In your dreams: Using your subconscious mind to improve life

OPINION — Dreams seem to be a strange phenomenon that happen randomly and without reason.

People have pondered the meaning of dreams for centuries.  A source of inspiration, guidance, prediction, and problem-solving, dreams are a common experience to us all.

Many have heard the expression, “I’ll sleep on it” when someone is making an important decision.  By tuning in to our dreams, we can glean wisdom from our subconscious mind that is alerting us to helpful solutions.

There are primary dream symbols which usually have the same meanings. Some common themes are as follows:

  • A house: You; a house falling down could warn that you need to take better care of yourself; a large house could indicate great potential and awareness of opportunities
  • Any vehicle: Also the self, but more specifically your mode of traveling in your daily life; an airplane is your spiritual “plane,” while a motorcycle or bicycle means you need more balance in your life
  • Teeth falling out: Signals that you need a boost of self-confidence

Once you become comfortable with the meaning of various symbols in your dreams, you can then use this knowledge to make yourself happier and boost your problem-solving skills.

Here are some tips for utilizing your dream power:

  • Keep a dream journal | Write down your dream the second you wake up; if you wait, you’ll lose most of the details of your dream.  A Canadian study found that people who review the content of their dreams over a week period see clear solutions to the problems they faced seven days earlier
  • Realize that everything in the dream is you | People in your dream usually represent personality traits within yourself that you’ve projected onto them
  • To ease nightmares, sleep on your right side | This from Turkish researchers who studied sleeping positions and how they relate to sleep quality; these researchers found that those who slept on their right have mellower ones, with themes of relief, joy, peace and love
  • Deliberately program your dreams for answers | Before going to sleep, take a few deep breaths, relax, and bring the problem to mind; then tell yourself that you will dream the solution, and that you will remember it when you awake. Again, remember to write down the dream and every detail you can remember immediately upon waking

Your dreams help you look at the thought patterns that are governing your life. So the next time you dream about being chased, know that you are avoiding looking at a problem. You are putting yourself through unnecessary anguish and pain. Remember to turn around and confront whatever aspect of self is chasing you, make peace with it and know that the answer will come and the drama will end.

Sweet dreams.

Brigit Atkin
Brigit Atkin

Written by Brigit Atkin for St. George Health and Wellness magazine and St. George News.

Atkin is a certified practitioner of the SimplyHealed method, which blends the art of healing with cutting-edge research and clears negative emotions on a mental, emotional and physical level in an easy, non-invasive way. It can release stress of any kind, whether it be years of abuse or daily things that tend to overwhelm our emotional circuitry. She was trained by Carolyn Cooper and works within the St. George community.

Resources

St. George Health and Wellness website

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Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2015, all rights reserved.

 

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