Yup, we're all unique flowers who are special and individual in every way. Except when it comes to our dreams. However different we might seem as humans, how similar we really are all shows up in our dreams. The top 10 dreams everyone has and what they mean.
Skip right to the dream meanings.
In the great tradition of people who bore other people by recounting their dreams, I … am going to recount my dreams to you. Don't worry. You're gonna get the chance to bore everyone else, including me, later.
Since I was young I've had nightmares. Lots of them. Death, destruction, chasing, kidnapping, murderous heart pounding dreams. You name the nightmare and I've had it. Oftentimes over and over again.
In the past few years I've switched over to general anxiety dreams that are still very disturbing but not quite as death filled. I've never thought much about these nightmares of mine. They're just who I am and believe it or not, and this will sound really insane, but … I find them kind of comforting now.
I'm sure it's some sort of subconscious appreciation of how my dreams are dealing with the real life problems I have. Not that I feel like I have any at the moment, but my dreams know better - they know we're all dealing with something.
That's generally what dreams do. They deal with all the stuff you aren't dealing with in your waking life because you're too busy paying bills and wondering where you hid the vodka.
According to the Encyclopedia of Mental Disorders only a small percentage of people have nightmares on a regular basis. Nightmares aren't just scary dreams, they're terrifying. They can wake you up and the fear will stay with you.
About half of all people who suffer with nightmares also suffer from psychiatric disorders. I don't think I have a psychiatric disorder, at least not one fierce enough to cause nightmares every night so I'm more inclined to go with the Encyclopedia of Mental Disorder's other rationale for people with nightly nightmares which is the fact that artistic or creative people are at a greater risk of nightmares. Mainly because they have better imaginations.
5 or so years ago, around the time my fella of 11 years ran away from home, I was having nightmares that revolved around cloudy, scary, turbulent water. And I was in the scary water. I wasn't afraid of drowning, that wasn't the feeling - it was just dark and ominous. The dreams were me finding my way.
1 year ago, just after I had the relief of finding out that I *didn't* have breast cancer (I really encourage you to read that post here), I started having anxiety dreams.
It's amazing that there are so many of us with such different brains and personalities - yet we all have the same themes in dreams. Don't believe me? Here's a look at 10 of the most common dreams. I'm guessing you've experienced at least half of them.
If you're looking for a little more information on dream interpretation get The Dream Dictionary for Dummies.
Table of Contents
Dreams Analysis
Being Chased
Having a person chasing you in a dream can mean you feel threatened by something in your life or you're avoiding something. You are running from something in your conscious life; emotions, a relationship, worries or even your taxes.
It's a classic anxiety dream.
If you're being chased by someone who is trying to to kill you, you can take that as a pretty direct translation. That something or someone that has to do with you is bad for you. It doesn't necessarily mean it will literally kill you, but could kill parts of you. Your creativity, your happiness or your sanity for instance.
It could be a direction you yourself are going in that isn't healthy like hard drug use or other bad habits like eating a pound of butter for breakfast every day.
NOW, if you're the one doing the chasing it can mean a couple of things. You're possibly trying to run off that morning pound of butter orrrr you're running towards something (an ambition, person or goal).
Water
If the water is calm and clear, you're at peace obviously. If the waters are murky or turbulent you're struggling with equally turbulent emotions.
THIS is the dream I had a lot after my breakup. Murky, turbulent, violent water. I had no idea it was such a common dream because I don't remember ever dreaming about it before.
Teeth falling out
It's surprising how your teeth falling out in a dream can be every bit as horrifying as it would be in real life. You're in your dream, walking down the middle of a highway with your new florist Jeff Goldblum, as one does in dreams, and you feel something in your moth. A tooth. Then another and another and soon you have no teeth.
This seems like a bad sign.
BUT as with a lot of dreams, something that seems negative in a dream isn't necessarily bad. There CAN be a positive interpretation.
When you lose your baby teeth in real life it's a step towards growing up. The meaning of the dream about your teeth falling out could be that you're maturing and growing as a person.
On the other hand, it can have a negative connotation too. (Weirdly, dream science isn't very sciency. Actually, that's not weird at all)
The negative analysis of dreaming that your teeth fell out of your head is that you're afraid that you're losing control over something. It's a symbol of powerlessness and insecurity.
