How do you dream?

[Keroin]

I was very surprised when I first learned that not everyone dreams in colour and that not everyone remembers their dreams. As I’ve gotten older, my dreams have become increasingly realistic. I can see, hear, feel, taste, touch – all the senses are engaged. I can feel pain and I’ve even died on a few occasions (dispelling that old myth that if you die in your dream you die in real life, unless, of course, I am a ghost now).

While I don’t believe that dreams are symbolic or have meaning, I am fascinated by them.

So, what are your dreams like? Are they in colour? What other senses do you have in them? Do you remember them in the morning? Have they changed as you’ve aged? What’s the earliest dream you can remember? Are there reoccurring themes?

Does your SO groan when you say, “I had the weirdest dream last night”?

 

[chy_girl]

I need an option for "all of the above, but not necessarily at the same time."

ETA: My dreaming patterns (the one's listed above, anyways) will change day to day and week to week.

 

[Macdaddy23]

I dream strange but that's normal. I do remember dreams most of the time.

 

[Keroin]

I need an option for "all of the above, but not necessarily at the same time."

ETA: My dreaming patterns (the one's listed above, anyways) will change day to day and week to week.

Is it random? Or do you notice that you remember your dreams more at certain times? Are they more vivid at certain times?

 

[CutieMouse]

[unusual insight into the odd odd little brain of The Mouse]

I usually say I don't remember my dreams, but I do... except that I usually remember them when some random real life event occurs that triggers something that happened in the dream (usually when I'm a wee bit more stressed than usual) and then this huge technicolor flashback of a dream runs through my head in the space of 3 seconds and I think "Huh... deja vu... oh shit this isn't going to end well..." and promptly have an anxiety attack.



It's quite annoying. And I do recognize that sort of dream remembrance is not exactly "normal". It happens 2-3 times a year, and 90% of the time when it happens I can brace myself for the anxiety attack and get through it without even a hiccup. The really really annoying thing is that in the moment I can see the dream like it is the realest thing on the planet, but the second the adrenalin drops after the anxiety attack it's like a total dream black-out. No clue what was just zooming through my head at eleventy-million miles an hour or anything.

[/unusual insight into the odd odd little brain of The Mouse]

 

[Keroin]

[unusual insight into the odd odd little brain of The Mouse]

I usually say I don't remember my dreams, but I do... except that I usually remember them when some random real life event occurs that triggers something that happened in the dream (usually when I'm a wee bit more stressed than usual) and then this huge technicolor flashback of a dream runs through my head in the space of 3 seconds and I think "Huh... deja vu... oh shit this isn't going to end well..." and promptly have an anxiety attack.



It's quite annoying. And I do recognize that sort of dream remembrance is not exactly "normal". It happens 2-3 times a year, and 90% of the time when it happens I can brace myself for the anxiety attack and get through it without even a hiccup. The really really annoying thing is that in the moment I can see the dream like it is the realest thing on the planet, but the second the adrenalin drops after the anxiety attack it's like a total dream black-out. No clue what was just zooming through my head at eleventy-million miles an hour or anything.

[/unusual insight into the odd odd little brain of The Mouse]

LOL. You crack me up CM.

But seriously, that is strange. I've had moments of partial recall but nothing to that extent, and there's no anxiety attached to it. Hm, I wonder if anyone else has had the experience you've described? Interesting.

 

[midwestyankee]

Where's the option for wet dreams?

 

[graceanne]

I dream lucidly. I dream when I'm only half asleep pretty routinely. Mostly I hear conversations or piano music when I'm half asleep. Those I never remember the specifics of. I dream every night. I don't always remember the specifics of those dreams, to be honest, mostly cause I don't care to. If you ask me, right after I get up, what I dreamed about I'll remember, but as the day goes by I don't.

I almost always dream in color. Sometimes I dream it like I'm watching an old movie, and the colors are faded. Those are rarely good dreams. I smell, hear, and taste in my dreams. And most times I know I'm dreaming. The last time I had a naked dream I looked down at myself (in my dream) and thought 'oh it's one of those dreams' and stopped looking for my clothes - there was no point they'd just disappear again.

