If you've got an out-of-control car in your dreams—maybe you're trapped in one or have one coming at you—it may mean that "you don't have enough control over your road to success," Wallace said. He also recommended, "Instead of trying to over control the situation…relax your grip and allow your fundamental instincts and drives to steer the best path for you. But a car in one's dreams could indicate the opposite, as well. Wallace explained, "The car represents your ability to make consistent progress toward a specific objective.
Ever dream that your car was lost or stolen? The lack of a car has a symbolic resonance about one's career or ability to get where we want to go. Animals can vary in their significance and how they make you feel.
A fierce bear doesn't mean the same thing as a high-flying hawk. But according to Lennox, any time an animal appears it may be an indication that your dream is "asking you to stop trying to think your way through a situation and turn instead toward your instinctive nature for an answer.
Having a house in your dream usually connects back to your sense of self, with different rooms representing different aspects of your personality. So dreaming of an attic usually relates to your intellect or memories—and a "musty, dirty atmosphere means you are in realms that you haven't visited in a while," said Lennox, which can indicate "unhealthy avoidance.
Dreaming about a baby is usually a sign that you're reflecting on burgeoning potential or "some new chapter in your life that is just beginning and has yet to unfold into full manifestation," Lennox explained. Of course, since a baby is also helpless and needs to be cared for, it can also refer to responsibilities you feel you have.
If your dream consists of you being literally unable to find your shoes, chances are you're having difficulty deciding what your take is on a topic, whether that's an important decision you have to make or an ideological position you need to assume.
If you've misplaced something of value in our dream or spend the dream trying to find something and fail to do it, it may be that we feel a sense of lower value in our life. Wallace said, "If we are looking for our purse or wallet, then we are reflecting on our value to others as we may feel that we have lost some self-esteem in waking life. If you dream you're searching for someone, it may not have to do with that person, specifically.
If you have a dream about striking it rich or winning the lottery, you're feeling pretty good about life or have gained a "sudden awareness of the richness of the self," according to Wallace.
If you dream of falling in love or a having a passionate tryst, it may be because you lack this kind of intimacy and passion in your waking life. Wallace has said that dreaming about falling in love "can be triggered when we are about to fall in love with a potential lover in our waking life, or in an existing relationship, where inadequate love is being received and our uniqueness seems to be ignored.
We've all likely felt the sensation of falling in a dream. Though this might make you think that you need to get a tighter grip and hang on, according to Wallace, the opposite is true. It's a sign that "you are hanging on too tightly to a particular situation in waking life. You need to relax and let go of it. While falling is an indication that something is amiss, flying in a dream is usually a sign that you've freed yourself from something frustrating or difficult.
Wallace explained that the feeling of flying "suggests that you have released yourself from circumstances that have been weighing you down in waking life… Although you may regard this feeling of liberation as just luck or coincidence, it is usually because you have managed to make a weighty decision or risen above the limitations of a heavy responsibility. Flying might not always be a pleasant experience, however.
If you're flying in a dream but feel scared or see an object or obstacle in front of you, it may be that you feel something is holding you back or preventing you from accomplishing something you are attempting.
If you miss a plane or train in your dream, leaving you standing on the platform or tarmac, it may be that you feel you are being weighed down by too many other commitments.
Listen to your own internal rhythms instead of constantly trying to beat the clock. Your subconscious might be feeling frustrated that you can't connect with someone in your life the way you used to—and this may manifest itself in a dream in which you are dialing a wrong number.
This reflects that what they are doing in waking life just doesn't really add up. You're standing in the middle of a crowd, at work, or in some other public place, and you're completely naked. Though it's a relief when you realize it's just a dream, you might want to think about your feelings of vulnerability. It might be time for you to take an improv class or seek another way to get comfortable opening up to others.
Just as being naked indicates vulnerability, having bare feet gets to a similar sense in your subconscious—but with a more direct connection to the steps you are taking in life. It can "indicate issues around how you are maneuvering through your current life choices," Lennox explained. This can have a great impact on your journey and how you get to where you intend to go. Suffering blindness in a dream usually hints that you're overlooking something in your life or worry you aren't able to see something.
Lennox said, "By dreaming of the inability to see, you may be expressing areas in your life that you may be blind to…You may be dreaming of a situation in your life, or your personality, where you have a blind spot. You may have to go beyond what the eyes can see in a situation to determine how to respond authentically.