Flying
You live in Canada where pot is legal and you're super high. No wait, that's not right. Flying dreams represent experiencing a newfound sense of freedom or control. The next time you dream about flying make a point of thinking about whether you are experiencing either of these things in your life. You know. Just for dream analysis fun.
The most reasonable explanation for dreaming about flying is that you got a new cape, so ...
Exam time/Audition time
Dreaming about missing exams or suddenly realizing you haven't studied for a test make sense for someone in high school or University. But these dreams continue into adulthood.
The ubiquitous "I have an exam or test and I never went to class and never studied" dream can happen through your whole life. The test could be in another language or you can't get into the exam room … whatever the case it's a test and you're anxious about it. This is a classic anxiety dream and usually means you feel like you're being judged or evaluated by someone in your life.
I have both exam and audition dreams. Audition dreams happen more often than test dreams in people who went to performing art schools or studied music and acting. I have them because of my career as a television host.
omg i'm naked
You're feeling exposed or ashamed of something if you dream you're naked in public. It can also mean you're feeling vulnerable. Or you're just a hippie.
Death
Dreaming that you die means you actually died while sleeping. Just kidding. My 12 year old self couldn't resist saying t hat.
Dreaming of your own death signifies starting over. So it's not a bad thing, it's the chance to start over. New job, new relationship, or a new you after coming out of a relationship.
Dreaming of a parent's death can mean a couple of things. Well, a million really, but I'm trying to keep these interpretations to what most experts believe is the most plausible explanation. Dreaming of a parent's death is often literal. You're literally afraid of your parent dying either because they're sick or it's a deep seeded fear of yours.
It can also mean that you're finally a grown up - the dream is like a rebirth. Dreaming of a parent dying can mean you're personally at the point where you can live your own life. Your own mature life where you can survive and take care of yourself without any parenting. For women this kind of dream is typical around the age of 10. For men, it's around 73. Just kidding.
Dreaming of a sibling's death generally means you miss them.
If the death of the person in your dream doesn't make you sad do you feel like that person betrayed you in real life? Having them die in your dream is your retribution. It doesn't mean you actually want them dead, your dream is just giving you a chance to punish them so you can get over it.
Cheating
Cheating dreams are another common anxiety dream. If you dream your husband/wife is cheating it can mean you're actually worried about them cheating. It can also mean you have trust issues with them or are feeling insecure for some reason.
Sex
Dreaming about sex means you want to have sex. Seriously. Well sometimes it does.
Gay Sex (when you're not gay) means you're secretly gay. No it doesn't.
Same sex dreams often mean you need to get in touch with your feminine side (if you're a gal) or your more masculine side (if you're a dude). So break out the nail polish or start swinging that hammer.
Falling
Dreams where you're falling are also classic anxiety dreams. They usually mean a situation in your life is spiralling out of control. It could be your job or a relationship.
If you're falling but aren't afraid, it means you're in control of your situation and will easily get through it.
Some interesting less common dreams??
Poop. Dreaming about poop is NOT common. Butttttt, it's the 3rd most Googled dream, lol. So I guess even if it doesn't happen often, dreaming about poop is alarming enough that everyone who does it searches for the meaning of it.
So what does it mean if you dream about poop? That your life stinks? That you feel like crap? No. Shockingly, dreaming about poop is kind of a good (albeit disturbing and gross) thing. It means you're letting go of negativity and positive changes are ahead. But maybe buy some Immodium, just in case.
Alligators. Dreaming about alligators means you're feeling vulnerable about something. It can also mean that you're worried about a decision you're having to make in real life.
Keep in mind dreams can be interpreted in a few different ways. Also keep in mind some people think dream interpretation is a bunch of hoodoo. By nature, I'm a skeptic who always wants to be proven wrong. So my inclination is to scream HOOEY about all of this.
But if that was the case, if dreams and dream interpretation was hooey, then chances are we wouldn't all be having the same dreams as each other. A dream may mean one thing for you and another thing for someone else but as long as you know what you're going through in your real life you should be able to figure out what your dream means to you.
If you don't know what you're going through in your own life you're very, very dead so it doesn't matter.
If you want to delve a bit further into your dreams (and who doesn't) I can recommend 2 books to keep on your bedside table.
