Nightmares
AN ARM IS CUT OFF—THE DREAM:I am having a series of terrible dreams that absolutely frighten me. A recent one was that my mother was sleeping in my bedroom and I saw a part of her arm on the floor.MAIN LIFE ISSUES: Challenging job atmosphere; seeking a new job and place to live, no love life.FELT HOW: Shock and fear.STORY LINE: It's a story about seeing a loved one missing a very important part of themselves.SYMBOL:
Arm: An important part of the body to interact successfully in the world. An amputated arm would reflect a diminished capacity to interact. WHAT IT MEANS:The dream says: "I am losing an important part of myself" and mirrors your feelings of being limited and crippled at work.BOTTOM LINE: As you deal with each challenge, the nightmares will disappear. Sometimes changing your attitude into peace and acceptance instead of fear can allow solutions to emerge. Though emotions can feel drastic, you are not your feelings. Feelings are like birds that rest on branches then fly away. Connect to your strong inner parts and solve the problems one at a time.
TERRIFIED BY A MAN—THE DREAM: I dreamed of a man with a mustache and red skin who is talking nice to me, then starts to attack me. It woke me up.FELT HOW: Scared.MAIN LIFE ISSUES: Problems with marriage.STORY LINE: It’s a story about someone who has two sides to them.SYMBOLS: The color red: Red can denote anger or fighting, as in the expression (waving a red flag".Red Skin: Someone whose appearance indicates anger.An attack: An aggressive interaction or communication that is an attempt to overwhelm another. WHAT IT MEANS:The dream portrays a man who has a sweet talking side and an aggressive side that can be harmful. Though dreams can exaggerate to make a point, the question is whether that describes your husband? Does your husband or someone around you, such as boss or other family member, make you feel vulnerable and threatened? In most cases, such dreams relate to mean words rather than actual physical harm. However, if your husband has a temper, make sure his words do not escalate into physical reactions which put you in danger. Most often a dream is about you, the dreamer. If the dream is about you, it might hint that you can turn from mild to bad tempered in an instant, and may have to rein in your own reactions with others. BOTTOM LINE: Dreams are about your life. Only you can determine which scenario fits.
SCARY CLOWN—THE DREAM:The new man in my life was holding my daughter. It was the first time he was meeting her and they were both laughing and joking. But he was dressed as a clown and in real life, she is terrified of clowns and won’t go into a room that has a clown in it.FELT HOW: Unsure.MAIN LIFE ISSUES: Love.STORY LINE: Someone is not who they appear to be, and even though a loved one reacts well to them, the real person is not visible. SYMBOL: Clown: Can be a metaphor of hiding behind a mask or a metaphor for lightness and fun.WHAT IT MEANS:Most dreams are about us, though at times they can be a message about a loved one, such as your daughter. How you felt can be a main clue about the dream’s meaning. The dream bothered you enough to find out what it means, so there had to be more than a hint of alarm and fear for your daughter. If the dream is about you, the dream suggests you may have fears about starting a new relationship. If you were hurt in a past relationship, you may still feel vulnerable and in this dream, your daughter could be a symbol of that hurt, fearful part of you. In this case, the dream would be an invitation to note and overcoming those fears so that you can again enjoy a relationship with a man.However, it’s also said that we pre-dream anything of importance that happens to us, so one must consider if the dream could be a warning that man is not as pleasant as he appears to be, and could be someone to fear, in terms of your daughter’s safety, or your own.BOTTOM LINE: Only you can know which version resonates. However, until you are sure about the