While some might dream of fights or athletic competition, if you are someone who has board games appear in your dreams, you are more likely someone who prefers "a civilized approach to expressing competitive impulses and conflict-solving skills," according to Lennox. If you're playing Monopoly or Scrabble in your mind, it may be a sign that you prefer some emotional distance to actual confrontation, and the more structured, rules-based logic to conflict that board games bring.
While we might usually think of bombs as a destructive force, often when explosions happen in your dreams, it shows that you are experiencing or ready for major change. Lennox advised looking at the specific context in which a bomb detonates and how effectively it destroys its target.
Another classic dream scenario is the feeling of showing up for an exam and realizing you are totally unprepared for it. Maybe you feel like you studied for the wrong subject or you can't even understand the words in front of you, but the likely source of the feeling is that "you are critically examining your own performance in waking life," per Wallace.
Having the unprepared-for-an-exam dream can also be a sign of something positive: you are a high performer who is used to working hard and doing things right.
That's the conclusion of Anderson, who has said that those who have the dream are usually the people who perform well and that "it's your fear of being unprepared that actually drives you to being totally ready to perform. If you have a sense that you're not addressing your own needs, a typical dream you're likely to have is one in which you're trying—and failing—to find a toilet.
Dreams of needing to use the bathroom likewise can mean that "you literally want to let the crap out of your life. Experiencing a dream in which you or a loved one dies can be frightening. Not to fear, though — dream theorists commonly think dreams like this are associated with a fear of change.
This is why your mind tends to equate change with death. These dreams are also common in those who are entering the end of their lifetime, and many even find them comforting. Since the underlying issue here is the lack of preparedness, dream theorists think this is your brain processing the stress of not being ready for a certain situation.
It can be a presentation at work, an overdue project or a big social event. All of these could cause you to dream about being pregnant. If water is present in your dreams, this could be a sign that you feel overwhelmed or unsupported by the people around you. It could also signify feelings of freedom or peace. To determine what the dream symbolizes, think about your feelings toward water. If they are positive, water in a dream will likely manifest as something good.
If you are afraid of water or something similar, it will symbolize something more negative. Also think about the kind of water present — was it a deep, turbulent ocean or a calm, babbling brook? Since dreams are so subjective, water can manifest in a lot of different ways.
Still, others think that dreams about infidelity mean that there could be issues with communication, trust or loyalty in your relationship.
Dreams that involve food are fairly common and typically involve the dreamer eating all sorts of delicious things. Many people speculate, though, that this type of dream is typically caused by going to bed hungry. What you eat before bed is also said to impact what you dream about. Some people report that, in these dreams, something is stuffed in their mouths. Most people will dream about animals at one point or another.
Like dreams about water, dreams about animals can be interpreted in various ways. Typically, these animals will symbolize different things to different people.
Sometimes animals can symbolize a trait or emotion. For example, if someone is portrayed as or with a lion, they may be strong and powerful. That may be the source of the persistent dream about failing to study for finals — with finals as a stand-in for a presentation you have to write for work in your adult life.
Dreaming about losing some or all of your teeth — reported by a surprising number of respondents in studies — appears to be about anxiety over saying the wrong thing at the wrong moment. It may also be about bodily deterioration — something we all fear even in childhood. In most cultures inappropriate clothing means shame. A far more productive function of dreaming is problem-solving, as the sleeping brain continues to work on jobs the waking mind handled during the day.
In one study at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, 99 people were administered a task that required them to navigate through a three-dimensional maze. During the course of their practice sessions, they were given a minute break. Some were asked to engage in quiet activities like reading; others were were instructed to try to take a nap. Those who did nap and who happened to dream about the maze showed a ten-fold improvement on the task in the next session compared to the other subjects.
Finally — give Freud his due — there are dreams that appear to be strictly wish-fulfillment. Dreams about flying may represent a desire for freedom.
Dreams about finding new rooms in your home may express a desire for opportunity or novelty. And as for sex dreams? But our minds would not be as rich nor our brains as nimble nor our wishes so often fulfilled — if only in vivid fantasy.
The screening room of the sleeping brain may sometimes wear you out, but like all good theaters, it will rarely leave you bored. Write to Jeffrey Kluger at jeffrey. By Jeffrey Kluger.
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