Dr. Katia Romanoff interprets symbols in dreams and co-writes an advice column with Dr. Lauri Loewenberg called The Dream Zone, appearing in several newspapers around the country and Sedona Magazine. Below are dozens of Dr Katia’s interpretations of dreams, nightmares and waking visions people send in to her. The same symbols appear in paintings, songs, and religions of the world. Just start reading at the top and see if you find any symbols with a message for YOU. Dreamwork January 2, 2007 Dr. Katia: Well, since diamonds are forever, as is the human soul, this dream might be a message about “eternity” and things that won’t pass away. Has there been a loss in your life lately, or something sentimental that no longer exists and caused you to feel a sense of loss? The message might be that all things shall pass away but not the Divine. Going under a floor means digging into your inner space, plunging into the depths of the soul, looking for the Divine there, where He/She always resides. The sleep part is telling you to meditate and contemplate spiritual things, in other words, things larger than yourself. The vividness was letting you know this is a powerful potent message with the very Source of Life behind it. Cool dream. And hey, what did God look like? You didn’t say! Jim
Getting shot There is a new you coming up that wants to take over your life and run the show. So it keeps killing off the old you. You are getting shot in the head as if to say this involves your thinking habits, your opinions, thoughts. Also ask yourself what might be going on in your waking life that makes you feel like dying, or makes you feel “shot dead”. Who or what is “killing” you. The fact that you can’t breathe indicates you feel suffocated by whatever issue this is. Luckily the suffocation, the feeling of being trapped, makes you wake up. That is symbolic of “waking up” or coming to realize something. If this dream keeps recurring, visualize yourself taking the gun from the shooter and asking them who they are and what their message is. Listen with your inner ear and wait to “hear” their answer (it will just sort of pop into your head). Whatever you hear or sense is your wise guidance from this dream. Being Chased The big old house is you. Whenever you are feeling unfamiliar with life’s “layout” you get this dream. You are comfortable with yourself, yes, but when things are uncertain, you feel like something or someone is going to catch up with you. Yet you are not that worried because you always have a way out of whatever situation this is. The secret tunnels are skills and back-up plans you have but don’t tell anyone about. Is there something from your past you’d rather not face, that has you weary (you wake up tired) but yet isn’t that big of a threat because you are still one step ahead of it? It’s like you know you’ve got it under control, you won’t have to face and solve this issue whatever it is, but yet it still causes you some anxiety. Turn and face your pursuer next time and say, “Why are you following me. What is your message?” See if you can “hear” the answer. Very fascinating twist to the being chased dream, I must say! January 13, 2007 Missing Plane You feel like you are not really making headway toward your dreams and goals in life. You are stuck in a feedback loop where life is only a practice run and you are forced to pretend and prepare for some kind of impending disaster. In waking life whenever you try to break out of this dead-end, whenever you start to figure things out, some obstacle blocks your realization and has to be overcome. You can’t seem to figure out things because you don’t have proper supplies and tools (luggage) and are vulnerable and exposed (no pants). The desire for books, knowledge and popularity may block your path (booksigning), and the complicated puzzles of life (escalator ferry) meaning navigating the waters of relationships and career. You need to soar, to fly to the heights (catch the plane) but you can’t seem to get out of the dress-rehearsal mode of life. Are you in school or self-training for something? That could cause this state of mind which will end once you finally feel you have made progress toward whatever your main inspiration or goal is. Good luck and don’t worry, you will eventually make that flight! The very fact you are having the dream is part of the awakening toward realization and thus resolution of the loop you’re caught in. Thank you for the interpretation. BrainSwap Wow. This is a dream’s way of saying you two are coming in synch and share many opinions and worldviews. However, there is some irregularity about the method by which you come to this swapping and “open” exchange of ideas. Some outside force may be influencing your relationship and the dream isn’t quite clear whether it’s bad or good influence. If you weren’t concerned and thought the whole brain swap thing was cool or just plain normal, it means all is well. If you were worried or afraid during the dream, it could mean there is something not quite right about the situation. Another layer to the dream shows you are wanting to know the inner workings of his mind on something, some issue, some aspect of your relationship. You want to know his thoughts and you want him to share yours. You may feel like he isn’t listening to you on some area and you want to bring him to a meeting of the minds! January 20, 2007 Big Red Ball The ball symbolizes your child self and wholeness. The bigness and redness of it symbolizes energy and health. You would get this dream whenever your child-self was trying to catch up with you, to get your attention. You may have needed to stop and play a bit, not be so stressed. Was there divorce, loss or abuse or something else very difficult to deal with in your childhood? The ball would come after you relentlessly following, not giving up the chase. It actually meant you no harm. You couldn’t hear, but it was saying, come play with me, pay attention to me and you will be whole and healthy. But you were afraid (natural reaction in a child going thru stress in waking life), and so you ran from it, took great pains to avoid it and the issues it represented. That avoidance got you sick. Then you grew up. You matured and at some point in your dreams, though you probably don’t remember, you turned and faced that ball, shrunk it down to size so you could pick it up. You understood its message at last. That’s when you found resolution, closure, and that caused the recurring dream to stop. If you should ever dream it again, it is a message to hark back to the wholeness and healthy play of childhood. The fact that you are interested in solving the dream’s puzzles now indicates you have a current need to pay attention to your “inner child,” especially if there is anything needing closure and healing from back then. Shot in the Back There is something or someone you are trying to avoid. You don’t want this issue or situation to catch up with you. The woods symbolize confusion. You are having a hard time figuring out what direction to go in life. You are still in school, so it could be you are not sure you want to go to college some day or just hang out in highschool forever! You almost get some insight (break out of the woods) when you get shot in the back by confusion again. Do you notice as you reported the dream above you were in past tense then suddenly switched to present tense when you got shot? The present tense words are therefore the most relevent, the part that is screaming for your attention. To be shot means to have your energy, your life force, wrongly drained away, ripped from you. And for it to get you in the back means there is something nagging you just out of sight, that you can’t see or are unwilling to face. The person running with you is part of your own personality — an unknown part because you can’t identify who it is. This personality aspect will help you, he (or she!) is your power, your own custom-made helper. Just like Sam helps Frodo on an ultimate cosmic level in Lord of the Rings, this part of you exists to help you on your life mission. Start planning for college. Let the scholar in you come out. Face your mission in life. You are part of the greatest generation returning again. Last time it was here was World War 2, and you kids are that same hero spirit coming again to save the planet from ultimate destruction. That’s why all your movies and games are about saving the world. You’ve got a job to do. January 29, 2007 I had this dream last night I can’t get out of my There is a very persistent situation nagging you, trying to get your attention, but you think it is dirty and creepy. It may be or maybe not. Babies represent new, precious but vulnerable elements in our lives. A sickly creepy looking male baby could symbolize something new but creepy. A relationship with someone you don’t know well? Is there someone or something that is trying to tell you something but you can’t understand so you ask your bestfriend to try to solve the question? There is something unpleasant you wish your bestfriend could handle for you. The dirty bathroom clues us in about what the message might be since dirty bathrooms symbolize the inability to wash away negativity and stress in your life. Your normal stress-busting mechanism is a mess! You have let things pile up and now you can’t get your thoughts or your life “cleansed” of day to day negativity. And there is something you need to know, something a “baby” in your life is trying to tell you but you can’t focus enough to “get the message.” This powerful dream is sticking with you even during waking hours because it wants to nag you until you figure out the message. By getting the dream interpreted and starting to look closely at your current life situations, you will solve this, don’t worry! I go lock the basement door, and am getting ready The basement entrance by the intruder shows that this is a deep subconscious fear of yours. You are deeply worried some outside force (the intruder) is trying to silence your husband, symbolized by the cutting of his throat. Is there anything cutting him off, lately? The dream is using murder to make a point, exaggerating and shaking you up with the thought of two tragic losses in order to get your attention. What in your waking life is threatening to take your grandfather out of your life? Lately it may seem like your grandfather is becoming “dead” to you, perhaps you don’t spend time with him like you used to. Feeling like you are a murderer indicates you are suffering from guilt, like it’s your fault. Maybe you are afraid your behavior, opinions, or just being so busy lately has “silenced” your husband, made him feel cut off and cut out. And if your grandfather is getting ill or more worn out lately, your subconscious fears of his eventual loss are coming to the surface. The door not being locked tells us you feel unprotected, vulnerable regarding this issue, like there is no way to keep intrusions out. If there is any talk of housing changes, that could also trigger this dream February 4, 2007 Two or three times a week, I wake up singing, to It means you have wisdom and inspiring gifts you need to share with people! Your voice needs to be “heard,” because it is good. These kinds of dreams come to us when we have something spiritually fulfilling that others could benefit from but we are not yet in the right place at the right time. Join a women’s spirituality circle or some other group, and let your gifts flow out of you. Don’t keep silent any longer!
