Dreams are not just meaningless images that play in our heads while we sleep. During dreams, memories and events from the day are often processed and replayed. These are not literal films of what we experienced that day, but may have a latent meaning.
Subconscious
Dreams are often about matters that concern us in daily life. You take certain thoughts and mental preoccupations with you when you crawl into bed and don’t take enough time to relax. As a result, during your sleep you continue to think about topics that occupied you during the day.
Dreams are subtle, unconscious (or subconscious) thoughts that occupy you in daily life. They are not necessarily predictions of the future. They are unconscious, deep emotions and things that keep you busy.
Common dreams
Dreaming about tripping/falling
One of the most common dreams is the moment between waking and sleeping. Suddenly you wake up with a start, feeling or thinking that you have just tripped, sprained your foot, or fallen. It feels like you had a convulsion for a moment. This is indeed the case.
More intense dreams are dreams in which you actually seem to fall, not just stumble or twist your foot. You are actually falling from a certain height, the wind is whistling past you and you feel anxious. It can also involve sinking in water, where you are afraid of drowning. The meaning of this dream is linked to feelings of loneliness and insecurity. In everyday life, for example, you have the feeling that you are not supported enough or that you are overwhelmed by events or emotions.
Dreaming about being murdered or killing yourself
When dreaming about murders, it will be clear that it is a negative experience. This often means that in everyday life you have the feeling that others have power over you or want to do something to you. If you are the murderer yourself, it may be about wanting to close off or get rid of a certain part. Of course it doesn’t make you a murderer!
Dreaming about being chased
Dreams about chases are about threats. A person often feels threatened in real life by others in the environment. It can be about a specific person, but it can also be about certain emotions that haunt you and that you cannot let go of. Ask yourself what the precise meaning may be: what is it in your life that makes you feel threatened? Is there a specific person that scares you, or is it about a specific event? Can you do something about it?
Dreaming about being naked
You are getting dressed and suddenly you notice that you are surrounded by others. You are sitting in a toilet and suddenly the walls appear transparent. These dreams are obviously about feelings of vulnerability and shame. In everyday life you probably experience the feeling that you have to reveal (too) much of yourself, that you are carrying a secret that is very heavy for you. It also turns out that this dream is common among people who are getting married soon (even then you have to expose yourself to someone else, because you are going to share your life with that person).
Dreaming about missing a plane or train
In these dreams you are rushing onto a platform or a harbor to catch a train, boat or plane, but just then you see the vehicle driving away. The feelings associated with this are often frustration, not fear. This is not about actually missing a means of transport (you can also dream that you miss a meeting or an important event), but the meaning is similar. Usually at that moment in your real life you have had to face a difficult decision, or you are still in the middle of it. The dream indicates that you have missed an important opportunity and you are in a difficult situation where you have to make a choice between two (or more) things that are close to your heart.
Dreaming about being lost
This dream is a clear reflection of real life. You can also be lost in everyday life and this is often reflected in the dream. In the dream you may find yourself in a maze or in a huge city where you do not know your way around. This indicates the desperation that you can sometimes experience in your daily life.
Dreaming about partner cheating
In a relationship you often hear that one of you dreams that the other is cheating. The other person in your dream behaves as if it is nothing at all, as if it is a completely normal event, which makes you feel incredibly frustrated. You are powerless, just like if someone were to break up with you in real life. The meaning of this is that you are (unconsciously) afraid of losing the other person, but it could also mean that you already have the feeling that something is missing in your relationship (especially because your partner reacts so laxly in the dream).
Common objects in dreams
Dream symbols
- Animals: nature and survival
- Houses: inner (emotions, memories)
- Roads: the path of life/choices
- Teeth: beauty (e.g. losing teeth)
- Water: unconscious, inner peace
- Marriage: need to get married (so quite literally)
- Money: self-esteem
- Mountains: obstacles
- Babies: vulnerability, something new
- Exam: self-evaluation
- Death: changes