 

[graceanne]

LOL. You crack me up CM.

But seriously, that is strange. I've had moments of partial recall but nothing to that extent, and there's no anxiety attached to it. Hm, I wonder if anyone else has had the experience you've described? Interesting.

I recall like CM, but normally it doesn't freak me out, I just catch myself thinking 'ok, now she's gonna say . . .' and wait, then I think 'and now this is gonna happen', etc. It amuses me.

 

[BiBunny]

I remember almost all my dreams, and I dream in color.

Lately, I've been on this kick where I dream every single night. They're crazy, stupid dreams that make no sense and are completely ridiculous. But I wake up worn out because I've spent all night running around in my dreams! I'll be glad when that's over.

Most of my dreams are stupid like that. Ever so often, I have nightmares. Sometimes, I have happy dreams, too. And every now and then, I have these creepily vivid dreams that seem to be trying to tell me something.

 

[~Haze~]

I usually say I don't remember my dreams, but I do... except that I usually remember them when some random real life event occurs that triggers something that happened in the dream (usually when I'm a wee bit more stressed than usual) and then this huge technicolor flashback of a dream runs through my head in the space of 3 seconds and I think "Huh... deja vu... oh shit this isn't going to end well..." and promptly have an anxiety attack.

It's interesting that you mentioned a 'flashback' because this happens to me sometimes too - less the panic attack - and I mentioned it to you too.

I woke up with no recollection of a dream... at all... and like 12-14 hours later, while driving down the street, my mind on other things, and I am suddenly (overwhelmingly) distracted by this vivid image (but it's more than just an image. Multiple senses are involved)... of a redhead with her hair up and a single little banana curl dangling down the side of her face as she's dressed in this 1940's era dress while swing dancing... just floods over me.

That's a little unusual though. I remember a lot of dreams. I remember forgetting a lot of dreams.

There are a lot of times when I wake up and remember every detail, only to have it fade away quickly and entirely over the first hour I'm awake.

I do dream in color and they are very vivid. In fact, on more than one occasion a dream has spilled over into real life.

I've had dreams where I was in a pretty heated fight with a friend. I woke up angry with them to the point where I was pissed and holding a grudge. It's not intentional, but I just associate the feeling/memory of my dream and it's an emotional reaction. That was years ago. I also got in an actual physical altercation because of a dream. I've had feelings develop for a woman because of a dream (or series of dreams).

Yea... I think that qualifies as "amazingly vivid dreaming".

 

[zarngash]

My dreams vary considerably from thinking I am awake, to completely surreal, color and no color or black and white, taste yes, smell not so much...


The dreams that trouble me, I believe are the ones that my sub-conscience is saying "Hey stupid, you are doing something wrong in your life, fix it. Here is your hint... you like metaphors right?"And so, I do find meaning and ways to change my beliefs and/or behavior in ways that make my life better. Thank you, dream machine.

I don't have a ton of sexually themed dreams but when I do... wow... the problem is in my dreams at some point I remember that I am married so I never follow through with the engagement. When I wake up, I am damn disappointed cause then I realize it was a dream and no harm, no foul - fantasy. In that regard, perhaps my dreams are telling me to keep fantasy, fantasy, and not to be a douchebag.

 

[blondebabydoll]

I remember my dreams most of the time and I seem to always dream in color. I can't remember ever having a dream in black-and-white. I have lucid dreams frequently - a lot of what's actually happening around me ends up in my dreams (people talking, noises outside) and I've tried to direct my dreams before. The other day, something really strange happened. I woke up mentally during the middle of my dream - I mean, I acknowledged that I was sleeping and that everything before had been a dream, but I couldn't wake my body up. It was so odd, I'd never experienced that before. I was aware that I was laying in bed and the position of my body but I couldn't move it. Does anyone know what that's about?