The Dreamer's Dictionary which as published in 1986 with the majority of hundreds of readers on Amazon giving it a 5 star review and The Dream Dictionary for Dummies which includes not only dream interpretations but also techniques for dreaming more and remembering the dreams you do have.
If you want to keep track of your dreams, you need to keep a journal beside your bed to write them down immediately when you wake up. You think you'll remember them, and you might for a few hours, but then they're gone.
THIS is the most fun dream journal I've ever seen. I mean, it has a strangeness meter at the top of every page.
It's now time for you to bore everyone with your dreams!
Can you remember what you dreamed about last night? Lay it on me!
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I had a what was supposed to be a nightmare but I wasnt scared.
In it was my mom, my sister who passed away in 2015 on mothers day and myself. Only I dont think it was my sister who passed but my younger sister who looks just like her. Anyways, the three of us were having a sleepover, and out of nowhere a bunch of stuff started to happen like things moving, almost like a huge wind storm but inside. I was the only one talking and asked "do you need help getting somewhere?" Then more noises. And in response, my mom got scared and hid under her blankets. And then out of nowhere, a unseen "thing" grabbed my sister by her ankles and started to drag her, but I was quick enough and grabbed her hands. We both got dragged a few feet. I was not scared at all, but could... feel? A voice say "take control" and I started to yell at whatever this to let go, they cannot harm us, they cant take April (deceased sister) but she had the face of my alive younger sister, but I felt like it was April. Its weird, im sorry for being confusin, but this is what my dream was. Anyways, as im yelling more and more and not being scared, this thing showed itself, and it was a horrible looking woman(again... still not afraid) she started to let go of my sister and came after me. But I yelled... I am pregnant you cant touch me. But when i was yelling this, the words came out mumbled but able to understand what I was saying, and took awhile to get these words out, this "woman" started to reach for my belly but before she could, I woke up.
I woke up not being scared. Just confused and happy to see my sister who died. I said a prayer for my family and children and my fiance and my unborn baby.
This isnt the first time I had a dream of my sister being dragged away, the first time was about 3 days after she died (2 days before her funeral) and a bunch of my family members, my ex (no idea why he was there) and myself were in a cottage or cabin. Everyone had gone to sleep but me and my sister. She had asked my if I wanted a palm bay. But before I could answer, she was dragged away. I ran after her and screamed "they have April!!! Help me" i followed her being take under a bed. I ALMOST had her hands in mine, but she was gone. I kept trying and trying. But my mom and Grandpa were there telling me to let go. That I have to let April go now. Shes no longer with us. I remember feeling heartbroken and devestated. And said "but i never got to say a proper good bye" (a few hours before she died, I was leaving my moms because I had to get home to my babysitter and kids, and the last words spoken between April and I were: "I love you Jazz, Happy Mother's Day. Ill see you in the morning" my words back were: "I love you too April. See you in the morning. Happy Mothers Day" she turned to go back outside and I left out the front door. Never knowing I wasnt going to see, hear or talk my little sister again.
She was 23 years old and left behind a beautiful 4 year old boy who is now 10.
I miss her so much. I have 3 boys myself and a baby growing in me. She never got to meet my youngest as I got pregnant with him 4 months after she died.
Please help me understand what these dreams mean. Am I in any trouble? Is she having trouble getting to where she needs to be? Please help me.
P.S... im so sorry for the long post.
Hi hun, sorry for your loss. I have had similar experiences that were quite traumatic for me. I don't know how you weren't scared during these dreams because for me I woke up and was truly scared, unable to ever be the same again. I don't know what these dreams mean but I think the simple meaning would be that you regret not saying goodbye, and that you feel April got stolen from you. Hope you're doing well now, please know that you have a lot of support. Love you hun.
I had I dream that I woke up as normal, me and my friends went to hang out and we for some reason stumbled upon this house.. This house was pretty normal from the outside, but if you went to the side of the house and looked at one spot.. You would see a woman standing there. If you looked at this woman you would go insane.. My friend tried grabbing my other friend's net and just strangle her to death..
Since we're teen we eventually went back, and the same thing happened but with another friend. Later that day I went home and my grandma was showing a video to everyone in the house, the video had the woman.. I don't know how but I just knew it was her because for some reason I recognised the video of her murdering her husband and having the dead corpse bathing in his own blood.