new man's character, since traits and tendencies can be hidden, it may be wise to keep him away from your daughter. SOMEONE EATS MY CHILD—THE DREAM: I dreamed I fell in love with rock star Marilyn Manson (famous for the song, Tainted Love). Just before we had sex, he rips his chest and stomach open and two badly deformed children climb out. I realize he’s trying to lure my son there. I find my son and run, but Manson chases me. When he grabs me, I tell him I love him; he paused and said “Really”? I said yes. He wants to take me to his farm of children and have us eat them, then gets mad because I try to call the cops. He breaks my phone then wants to eat me. I run into a shopping center, screaming, but nobody listens because people don’t want to get involved. Someone calls the police and a female cop picks me up. I woke up knowing the ending would be him in the back of the car and us crashing!FELT HOW: Felt so much pain that I couldn’t protect my son; intense fear.MAIN LIFE ISSUES: Recently diagnosed with borderline personality; my child is living with his father.STORY LINE: Someone is forced to do something against their own self-interest (eating a child, a metaphor for not allowed to be the mother to her child), gets no support, but in the end is rescued.SYMBOLS:Rock Star: Important man you admire who has all the power; likely in this case a metaphor for your ex husband. Song, Tainted Love: A metaphor for love that is off track, given or received.Deformed children: Bad outcomes; results that are not good.Cannibal - wanting to eat child / children: Trying to get nourishment from sources one should not; breaking a strong social norm, a taboo.Breaks my phone: Someone does not allow me to communicate; not being able to connect to others, the world.No one listens or cares: How it feels that others react to you in real life, they don’t seem concerned about your problems or your pain. WHAT IT MEANS:The dream describes how terrible life feels for you at this time; you feel forced into a life you don’t want or understand and few are there to help you. Yet the dream shows that in the end you find help. That tells you that even though you’re having a very rough time now, it will get better.BOTTOM LINE: The dream tells you to hang in there and stay strong, suggesting that in time, things will change. Learn to trust yourself, become positive in thought and action and keep reaching for your strength. You will get there.
MY CHILD IS MURDERED—THE DREAM: A child is in a room; I can’t see his face but I recognize my son's shirt. A man is holding a shotgun to the window, he shoots and the child squirms. Another shot is fired as I watch from a distance. The dream is very disturbing and in my head 24/7.MAIN LIFE ISSUES: My son will travel to Africa next month; he’s twelve.FELT HOW: TerrifiedSTORY LINE: Someone watches what they love which at first is safe then faces terrible danger from an unexpected source and can do nothing about it.SYMBOLS:Death: Most often a symbol of a great change or a need to let go.Son: Can be your actual son or a metaphor for something you hold dear and are responsible for. Shotgun: A large weapon as a metaphor for a major event or circumstance that brings about change, such as your son's trip. WHAT IT MEANS:Because you are actually worried about your son being far away in a place that can be dangerous, the dream is most likely a message about your son. The change likely relates to him but his death is a metaphor about letting go and letting him be independent. The dream hints the trip will be a rite of passage for your son and create great change in him, connect him to the beginnings of his manhood. Death, in this case, is a metaphor for change and transition that will take place when he is on his own, at a distance. As a mother, watching your son grow up in ways you cannot control, can feel scary. BOTTOM LINE: There is no actual death or harm to your son, the dream is likely about changes in your relationship and his steps into growing up.