Dear Paul: I think you are quite safe, although yes there is always “evil” or negativity, perversions near. But not that near, not in your own apartment or surely your instincts would alert you. Your roommate is probably fine! Dreams always exaggerate taking the dramatic road to get our attention. The message in your dream is, don’t let your friend drain your energy (that’s what a knife does symbolically), and watch out for him going whacky. A friend may “go insane” not in a violent way, but insane as in irrational. I would suggest going back to the psychic or to another spiritual advisor and getting your fears allayed. They can “read the evil” in your life and reassure you that it isn’t about to gobble you up. Your dream and sense of foreboding afterward is probably also a warning to be on your guard, don’t allow yourself to be sucked in to anything, especially something that will drain the life force out of you (symbolized by murder, knife attacks). February 11, 2007 Deceased Grandmother Wow, what awesome symbols. The snake represents initiation into a higher level of awareness but also immortality! The snake has long been a symbol of eternal life in the world because it sheds its own skin and appears to thus be “resurrected” with a new body. The ancient Egyptians put the snake swallowing its own tail above every doorway to symbolize immortality to all who entered. So that snake is definitely a cosmic life element in your dream verifying that this dream came to reassure you about your grandmother. She is in the spirit realm now but still part of you. You are cleansing (bathtub) the sad memories and the grief you have surrounding her, that’s why you are bathing her. You can’t get her back into your world, though, which is why she falls back down into the cleansing area when she tries to stand up. She must stay there for now, but you can “contact” her in your dreams and meditations — and in your own cells because she is in your DNA. You are the future, HER future. Go and live the best wholesome healthy way you can and take her into the future with you. Ex-husband, Son Dying That dream indicates that although you were clearly in your ex-husband’s life, the two of you never interacted properly. It may also indicate that you are still in his life in some way (is he the father of your son?) but are avoiding interaction. The lavender night stands are very intriguing! They indicate the need to sleep and to record your dreams — the dream journal is often kept on the nightstand. Your dreams have 34 messages for you, perhaps. What is significant about the number 34 to you or to him? Were you together 34 years, maybe? Or was that the age you were when you divorced, or when the problems began, what? Your son, is he nearing age 34 perhaps? That number has some significance in your life that only you can discern. Your second dream tells of your fear of losing your son. These kinds of dreams come to parents often, even after the children are grown. How do you feel he has been figuratively “run over” in waking life? Has his father “run over” him emotionally? Or have you? Lots of questions for you in this interpretation, sorry about that! Don’t worry, nothing bad is going to happen to your son, though. The dream is just trying to tell you that you are afraid of losing him, or that he seems distant “dead to you” sometimes. February 17, 2007 Wife’s Untimely Death Because of her death, your wife got further away from you, just out of sight, while your brother is now closer. Your subconscious is grappling with the loss of her and may be thinking your brother is all you’ve got right now in the long-term kinship department. Her going silent in the dream means she can no longer communicate with you as she did in life, and being near the door means she is ready to make her exit, exit thru the door symbolizing death. But wait! She looked into your eyes, she did not actually exit the truck. The truck represents your specific life and she is still along for the ride, doesn’t want to leave. She is saying, Though I am silent and though you cannot see me, I am still here quietly within your life. Eyes are windows to the soul, her look communicates that she will always be your soul partner. She “rides” with you on the great journey of life. Aimless, Directionless You get this dream whenever you lose your bearings, aren’t sure where you’re at, can’t see any landmarks to guide you. The running after something unseen means you haven’t yet figured out your life goals. You don’t know what you want (what you are chasing after) in life. Everytime you think you’ve decided on a goal, the ability to finally commit to it eludes you. Decisiveness is fleeting — runs away. Yet it keeps you moving, it takes off running saying, “follow me and I will reveal myself.” This is not a bad dream, but comes to help you discover your goals, decide on your aspirations. You are young, so goals may change over the next ten years (or more!). Don’t worry, just try to keep yourself organized and thoughtful. Ponder your options in life. February 26, 2007 Almost since we have been married, my husband has This dream comes to your husband whenever he feels distant from you or from the family. From time to time he feels on the outside looking in. We know he loves you and the family intensely and his greatest worry is to be cut off from you, unable to “catch up” to you. Intriguingly, he apparently subconsciously worries that if he gets too close to you, if he does the supposedly un-masculine thing of getting emotionally intimate with you, he will push you away and you will actually get farther away. Many “old-school” men were trained and programmed to think being emotionally distant is the way to go. The dream is trying to correct this programming, to teach him emotional distance is no fun. It has been recurring so long that real life incidents (actually bring the dream “lesson” to mind. I am walking alone on the beach. A woman’s head pops The beach setting indicates you are bringing together your heart (ocean) and head (beach). This is a good sign as the wild heart often needs to have a meeting of the minds with its partner the logical rational mind (symbolized by the sand and the beach itself). The dream is showing you that although the rational mental world (sand) seems infertile and unyielding on the surface, it has creative even flamboyant characteristics ready to pop up into your awareness if you look deep enough. Certain mathemeticians and scientists have delved into the creative realms, even using dreams to solve famous math equations (Einstein and E=mc2). Your dream is telling you to do the same, open your mind (all those women’s heads) to eruptions of colorful wild creativity! The hats symbolize roles you need to play in life, big and beautiful you in various personas. Their ribbons and flowers indicate various adornments or even frivolities in your life that are trying to get your attention saying, “Enjoy me!” Life itself is saying to you, “Enjoy me!” March 5, 2007 The specific type of suicide he is commiting would help determine what in waking life is causing these dreams. If it is it a painful, or dramatic, or physical kind of self-destruction it means he is taking aggressive feelings out on himself. If he sees his own blood during the process it means he also fears he’s draining his own energy. Watch for signs of suppressed aggression that has nowhere to go. Does he need a punching bag, karate lessons, or some method of draining off this pent-up agressive energy? Filthy Hotel Dream What in your life is not doing its job, but rather loafing and chatting? Something appears to be “on the job” but in reality has no clue or no care. You may need a good rant. Something or someone is rotten in your life and needs to be eliminated properly, put in its proper place. Do not let the muck and yuck of your life pile up. Dispose of all negativity using the proper channels. The hotel setting lets us know this is a temporary situation in your subconscious and although very uncomfortable for you, the solution is at hand. The bed is a place of rest and the bathroom a place of internal cleansing, indicating you may feel there is no way to find relief from a certain situation (“no rest for the weary”) and may also suffer internal frustration at being unable to get something cleaned out. March 10, 2007 Fear not, it doesn’t mean he’s gonna die! On the contrary it often means the family is about to rally around him because he is “pulling away.” In some way he seems “dead to you”, cut off, not communicating as much as usual. This is a warning dream, but not of impending death — only that you need to increase the family time and get your Dad to talk about something he might be keeping silent about!
