SWEET DREAMS

“Don’t let your Dreams be dreams.” – Jack Johnson

I have crazy dreams when I sleep. Whether it’s a beautiful excursion, a chaotic stream of distorted memory, or a terrifying nightmare, my dreams are intense and (feel) very real. It is amazing because I can feel sensations and emotions in my dreams. I can think, speak, and feel like I am excerting myself with real human activity. Sometimes, I have to collect myself when I awake because I’m confused. “What the hell just happened – how did I get HERE?”

Personally, I am fascinated with dreams. After reading some captivating books I became interested in lucid dreaming, but it was short lived. I was terribly inconsistent in practicing the techniques and the whole idea seemed very spooky, but I did manage to catch a glimpse into the art of dream travel. I remember one dream where I was very aware and felt connected with my personality. It then struck me that I was dreaming and I consciously exclaimed “Hey! I’m dreaming!” I then tried to slap and pinch my leg (something I learned from pop-culture) but since I felt the pain, I assumed that I was NOT dreaming. Thinking this must be my reality, I continued “living” in my dream (albeit a little dazed) while trying to figure out where I was and what exactly was going on. I remember waking up and laughing at my incompetence.

So I dropped the idea. I can’t imagine myself mastering lucid dreaming. I mean, forget living in my dreams – I can’t figure out what to do with myself during waking life!

Whatever the lifestyle or belief system, one cannot deny the inability to explain the crazy brain adventures we have when we sleep.

So what is it about our dreams? What makes us dream when we sleep? Do others dream of us when we dream of them? Do dreams take place in an alternate reality/world that we enter when we sleep or is it simply the creation of a powerful imagination?

I HAVE NO IDEA.

Dreams have forever been a mystery. Throughout history, many psychologists, philosophers, and theologians have theorized about dreaming but, to this day, no DEFINITE answer has been given to explain the brain’s phenomenon during sleep.

Certain factors can influence dreams. Food (specifically fatty foods and dairy) before bed, drugs and alcohol, and grueling schedules or high stress, even hormonal changes in the body can cause vivid dreams, but for the most part it is unexplained. It is truly a wonder.

My experiences intrigued me so I asked a handful of psychologists and thinkers what their thoughts were about dreams. Through their theories I have come up with possible explanations:

1) Just as we have extraneous, wacky, cruel, perverse thoughts throughout the day, it also happens at night. The brain never stops working and things are running through our sleep. Because the rest of the body is inactive, the brain is super-active and these thoughts cause bigger and very real sensations.

2) The subconscious mind seeps out during sleep. If our deepest needs, fears, and other thoughts are not properly expressed or suppressed, the subconscious will expose them during sleep.

So express yourself, get it out! Talk to a friend or yourself. Write it out down or paint it in a picture or play it in a song. Whatever your personal form of expression is – do it. It is terribly unhealthy and counterproductive to keep thoughts and feelings and fears suppressed inside.

I was always told not to take my dreams too seriously. I believe that we should focus more on our REAL dreams; the aspirations and goals in life that give us direction and keep us driven. The dreams that give our lives meaning and focus.

Either way, SWEET DREAMS :D