SOMEONE TRIES TO KILL ME—THE DREAM:At age twenty-one, a recurring nightmare from my childhood is back. My family (mom, dad, brother and me) were in my childhood home. I'm scared and watching from a distance, it’s very dark and late at night. I tell my brother to hide; then I run to my parents’ room and try to wake them but they don't move. I hear laughter as someone comes for me from down the hall. I hide under the bed and find the heads of my parents. A bad woman is in the room looking for me and laughing but I don't make a sound. When she leaves, I run into the kitchen and open the refrigerator; my brother is hiding inside and is frozen. The monster lady comes for me. She becomes my grandmother and grabs for me but misses and puts my brother in a pot and starts to cook him, laughing. I can't save him so I keep running but I don't make it to the door. I'm stuck and stare as she comes closer and closer, then grabs me.FELT HOW: Terrified, helpless.MAIN LIFE ISSUES: Ex won’t be in our child’s life now that I am remarried.STORY LINE: A young one does not feel safe and cannot escape. SYMBOLS:Coming to Kill me: Death is generally a symbol of change; death by killing is a metaphor change that creates fear in circumstances beyond your control.At childhood home with family: Feelings and/or memories related to early childhood that are surfacing as a young adult.Tell brother to hide: Taking steps to be safe; protecting loved ones; brother as strength that you are trying to hold on to.Someone runs after me: Feeling attacked and vulnerable. Brother is frozen inside fridge: Being emotionally frozen, unable to react.Stuck and can’t get out: Needing help; a situation beyond what one can handle on one’s own.WHAT IT MEANS:Because you had that recurring dream since childhood, something in your childhood made you feel unsafe and vulnerable, regularly. As a dream in later years, that nightmare has become a signpost for any situation which makes you feel insecure, scared and vulnerable. As you settle into a good new marriage and relax, it sounds as if the thoughts and fears surrounding your ex may have been pushed away are surfacing.You may feel safe for the first time in a long while with your new husband, but sometimes that’s when vulnerable memories replay, like scars that need healing.BOTTOM LINE: If you had traumatic experiences during childhood, now that you are in a good situation, it can be wise to work with a therapist to heal old wounds. Otherwise they can resurface when you least expect it to block emotions or accidentally trip you up. VOMITING BLOOD—THE DREAM:I went to a big concert with a best friends and was wearing a pink dress and hair bow. My friend brought a boy who was really bad with a leather jacket, the whole nine yards. I went with the intention of just listening to the music but when I saw the boy, I really liked him. It's not like me to get caught up in a boy-type ordeal but this guy was different in a good way and I really liked him, though he didn't like me at all. I decided to change myself up a bit, dressed up in black, leather jacket and biker boots. He then started to take an interest, handed me a beer which I never drink, but drank it in my dream. Then I drank a little more, a little more, and drank A LOT, I could feel myself getting drunk. my vision blurred, I was confused. Me and my friend sat at a table, we were now at a diner with the guy, and now there was another girl, Asian, with porcelain skin, really pretty.I took out a cigarette, though I’ve never smoked in real life and my friend said, "You smoke? You've changed so much. Please don't smoke." I told her I didn't give a damn. For some reason, the Asian girl mattered to me, I asked if she minded if I smoked and she said yeah, so I put it away.We end up at a school, now only with my friend and the guy. My friend said there was a concert, I could either go to the concert or to a classroom. I didn't feel good so I went to the classroom with him. We were making out and suddenly, I felt horrible. I closed my eyes and puked, then opened my eyes and puked some more. At first it was normal puke then suddenly turned blood red and I knew I was sick. I was crying, really scared, I knew I had to go to the hospital. My vision got super blurred and I was crying, slurring my words, walking weird and falling over, seeing black. I saw the guy sitting in a chair at a desk in the classroom and the Asian girl listening to a band, saying "We're so thankful to have you out here!" I see tons of people in a crowd then remember that I need to call 911.I end up back in the classroom. There is a phone so I call 911, then woke up.FELT HOW: Scared.MAIN LIFE ISSUES: I have always been a good-girl, straight A's; nitpicker, perfectionist, over the top, dramatic.STORY LINE: Someone participates in extreme behaviors they do not normally engage in and face dire consequences.SYMBOLS:Vomiting Blood: Not able to stomach something. Bad boy in leather jacket: Metaphor for wanting to let loose, balance the good girl side of yourself.Smoking and drinking beer: In this case, a metaphor of trying out things you don’t normally do.Asian girl: Person with high standards, your conscience.Choose concert or classroom: Opposite extremes as choices that show a need for balance.Need to go to hospital, call 911: Seeking your best health and self; awareness that you need to heal in areas of life.WHAT IT MEANS:When dreams mirror extremes, e.g. you are good girl in real life versus very bad in the dream, the dream is an invitation about finding balance. For example, as an A-student, you may work very hard but feel guilty about taking time to chill, play, or spend time with friends or hobbies. The dream suggests invites you to find balance in your life. It may also hint that you feel a lot of pressure to maintain your image as a good girl and straight A student but the good news is that people understand you are human, and if the time comes when your actions are less than perfect, you’ll discover the world won’t fall apart, no one will love you less, and in the long term, it won’t matter.BOTTOM LINE: Find balance in work and play, time alone and socializing and know that no one is perfect. The goal is to do as well as possible yet find wholeness and balance, rather than to strive for perfection.
