing happens all the time. Many experts believe that we use our dreams to solve problems.

I had a dream the night before last about leaving my husband over his refusal to have more children...a promise he made to me before we got engaged and again after we were engaged.

I figured I dreamed it because I have been thinking about it. Having kids is a huge deal. Had he told me he didnt want anymore children prior to being engaged/married we wouldnt have gotten married. I'll be 31 in April. I dont have a lot of time left. I cant just get pregnant either because he had a vasectomy after his youngest son was born so it would have to be reversed (which he told me he would do). I've been praying several times daily for him to have a change of heart.

Needless to say I have a big decision to make after the holidays.

Anytime I have something important coming up, I have a dream in which I'm trying to make a certain appointment, event, etc., but things keep happening which keep preventing me from leaving and getting there in time. What's weird is that the dream isn't necessarily about the real life event coming up. For example, when I started a new job this summer, I had a dream that getting ready to meet a friend, but things kept happening to me that prevented me from leaving. First, all of my clothes that I put on were dirty or damaged. Then I go to look for my car but my car is gone. Stuff like that. And I ALWAYS look at the clock in these dreams and just see the time get later and later.

:( Oh my gosh.

I used to have a whole bunch of books on dreams, and a few years ago, had researched some psych (not pyschic) journals and academic papers about the biology of dreams, dream types, dream interpretation, etc. So among my family and friends, I'm the "go-to" person... like a dream doctor (note that I have no professional education or experience doing this).

If you care to hear my thoughts on the topics, read on.

Regarding "reality"-based dreams. Let's put aside the possibility of a purely prophetic dream (which apparently, is very rare to have). If you rarely remember dreams, or if your dreams are about the past, fantasy (like flying or being in a spaceship), fiction (a story playing out like in a book or a film), or weird dreams with symbols that you can interpret (see any dream book or website), and you suddenly have dreams that are rooted in reality, I'd suggest paying attention to them.

A friend of mine used to only dream about her past (random stuff, not necessarily just bad memories), and had a very specific recurring dream. Anyway, she had been in therapy for various stuff, had a lot of anxiety and depression After a good 6-8 months in therapy, where she had moved on from her past issues and started working on every day life issues (coping skills, etc.), for the first time that she could ever remember, she dreamed about her current life. I don't remember if it was about work, or something like the gym or her kids, but she was shocked to dream about her current reality.

Now, we can draw an obvious connection between her strides in therapy and the new topics of her dreams. But you don't have to be in therapy or have a something extreme going on for this to happen. Some scientific theories suggest that dreams can be a byproduct of our subconsciousness - our brains figuring out during dreams, stuff that we can't figure out while awake or aware.

As some of you have pointed out, you have had dreams that provide insight into a problem or situation you are facing. Some are literal - like Thetaprincess's dream, others are symbolic, like Lovespink. I find the literal dreams to be less common than symbolic dreams. For Thetaprincess, it's like your mind was rehearsing what you need/want to say/do - it seems like you were THERE in that moment. For Lovespink, the dream is more of a cautionary tale or suggestion to pay attention to details. Though it's relatively generic, the fact that the dream is recurring and happens when certain things are happening in your life, there is a "reality" based connection.

To the OP - You didn't elaborate on what your dream was about, or the situation it reflects in your current reality, but it can't hurt to write down your dreams. It's best to do it when you first wake up. Don't edit yourself, just write words or phrases, everything you can remember. Do this every morning for a week or two. Look for symbols, recurring themes, specifics like numbers or people or anything very detailed (for example, directions to a certain location, names, dates, colors, etc.). I find those things more helpful than "what happened".

For example, if I dreamt that I went to a convenience store, I'd pay attention to the details that I remembered - maybe stop lights, street signs, people I encountered in the store, what I was looking for or bought, what the merchandise cost, etc. Often, it's not so important as to what you did - like go to a convenience store - but the details that I could remember from the dream. Try to recognize patterns, triggers, and note anything that happened during your waking hours that relate to your dream.

You can take or leave my theories. Like I said, I'm no expert, but I am really interested in the whole dream concept.

As an aside, I have a recurring dream. I am living or moving into a house that, as I go through the house, I keep discovering new rooms - usually bedrooms and bathrooms, as well as doors leading to the outside that normally wouldn't be in a bedroom. There are 3 different houses that my dream has taken place in, none of which I have ever been to or seen in my waking life. The dreams rotate the houses I am in. Two of them are more common than the third, which has only been in the past few weeks. In all of them, I am concerned with security of the doors. Each house has specific details that are always present. However, every time I have the dream, I discover more and more rooms. I've been having these dreams for at least 5 years and I don't remember when they started. They don't occur according to any recognizable pattern or trigger. Sometimes I wonder if I had past lives where I lived in these places, but I don't know if I believe in past lives.

During finals week, I had a dream that for one of my finals, my professor would push us down a flight of icy concrete stairs and if you lived, you passed the class lol.

I believe that you are the author and producer of your dreams. It's a wonderful way of working through some of life's problems in a way that isn't quite as threatening as real life. Some of the worst troubles I've had in life appeared in dreams prior to the event, and in remembering the dreams, I was able to see more than one side of a complicated situation.


((((((((((((((ThetaPrincess24)))))))))))))

My entire life, I would sporadically have dreams about getting married, but I could never see the groom's face. Well, since this whole drama started with a guy from college, I repeatedly have wedding dreams and he's always the groom. Always. A couple weeks ago, I got this fortune cookie that said "You're wish is about to come true." Since then, that dream has been pretty frequent. :rolleyes:

I had a dream once that actually came true. I can't even remember what it was it was so long ago, which is kind of weird, but I just remember it happening. Ever since, every time I have a bad dream I get all freaked out that it will come true.

Your teeth falling out is actually one of the most common dreams. It's so freaky when it happens. When I have them, I am actually crunching on the bits of teeth in my mouth. When I wake up after these dreams, I immediately feel around in my mouth to make sure they are all there.

LOL that is so horrible! I had nightmares like that while in nursing school. How did you end up faring on that exam?

I have read that the teeth falling out dreams are common in adults. I too have that one from time to time and I wake up and have to go to the bathroom mirror and check my teeth to see if they are still there, loose, or in decay :).

I have these dreams ALL THE TIME! Most frequently I have the gum or other sticky substance in my mouth which keeps me from talking. I will put my entire hand in my mouth trying to scrape it out but can never clear it out. Sooo frustrating! I'll have to figure out what's making me feel powerless or overwhelmed next time I have this dream.

My other recurrent dream will occur in either college or high school. I will know in my dream that I have graduated from Medical school but for some reason I am back at HS or college enrolled in a full load of courses. The entire dream is spent worrying that I haven't gone to one of my classes the entire semester. Sometimes I am living in the AOII dorm and sometimes my dog, Willow, is with me. I never fail any classes, but I'm so worried that I need to go to a class.