Dream Interpretation: What Do Dreams Mean? (2024)

“Dreams are perceptions, thoughts or emotions experienced during both rapid eye movement (REM) and non-REM sleep,” says Nathan Brandon, Psy.D., a Jungian therapist (a style of analytic therapy built around the work of Swiss psychiatrist Carl Jung) who practices dream analysis in California. All our emotions, thoughts and actions are possible because of our neurons, which generate and receive the nerve impulses that control what we think, feel and do, explains Brandon. Neurons, which are cells in the nervous system that respond to stimuli through a nerve impulse, create images and sounds. “The firing of these various neurons is responsible for the multisensory experience we call a dream,” he says.

While we can dream in all stages of sleep, dreams are usually most vivid during REM sleep. “Brainwaves during REM sleep are fast and low amplitude—very similar to the pattern seen during wakefulness,” says Brandon.

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What Happens When We Dream?

“The whole brain is active during dreams, from the brainstem to the cortex,” says Brandon. Here’s what happens to our brains—and the rest of our bodies—when we dream:

• The limbic system, including the amygdala (which is mostly associated with fear), deals with emotions and is especially active during dreams.
• The cortex is responsible for dream content, and the visual cortex is very active during dreams.
• Some parts of the frontal lobes are least active when we dream, which may explain why we accept the bizarre events in dreams until we wake up.
• When we’re dreaming, we experience a brief loss of muscle control, called atonia, which happens just after falling asleep or waking up and prevents us from acting out our dreams (and injuring ourselves or others).

Why Do We Dream?

Unfortunately, there isn’t a clear explanation for why our brains deliver such varied, unpredictable content while we sleep.

“Why we dream is uncertain, but we do know that the brain does a lot of cleanup and memory packaging—and rehearsing—during the night,” says Alex Dimitriu, M.D., a double board-certified physician in psychiatry and sleep medicine and founder of Menlo Park Psychiatry & Sleep Medicine in California.

Dr. Dimitriu believes dreams can be random and may just be the brain having fun experimenting with loose connections and ideas. “Dreams can also be based on reality—based on the happenings in our lives and the concerns on our minds,” he says.

Sigmund Freud, the founder of psychoanalysis, coined the term “day residue” to explain how we continue working on a specific problem or plan for an upcoming event in our sleep. “Whatever is on your mind by day could be reflected in your dreams at night,” says Dr. Dimitriu. “The brain continues to problem solve long after you’re asleep.”

All that problem solving can even make us more creative. “Dreams can help with creativity by allowing us to come up with unique solutions to complex problems,” says Brandon. Research shows dreams can also help us regulate emotions, express our unconscious desires and motivations, process complicated thoughts and feelings, and plan for potential threats^[1]Zhang W, Guo B. Freud's Dream Interpretation: A Different Perspective Based on the Self-Organization Theory of Dreaming. Frontiers in Psychology. 2018. .

And you know that tried-and-true advice to hold off on making a big decision until you’ve had a good night’s rest? “Many people notice their thoughts or viewpoints are much more settled and grounded once they’ve slept on it,” says Dr. Dimitriu.

Dream interpretation is the process of examining a dream and assigning meaning to its contents. Dream interpreters often focus on certain elements or symbols in a person’s dream.

Freud, a dream interpreter himself, regarded dreams as the royal road to the unconscious. “Symbols are the language of dreams. The unconscious mind uses symbols and metaphors to express emotions, desires and other feelings that aren’t otherwise acknowledged in our waking life,” says Brandon.

Dreams can be further examined by analyzing cultural meanings of those symbols, as well as collective or archetypal experiences—the experiences all people have, including being born and dying, says Brandon.

How Valid Is Dream Interpretation?

The short answer: Dream interpretation may be as valid as the dreamer deems it. Dreams—and the symbols within them—may be a useful tool to better understand what’s going on in our waking lives.

“While there is no consensus in the scientific community that dreams are inherently meaningful, dream interpretation can be a valuable tool when used to create meaning of our experiences,” says Brandon. “It can help us understand complex problems, address our fears, regulate emotions, consolidate memories, express our desires and facilitate healing.”

If a person notices a recurring theme or worry, Dr. Dimitriu says it may be helpful to speak with a professional, such as a psychologist who practices dream analysis. “But,” he says, “I believe dream interpretation is best done by the dreamer.”

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If you visit any dream interpretation website, you may find dozens of explanations for similar types of dreams. While dream themes are up for interpretation, we do know that there are repeated topics and themes many of us dream about.

Below, Brandon shares some of the most common dream themes and what each may suggest.

• Flying: The dreamer feels free and independent—or, conversely, they’re trying to escape their reality.
• Being chased: The dreamer is trying to avoid something or feels threatened.
• Losing teeth: The dreamer feels they’re losing their ability to stay protected or be assertive.
• Falling: Something isn’t going well in the dreamer’s life; they’re failing at something.
• Being naked in public: The dreamer is afraid of being exposed or feeling vulnerable.
• Infidelity: The dreamer has issues with trust and loyalty or is concerned that their partner will be unfaithful to them.
• Pregnancy: The dreamer is developing some area of potential.
• Dying: The dreamer is anxious about change and the unknown.

Ultimately, dream interpretation and analysis remains firmly in the realm of fascinating mystery. And despite relentless technological advancement, dreams are an enigma we might never fully understand.