What fun symbols in this dream. According to modern angelology anytime the numbers 11:11 catch our eye, be they in a dream or on the clock, or someplace else in waking life, means angels are watching over you or trying to communicate with you. There is a message on high for you, Wendy. <grin> As for Al Gore, at this time in our culture consciousness, he represents concern for the environment. Being the principal of your school symbolizes he’s an authority you feel compelled to listen to, even when the topic is unpleasant. Your tattoo is a permanent reminder that if you “sit” — which symbolizes doing nothing — there will be a need for angels watchin’ over you. But otherwise if you are active, when you take action, the “message” (of your tattoo!) is different. The rich resources of the earth (Rubies) will be your. You are upset because thanks to Al Gore (sort of) this permanent problem, the environment, has now become a permanent worry for you. March 19, 2007 In my dream, my martial arts studio asked me to be a “hit woman” for them. I knew I had to kill someone to be “accepted.” The woman I had to kill was a gal I work with (whom I really like and have known for a long time). In my dream, it was her body from the waist up, but from the waist down, she was a snake, coiling in and out of the ground. I held a knife behind her back and she backed into it. I held the knife steady and she died. Next, I cut the “snake” part off of her and put the rest of her in the trunk of my car. Then in the dream, I had a moment of clarity and the weight of what just happened hit me and I thought to myself, “What have I done … now Julie’s son has no mother … what was I thinking?” I woke up after that and was relieved I was dreaming, because the feelings of what had happened were so heavy. – Beth You feel pressure from some institution in your life (not necessarily the martial arts studio) to “recruit” someone, to make a “hit” and bring in more customers or churchgoers. Are you currently hoping to earn membership with the “in” crowd some place? Julie symbolizes part of yourself that you feel needs killing off in order to please others. Describe her with the first three words that pop into your head when you think of her. Those characteristics are what you think needs to be killed off in your life in order to be accepted by the clique or establishment. The guilty and heavy feelings are there to warn you, don’t do it, it ain’t worth it! Let the snobs stay snobs while you remain the same. The snake body is your coiled “woman power”, including sexuality. You are forced to stab yourself (Julie is you, remember) in the back, symbolizing betrayal of your true self. Removing the snake part means going without sex or giving up on sex for the rest of your life. Hiding evidence in the trunk means you don’t want anyone to know what you are worried about and trying to eliminate in your life. Nay, nay, not healthy. As long as you are ethical and no innocents are being harmed, be only who and what you are “called” to be. To hell with the opinions of others. Life is too short to waste time on gaining acceptance! My dreams haven’t been making a particular impression The big game represents your career “field” or some other area where you feel a sudden need to be competitive. How have you surprised yourself lately by flying high in some super-charged realm you thought you were too old for? The knife indicates you feel stigmatized and/or wrongly accused of aiding the competition. In some area of your life you are afraid you’ve been duped into benefiting the “other side”. This dream has another, entirely different, possible interpretation. It could be about your sexlife! You are afraid that if you aim for sexual satisfaction, soar with the highly sexually active crowd, you will end up “betraying” your team. You are worried the sex life you want for yourself will cause you to let down either a partner or your family. You have the ability to score — to achieve sexual pleasure — but circumstances are holding you back, perhaps making you feel guilty for giving another “player” a score also. You want to fly high and to be proud of your sexuality, but outside forces (opinions?) are making you think twice. The “bunch of young men” football players symbolize unbridled sex, and the knife in this case represents orgasm. You “gave” (or might give) one to the “wrong” person (perhaps to yourself for once!). Response from Dreamer: March 27, 2007 Suicide Friend Appearing in Dreams Suicide is a very shocking thing to the subconscious mind. It takes years to come to grips with it. These dreams are coming to you because you are inwardly trying to work out why this happened. You are examining this puzzling tragedy in your subconscious perhaps wondering if there was anything you could’ve done to stop him from killing himself. Also, since he is your childhood friend, you identify with him as though he is yourself. Part of your deep inner self may wonder if you will lose control and do the same thing! That’s how unsettling suicide is. It just shouldn’t happen and we are not geared to understand it. It is good you are having the dreams because that shows you are actively working on healing and moving on to a place where you can accept the loss. Hang in there, “joy cometh in the morning” as the Bible says, meaning time slowly but inevitably heals all losses. Birds Everywhere/ Electric Bill Dream Wow, now that’s a doozy! Okay. Something is making you reluctant to pay the electric bill. There are all manner of obstacles — your conscience, your budget, environmental concerns — blocking your ability or willingness to pay that bill. Are you worrying about being “carbon neutral” or something? The dream seems to be saying “save the birds!” or they will peck at you, they will whine. Who in your life or what aspect of your personality is complaining, nagging at you? There must be something that has you paralyzed, unable to “get back on your feet.” Finances, fears, personal situations might be keeping you down right now. The cannon symbolizes choosing the wrong solution, or trying too hard to fix a small problem. The friend is your helper, you’re in this together, even if you’re not solving the situation. Birds in dreams often mean there is a message for you. Birds being “everywhere” as you say, could symbolize too many messages, too much incoming information you have to plow thru just to “pay the bills.” How are you feeling “blocked out” or “flat on your back” in some way? That will give you hints as to what this dream is trying to point out in your life. April 8, 2007 Buffalo, Bikes, Slow Motion You feel like your life is going in slow motion, that even though you are going 500 miles a minute in some areas of life, you are often frustrated thinking you’ll never reach your long term goals. Bikes in dreams refer to balance, being able to stay up and moving in life. Life can indeed be a balancing act of ups and downs, foward motion and immobility. Bison (also called buffalo, but they’re really bison) symbolize survival, as in the opposite of extinction. How in your current life are you just trying to survive and stay alive? When you see bison in your dreams it is telling you not to waver from your goals, to be careful to stay on course. When the road is dark it symbolizes the unknown element that is your future, perhaps parts you haven’t planned yet. No goals, no plans can cause you to get off the path. The bison come to say don’t get distracted. Determine your road and stick to it, then things won’t seem so slow motion. Do more than survive. Survive and thrive. RESPONSE FROM DREAMER: This April 9, 2007 It’s very strange, because I never remember my dreams, but this one was so vivid. I saw my husband and ten year old son on a river bank fishing (something they’ve never done before). Next thing I remember I saw my son at a table, sitting across from a man who resembles Will Smith the actor. The man is giving my son advice on life and school, almost like a father figure. Next thing I remembered was skipping to the future and seeing my son about ten years from now. He is walking out of an open empty garage. He’s wearing a black t-shirt with white writing on it — the rebel type — with a saying on it like “confused” or something. He looks like my son, but as I see his face I see Gov. Rod! HELP! what the Hell does this mean? – Ruth, Chicago, IL Fishing symbolizes man-to-man time, deep bonding time for males of our human species. You worry your son isn’t getting enough of that because your husband is too busy and that you (symbolized by the Will Smith look-alike) will have to assist in fatherly duties like communicating male wisdom. What does Will Smith mean to you — describe him in three words. Those are the characteristics you may have to contribute to the father-son relationship (yes you!) if your husband needs some help in this arena. Now as for the time warp… You fear that your son will end up confused and rebellious if he doesn’t have a deep connection with his father while young. Instead of becoming the President of the United States like all boys (and some girls) are told they might, you fear your son might become like the Governor of Illinois who is embroiled in everything from a family feud to old-boy network scandals. Governor Rod symbolizes success yes, but perhaps the tainted kind. Then again, to YOU, Governor Rod may symbolize something altogether different. Describe the Governor in the first three words that pop into your head when you picture him. Those qualities are what you worry your son will end up like if he doesn’t get enough one-on-one time with your husband. Keep in mind your dream isn’t a prophecy, it is merely a reflection of your fears. This dream is trying to draw your attention to finding workarounds for your husband’s busy schedule, pointing out that both of you parents need to spend more down time with your son — not gametime, TV time, not commute time, but relaxing sitting-around time. Fishing time. The mother-son relationship is profound and deep, too, by the way. Just think of Franklin Delano Roosevelt whose mother was the center of his world, he never even went to school. She literally made him the (great) man he was. April 15, 2007 You fear things are out of control regarding your father and sister and you are helpless to do anything about it (paralysis). Are you worried your sister will die of the same thing your father did? Additionally, the car can symbolize the dreamer’s body and physical well-being; so you may be worried about your own health, too. Are you needing to “apply the brakes” — put a stop to some behavior or habit — in the health realm? Helplessness in the face of death and serious illness is very normal and shows up in our dreams all the time. You are also feeling helpless occasionally in regard to achieving your goals. You feel frustrated when something in life seems