The Nightmare
I woke up in a cold sweat. My hands were shaking. The nightmarish eyes began to fade as I rubbed my own. I tried to remember where I was but it took a few minutes more for the frightening sights in my dreams to drift away far enough for me to fully wake up.
Nightmarish scenes can haunt our waking & our sleeping hours.
The nightmare had been visiting my slumber for weeks now and I was anxious to sort it out. Some part of me knew what lay beneath the surface of my dream was going to be unpleasant and down right difficult to deal with.
I had been avoiding dealing with the recurring and frightening dream.
But,
it was clearly time to deal with it.
My comrades and I on pilgrimage in Ireland.
I sat in the kitchen of the vacation rental where I had come on pilgrimage with two dear friends and told them each detail of the dream. They listened patiently and when I had finished recanting the bizarre account they began to ask me questions. As the morning light washed over me, the insights and questions of my friends helped me face what I had been avoiding for months.
Are You Listening?
How often have you wrestled in your sleep with a dream only to wake up exhausted in the morning feeling as if you had been working all night long?
Dreams have a way of getting our attention. When we don’t listen to what they are attempting to communicate, then they will say it a little louder. The dreams will become scarier, more boisterous, and more vivid until we can’t help but to work through their content. This, however, is easier said than done.
In order to address the deeper issues these fear-inducing dreams portray we must learn strategies for working through them.
There are a multitude of approaches to dream interpretation. For me, the most useful and applicable of these approaches in dealing with scary dreams and nightmares is Jung’s 3 layer dream interpretation technique. Whether you are battling nightmares or you’re just inquisitive of a one-off dream sequence you will most likely find this approach both simple and useful.
Here’s my take on Jung’s 3 layered dream interpretation technique:
Layer 1: Literal– Start interpreting each dream here. What elements, emotions, actions, or individuals in your dream represent a real part of your current life situation?
ex.: Did you dream of a death?
Then ask yourself, “What in my life is dying?” or “What in my life is coming to an end?”
Layer 2: Metaphysical– This next level can often be the most difficult. What elements, emotions, actions, or individuals in your dream represent your inner state or emotions? In other words, you must approach each element of your dream as if it represents some part of you.
ex.: Did you dream of a masked perpetrator trying to steal from or threaten you?
Then ask yourself, “Where in my life am I unfairly stripping myself or others of the credit/ reward/ opportunity that is deserved?”
Layer 3: Collective Unconscious – When we wake up from a dream and say, “That was crazy!” we are often referring to the deeply mysterious, instinctual, and symbolic facets of knowledge that are innate to all humankind. Ask yourself which elements in your dream stand out? Explore their symbolic and archetypal meanings throughout history.
ex.: Did you dream of a snake?
Then spend sometime exploring the personal, communal, and historical information you can find on serpents. Note which pieces of the information you find resonate with you.
Choosing to Approach
Scary dreams and nightmares are ubiquitous. We can either approach them from a posture of curiosity or fear. If we take the stance of curiosity, we are bound to learn some fascinating and practical wisdom that will be beneficial to us and others.
Want to know more? Try the below application and see if this 3-layered approach helps you:
Application:
L1 & 2: In a quiet spot with a piece of paper and pen write down in a few brief sentences a dream that has scared you. Next, underline the elements of the dream that are most important to you. Using the 3 layers above, write down what literal, metaphysical, and collective meanings you find in your dream.
L3: Follow the steps for L1& 2 then take the information you gleaned from this process and sit down with a trusted friend and have them ask you further questions. Note what elements you had repressed and which you had highlighted in comparison with your friend’s questions. Now repeat the 3-layered approach with any elements that your friend highlighted which you had repressed.
May the Road Rise Up to Meet Y’all,
Rev.Wren
RevWren 