When the video ended I told my grandma I'd seen her and she didn't say anything. After that she told me to go to bed and I tried going but suddenly I saw her next to me, then I saw my grandma. After that I woke up and I couldn't sleep anymore.. That is now.
so like i literatly hada dream last night that I was familliar with this mafia dude who didnt give a shit about me but I for some reason had to help him even though I despised homeboy. ANYWAY in the dream hes in prison but i have to let him out so ya girl did that. ANYWAY in the end my pov switched to his and he was shot by rivals and he died slowly while hyperventilating. anyway, so basiclly im zooming in and out of dying and when i wake up LIKE THIS BITCH IS BREATHING HARDER THAN MY DOG AFTER A RUN anywy thats it.
I keep having a recurring dream about people dressed in clown masks harassing someone in a parking lot and then me yelling at them. Then the clowns start to come across the parking lot to my car and I’m trying to get away up my car won’t start. And then I try to lock my doors but the doors won’t lock so I pull out a gun. And then each time I have the dream I do something different at the end.
That is truly terrible and I just had a fantasy where I woke up however I truly didn't wake yet just in my fantasy and I was battling to wake from it on various occasions and I am pondering do you have any guidance for me?
I’ve basically have had the same type of dreams since I can remember ( Age 5 to Age 22 ). It’s always a different setting. Could be holloween at my parents. Could be a random day at an in ground pool. Even a wedding strangely enough.
I’m always killed. My dream this morning I was watching a man have to kill 10 people in an area to be set free. Most were adults. Then a toddler and a 6 year old girl.
It got down to 4 people and him. He got a bit creative and killed the second to last adult but chainsaws and a mountain bike.
Killed the toddler by throwing it into deep water. And used a bow n arrow to shoot the little girl. The last adult he used a grenade launcher from a m203. Which randomly turned into a pistol and shot me in the head.
I do not have a clue.
Last night I dreamed I was in a huge house that I seem to be moving into, tons of character but also in rough shape. A lot of work to be done. And there was tons of clothing and general stuff in the occupants of the house prior. exploration of old houses which need tons of work but also have a lot of character - is a current theme for me . As I’m going through the bags of stuff from the former residence I realize there were kids living here. And all of a sudden I start to see ghosts, summer kids, somewhere parents with kids. Explore the house further and I find a classroom. It seems this house served as a classroom back in the day and some thing bad happened And I guessed everybody died, but the ghosts were left behind. In that classroom setting there were a bunch of dead black birds on the ground, it is recent that they died. What can All this mean? Everything was so visual and detailed, I could smell and taste and see everything very clearly. I feel like there’s a message for me that I don’t understand what it is
I keep having this nightmare where someone is on the left side of my bed and for some reason it frightens me. My daughter hears me and she says I say out loud "get away from me" several times and then I scream 3 or 5 times and then I wake up. I
I dreamed I was with a young boy, and a man asked us to go into a shed. I got a bad feeling and then the man punched the little boys knees, he was really hurting him, the man seemed really angry, and I was horrified, I woke up straight away and could not get back to sleep.
I seriously have dreams about people in my life dying, and then I tell them my dream and usually 2 days later they always die the same exact way they died in my dream. .. and I also dream about all kinds of other stuff and I wake up and it's happening.
Sounds like you have preminisions or some sort of psychic. Ability. Or. Gift
I literally just woke up rn it is 4:54 AM so in my dream I was at least 7 and I was with my mom and her boyfriend (my parents are devorced) and her boyfriends 2 kids and my dad and we were at home and apparently my dad was one of those people who get calls for emergency’s like an ambulance and he got back from work and we all decided to go to the lake and have some fun either swimming or fishing from our boat and we were out on the boat in the lake the water was calm everything was fine until we heard sirens from a police car or ambulance and there are different sirens for different things and my dad could here it and it was the one for oh people are going to prison and then the police show up at a campsite and there was a bunch of drunk people that have probably been there for a couple days continuously drinking alcohol and a guy was beating his friends up and then he seen the boat and went into his tent and grabbed a pistol and randomly had a triangle for pool balls and then he put the pistol in that and rested it on the corner and was trying to shoot us he shot like 13 bullets and then he got my dad and he died so my moms boyfriend started driving the boat to where our vehicle was so we could take my dad to the hospital and call 911 but then the guy who shot my dad was there and ended up at our site killing me my mom and her boyfriends daughters and her boyfriend and ended up throwing all of us except for the girls into the water and then he took us to his house and he took our hair off of our head but using a knife and cutting around our hair and then he laid one of our bodies on a bed for a random amount of time and every time he took someone they ended up without clothes and then when he laid my body on the bed and raped my dead body and when we were crusty from being dead he went and threw all of the girls into the lake where the rest of the bodies where.