Do you guys believe in dream interpretation? I used to have a book that I'd consult whenever I had a really weird dream but I don't buy it so much anymore. I think that dreams (mine, at least) are really just a jumble of thoughts I've had recently. Usually I can go through my dreams and see where I had discussed something in it recently, or even just had a fleeting thought about it.

And I guess this is the most appropriate place to mention that I had a wet dream last night. The first in a really long time! I woke up at 5 in the morning because I was all wet.

 

[graceanne]

I remember my dreams most of the time and I seem to always dream in color. I can't remember ever having a dream in black-and-white. I have lucid dreams frequently - a lot of what's actually happening around me ends up in my dreams (people talking, noises outside) and I've tried to direct my dreams before. The other day, something really strange happened. I woke up mentally during the middle of my dream - I mean, I acknowledged that I was sleeping and that everything before had been a dream, but I couldn't wake my body up. It was so odd, I'd never experienced that before. I was aware that I was laying in bed and the position of my body but I couldn't move it. Does anyone know what that's about?

Do you guys believe in dream interpretation? I used to have a book that I'd consult whenever I had a really weird dream but I don't buy it so much anymore. I think that dreams (mine, at least) are really just a jumble of thoughts I've had recently. Usually I can go through my dreams and see where I had discussed something in it recently, or even just had a fleeting thought about it.

And I guess this is the most appropriate place to mention that I had a wet dream last night. The first in a really long time! I woke up at 5 in the morning because I was all wet.

I think that 99% of dreams are just your subconscious playing tricks on you. I think some dreams need interpretation, but even then I think (most times) it's just your subconscious telling you something.

For instance, cars represent you and your life. If you dream that you're in an out of control car your subconscious is telling you that you feel like your life is out of control. If you dream that someone else is driving your car you are dreaming that you feel they are running your life, and if you dream you are driving someone elses car you are dreaming that you feel you are running their life. This is not a psychic thing, it's a subconscious thing.

On the other hand if you watch a scary movie and you have a nightmare it just means that you watched a scary movie.

 

[00Syd]

Vividly.

 

[Keroin]

Where's the option for wet dreams?

You have dreams about swimming?

I don't have a ton of sexually themed dreams but when I do... wow... the problem is in my dreams at some point I remember that I am married so I never follow through with the engagement. When I wake up, I am damn disappointed cause then I realize it was a dream and no harm, no foul - fantasy. In that regard, perhaps my dreams are telling me to keep fantasy, fantasy, and not to be a douchebag.

That kinda sucks, IMO.

Most of my dreams are "weird" but my sexual dreams often fall on the WTF side of weird. I might dream that I'm shopping for canned corn and the act of reading the labels and trying to decide between niblets or summer sweet suddenly becomes ridiculously erotic. Weird.

No, I don't have a vegetable fetish. Ho, ho, ho.

I remember my dreams most of the time and I seem to always dream in color. I can't remember ever having a dream in black-and-white. I have lucid dreams frequently - a lot of what's actually happening around me ends up in my dreams (people talking, noises outside) and I've tried to direct my dreams before. The other day, something really strange happened. I woke up mentally during the middle of my dream - I mean, I acknowledged that I was sleeping and that everything before had been a dream, but I couldn't wake my body up. It was so odd, I'd never experienced that before. I was aware that I was laying in bed and the position of my body but I couldn't move it. Does anyone know what that's about?

I don't know what it's about but I know it's happened to me several times. Usually when I'm afternoon napping. Actually, some of my deepest sleeps and weirdest dreams happen during afternoon naps. Huh.

Do you guys believe in dream interpretation? I used to have a book that I'd consult whenever I had a really weird dream but I don't buy it so much anymore. I think that dreams (mine, at least) are really just a jumble of thoughts I've had recently. Usually I can go through my dreams and see where I had discussed something in it recently, or even just had a fleeting thought about it.

