Exits

Modified photo: Unmistakable emergency exit in Stockholm's underground station "Universitetet" I tried to make it in the style of lorretine, one of my favourite photographers here on flickr. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

      Dreams about exits seem to have two obvious meanings to me:

1. There is something in my life I want to get away from.
2. I want to leave the dream.

 

          If I am dreaming about a situation that makes me uncomfortable, the dream may seem to last for a very long time.   There will be various side issues and incidents involving other people, but the overriding theme of the dream will be a particular problem that is troubling me in the dream.  This problem may be disguised in a symbolic way to represent something that I have been dealing with in waking life or it may be the actual problem itself portrayed in the dream.   

          The nature of these dream exits may be the symbolization of an actual solution that is available to me in waking life and revealed to me within the dream.  If I am able to determine what problem is represented in the dream, I can try to figure out what the exit symbolizes and consider that as a practical solution to my waking life problem.

         The other more simple and obvious explanation of looking for an exit in a dream is to get out of the dream.   If a dream is particularly troublesome, I may just need to find a way out and begin looking for an exit within the dream.   Another common reason to search for a dream exit is the need to go to the bathroom or experiencing some other form of discomfort or sensing the need to wake up.  

         Can you remember ever having a dream where you were searching for an exit?   Did you find the exit you were looking for?    What happened next?

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Death and Dead People

Darryls dead body floating in the lake. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

 
         I don't recall too many dreams where death or dead people are a part of the dream story, but there have been enough to make this a symbol to look at.

         In the dreams I recall, death comes in the form of:

• A dead body which has been hidden
• A dead body left out in the open and unremoved
• A dead body on display
• The knowledge that someone has died

       When the dead body is hidden in a car trunk, a closet, or some other hiding place I believe that would represent a secret or something that I am trying to hide from others.  It may also be a suspicion that something is being hidden from me.  These dreams leave me apprehensive with the fear that the body will be discovered.  Sometimes the body is starting to emit an odor of decay which might be an indication that the symbolized secret is on the verge of being discovered and cannot remain hidden.

       The body left unattended is a problem that is being ignored by me or perhaps others.  In the dream I am aware that it is there as do others, but we try to just go about our business as though it doesn't exist.  Many of us tend to allow serious problems to remain without acknowledging their existence.  I think this type of dream calls my attention to this fact.

       The corpse on display as though it were on view before a funeral probably represents a problem or some uncomfortable issue that is recognized as having been dealt with and on view for all to see before being buried.  This problem may represent something like a former prejudice, dislike, or conflict with another person.

        In dreams where I hear a loved one has died I usually feel very sad.   I think this dream represents a fear of losing someone I care for because of the intensity of how I feel upon awakening.  Sometimes in my disoriented state of partial wakefulness I may feel a powerful sense of loss and grief until I am fully awake and realize that I have dreamed.  The fear of loss usually remains making it difficult to go back to sleep.

       Death in dreams is often a sorrowful occasion as in life, but it can also cause fear or uneasiness.   

        Have you dreamed of someone dying?   Have you ever dreamed of your own death?   

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Cars

Automobile on a Pacific beach with shipwreck in background (Photo credit: UW Digital Collections)

 

    Cars are very common in my dreams undoubtedly because of all the time I've spent in cars.  Cars represent movement, relocation, and control.

        One very common dream scenario involves me driving on a highway.  Suddenly I begin to lose control of the car.  The car will begin to careen and skid, heading toward what might be a terrible accident.  In these dreams I feel frightened and helpless at first, but I always manage to gain control of the vehicle.  This type of dream probably relates to a current fear that I have in my waking life.  The dream shows me that I am capable of avoiding disaster and being in control of my circumstances.  This is probably a dream of reassurance.

        Another car dream involves me losing my car in a parking lot or elsewhere.  Sometimes I find it, while other times I merely get distracted by other events in the dream and looking becomes something of less concern for me.   In these scenarios the car represents my means of mobility or a certain sense of power over my own affairs.   Losing that power can leave me feeling helpless, but in dreams like the latter there might be other issues at hand in my waking life that make that need for power or control of less consequence.

        In a final type of car dream there is something in my car or another car.  This thing might be hidden or in the open.  For example it may be something as simple as groceries in the back seat, while in other dreams it could be something like a dead body in the trunk.  The meanings of these dreams would depend on the objects in the car and how the presence of those objects affect me in the dream.  Generally speaking I would guess that these objects represent some sort of fear or other emotional baggage that I feel that I need to rid myself.

        What happens in your dreams about cars?   What do cars represent to you in your waking life?   Do you ever dream of being in a car accident?


   

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Buildings

Cuba building (Photo credit: @Doug88888)

         When I refer to "buildings" this does not include houses.  My "H" topic will be houses.  Buildings in my dreams are typically there as scenery or setting.   They are like the empty structures of a movie set and serve no actual function.  I often don't enter the buildings in my dreams, but merely see them.

          Since the buildings often look old and somewhat familiar, I believe that these buildings represent memory or past.  They are in the dreams to create a certain sense of comfort or normalcy, yet they evoke something in my mind that reminds me of other times and places in my life.

         Sometimes seeing these buildings instill me with an eerie feeling that may be related to deja vu or an apprehension of the unknown.   The buildings and surrounding areas are oftentimes unpopulated and desolate which adds to an ambiguous notion of fear.

         If during the dream I do enter a building, it is often very large with hallways that seem endless, many mysterious rooms, and old rickety interiors.    All of this would lead me to believe that the buildings represent the inner recesses of my mind or memory and my past history.

       What kinds of buildings do you see in your dreams?   Do you go inside of buildings in dreams?   What do you find if you do enter a dream building and how do you feel?

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Animals

Hippo animal (Photo credit: @Doug88888)

         Dreams are typically weird and when I dream about animals, those animals are often strange.  Sometimes the animals do not even appear to be what they are called in the dream.   For example, in a recent dream my attention was drawn to what were called mice in the dream, but actually I recognized them as some sort of insect such as large mosquitoes.  

        Other times the animals are what they are supposed to be, such as dogs or wolves.  In nearly all of my dreams that involve animals of some sort, those animals appear to be threatening and I often experience a certain sense of fear.   It's not to the extent of terror usually, but enough apprehension to cause me concern in the dream that the animals could hurt me.

         They never do.  They may scare me, but I am never attacked.

          The animals seem to represent some sort of threat--something that I am afraid of in waking life.   In most cases the fears are based on what others in the dream tell me or the way they are responding to a situation.   This might indicate to me that I am essentially in control of most of the things in my life that could pose a threat and that I should not allow others to make me afraid of that which I need not fear.

         In a few cases the animals have been very docile and appealing.   These animals may represent something in my life that is bringing me happiness or peace.  This symbol is there to remind me to embrace those positive things in my life.

          Do you have dreams about animals?   Are they fearsome or pleasing?   What do you think dreaming of animals represents?

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