Sleep occupies a third of our lives, and scientists continue to study it. While pleasant dreams leave us with no questions, nightmares can be a source of trouble and anxiety. Why do we have nightmares? What are they, and what purpose do they serve?
In simple terms, as strange as it may sound, nightmares help our brain relieve unresolved real-life problems. In nightmares, just like in regular dreams, everything is symbolic but logically meaningful. AdmiGram.com decodes the most common types of nightmares to help you understand what your subconscious is trying to tell you.
Decoding nightmares or why we dream all this
You see the end of the world
Any natural disaster or catastrophe you dream of signals that you fear something but try to hide from this problem rather than solve it. Any problem will remain a problem until you find a way to solve it in reality.
Example: You’re riding with someone in a car, and you see a massive meteorite falling from the sky onto you. The reason might be that you haven’t told this person the truth about something crucial.
You’re naked
These peculiar dreams make us blush at any age. However strange they may be, they occur because we unconsciously always compare ourselves to others. If something is wrong with our self-esteem, we may dream an embarrassing dream where we find ourselves among those we compare ourselves to.
Example: You find yourself in a new group, or you simply consider your social circle much luckier, happier, or richer.
You can’t pass the exam
Even if you graduated from school a long time ago, sometimes you dream of Mrs. Smith making you solve trigonometry problems. What does it all mean? In reality, it’s just references to your past, where you felt comfortable. That is, your present seems less good to you than your past. Hey, pull yourself together and do something about it!
Example: You might have lost your job or got a new one, but not as good as you would have liked. Your nightmare is telling you that you should still fight and find a solution to this problem.
You’re lost somewhere
If you dream that you can’t find a way out or got lost in an unfamiliar place, it indicates that you are in a similar situation in real life. It’s a subconscious allegory that you have some internal conflicts, and you can’t give yourself an answer on how to handle the situation.
Example: You feel guilty about betraying your loved one and don’t know whether to tell them about it.
Something is broken
When you dream that something is breaking or simply malfunctioning, it’s important to trace the connection between this object and the person associated with it in real life. Your subconscious is telling you that something has broken on an emotional level between you and that person. Perhaps you haven’t seen each other for a long time or have simply had a falling out.
Example: You can’t find common ground with your growing child, and you dream that you let them use your malfunctioning phone.
You’re falling or drowning
Falling in an elevator, airplane, or just the feeling of drowning in water are some of the most common types of nightmares. They tell us that we are experiencing pressure from some task, situation, problem, or responsibility. All this anxiety somehow transforms into a nightmare.
Example: You don’t know what to give your best friend for their wedding. So, you’re likely to dream that you’re falling in the elevator of a building somehow connected to the upcoming wedding.
Someone stole from you
Sometimes, it could be just memories that your brain is trying to process correctly so that you don’t feel too distressed about them. But sometimes, we dream that our house is taken away, our car is stolen, or even that we ourselves are being kidnapped. All of this only indicates that our self-esteem is so low that even in a dream, we can’t believe we’ve achieved something significant.
Example: You finally bought the car you dreamed of. However, your self-esteem is so low that subconsciously you feel unworthy of such a thing. If you constantly have such nightmares, it’s essential to see a psychologist.
You can’t fix something
No matter what breaks in your nightmare, what matters is what connects you to that thing and how it is linked to others. It’s like a bridge between you, a problem connecting you to a specific person or situation, and some abstract thing that can bind you together. Sometimes the connection is hard to trace, and sometimes the answer is right on the surface.
Example: You have a conflict with your wife’s parents. So, you’ll likely dream that you broke your father-in-law’s car and are trying to fix it.
Injury, illness, or death
To avoid such a terrible dream, there’s no need to worry. These nightmares occur because we subconsciously fear some significant changes. That’s it. Such dreams only indicate that our brain perceives it as the end of an important life stage and the beginning of the next.
Example: You are about to move to another city or even another country. Sometimes it’s easier to “die” than to go through such an experience. And your nightmare is a vivid example of this metaphor.
Someone is chasing you
Another signal through which our brain tries to convey that we are somehow avoiding a problem rather than solving it. It’s essential to trace what happened to you before the chase in this nightmare. Perhaps it’s simply due to excessive stress at work or in your studies. In this case, you’re sure to dream of a chase in the campus or office.
Example: If you are deeply affected by relationship issues with loved ones, you’ll likely dream of a horror scenario in the house or place where you most often encountered these people.
