Nightmares are frightening because they have the power to tap in to deep emotions, living in our subconscious. Because we think with different parts of our brain when asleep, our nightmares and dreams are not literal, like our waking thoughts. They are representations, often in symbolic form, of our worries and concerns, desires and musings.
To interpret a nightmare, you need to understand what its contents represent to you personally, as well as considering universal dream interpretations, gleaned from the knowledge that nearly all people use particular symbols in their dreams and nightmares.
If you dreamed about spiders who were trying to catch you in their web, for example, it would most likely mean that in your waking life, someone was manipulating you, leaving you feeling trapped. Or, if you dreamed about being naked in public, it may mean you were feeling exposed in your daily life.
When you wake up after a nightmare, you can best interpret its meaning, by jotting down the main features, before your memory of it fades. List the main characters, or objects in the nightmare, and what happened, including the order of events, as these facts will be relevant when it comes to working out the nightmares meaning.
Underline any symbols that appeared in the nightmare, such as a cross, an arrow or a gateway. List any animals that appeared, such as a snake or a lamb, and any natural features, such as an expanse of water, a storm or a canyon.
Animals often represent a part of our nature, or that which we are afraid of in others. Lambs are universally linked in the world of unconscious symbols, as relating to peace and innocence, whereas wolves can relate to our unfamiliar shadow side, or to mystery. If there was an animal in your nightmare, think about what that particular animal represents to you, and jot your thoughts down in the margin of your notebook.
Water, and weather, tend to represent our emotions, hence a fast flowing river, may mean we are being carried away by emotions, or a placid lake may mean that our thoughts are deep and untapped. A howling wind may signify we feel lost, and require comfort from the elements in our life at present. Just as you did when you considered any animals in your nightmare, think about what appeared in your nightmare, and what it means to you.
Nightmares often relay actions and events. We may dream we are constantly running down a corridor that never ends, or turning a door handle that never stops going around, so we can’t open the door, even though we sense danger looming up behind us. We may dream that we keep going from room to room, but can’t find our way out of a house.
Such repetitions are not uncommon in nightmares. They are particularly unnerving because they leave us feeling hopeless, and incapable of sorting out our dilemma. Most of the time, this is exactly what they are telling us about our waking life. Perhaps we are attempting something which isn’t working, and it’s time to alter the way we handle things. Maybe, we really do need to find a new direction, instead of keep covering old ground, and getting nowhere.
Nightmares may contain events which are symbolic in other ways. Perhaps we may dream our teeth all fall out, or that we are facing death. Such nightmares can haunt us when we awaken, because we don’t understand them. The best way to figure them out is look, not at what is happening in such nightmares literally, but to see their hidden meanings.
Our teeth falling out, for example, may mean that we can’t take in and digest something that’s happening to us. Or, it could mean that we are entering a new phase of life, as in real life, as we grow up, we lose our childhood teeth, and gain new, stronger ones. How you interpret such a dream, will depend on what’s going on in your life.
Nightmares, are fascinating to most people, and particularly their own. This is because they offer us a glimpse of our deepest secrets, and the part of us that is hidden, even from ourselves. When we begin to understand our dreams and nightmares, we gain insight about our life, and personality.