TERRIFIED BY A MAN—THE DREAM: I dreamed of a man with a mustache and red skin who is talking nice to me, then starts to attack me. It woke me up.FELT HOW: Scared.MAIN LIFE ISSUES: Problems with marriage.STORY LINE: It’s a story about someone who has two sides to them.SYMBOLS: The color red: Red can denote anger or fighting, as in the expression (waving a red flag".Red Skin: Someone whose appearance indicates anger.An attack: An aggressive interaction or communication that is an attempt to overwhelm another. WHAT IT MEANS:The dream portrays a man who has a sweet talking side and an aggressive side that can be harmful. Though dreams can exaggerate to make a point, the question is whether that describes your husband? Does your husband or someone around you, such as boss or other family member, make you feel vulnerable and threatened? In most cases, such dreams relate to mean words rather than actual physical harm. However, if your husband has a temper, make sure his words do not escalate into physical reactions which put you in danger. Most often a dream is about you, the dreamer. If the dream is about you, it might hint that you can turn from mild to bad tempered in an instant, and may have to rein in your own reactions with others. BOTTOM LINE: Dreams are about your life. Only you can determine which scenario fits.
SCARY CLOWN—THE DREAM:The new man in my life was holding my daughter. It was the first time he was meeting her and they were both laughing and joking. But he was dressed as a clown and in real life, she is terrified of clowns and won’t go into a room that has a clown in it.FELT HOW: Unsure.MAIN LIFE ISSUES: Love.STORY LINE: Someone is not who they appear to be, and even though a loved one reacts well to them, the real person is not visible. SYMBOL: Clown: Can be a metaphor of hiding behind a mask or a metaphor for lightness and fun.WHAT IT MEANS:Most dreams are about us, though at times they can be a message about a loved one, such as your daughter. How you felt can be a main clue about the dream’s meaning. The dream bothered you enough to find out what it means, so there had to be more than a hint of alarm and fear for your daughter. If the dream is about you, the dream suggests you may have fears about starting a new relationship. If you were hurt in a past relationship, you may still feel vulnerable and in this dream, your daughter could be a symbol of that hurt, fearful part of you. In this case, the dream would be an invitation to note and overcoming those fears so that you can again enjoy a relationship with a man.However, it’s also said that we pre-dream anything of importance that happens to us, so one must consider if the dream could be a warning that man is not as pleasant as he appears to be, and could be someone to fear, in terms of your daughter’s safety, or your own.BOTTOM LINE: Only you can know which version resonates. However, until you are sure about the new man's character, since traits and tendencies can be hidden, it may be wise to keep him away from your daughter. SOMEONE EATS MY CHILD—THE DREAM: I dreamed I fell in love with rock star Marilyn Manson (famous for the song, Tainted Love). Just before we had sex, he rips his chest and stomach open and two badly deformed children climb out. I realize he’s trying to lure my son there. I find my son and run, but Manson chases me. When he grabs me, I tell him I love him; he paused and said “Really”? I said yes. He wants to take me to his farm of children and have us eat them, then gets mad because I try to call the cops. He breaks my phone then wants to eat me. I run into a shopping center, screaming, but nobody listens because people don’t want to get involved. Someone calls the police and a female cop picks me up. I woke up knowing the ending would be him in the back of the car and us crashing!FELT HOW: Felt so much pain that I couldn’t protect my son; intense fear.MAIN LIFE ISSUES: Recently diagnosed with borderline personality; my child is living with his father.STORY LINE: Someone is forced to do something against their own self-interest (eating a child, a metaphor for not allowed to be the mother to her child), gets no support, but in the end is rescued.SYMBOLS:Rock Star: Important man you admire who has all the power; likely in this case a metaphor for your ex husband. Song, Tainted Love: A metaphor for love that is off track, given or received.Deformed children: Bad outcomes; results that are not good.Cannibal - wanting to eat child / children: Trying to get nourishment from sources one should not; breaking a strong social norm, a taboo.Breaks my phone: Someone does not allow me to communicate; not being able to connect to others, the world.No one listens or cares: How it feels that others react to you in real life, they don’t seem concerned about your problems or your pain. WHAT IT MEANS:The dream describes how terrible life feels for you at this time; you feel forced into a life you don’t want or understand and few are there to help you. Yet the dream shows that in the end you find help. That tells you that even though you’re having a very rough time now, it will get better.BOTTOM LINE: The dream tells you to hang in there and stay strong, suggesting that in time, things will change. Learn to trust yourself, become positive in thought and action and keep reaching for your strength. You will get there.
