LONELINESS AND DREAM MEANINGS
Carl Jung, one of the pioneers of modern psychology, once articulated that dreams are the utterances of the unconscious.
In REM sleep state (rapid-eye movement) where we have our most vivid dreams, EEG scans show increased brain activity, more so than when we are awake. Loud utterances indeed.
Beyond any shadow of a doubt, the most visceral aspects of our dreams are the emotions we experience within them. More often than not, these emotions remain with us long after our alarm clock has jarringly evicted us out of the world of dreams. Yet, they hold much significance despite efforts to brush them aside and proclaiming their irrelevance: “it was just a dream”. Our most potently emotional dreams involving manifestations of loneliness can offer valuable insights into various aspects of our social health.
Dreams of Loneliness
Dreams that imbue us with feelings of loneliness speak volumes pointedly convey our deep-seated social frustrations and fears.
- Screaming at others in your dream and not being heard or no sound comes from your voice.
In these dreams, those who we are directing our silent screams to are predominately a group of people whom we are very close to. Our unheard exclamations fall on the deaf ears of work colleagues or family members. These types of dreams convey the isolation and helplessness we experience when we are misunderstood by those whom we feel should know us better.
- Getting attacked by a dog.
In her research, dream analyst Lauri Quinn Loewenberg theorizes that dreams about dogs tend to represent a relationship in your life where there should be loyalty, companionship, and friendship. Being attacked by a dog are indicative of the lack of loyalty and respect you feel in your relationship. These dreams are also symbolic that you feel unsafe or uncared by others whom you give your emotional energy to.
- Being alone in a crowd.
Standing alone in a crowd in a dream often connects with our own social skills and implies our preoccupation with constructing busy social life. However, a maintaining a bustling social life does not innately correlate to having social connections and relationships that enrich our wellbeing. Dreaming that we are all alone despite being surrounded by crowds of people can convey that we have become too focused on earning the approval or admiration of a group of people whom we do not even like or respect.
Though the events that happen within the realm of dreams hold no material actuality in and of themselves, the emotions, however, are no less real. The phrase, “It was just a dream” is erroneously trite. The emotional experience of loneliness in our dreams is firmly rooted somewhere in the actuality of our waking life. If it was not, then we would not even be dreaming of it. These types of dreams function to inform us of the imbalances in our lives. Most specifically, their emotional potency is the wake-up call urging our conscious mind to take action. Deliberately reflecting on how loneliness makes itself known in our dreams can powerfully motivate us to reevaluate who we associate with and whether they are enhancing or damaging to our overall wellness.
However, attempting dream analysis with just the dialogue of your own voice and google searches can compound the loneliness and alienation. Dreams are like avante-garde art films, they are best understood through conversations and discussions with others. Because we all have intense experiences through dreaming, many of which that leave us with questions, “Dream Sharing” meetup groups have begun to surface here in NYC. In these “Dream Sharing” social gatherings, fellow dreamers come together over coffee to share their dreams in a safe, fun and supportive place.
To unravel our cryptic and bizarre experiences of the dream world, we cannot do it alone. We all sleep and therefore dream. Thus, if we can be in dialogue about the questions our dreams leave us with, perhaps we can deepen the way we connect with one another. We can strengthen interpersonal trust, allowing us to feel less lonely as we discover how universal and similar our dream experiences can be.
The deafening utterances of dreams have no snooze button. Together, we awaken.
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