like it is holding you back, keeping you from making it to the top, symbolized in the dream by your inability to get to the top of the steps or the hill. I recently had a dream that the “mafia” We “witness” awful things quite alot nowadays compared to say, thirty years ago. What horrors are we seeing, you may ask? Movies. Crime shows. Just during commercials promoting the movies we see decapitations — my four year old asked me two nights ago, “Mama what happened to that lady’s head!” Off went the television, let me tell ya. The actual movie and show content is made to shock-fascinate us into attention with too many “snuffs”, horrible tortures, close-up drownings, self-flagellations as in movies like DaVinci Code and the new Casino Royale. It’s not just Quentin Tarantino anymore. Your subconscious may have noticed you are absorbing disturbing visual experiences and images once reserved only for killers, police and soldiers in the field. You feel threatened by a dark force (mafia) because of what you have seen. You feel helpless to fight it, so we see you realizing in your dream “there is no way out.” You know a person can’t “unsee”, can’t “unwitness” what they have seen, so you turn your back and say go ahead, take my life. Notice the wierd pick-axe weapon goes into your head, not your heart, showing it affects you psychologically, “pierces” your thoughts and causes damage — but not death. The warm blood you felt symbolizes the life force, the vital health you are losing because of this situation. Also, it seems you worry your husband is unwilling to help you in this or some area of your life. Perhaps like the vast majority of people he doesn’t think it’s harmful to the psyche to view the horrors we subject our eyes to. Your mother understands but is having difficulty helping you find the solution, helping you heal. She can’t shield you (no place to hide) although she does represent a time period when movies and shows were not so freakin’ graphic and vile. My advice is to try policing your eyes as they tell priests in training — don’t look at the magazine covers at the checkout stand, avoid violent movies and criminal shows. Don’t be shy about turning your head, shielding your eyes for scenes like the self-flagellation in DaVinci Code, or leave the room for the torture scene and drowning snuff scenes (there are two) in the new Casino Royale. Above all don’t be afraid to speak out and call a duck a duck — tell others when something sick is sick; don’t fool yourself into calling it entertainment or “just a movie.” Vile is vile. We CANNOT UNSEE things. Imagine a mind during its formative years sucking in all these images. Furthermore, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder with no traumatic incident causing it is on the rise. You can probably tell what I think might be its cause! April 23, 2007
Every one of those dead people is a part of YOUR personality! They represent parts of you that are dying off, no longer needed. If you were actually killing them it would mean you might need them later and are prematurely letting these aspects of self “die.” But you are only observing the phenomenon and believe it or not, it’s healthy! We are always evolving, moving toward a higher consciousness. You are no longer “sedated” — going thru life “asleep” to reality, or escaping reality. You aren’t falling into bodies of water (having emotional fits). You have grown out of that. You are no longer worried about hitting it big (get 1.2 million dollars) and then losing it suddenly. You know that if you work steady at something, toward your goal, you will reach it. There is no need to pine after the easy quick road. The video rental place means you are supposed to pay attention to these “deaths” of your old aspects. There is a message for you in each death. The news commentor is your logical observing self that is pointing your attention the “message” in a helpful but completely unemotional way. I had a dream that I was in a tank… like a fish Something or someone is inflicting pain upon you! It may be physical or emotional pain, but is probably the latter. Tanks of water and even swimming pools in dreams represent artificially contained emotions. A tank has the added meaning of restriction. You are stuck in an emotional situation from time to time that whenever it gets worse — whenever the waters of emotion start to rise — you suffer from terrible pinching stinging pain. The laboratory setting means you feel others are observing you, that you are part of a cold calculating dispassionate “experiment”. There may be someone in your life (an institution, job, or person) that you feel doesn’t care about your feelings, but watches you whenever you start to get emotional. April 30, 2007 FISHTANK HORSEHEAD Well. The tanks symbolize artificially contained emotions and with fish in them you have the additional meaning of consciousness, as in cosmic consciousness. So. An older part of yourself (the old lady) wants more of what you already have there is no stable foundation (floor) for this new element. You are tired of trying to fit in to a new location. Something heavy is weighing you down which is “extremely frustrating” to you. The horse symbolizes your physical health. You have cut off your head from your body meaning you are only concerned with your mental and emotional health lately and might be ignoring your body. That’s why the horse is unhappy and unsociable. “He” (really you) wants to be whole again and is tired of being “contained” emotionally. The party represents something fun you are being left out of, yet again some area where you don’t “belong” or are unable to find the right “place.” EVIL BASEMENT This means you are getting stuck in your subconscious mindset from back then — your childish mindset. As a kid you saw things in black and white, evil and good, and now all this gray of adulthood is confusing you. You are afraid if you don’t look back at certain issues you will get stuck and be unable to “move up”. The specific rooms in the basement where the evil fear dwells will give you clues as to what these issues in your past are. Is there something just below your awareness, something in your life right now that is nagging you saying, “this is bad, avoid it,” but you can’t quite figure out what? Such a nagging feeling of negativity and fear could trigger the basement dream. Close your eyes and visualize yourself climbing up your old basement steps briskly and confidently and then bursting out into the light of the outdoors. That is your bright future and it will wait patiently for you. Perform this visualization exercise before you go to bed for at least a week. Creating your own “happy ending” and pounding it into your subconscious through thoughtful repetition, usually cures recurring dreams. May 7, 2007 I have a dream about twice a week of someone bring It could mean that there is also a female soul out there who wants to come to you and be your daughter. She may be “calling” to you, reaching out to you. Perhaps the boy you are supposed to adopt has a sister. Have you considered adopting a sibling group? On a deep psychological level the little girl could represent you! She is the part of you that will arrive anew when any new child comes into your life and calls you mother because we relive our childhoods thru our children. They are us, after all. The story of humanity continues in an unbroken thread from the far distant past to the great unknown future as the mature ones care for and teach the wisdom of life to the young ones. The cycle of human thought, growth, love, survival and continuity repeats itself always. You are part of that! I had a WEIRD & CRAZY dream last night!!! PLEASE HELP!!! I had You feel that your husband’s anger is about to get the best of him in some area of real life. You worry he is going to freak out inappropriately and put an end to (“kill”) something that shouldn’t be killed, all because he is ticked off. It could even be a thing he freaks out over and wants to get rid of. Whatever it is, after his over-reaction you know you will have to do some damage control, help “hide” the anger, or ill effects of it, smooth over the outburst, (put it in a bag, contain it) and throw it away — into the earth, releasing the tension of it but also hiding or suppressing it. You also worry that some authority figure (his work, boss?) will punish him or penalize him if he dares express his anger over this issue. Such over-reacting is common to humans(!) so don’t worry too much. Your dream certainly does not mean your husband really wants to literally kill someone! And if it’s something he NEEDS to be stand up and speak up about, in other words “good” anger, you might discuss how he should best express his disapproval without inappropriate “killing off” or “chopping” words. May 12, 2007 MYSTICAL EXPERIENCE DREAM Wow, you had a classic mystical experience! What you describe, the cosmos, timelessness, being in the great NOW moment, sensing a presence, receiving a profound message, is exactly how mystics have described contact with the Absolute for centuries. St. Thomas Aquinas used to wish for such an experience — he was a very left-brained theologian-philosopher. Kabbalists and shamans teach about walking between the “worlds” –something physicists now call parallel universes. There is talk in spiritual circles that the “veils between worlds” are “thin” right now and special children are being born. Sounds like you’ve got a couple in your life. The dream told you destiny was in the making, something cosmic was at work. It was triggered by something within you (or within the universe!) that recognized the awesome joy, but awesome responsibility that goes along with guiding a special soul placed in your care. GRANDMOTHER DEAD IN COFFIN You have a (very normal) fear of losing your grandmother. At one point you are asked in the dream “are you ready,” because no, you are not ready for your grandmother to die and never will be. That is only natural and very healthy, as is your crying hysterically in the dream. We human beings have alot of fear about death itself, great fear in fact!, which is illustrated in your dream by the “oh my god” when your father looked death in the face, so to speak. The hope in this dream is the youthful happiness your grandmother exuded from the grave showing that the physical death is only a transition. At death one is transformed back into the “real” you, the young healthy vibrant you (symbolized by the huge flower). Despite the fear, the grief and the unreadiness, it is still part of life this thing we call death and can be a peaceful even beautiful graceful transition. Now if your grandmother is gravely ill this dream could be your intuition saying she’s about to go, but if she’s as healthy as can be and not a thing wrong, this dream was just triggered by your own realization that she is getting older