MY CHILD IS MURDERED—THE DREAM: A child is in a room; I can’t see his face but I recognize my son's shirt. A man is holding a shotgun to the window, he shoots and the child squirms. Another shot is fired as I watch from a distance. The dream is very disturbing and in my head 24/7.MAIN LIFE ISSUES: My son will travel to Africa next month; he’s twelve.FELT HOW: TerrifiedSTORY LINE: Someone watches what they love which at first is safe then faces terrible danger from an unexpected source and can do nothing about it.SYMBOLS:Death: Most often a symbol of a great change or a need to let go.Son: Can be your actual son or a metaphor for something you hold dear and are responsible for. Shotgun: A large weapon as a metaphor for a major event or circumstance that brings about change, such as your son's trip. WHAT IT MEANS:Because you are actually worried about your son being far away in a place that can be dangerous, the dream is most likely a message about your son. The change likely relates to him but his death is a metaphor about letting go and letting him be independent. The dream hints the trip will be a rite of passage for your son and create great change in him, connect him to the beginnings of his manhood. Death, in this case, is a metaphor for change and transition that will take place when he is on his own, at a distance. As a mother, watching your son grow up in ways you cannot control, can feel scary. BOTTOM LINE: There is no actual death or harm to your son, the dream is likely about changes in your relationship and his steps into growing up.
SOMEONE TRIES TO KILL ME—THE DREAM:At age twenty-one, a recurring nightmare from my childhood is back. My family (mom, dad, brother and me) were in my childhood home. I'm scared and watching from a distance, it’s very dark and late at night. I tell my brother to hide; then I run to my parents’ room and try to wake them but they don't move. I hear laughter as someone comes for me from down the hall. I hide under the bed and find the heads of my parents. A bad woman is in the room looking for me and laughing but I don't make a sound. When she leaves, I run into the kitchen and open the refrigerator; my brother is hiding inside and is frozen. The monster lady comes for me. She becomes my grandmother and grabs for me but misses and puts my brother in a pot and starts to cook him, laughing. I can't save him so I keep running but I don't make it to the door. I'm stuck and stare as she comes closer and closer, then grabs me.FELT HOW: Terrified, helpless.MAIN LIFE ISSUES: Ex won’t be in our child’s life now that I am remarried.STORY LINE: A young one does not feel safe and cannot escape. SYMBOLS:Coming to Kill me: Death is generally a symbol of change; death by killing is a metaphor change that creates fear in circumstances beyond your control.At childhood home with family: Feelings and/or memories related to early childhood that are surfacing as a young adult.Tell brother to hide: Taking steps to be safe; protecting loved ones; brother as strength that you are trying to hold on to.Someone runs after me: Feeling attacked and vulnerable. Brother is frozen inside fridge: Being emotionally frozen, unable to react.Stuck and can’t get out: Needing help; a situation beyond what one can handle on one’s own.WHAT IT MEANS:Because you had that recurring dream since childhood, something in your childhood made you feel unsafe and vulnerable, regularly. As a dream in later years, that nightmare has become a signpost for any situation which makes you feel insecure, scared and vulnerable. As you settle into a good new marriage and relax, it sounds as if the thoughts and fears surrounding your ex may have been pushed away are surfacing.You may feel safe for the first time in a long while with your new husband, but sometimes that’s when vulnerable memories replay, like scars that need healing.BOTTOM LINE: If you had traumatic experiences during childhood, now