Our dreams often show us a situation from our waking
lives that we recognize, but they rarely state the obvious without offering
some direction as well. Be cautious
about dismissing your dreams as a simple rehash of the day’s thoughts without
following them through to the end.
Here’s an example:
Dear SMYD,
I took a part time job not long ago, but instead of
being my salvation, it’s becoming a burden.
The commute is taxing, there’s a lot more work piled on at every turn
and one of my coworkers is pretty snarky.
Instead of following a stressful week at work with
some much-needed relaxation, I added insult to injury by spending my time researching
the air quality in my hometown. It was
upsetting to learn that it’s pretty bad!
Then, in a dream I walked along the shoreline near
my home with my golden retriever.
Without warning, an enormous flash fire swept along the waterway in an
instant and engulfed me. The clear sunny
day turned into a firestorm the way fog sometimes forms quickly when the air
temperature and moisture content are just so. My dog ran around in circles to get my attention
not unlike Lassie from the old television series. I followed him as he ran uphill and together
we narrowly escaped the flames.
The metaphor seems obvious. My sleeping mind must have exaggerated the air
quality reports and mixed them up with my work worries. Neither the air nor my job is perfect, but
neither is it so bad it's going to ignite into flames. Still, the dream felt so scary and real.
Can I stop having this kind of frightening dream by
having more positive self-talk in my waking hours?
Yours truly,
Fighting fires in my sleep
Dear Firefighter,
You have a good handle on understanding your
dream! That flash of fire likely is a
metaphor for the flash of emotions you’ve been feeling related to the job that,
instead of providing relief for your circumstances, has become
overwhelming. You didn’t go in expecting
that to happen. On top of that, your
sensitivity to your coworker’s negativity adds to your stress level and the
emotion of your dream.
In your dream, your loyal retriever not only warns
you of the danger but also leads you out of it; and that’s a key to getting the
full benefit out of this dream. Your
idyllic walks with him along the shoreline embody the relaxation and unwinding
you need. Your dream first depicts how
you’re feeling overwhelmed and frightened by work and the threatening atmosphere
there created by your nasty coworker. And it goes on to show that only with relaxation
and recuperation, those demand-free walks with your dog, can you escape those
feelings. Without that, you will have a narrow
escape in an uphill battle.
Your self-talk should be positive, as you suggest,
and you must follow your dog! After all,
you break away from the fire together. Don’t
forgo your relaxation, Dear Dreamer! Your
gentle spirit requires it.
Sweet Dreams to You!
SMYD
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