Why Did I Dream That? Uncovering The Symbolism Of Your Dreams

Carl Jung argued that dreams are not random or meaningless, they are messages from the unconscious. Unlike Freud, who saw dreams primarily as wish-fulfillment, Jung thought that they show us what we are missing, ignoring, or repressing in our waking lives. It is a way for our psyche to balance itself out. We might be too rational in our waking life, and then when you go to sleep, have strange, nonsensical dreams. When your waking life becomes off-balance and one-sided, your dreams will show you and confront you with symbolism and archetypes that challenge your ego. The point is not to painstakingly decode your dreams, but to relate to them.  You can translate the symbolism of your dreams into personal insight, begin to have conversations with the unconscious, and become more whole as a result. 

“The dream is the small hidden door in the deepest and most intimate sanctum of the soul.” – C.G. Jung

Can Therapy Help You Understand Your Dreams? 

A therapist can help you uncover the symbolism of your dreams, but the point isn’t to have your therapist decode your dream for you. You are the expert of your life. Yes, there are common dream interpretations, which I write about later, but interpreting the symbolism of your dreams involves your specific reactions to certain archetypes. Everyone has their own unique life experiences, which can make one persons’ interpretation of a symbol completely different than another. So, why don’t you just do this work alone without involving a therapist?

• Therapy Helps Us Come To Terms With Our Vulnerability. Many of us feel fear or shame when faced with our own vulnerability, and it can be very vulnerable to see parts of your shadow reflected in your dreams. Despite this, doing the work to face your shadow through dream work is very rewarding. A therapist can help you be less afraid of your vulnerability, and come to terms with the beauty that comes with being raw and open with yourself. A therapist can create a healing container that allows you to be witnessed and held in your vulnerability. 
• Therapy Teaches Us About Ourselves. We learn the most about ourselves through relationships, and the therapeutic relationship is one of the most unique and sacred forms of connection. In therapy, your therapist walks beside you as a compassionate guide, helping you explore the full spectrum of who you are. The symbols and patterns in your dreams often reflect parts of yourself that you’re still learning to understand or accept. Therapy helps you approach these parts with curiosity and compassion instead of judgment or shame.
• Therapy Helps Us Cope With Burnout. Stress dreams (like dreaming you’re being chased or forgetting something important) are your mind’s way of processing overwhelming emotions. When stress accumulates and isn’t given the attention it needs, it can show up in dreams and disrupt your sleep. Therapy can help you manage your anxiety and stress, which can help ease both emotional burnout and the nightmares that often accompany it.

Analyzing Your Dreams 

Jung proposed that each of us has a “shadow”, which is the part of the psyche that contains the aspects of ourselves we deny or disown. Often, these shadow elements appear in dreams as threatening figures, strange situations, or embarrassing scenarios.

Being chased? Cheating in your dream? Losing your teeth? These  may represent shadow material. A therapist trained in depth psychology can help you explore these dreams without shame.

“One would do well to treat every dream as though it was a completely unknown project, look at it from all sides, take it in one’s hand, carry it around, and let one’s imagination play around with it.” Carl Jung

• Dreaming you are pregnant. Jung viewed this symbol as reflective of potential, creativity, or the birth of a new aspect of the self. In men and women alike, it can point to something gestating in the unconscious.
• Dreaming of infidelity. May reflect a betrayal of the Self, not necessarily one’s partner. It could represent divided loyalty between duty and desire, light and  shadow.
• Dreaming of your teeth falling out. Symbolically tied to loss of control, transition, or ego breakdown.
• Dreaming you are falling. Often reflects a loss of ego control, a surrender to something greater, or a fear of failure. In Jungian terms, this might symbolize a descent into the unconscious.
• Dreaming you are naked in public.This is a classic anima/animus moment, which is the exposure of the true, vulnerable self. Could also signal individuation pressures, which is the inner push to be authentic regardless of judgment.
  

What Kind Of Therapist Helps You With Nightmares? 

• Creative Therapists. Our dreams are some of the most tangible manifestations of our internal worlds, and creative and expressive art therapy techniques are one of the most effective ways for interfacing with your internal world. Working with a therapist like me can help you understand what’s kicking around in your mind that’s causing these nightmares and address it with care.
• Grief Counselors. If your nightmares are rooted in loss or unresolved grief, a grief counselor can support you in honoring your experience and integrating your emotions. Dreams are often the first space where unresolved grief appears. Grief tends to bypass the rational mind and instead surfaces in the symbolic language of dreams. Rather than interpret the dream as a literal message, the therapist facilitates exploration:
  • What do the symbols represent to you? 
  • What’s left unsaid? 
  • What part of you is grieving?
• Trauma Therapists. Nightmares are a common symptom of unresolved trauma. Trauma dreams often have a raw element to them and can be intense, visceral experiences involving being chased, attacked, helpless, or frozen. Trauma is stored in the body, and is beyond words. That’s why dreams become a place where the body can “speak” through image and metaphor, expressing what the conscious mind can’t yet name. They bypass ego defenses and reveal what’s unfinished, unprocessed, or too overwhelming to process during waking life.

If you’re ready to explore the deeper meaning of your dreams, I offer a supportive, empathetic and non-judgmental space to do just that. I am currently accepting new clients for dream work and depth-oriented therapy. Click here to schedule a complimentary initial consultation with me to get started.

Starting with a creative written voice and a BA in English from ASU, Alli Cravener has become so much more than Integrative Counsel’s voice! Not only is she a writer who is passionate about connecting concepts and content, Alli is also currently a grad student working towards her Master’s in Counseling and is currently a Counseling Intern. She is also the editor-in-chief, office manager, AND intake specialist at Integrative Counsel. When you call us, you’ll talk to Alli! Alli’s interests include painting, history, learning about other people, and wearing the color pink. She likens herself to a “mouse in a palm tree”, and she loves it that way.