Dreams are thoughts, feelings, emotions and images that pass through our minds while we are asleep. They are part of an altered state of consciousness in which we enter each night.

On average, about 20% of our sleep is spent in the dream state. For most people, it takes about an hour and a half every night. No one knows exactly why we do it, but science can attest that during the deeper stages of sleep, like REM phase (Rapid Eye Movements) our brain is ncredibly active.

Dreams are the language of our souls: the sights, sounds and sensations that hit us speak directly to us and for us while we are unconscious. It is as if the mind would lead us to a mysterious world, where anything can happen.

Although it’s mysterious and sometimes frightening, this world of dreams is intensely personal and private and gives us a way of understanding our conscious life. Unfortunately, when we wake up, we often remember only a fraction of what we dreamt, and sometimes we don’tremember anything. Despite this feeling, everyone dreams every night. Dreaming is an essential part of our lives.

Many people wonder: Why do we dream? What are dreams anyway? Dream’s theories are perhaps as diverse and varied as dreams are. The main theory was developed by Sigmund Freud, the father of psychoanalysis, which characterized dreams as the release of repressed desires. It means that, for Freud, things we want and but we don’t encourage ourselves to do are released by our subconscious while we sleep.

Carl Gustav Jung, Freud’s disciple, decided to follow his own path and defend his ideas, which were different from those proposed by Freud. Jung agreed that dreams were manifestations of the unconscious, but only in order to seek a balance of ourselves, our perception of ourselves and the world around us.

The explanations changes according to our customs, religion and way of life. For the religious ones, the images that visit us almost every night are divine or demonic messages. Some believe that our soul, or essence, can leave our body during sleep and travel to the astral plane. As for the paranormal ones, they believe that dreams are a manifestation of mental powers that we don’t control when we are awake, such as precognition and telepathy. We also know that dreams reveal details of our past lives. Thus, besides the “meaning” that dreams may have, most people agree that through them we are solving problems.

Each one has a view on this issue and no one is more appropriate to interpret the meaning of a dream, or even the problem or crisis that it represents, than the actual dreamer. All these perspectives have an internal logic, so you have to be open to use your intuition to find out what your dream is saying.

Some tips to remember and understand your dreams:

- Keep a notebook and a pen in your nightstand. If possible, stay in bed a few moments after waking up and think about what you’ve dreamt. Register it with details: focus on the images and people you’ve seen in the dream. Think about what they mean to you.
- Keeping a dream journal is an extremely useful resource. It can make great revelations about your unconscious life.
- Many dreams aren’t complete in itself, but rather unfold gradually over a period of time. If you censor some details that remain unclear, you’ll lose important information that can be enlightening later.
- As your dream journal progresses, you’ll begin to realize the connection between dreams.
- Don’t block your unconscious’ manifestations. Tell yourself that you are receptive to learn whatever it is.
- Good luck and sweet dreams.
“Everything we see or feel, is nothing more than a dream within a dream”
Edgar Allan Poe

Myriam Durante
Psicoterapeuta e hipnóloga