and someday it will happen. Nothing to worry about, it’s not a psychic dream in this case! MAY 21, 2007 I constantly have dreams of planes crashing, These are called precognitive dreams, where you learn something in advance. Since Einstein told us time is relative, all time is NOW, the phenomenon of dreaming about things before they occur is understood as “part of you knows” because it already happened or is happening in the NOW, the eternal moment. That aside, dreams of planes and crashes also have a symbolic interpretation of your goals and hopes not being realized. You may get a dream of a plane crashing any time something that previously inspired you, caused you to soar to the heights, suddenly turns to disillusionment. Also ask yourself when you have one of these dreams, how are you too high and coming down to earth too fast? The idea is to “land” instead of crash when one needs to come “down to earth,” needs to be grounded! I keep having dreams where my youngest son gets hurt. Both the dreams Anxiety about a child being injured is a common dream mothers have. Your intuition may be alerting you that with a houseful of children now, it won’t be as easy to childproof your home, to avoid every pitfall. The youngest child is often the one who gets hurt because he or she gets into something the older children have left out. Falling into a hole symbolizes falling into a trap, probably a fear you have that he is getting stuck in his growth or development. A hole in the head symbolizes a lack in education or development. It seems like you might be worried he is not as smart as he should be, not getting the educational development. Since your church is in the dream it may indicate a worry that he is not getting what he needs out of Sunday School or his spiritual life. May 28, 2007 Recently I had a dream that I stabbed myself You may be doing damage somehow to your reproductive system, but it is temporary damage (pencils symbolize temporary as opposed to “permanence” of an inkpen). The uterus is not only about feminine reproduction, it is also the womb of creativity and where great things — ideas, projects, life itself — are “cooked” or incubated. Pencils are used for figuring and for communicating. How might you be figuring in some damage to your femininity or your reproductive/productive function? Are you angry about some project or “production” you are working on? And now in Sigmund Freud’s memory I must mention that the pencil was once a phallic symbol in dream interpretation. You’ve got a phallic symbol going into a womb, possibly indicating it’s sex we’re talking about, plain and simple. Ask yourself how your sexlife might be “angry” or unpleasant and then see if you can correct it because every pencil has one thing going for it — an eraser! You can reverse any “damage” done by a pencil, it’s never permanent. So do not fear, you will figure out a solution. Can dreams be clairvoyant? – Jenny 30, Rye Beach, NH I believe so, yes. Clairvoyant dreams, also called psychic or prophetic dreams do occur and are undeniable. There is a collective “knowing” all around us, an overmind, that somehow some dreamers tap into. Most dreamworkers have run into clairvoyant dreams and dreamers, but many left-brained dream “experts” disagree, some going so far as to say people delude themselves into thinking they’ve dreamed something before it happened. Strict criteria should be followed when deciding whether you’ve had a pre-cognitive or clairvoyant dream. You gotta be brutally honest with yourself. Keep a dream journal with dates, or make a point to tell someone about a dream you think might be clairvoyant. Shared dreams are one of my favorite forms of clairvoyant dreams and their occurence has been documented. Several disconnected people having predictive dreams before disasters has also been observed and documented. Another fascinating type of clairvoyant dreaming is to dream something while it is happening somewhere across the globe. JUNE 3, 2007 BARKING HORSE The horse represents a part of YOU that wants to say something to your friend but can’t find the words. You can “bark” at her, but you cannot communicate what it is that is worrying you about her. Horses are about strength, vigor, and bodily health. Dogs are about loyalty and friendship. That may give you a clue as to what this thing is you are trying to articulate to your friend but it keeps coming out wrong. Maybe you don’t like her choice of significant other or her health lifestyle?
Interesting redundant twos in this dream. The second cat is extra, not needed, and you can’t wear two pair of boots at once. Something has “multiplied” or doubled in your life and you have to care for twice as many people or things as you used to. You feel uneasy (sick on the stomach) about this new situation you’re stuck with. The sense of doom and demise you feel comes from a fear that necessary parts of yourself or talents are being inappropriately killed off (the hangings). Boots symbolize your firm opinions especially regarding “taking a stance” about something. Cats symbolize independence — have you declared your independence twice now, forced to repeat yourself when somebody wouldn’t listen? It could even be yourself not listening…. Something or someone is asking you to hide a firm stance you have taken, a time (or two times!) when you stood your ground. The basement is your subconscious mind. A “gravesite” there lets us know this issue is something from your past which you may not want to “bury” because it is still unresolved. Having to go “see” this gravesite symbolizes there is a past issue you thought “dead and gone” which you now need to be aware of. RESPONSE FROM DREAMER June 11, 2007 I dream of my son Alex that passed away 13 years Loss of a child, especially a baby, is something so hard on our psyche that it will show up in our dreams for years to come. Your dreams of him are part of your subconscious mind coming to terms with the tragedy. Part of you wonders, isn’t he still alive because your spiritual self knows the soul is eternal. Yet your physical logical self knows he is dead. So your subconscious mind tries to work this all out, how can he be dead, yet alive, and comes up with fleeting ideas like the doctor made a mistake, etc. Those fleeting ideas are just passing ideas as you come to terms on a very deep level, mind, body and spirit, with your little boy’s death. You are happy because you know he is eternal, his soul is indeed alive somewhere and will possibly return to physical form some day, but at the same time you are still naturally sad because he is gone from your physical sight. Dreaming of him like this is part of the healing process and is a very good sign, so don’t be discouraged by the dreams. I dreamed last night that I was with my boyfriend You are afraid anger and jealousy will consume (burn up) your relationship. It is ridiculous that you would cheat on your man with Snoop Dog, who represents rebellion and hostility. You fear there is anger in your relationship. The bedroom setting shows it is connected to your love life and passion. Fire in dreams can mean both passion and anger. Hostility and destruction are trying to gain entry into your life, trying to break in and ruin everything. But you have sensed this destructive force. You are on to it. That brings us to the wonderful conclusion of your dream. You actually put the fire OUT. That is amazing. This means you have got the power, woman! You are in control and can “put out the fire” of anger, hostility or jealousy — whatever comes up to destroy you. There is no obstacle you cannot overcome; you have the tools to solve any disastrous situation. Good dream! June 18, 2007 I dreamt my mom was pregnant It means good luck and prosperity are on their way to all of you! It sounds like a cliche, but this is one of a very few dream symbols that actually *does* sound like what a gypsy fortuneteller would tell you. Twins represent abundance, prosperity and “two for the price of one”. So a bargain, more than what you asked for, has arrived in your life. Dreaming you yourself are pregnant can sometimes mean you really are, but otherwise indicates something wonderful is coming down the pike. The fact that you both had similar dreams may mean this new issue, project, prosperity, is going to be a team effort. Your mother might be involved, or she could be a symbol for your own motherly side. What two-sided as yet un-born project are you “mothering” in your life? It’s good, all good. Since my father died, over 10 years ago, I have a Maybe yes, maybe no. If you have no memory of this abuse you would be one of those rare cases of decades long total suppression. His death could have “released” your suppression of childhood molestation. Now that your subconscious mind feels safe, doesn’t have its shields up every time you would see him, the knowledge is coming out. However, it might NOT be! Dreaming we are being molested can be symbolic, pointing to a deep suspicion we are being taken advantage of, “abused”. Did you feel like your father took you for granted or manipulated you for his own goals? There may be something in your relationship that you need to accept and come to terms with now that he’s gone. So these dreams could or could not be pointing to actual events in your childhood. There is no way to tell, but keep in mind dreams love to exaggerate to get our attention! I suggest finding a good and gentle hypno-therapist and seeing what comes up in sessions. June 25, 2007 SWIMMING WITH MERMAIDS The car is yours — your sleek ability to escape your anxieties. Mermaids symbolize the ultimate feminine independence and have a spiritual connotation. You need to do some deep thinking, and are on the right track, but are not able to go to deep out of “safety” concerns. Because of not plumbing these valuable depths, you feel you’re just floating along watching others live while you ponder the mysteries of life (trying to figure out something). What problem or mystery needs solving in your life but you are too distracted by anxieties and dashed hopes (crashing planes)? The number seven means a “perfect set”, almost divinely ordained. The two lost planes symbolize goals you didn’t reach, hopes that “crashed and burned.” The bathroom is a place of negativity removal. You are overwhelmed by something (or everything!) in your life right now and attempting to shed its negative energy. The woman is your inner wise guide. Good for you recognizing her and getting over your initial mistrust of “invasion”. She left you the sleek dark car (YOU provided it for yourself, therefore!) a symbol of unknown but powerful feminine strength you can draw upon. Get in the car and speed away from your worries to a place where nothing disrupts your deep thinking. There are mysteries you’re on the verge of solving! Hi Why am I not able to dream about my mother who passed