No, I don't really believe in dream interpretation, in the strict sense of the word. Like Gracie, I think it's your subconscious just fucking around. However, I do believe that the "mood" of a dream means something, especially if you are experiencing the same feelings in your dreams over and over again. When I look back at "dream patterns" through my life, I can tie them to what I was going through at the time. Guilt, anxiety, stress, infatuation, I think most of the powerful emotions we feel manifest themselves in our dreams and that can be a clue, perhaps, to something you may not be consciously dealing with.

Or not. Who knows.

Vividly.

Can you be more succinct please, Syd?

 

[00Syd]

Can you be more succinct please, Syd?

.......

 

[YourCaptor]

My dreams are all over the place, and its rare to remember them accurately past 5 minutes of waking up, even if I try.

I do have one super vivid one I had a long time ago 2 or 3 nights in a row.

There is some kind of high energy thing going on with lots of people. Like a sports event, or a panic maybe. Anyway, I get in my car, some girl I really like is in the passenger seat. We're diving on a freeway, hear a laud noise, and this passenger get is flying really low over us, rattling the car with vibrations. About 1,000 feet in front of us it crashes, and the details of that crash were so vivid it's hard to forget it. Everything was in it, from the shock wave, to the heat wave, shattered glass from the windshield, shrapnel, fire plum, screams, screeches. Just insane.

 

[chy_girl]

Is it random? Or do you notice that you remember your dreams more at certain times? Are they more vivid at certain times?

It depends a lot on my state of mind and if something's bothering me.

When I was in my late teens/early 20's and dealing heavily with some abuse issues I'd have extremely vivid psycho dreams that I could always remember in the morning. And I mean psycho as in there was always some kind of psycho killer in them. They would be so intense and so real that I'd wake up with cramps from running in my dreams or it would feel like I'd scratched my arm crawling through a trap door but there'd be no marks. In my dreams my hands would feel wet from picking up something in the grass, I could hear and feel what it was like to walk across gravel, I'd feel the asphalt poking my knees if I were kneeling... In one dream I could even see the smudge marks on a window from someone washing it with crappy cleaner. Vivid and intense and it was less of an emotional dream when I was actually able to remember the damned things. When I couldn't remember them I'd wake up feeling off and right on the verge of fight or flight. Needless to say I had some very good incentive to simply not sleep.

When the theme of the dreams shifted to the damned climbing dreams they became far less colorful. Not black and white, but like if you darkened the colors on your t.v. The physical sensations weren't the same either. I'd know that my feet ached from climbing, but my feet weren't actually sore and the same if I scraped a limb on something. These were dreams that I would have nightly and again, sometimes I would remember them in the morning and sometimes I'd wake up simply feeling exhausted.

I've had dreams in black and white occasionally, but the ones that go from color to monochrome mid dream are the really creepy ones. When it just starts out black and white I usually don't even realize it till after I've woken up.

I think the vividness depends on how much emotion, good or bad, is pushing the dream (again, good or bad). There was a dream I had a few years back that was an us vs. them dream where we were defending a hotel of sorts. I can still remember the exact shade of yellow that the curtains were and I can remember the feel of them as a cool breeze blew them against my arm. It was so real that I could even smell the sunshine after a rainstorm that had happened in the dream. LOL - My one flying dream even left me carsick after I woke up.

Now that I think about it, whether the emotion is positive or negative tends to effect the vividness of the color, like the light/dark setting on a t.v. As for the intensity of other things, like being able to use my senses in a dream, don't really have a rhyme or reason that I can see. Neither does whether I remember them or not. Though if I want to make sure I don't remember the dream (or details, anyways) then I have to wear myself out completely, which usually translates to a 18 to 20 hour day.

Did that help? Or at least make a little bit of sense through the rambling?

 

[midwestyankee]

You have dreams about swimming?

No. though sometimes I dream about a bottomless glass of great Scotch.

 

[subish2009]

I don't believe in the old Freudian interpretation of dreams, but I do believe that dreams reflect things your subconscious is processing, whether problems or infatuations or just random conversations you've had throughout the day.

