Ever dreamt you are falling? Or being chased by a stranger or maybe even been naked in public?
They are all common dreams, but what do they mean?
Interpreting dreams is a shifting corner of the scientific world. While some people think dreams are not much more than the brain clearing itself out, others have discovered some surprising facts about dreams.
But first, what are dreams? Well, that bit is simple: they are mental images our brain creates while we sleep.
We don’t remember them all. It’s estimated we dream between three to six times a night and we only remember about five per cent of those dreams.
Brain function
Dreams usually occur during rapid eye movement (REM) sleep. As the title says, REM sleep is indicated by your eyes moving around a lot, and your brain function at this time is almost as active as when you are awake.
As well as just general dreams, there are also nightmares and lucid dreams.
Nightmares are distressing dreams that cause a strong emotional reaction and lucid dreams are where the person has some control over what is happening in the dream.
So, those are the facts but after that, explaining dreams becomes a bit murkier, mostly because they are hard to measure scientifically – it’s not like the brain has a little screen we can tune in to – and we don’t remember most of what we dream.
What goes on before we sleep can influence our dreams. If we are stressed or facing a major life change such as pregnancy, your dreams will often become much more frequent and intense.
More nightmares
Health issues may also affect our dreams. For example, COVID-19 sufferers have reported experiencing more nightmares during their infection period.
People also tend to have dreams specific to their lives, for example a computer programmer may dream about coding.
However, while there do seem to be some common themes, experts cannot definitely interpret what they mean.
Behavioural sleep medicine expert Michelle Drerup told the Cleveland Clinic there’s no real consistent, scientifically proven theory linking specific content back to what a dream means and dream interpretation is subjective.
“That’s always what I tell people – the meaning that you ascribe to the dream is going to be much more meaningful than anything I ascribe to the dream,” she says.
“Because it’s probably something from your life that’s represented in that dream.
“For example, if someone recently lost their job, a certain dream about not being able to find their shoes might mean something very different to them versus someone who recently went through a divorce.
“Your dream of pregnancy could be much more about, ‘I’m starting a new career.’ A new life, in a sense. The dream could mean a whole lot of different things.”
Some dreams also appear to be cultural.
According to Medical News Today, there was a reported increase in dreams about flying from 1956 onwards, which could reflect the increase in commercial flights.
Researchers have found that people living in certain places might have similar night-time visions, although they aren’t quite sure why.
“There seems to be some cultural influence on dreams,” Dr Drerup explains. “For example, the same type of dream might be more common in Germany.”
Common theories
And while we can’t definitively interpret dreams, there are some theories according to Medical News Today, including:
Relationships: Some have hypothesised that one cluster of typical dreams, including being an object in danger, falling or being chased, is related to interpersonal conflicts.
Sexual concepts: Another cluster that includes flying, sexual experiences, finding money and eating delicious food is associated with libidinal and sexual motivations.
Fear of embarrassment: A third group, containing dreams that involve being nude, failing an examination, arriving too late, losing teeth and being inappropriately dressed, is associated with social concerns and a fear of embarrassment.
Do you think dreams have certain meanings? Why not share your experience in the comments section below?
Also read: Get deeper sleep and happier dreams with these five tips