This is very normal. Usually dreams of the deceased loved one don’t begin until a whole year has gone by. Our ancestors may have been on to something when they set the period of mourning at one year. Although emotional healing begins immediately after a loss, it takes months for the subconscious to get over the shock and then begin the deep level healing. Each case is different, you may “see” your mother in your dreams sooner, but don’t stress over it. If you have something to tell her, or something to ask her, you can try guided visualization or dream incubation. For incubation view a variety of pictures of her for about an hour before sleep. Make eye contact with one of the photos and ask your question or tell her what you want to say. Then put the photos by your bedside and go to sleep. Keep pen and pad handy so you can write down details if anything comes to you. Remember, we have only about nine minutes after waking up to write down a dream before it slips from our memory! July 16, 2007 This dream shows how toxic this woman’s presence in the workplace must have been. She really had to go, and thankfully she did. However, your subconscious is worried there will be a re-bound, repercussions, a return of the unpleasantness. Perhaps you fear the strife won’t go away quietly. It’s not a predictive dream from what I can tell. However, it wouldn’t hurt in my opinion to mention your recurring nightmare to other co-workers so all of you can be on the alert so to speak. Some might think you are kooky, but the majority of people are nowadays openminded to what used to be called merely psychic phenomenon and ESP but which is technically precognition. Again, the chances are very slim the dream would so vividly depict the future. It is more likely to be a commentary on your own mental processes regarding this psychic vampire that was in your mist, draining your energy (shooting everyone). SPIDER DREAM Part of you that you are comfortable with, that belongs in your personality, took care of cleaning up a dead useless part. Spiders are known to eat their dead and wounded. The spider attacking you means you are feeling wounded and thus “attracting” the spider, sort of like a dead carcass attracts vultures! What parts of you (perhaps something in your past) are now dead but have left you feeling a bit wounded? Since it came at you from the ceiling it might symbolize an issue or emotion that is “over your head” right now. Waking up when you did shows the anxiety you feel over the particular situation. The dream shows you are on the road to healing this woundedness, and just trying to work out its meaning is progress. July 22, 2007 I dream constantly all night long, waking up at least 4 or 5 times a night and then dream again. Not the same dream every single night but at least once or twice a week. This has been for many, many years. I feel like I never really sleep. – Amanda, Memphis, TN Are you on any medication? That can cause too many dreams. Too much caffeine will do it, too. If not one of those things, you should go and get a sleep study done. Senior citizens spend about 25% of their time dreaming. But you sound like you’ve got too many dreams and should mention it to your doctor. Ask about seeing a sleep specialist. **** A 64 year old dreamer wrote in to say she was constantly waking up with too many dreams each night. Dean M. Tomasello, M.D. wrote in to advise her: The normal 60 year old person spends about 20-25% of their sleep in REM sleep. This is the “stage” of sleep where most dreaming occurs. Sleep progresses from stage 1 (the lightest level, during which the sleeper can be awakened easily) to stage 4 (the deepest level, during which waking the sleeper is difficult). In stage 4, the muscles are relaxed, the blood pressure is at its lowest, and the heart and breathing rates are at their slowest. Besides these four stages, there is a form of sleep accompanied by rapid eye movements (REM) and behavioral activity. During REM sleep, electrical activity in the brain is unusually high, somewhat resembling that of wakefulness. The eye movement and brain wave changes that accompany REM sleep can be recorded electrically on an electroencephalogram (EEG). What to do… You certainly appear to have a sleep disturbance problem. There are medications to treat this problem. In my experience it does not usually indicate any “serious” underlying medical disorder. The good news is there are medications which can be used to help improve the sleep of individuals with sleep disorders. http://www.medhelp.org/forums/FamilyPractice/messages/45.html *** July 29, 2007 Sadly it usually takes about a year for the subconscious to be able to send us dreams of a lost loved one. Perhaps our ancestors knew something we didn’t when they set the period of mourning at one year. Haley will come back to you somehow. It didn’t work out this time, her soul departed but only temporarily. She will return to you because she has chosen your family to be hers. She make come as another child to you or as a grandchild some day — or she will enter your life in some other way. Don’t try so much to dream of her as a deceased little girl, but to contact her as a not-yet-born child who still wants to come to you in the living realm. She doesn’t want to exist only in the dream world, she wants to be here in the flesh. The soul that was in your womb no doubt decided that body had too many flaws and best to try to make another one. Painful though it is, this is just a temporary setback. She’s got her eye on you and wants to be part of your lives. See if you can find her, or draw her near again, in the physical world. DONALD DUCK POLICE You probably got this dream any time you were August 5, 2007 Whenever you take risks in life, whenever things get “edgy,” your mind brings up the living on the edge dream. Waking life is a balancing act sometimes, as you try to avoid pitfalls and “slipping” up. Very normal dream, nothing to worry about. The flying dream comes to you whenever you are feeling inspired or elated, when you are “soaring” from one of life’s successes or pleasures. You are flying on your own, with no mechanical aid, which is very good symbolism. Sometimes we are sent those kinds of dreams whenever we are too down to earth and need a “lift”. If you get too many dreams of being up high you must ask yourself, How am I out of touch, How am I too high in waking life? CAMPGROUND DREAM The campground setting indicates this is about your need to relax and get back to basics. Your childhood bestfriend symbolizes a happy time without the weight of responsibilities. You may be wanting a simpler life lately, but some thing or some one is messing up your attempts at relaxation. It could also be an unfamiliar part of your own personality that is hostile to the idea of getting back to nature, doesn’t want you to live a simple life. “She” or some outside force uses disturbing tactics to keep you upset, keep you from reaching your goal. Luckily you are tired of this persistent negative element in your life and have reached a point of taking action. Good for you. Fed up, you are going to “choke” it out of existence. Throttling the annoyance may seem a harsh step to take, but it’s probably for the best. It doesn’t mean you are being pushed to actual physical violence, but that you need to be aggressive to stop this problem now before it does real damage. August 13, 2007 SNAKE UNDER THE BEDCOVERS Aha! What spiritual advancements have you been keeping “under cover”? Snakebites are actually one of the best things that can happen to you in a dream and symbolize initiation — reaching a new plateau of spiritual wisdom. Your feet are your foundation as well as what gets you around. So how has this new wisdom in your life affected your stability and mobility? Hopefully for the good. You should have more paths open to you and feel grounded and stable at last. INOPERABLE PHONES & LOCKS These are all common dream themes to humans, especially August 19, 2007 Ah, the last line says it all. You are making a significant choice right now regarding direction in life. You want some input from your husband, but then again you realize it is up to you to make the choice. It must be a very personal matter, or one which even your husband has no real impact. The roads and the mountain symbolize the journey of life itself. The wildlife are parts of your personality and instincts. When the antelope — a symbol of feminine grace and agility — run away and you decide it’s time to get in the car, it makes me wonder if your issue is one of feminine independence and perhaps having to do with your health (cars are often used in dreams as symbols for the body). You are choosing the safe mode of transportation, yet are still part of the adventure. The wondrous town is your higher self, the self you are evolving into: beautiful, balanced, and you love it. You could choose the wild untamed “road less travelled by” in the immortal words of poet Robert Frost, but you like people and community, and above all beauty and serenity. You made the right choice for YOU, and it looks like a good one! PREGNANT WITH QUADRUPLETS You have four irons in the fire, four buns in your oven right now, meaning four things (projects, relationships, ideas?) very vulnerable and precious that you must care for. One of them however is draining all your energy and detracting from the other three. Only one project may survive and the others may never be “born”. What thing, person, or project is a bit of a parasite in your life at present? Don’t let it starve the other elements out of existence because they are all of equal importance. August 26, 2007 Puppies symbolize your own playfulness. SPIDERS Well alot depends on what the August 30, 2007 I wanted to ask about the kind of dream my husband has almost nightly. He is always fighting off evil or monsters or something of the kind. He has dreams like he is fighting a bear underwater. Or saving me and the family from a monster or evil spirits. He uses a stick or weapon. He said he is always on the defense in the dreams, like we are going somewhere (walking) and he is always watching the next corner or behind something – watching out for the dangerous something. He makes lots of noise and is upset when fighting the bad things in his dreams. He moans and sometimes sounds like he is crying or yelling out. He wakes up with night sweats. – Joyce, West Valley, UT This is a common dream to knights in shining armor and husbands/fathers who really internalize their sacred duty to protect home and hearth. Your husband intensely desires to physically protect you guys. He must have had some vulnerable personal safety moments in his childhood, or watched his mother or another woman become victims in some way. Those experiences have made him hypersensitive to dangers toward his own loved ones. As an adult he also has seen how the media