I had TONS of anxiety dreams in my teens and early 20s, a tough period for me in my waking life. After my daughter was born, I had pretty severe post-partum depression and had these recurring nightmares of suffocating her in our bed, or dropping her over the side (we didn't even co-sleep). I'd awake screaming, a dozen times per night, convinced that I'd killed her, often finding myself on the other side of the room, a bundle of blankets cradled in my arms.

These days I have sex dreams about my online D almost every single night. I love sharing them with him.

 

[BertrandRussell]

Taking out the trash

As any neurologist can tell you, dreams are the detritus that gets tossed around when part of your brain is doing housecleaning. Apparently the brain needs down time to process all of it's experiences. When you dream, your brain is essentially taking out the trash.

I recall experiments in which people are prevented from dreaming. It is done by waking them when external symptoms such as rapid eye movement indicate that they are dreaming. They slowly begin experience declines in memory, attention span, simple calculation, the ability to understand speech, and other mental functions, often while being unaware of these declines. In the more extreme cases these deficits increase to the point such that the person appears to be functionally insane.
( FWIW, the limit on such experiments is that sooner or later the subject goes to sleep regardless of attepts to wake him. He appears comatose, and will not respond to slaps, vigorous shaking, and loud noises. )
The brain has to process its experiences, just to stay healthy and functioning. There is nothing magical or profound here, just new stuff was brought in and some is getting moved around and some of it is getting tossed out. Once one recognizes that dreams are just the result of the brain taking out the trash, talking about one's dreams is understood to be something between silly and uncouth.

Suppose I started talking to you about the real-life trash I just took out: "Hmmm...banana peels, orange peels, yeah we had fruit salad last night...buncha wadded napkins, it was messy...next is all the junk mail...next down is the gift from Fluffy that was dropped in the middle of the kitchen floor...more napkins, tin cans...spahgetti and leftover meatballs that started to grow white fuzzy stuff...

Suppose further that I attempted to assign esoteric meaning to the contents: "These fruit peels here indicate that I am going on a trip...the moldy spaghetti indicates that some of my 401k stocks are getting stale and it is time to sell them..."

Now suppose even further that I PAID someone to interpret my trash for me. You would think that I was crazy. After all, it's just fucking garbage!


No, I don't want to hear about your dreams. You don't tell me about your dreams, and I won't start telling you about my kitchen trash bucket.
Tell me what is going on in your real life. Let's leave the detritus where it belongs.

 

[DeepGreenEyes]

These are fascinating responses.

I used to have a lot of apocalyptic dreams: wandering dangerous post-war wastelands, battling mutants. Now that was restful.

Sometimes I'll dream in classic comedy set-ups: visual or comedic devices that I've co-opted from sitcoms or films. For instance, I'll be vehemently refusing to do something:

Dream Scene 1:*Establishing shot of me ranting* "There's no way I'm going to call that client. None! You call him! In fact, there is absolutely NOTHING you can do to get me to call that client!"

Dream Scene 2: *Immediate swipe to a scene of me sitting at a desk on the phone.* "Hello? May I please speak to the client?"

Those are entertaining.

A lot of my dreams are just ridiculously over-symbolic. Like my brain is screaming at me to pay attention to something, and pointing for emphasis. I'm not kidding. Like I'll be dreaming that I'm fighting a huge slimemonster, and he has a big label on his side that says, "List of things you need to get done."

 

[chy_girl]

As any neurologist can tell you, dreams are the detritus that gets tossed around when part of your brain is doing housecleaning. Apparently the brain needs down time to process all of it's experiences. When you dream, your brain is essentially taking out the trash.
*snip*

That is one theory, yes. Unfortunately the "hard sciences" can't explain everything.

Don't get me wrong, Freudian dream analysis is off target in my opinion and I personally wouldn't pay anyone anything to predict my future off my dreams, but there can be more to dreaming than just one's brain "cleaning house."

 

[graceanne]

No, I don't want to hear about your dreams. You don't tell me about your dreams, and I won't start telling you about my kitchen trash bucket.

Then here's a suggestion, don't open a thread about dreams and I promise I won't any threads about your kitchen trash bucket. Duh!