that you are in a good situation, it can be wise to work with a therapist to heal old wounds. Otherwise they can resurface when you least expect it to block emotions or accidentally trip you up. VOMITING BLOOD—THE DREAM:I went to a big concert with a best friends and was wearing a pink dress and hair bow. My friend brought a boy who was really bad with a leather jacket, the whole nine yards. I went with the intention of just listening to the music but when I saw the boy, I really liked him. It's not like me to get caught up in a boy-type ordeal but this guy was different in a good way and I really liked him, though he didn't like me at all. I decided to change myself up a bit, dressed up in black, leather jacket and biker boots. He then started to take an interest, handed me a beer which I never drink, but drank it in my dream. Then I drank a little more, a little more, and drank A LOT, I could feel myself getting drunk. my vision blurred, I was confused. Me and my friend sat at a table, we were now at a diner with the guy, and now there was another girl, Asian, with porcelain skin, really pretty.I took out a cigarette, though I’ve never smoked in real life and my friend said, "You smoke? You've changed so much. Please don't smoke." I told her I didn't give a damn. For some reason, the Asian girl mattered to me, I asked if she minded if I smoked and she said yeah, so I put it away.We end up at a school, now only with my friend and the guy. My friend said there was a concert, I could either go to the concert or to a classroom. I didn't feel good so I went to the classroom with him. We were making out and suddenly, I felt horrible. I closed my eyes and puked, then opened my eyes and puked some more. At first it was normal puke then suddenly turned blood red and I knew I was sick. I was crying, really scared, I knew I had to go to the hospital. My vision got super blurred and I was crying, slurring my words, walking weird and falling over, seeing black. I saw the guy sitting in a chair at a desk in the classroom and the Asian girl listening to a band, saying "We're so thankful to have you out here!" I see tons of people in a crowd then remember that I need to call 911.I end up back in the classroom. There is a phone so I call 911, then woke up.FELT HOW: Scared.MAIN LIFE ISSUES: I have always been a good-girl, straight A's; nitpicker, perfectionist, over the top, dramatic.STORY LINE: Someone participates in extreme behaviors they do not normally engage in and face dire consequences.SYMBOLS:Vomiting Blood: Not able to stomach something. Bad boy in leather jacket: Metaphor for wanting to let loose, balance the good girl side of yourself.Smoking and drinking beer: In this case, a metaphor of trying out things you don’t normally do.Asian girl: Person with high standards, your conscience.Choose concert or classroom: Opposite extremes as choices that show a need for balance.Need to go to hospital, call 911: Seeking your best health and self; awareness that you need to heal in areas of life.WHAT IT MEANS:When dreams mirror extremes, e.g. you are good girl in real life versus very bad in the dream, the dream is an invitation about finding balance. For example, as an A-student, you may work very hard but feel guilty about taking time to chill, play, or spend time with friends or hobbies. The dream suggests invites you to find balance in your life. It may also hint that you feel a lot of pressure to maintain your image as a good girl and straight A student but the good news is that people understand you are human, and if the time comes when your actions are less than perfect, you’ll discover the world won’t fall apart, no one will love you less, and in the long term, it won’t matter.BOTTOM LINE: Find balance in work and play, time alone and socializing and know that no one is perfect. The goal is to do as well as possible yet find wholeness and balance, rather than to strive for perfection.