Sorry for the long dream it just helps after being woken up by a nightmare and
I hate them except I have had this same exact dream every January 14 but how I die is different every time. Help 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭
Omg that’s so awful. I was woken up by my nightmare last night and I can’t get it out of my head the images. So sorry friend from a distance
I saw a temple getting constructed and only one guy is constructing that temple but I could see Vishnu statue till neck I could not see the face I saw the from neck till foot with gold and diamonds shining I am jus seeing it and passing that way what is the meaning of this dream ? I only remember this .
I have a large family one if my cousins dreamt that our younger cousin passed away in the dream our aunt my younger cousins mum phoned &!was screaming that she had died three weeks later our beloved younger cousin went to bed & didn’t wake up that morning her mum phoned screaming that she had passed away! There’s more to it rip my angel
Thanks for sharing the valuable info. Most of all my problems are resolved.
I had a dream last night that woke me and I remember feeling like I was running away from a man, and then as he got closer I got on the ground and watched as he and then another man who soon became known to me as demons who then had a dog, and then the one demon that had been following me had a dog laying in the ground and he proceeded to dismember the dogs face leaving only his jaw and lifeless body laying there. The demons laughed about it and I felt they were trying to provoke me through my love for the animal. It was so sad, and typically with the level of intensity I would cry but I didn’t and i just woke up quickly and didn’t want to go back to sleep. What could this mean?
A longtime family friend dreamt that we were room mates. I dyed my hair a deep pink. Her cat was still alive and we had the best time ever as room mates.
What does this all mean ???
I had a dream that my real dad that left my mom and me when i was 5 and i started to hated him for doing bought me a plane ticket to go visit him and my grama in AZ and my counselor was accompanying me on the flight but the weather started to storm and the flight was canceled and i get depressed. I'm going to counseling for reunification therapy and he did actually leave me and my mom. sorry for oversharing information 😞 I just have a lot to get off my chest and don't want to talk about it with her because shell tell my parents right away
Your counselor should not tell your Mom about anything discussed in your sessions unless there is an immediate concern for your welfare, so please don’t hold back. I know because my daughter is a counselor. They truly are there to help you. I’m sorry you have had this in your life, it’s hard to understand, but sounds like you are on a good path. I wish you the best.
Thx I will try
YOU ARE SUCH A BEAUTIFUL PERSON I WOULD BE YOUR BESTIE FOR SURE LOVE YOU BABES GET BETTER LOL
Ok guys, I literally JUST woke up. It's storming rn but no one cares about me so you guys wouldn't want to know that. Sorry I'm depressed because I have no friends.
ANYWAY, I had a dream that me and my friends (even though i am a loner) wanted to go camping to a place in the bush that we call "HELL". We went camping and it was really really fun we had a lot of fun and we roasted marshmallows (but I'm on a diet so I couldn't eat any so that made me even more depressed). ANYWAY, we were on our way home but then we started to see fires everywhere. We didn't know what it was so we went to my house and my dogs were dead and none of my family members were there. We went to everyone's house but no one was there. We ended up going to the showgrounds where a festival was held on the day we left. We saw an army there keeping everyone imprisoned. We went back to hell for saftey but we ennded up leaving. Then we found a man called Chris who was a drug addict but we had no choice but to take him with us to hell. We blew up a lot of houses and bridges and we got very exhausted. Despite our exhaustion we decided to look for more survivors but we couldn't find anyone. When we got back to hell Chris was gone (Chris didn't want to come with us). ANYWAY, we decided to go blow up some more houses. After we did that we were going back to hell extremely exhausted when in the distance we saw a body. It was Chris' body. We saw that Chris took the car we hid in hell to secretly drive back into town to get more beer, and on his way back the car slid off the road and then Chris crawled out of it and after a day or 2 he died on the side of the road.
This has caused some extreme trauma, please help and tell me what it means.
i dreamed about a demon laying on my back and killing me 😭