and so-called “edgy” or dangerously “trendy” elements of culture lure people into dark mental traps (and physical traps as in drug addiction) and turn them into victims. These “monsters” are everywhere, around the next corner and behind innocent things just as in your husband’s dreams. He doesn’t want any more of his loved ones to become casualties either physically, emotionally, mentally or spiritually. When he is yelling or crying out during these symbolic “battles” it means he is worried he will not be able to keep up this fight forever. It is very distressing, the “culture war” we are all living in the midst of, and certain sensitive people recognize its dangers while others just keep walking on that cliff’s edge, taking their children along with them, never even noticing the deep chasm of evils only inches away that wants to gobble each of us up. He sounds like a noble and sensitive guy in a world where the word “noble” is scoffed at. Talking to him about the culture war, your family’s defenses against it, and basic physical security steps that your family takes, may eliminate or at least reduce these unpleasant dreams. I had a dream last night that my daughter died It probably wasn’t all night long, but such a dream is so emotionally intense that it will exhaust you after only a few minute long “episodes”! Children at that age are just beginning to exert their independence. By the age of two their chemical makeup changes so that they smell differently to the mother. You are sensing the impending change like a million billion mothers before you and you don’t like it. (Only natural). You feel like she is “dying” to you. The fact she gets up and takes off running is there to tell you no matter how much you fear her death, she will still be alive because we are talking about symbolic death here. Somewhere between the ages of 2 and 3 the child comes to the shocking realization that their body and their mother’s body are separate beings! She thinks you and her are One right now. Therefore in a subconscious way you may “agree” with her and look at the two of you as a unified organism. This sets you up to look at her independence (as speech and independent thinking increase) as little deaths. When you hold her, when you make physical contact, she “dies again” because she can’t stay in your arms like an infant anymore. Such a bummer, I have an 18 month old myself and it is sad to see them “go”. But go they must and our psyches might view it as a “death” of sorts, even though our intellects know full well it’s just nature marching on, and the line of your people going forth. To the future…! September 7, 2007 For some time now it has seemed your ex and his son have been dead to you, lost in the bottom of an artificial emotional place in your mind. The aquarium represents artificially contained emotions. Its ocean-like quality shows how vast and overwhelming the situation has been to you. Even if you were happy about the divorce, your subconscious mind still must grapple with the sudden and continual absence of these people from your life. Your ex didn’t want to save your relationship back when you divorced. He didn’t want to be “rescued”. The dolphin is your own inner beauty and feminine intuition telling you that your step-son wasn’t like your ex, and actually wanted to be saved. Your ex made a choice, the boy wasn’t really part of it. Despite your obvious distress (you were screaming in the dream) this dream overall is a healthy one. It is part of your healing process with symbols like crystal, clear, bright and brilliant indicating you are coming to terms with everything in a healthy manner. I dreamt my bed was on a restaurant patio surrounded The restaurant patio setting indicates this is about nurturing and “feeding” the whole self, especially the part of you “exposed” and “open” to the public. The people represent parts of your personality both known and unknown to you. The boy is unique in that he represents a playful “masculine” or “boyish” trait of yours that has a message for you. Teeth represent words and speech. The message is that you need to speak up about something. It’s stuck in the back of your throat but needs to be said. By the way, being in bed is a common dream element that is oftentimes unrelated to the dream content, only occuring because some part of us is aware that we are indeed in bed. Dr. Katia, September 16, 2007 The flying around until you bumped together shows you want your family (or a family lifestyle) nearby now even though in the past you may have been more comfortable living far apart. The house in the dream is your personality. You want families (or specifically your family) to like being around you, approve of your lifestyle and your neighborhood. You have been “living apart” in philosophy, not necessarily physical location. The clouds are clearing after a period of uncertainty regarding how things will end up. It looks like agreement and inspiration (high up) are in store. You can see (the view) now. The stone patio indicates a firm foundation based on the past, and the music without a source symbolizes an unseen beauty present in the situation that is nevertheless making itself known and contributing to the solution. Very nice symbolism here considering that house and even the family you are guiding around are aspects of your inner self and evolving consciousness.
She comes out with boots made for walkin’, eh? October 1, 2007 What does it mean when you dream about water a lot. I’m not a good swimmer and am a little afraid of water but I have these dreams where there is always water and really cool fish and I’m so relaxed and calm. They are usually really good dreams. If there is something in the dream that isn’t good, I always end up going to the water. – Char 50, Lake Zurich, IL Water in dreams symbolizes your emotional state, so it is a very good thing to be relaxed and calm when you see it. Emotionally you are laid back and have “really cool” emotions (those fish). Fish can also represent “cosmic consciousness” and the evolution of the soul to higher levels. Emotion is used to connect with the Divine and should never be seen as “feminine”, “irrational” as some left-brain thinkers try to tell us. So if there is something not good in your life, you “always end up going to the water” for emotional and spiritual cleansing, and downright rejuvenation. The waters of life with their healing properties are your refuge. Very good symbolism! I was out with a bunch of friends, none of which There is a famous line Jesus says about this very October 5, 2007 Car accidents in dreams symbolize sudden unexpected losses — losses of life, money, health, relationships, careers. The dream can be triggered by a loss that actually occurred which you are grappling with, or by a loss you fear may take place. Notice you are not harmed in the dreams — a message that this fear of loss may seem disastrous, but your anxiety is exaggerating it, you will be fine. The broken glass means this is about something being shattered in your life, possibly something fragile that is in your care. That goes along with your other dream, your fear of losing your daughter. The wave is an unpredictable fear for her safety overwhelming you with emotion. Water in dreams is a picture of our emotional state. As for the boat, did your ship come in but you didn’t get the financial stability you hoped for? Don’t be overly concerned since remember, there is no real harm from these apparent losses. I have a question about a dream I had this morning. You feel like you are not getting enough time October 22, 2007 This is about your guidance system. Your glasses are the tool you need to navigate — you use them for driving — but in the dream world that means navigating thru life. How is your guidance system being broken? Lenses are the vital part of glasses. How are you losing ability to focus? The other symbols in the dream give clues as to what specific part of your life this might be about. The driveway represents access and a launching point. It is a place of coming and going. The busy street is also about travel, comings and goings, but also represents ordinary life and specifically the working world. Pickup trucks also symbolize work, so this may have to do with your job or career. The frames remaining intact mean the structure will remain, and at first glance others might think nothing is broken or lost when in fact your focus has been destroyed. This dream is saying don’t let your focus get run over. Don’t let anything smash the tools and skills (or whatever it is) you need to get where you are going. October 28, 2007 This is a common dream theme for parents and spouses in your exact situation — having a warrior away on foreign soil. In your case he’s on foreign waters! For thousands of years people have been dreaming this, usually women; we have mention of it in the Greco-Roman and Egyptian popular literature. It happens because your anxiety is so great for him. You fear some harm will befall your son, your beloved, and in waking life you don’t allow yourself to think about it, you force thoughts of danger away (called “suppressing”) so the fears come out in your dreaming life. Such is the level of your love-caused anxiety for him that it will come out in your psyche no matter what, whether it be waking or sleeping. If it did not come out in your dreams and you were continuing to suppress your fears (trying to play them down, put on a brave face, etc.), then you would become mentally ill. This overflow into your dreamlife is actually healthy! It is an escape valve so that you can be the strong supportive military mother that you are in waking life, yet not go insane for suppressing your fears. How wonderful your inner torment is almost over, December is on its way! Rest assured that dreams are comments on our fears, on our waking lives, they are not prophecies like the ancients thought (and feared). He is gonna be home and sitting in your kitchen in a couple of short months. No amount of nightmares on his Mama’s part are going to stop his own destiny, his own going forth into his bright future. Rest assured — he is safe and you are his perfectly normal Mom. RESPONSE FROM DREAMER: You I have a repeated dream of a house that continues Oh wow, this is a cool dream. Discovering new November 5, 2007 Is there something you are “missing”, something you should be hearing? It could be an alert or warning of some kind that you are not heeding. Or — what do you fear losing? Alternatively, earrings can symbolize belonging and human affection, so you may have lost, or fear losing, a treasured sense of belonging, a relationship or someone’s affection. Think of the last two years since this dream began and see if you can figure out what this loss or missing treasure might be referring to. Once you can establish what the message is, a recurring dream usually ceases. I have a lot of ghost dreams. Sometimes I wake up Ghosts symbolize unpleasant or painful parts of your life that have “passed away” and are thus out of reach. They can be anything from fears, to repressed memories or guilty thoughts. The fact you are chasing them shows you want to “catch up” to these issues and resolve them — a good sign. This dream may have been triggered at various times since childhood whenever you needed to move on, get away from outdated useless or self-destructive thought-patterns. Sensing a ghost or “presence” by your bed or in the room upon awakening is a very common phenomenon which occurs when your brain wakes up a little bit before your body so that you feel the dream world come into the literal waking world. The presence or ghost you were dealing with in the dream state now seems powerfully present in waking life because your mind thinks you are totally awake and alert, but your body is still projecting dream images onto the screen of your mind. Very normal, you are not crazy and there are no entities stalking you. There are no cases of any such ghosts harming people. For centuries when we humans believed these were real ghosts “haunting” a person, dreamers were told to remember they can do you no harm and instructed to tell the ghost “you are dead” (supposedly ghosts didn’t always know that) it is time to move on, go away, you are not welcome here. Really what’s going on of course are fears and aspects of the self, guilt, etc. that are manifesting so you can resolve them. Guilt and fear are not welcome in your life either — they are four letter words! Tell them to get lost as well. November 12, 2007 You are feeling extremely violated, taken advantage of, invaded by something or someone against your will. You feel used and it hurts, but you are suppressing these feelings in waking life so it comes out in your dreamtime. What is getting into or coming into your life via your daughter or your daughter’s issues? Not people so much as influences, disturbances, what? Anything like that? Dreams exaggerate terribly to get our attention. When something is important, the dream will make SURE we remember it by making its message painful and potent. No fun to have a nightmare, but it means you are on the way to healing something in your life. In your case it sounds like you are someone who doesn’t like to say no, you’re too nice, you let things slide, pretend you don’t notice. Stop doing that. Whenever someone dreams about an unfaithful partner I usually advise them to seriously consider telling their partner about the dream. There have been cases where the spouse says, “Yes, actually I am having an affair.” In the free love 70s and 80s, even into the 90s, the consensus was that if you dream your partner is fooling around, they usually are. But dream symbols evolve with the culture, with the group mind, so nowadays infidelity usually means you are feeling anxiety or lack of confidence about your relationship. You may fear his attention is regularly straying to other things, other pleasures, other friends (not adultery). Talk to him about it if you think it appropriate, and see if you can reassure yourself in the process that all is well. Recurring Tsunami dream Tidal wave dreams are triggered whenever we feel extremely overwhelmed by our emotions during waking life or that our life is a “catastrophe”. Keep in mind your emotions and your dreams exaggerate, so your life is not a disaster every time you dream of a tsunami! Now you have the loss of your father to add to your emotional distress from time to time. It is perfectly normal and predictable. The fact you can always see the tsunamis coming is part of the anxiety but also shows you know how you feel (strongly!) about the issues at hand. As for a possible “past life” when Vesuvius erupted, there is no real agreement among dream experts about reincarnation manifesting in dreams. The deal is you may indeed have “been there” either as a past life (if you believe in reincarnation) or one of your ancestors was there and you “remember” it via your DNA. There is a third possibility, a sort of psychological effect. You may be heavily identifying with the souls that passed on that day causing your consciousness (mind, awareness) to reach out and back and connect with theirs in a place where their memories still exist — the collective unconscious Mind of humanity. November 18, 2007 The kitten he was is no more. He is an adult cat Wedding Cake – Black Flowers Once bitten twice shy. Your first marriage didn’t Dreaming of Mother Crossing Over Highly charged dreams like this come during times of life and death. As souls transition to “the other side” they trigger all manner of visions and dreams in loved ones and in the transitioning one, too. You were obviously aware on some level that this could be it, your mother could be crossing over at any moment. But you were fighting it — good for you! You called her by her spiritual name, a name of power used in the non-physical realms of existence, which is why you cannot remember it. Native Americans, like Hebrews, pre-Christian Europeans, Africans and many other cultures, know well what’s called “the Power of Name”. It’s in our DNA. Universe allowed you to tap into that realm of knowledge and ancient wisdom and actually use her spiritual name, the name of her very soul. You were telling her to hang on until you got there. The dream also served a practical goal of waking you up out of your physical sleep so that you could quickly get to her bedside. Seeing her floating and hearing your own voice (the voice of power that was speaking the hidden name) are metaphysical luminous symbols that identify such visions and dreams as extremely spiritually charged. November 26, 2007 Very good question. I would say it is because of both. Thinking so much of him near the anniversary of his death sort of “reached out and touched” his consciousness, causing him to spiritually respond. Remodeling a house indicates you are changing your thinking about him (because now he is no longer alive in the physical plane). The woman he is with represents the obstacle, another obstacle keeping the two of you apart because while he was alive it seemed like things always came up to prevent you from being together. His message of “I’ll be back” is the most beautiful part of the dream illustrating what many spiritual traditions (even early Christianity) have taught, that souls do come back into the living realm. He will be born again not just spiritually but physically, millions believe and the next time he plans to come to you. By then you will have your remodeling done and he will have dealt with the obstacles separating you two. Another way of looking at this is he represents not himself but “true love” and commitment. You were unable to establish a relationship with him because of various obstacles, but true love and a relationship is in the works for you, is “coming back” into your life soon. You must finish your remodeling — get your beliefs, thoughts and opinions straightened out so that you can accept a significant other into your life — and a woman or the obstacles she represents must be removed first. The message is the spirit of your love, the way you felt toward him five years ago, will be revived in this lifetime as soon as some obstacles are removed. You may even feel his presence in the new relationship coming your way. December 6, 2007
Thank you so much, Your interpretation Son Getting Chased There is something in your son’s life you are December 10, 2007 I had a dream last night where I was stabbing my It sounds like you are breastfeeding and are worried about something harmful going from you via your milk into her stomach. The dream exaggerates to get your attention, of course you would never actually take a knife to her! Your dreamweaver is trying to point out your anxiety over passing something on to your baby, either chemicals or illnesses. If you are not breastfeeding, the dream indicates you feel guilty that baby formula or whatever you are feeding her is not the best and might even be harmful to her. You see however that the damage is “just a scratch” and she is still alive, but her stomach is now open and vulnerable. She is dependent on you to choose her diet for her, so make the best decisions you can and don’t feel guilty over it. You are not trying to hide anything from your boyfriend regarding your daughter. Are you perhaps afraid he might think you are a bad mother? No need to impress him, just make good choices for her. What does it mean when my husband dreamt about his It sounds like the children don’t live with him. He doesn’t feel he has enough influence or say in their lives. It is as though he is dead to them, in other words they are orphans. Your husband worries his children, especially his son, are being brainwashed or brain “damaged”. Something bad is growing in his son’s thoughts, your husband fears. Something threatening to take over and even take the life out of him. This is actually a very normal understandable dream when parents are separated from their children’s daily lives. Sad, but still healthy. It speaks to your husband’s awareness that his influence is needed. Kids all need their Dad. December 17, 2007 Aha! You are seeking ways to cleanse your mind, your life, of negativity but you cannot find a proper stress-release method. You can only come up with “old” but misplaced stress-releases. At least they are tried and true, but your methods are hidden away in a closet, tucked in a corner of the closet, suggesting you’d rather not let certain information about your past be known. Your self-cleansing mechanism is “really old” and it does work for you, however you worry about it degrading your foundation, the ground under your feet (your worry in the dream the floor will be ruined). You don’t care about the roles you play which are symbolized by the clothes in the closet. Such personas aren’t causing anxiety. You worry most about the floor, your foundation and / or past strengths being eroded away. Very interesting! The carpet and hardwood floor coverings depend on whether you are feeling “soft” or “hard” about your past when the dream occurs. Best thing to do to stop this recurring dream is to perform a bedtime exercise as follows. Close your eyes and visualize yourself in that dream. See it, feel it, move within the dream. Look for a shower. And then find it! See yourself finding a nice normal clean modern shower and going in and using it. Feel the water on you, cleansing and refreshing and now look down and see the nice fiberglass or ceramic tile shower floor with a drain to carry away the damaging waters of emotion. Ahhh, you are clean and nothing in your life is at risk of getting ruined! Tapeworm invading body Babies and tampon strings are pulled out of the
Dreamwork Dr. Katia Romanoff is a symbologist who works |
