Dream: I am having car or vehicular trouble



Description: You are in or near a car or other vehicle that is out of control or has some other problem — no brakes, no steering, heading over a cliff, crashing, etc. You may be the driver or a passenger.
Frequency: This is a common nightmare among all ages, even for people who don't drive.
Usual meanings: This dream usually arises when you feel as though events in your waking life are out of control, you feel powerless over something, or are about to "crash."
Questions to ask yourself:
  • What is happening in the dream? Lost brakes? No steering?
  • Who is the driver?
  • If not yourself, briefly describe the driver in a phrase or sentence.
  • Where are you seated in the car?
  • What part of your life are you unable to control or unable to work properly?
  • How do you feel hampered?
  • What can you do to move more freely or regain control?


Dream: I am being embraced or loved


Description: You are embraced or loved by someone. You may be getting married, falling in love, cuddling a baby, dancing sensuously or even making love. The partners may be strangers, public figures, even familiar people in whom you have no romantic interest in your waking life.
Frequency: This dream is fairly common.
Usual meanings: You wish to connect with the figure in the dream or with some quality that the figure represents, such as romance, creativity or gentleness.
Questions to ask yourself:
  • Who is your lover? Describe in a single sentence.
  • What are your dream lover's three outstanding characteristics?
  • Are these qualities you want more of in your life?
  • Does your dream lover's name contain a pun?
  • Does your dream lover's name or appearance suggest someone you know?


Dream: I am being chased or attacked


Description: You are being pursued or attacked by a menacing person, wild animal, monster or some other villain that may even catch, harm or kill you.
Frequency: This is the most common nightmare.
Usual meaning: You are feeling threatened by someone or by a strong emotion of your own. You feel frightened, attacked and in danger. Occasionally your brain may be replaying an actual event in your own life.
Questions to ask yourself:
  • Who or what is chasing you? What does it look like — size, color, shape, etc.
  • What is its outstanding physical characteristic?
  • Of whom does it remind you or who has similar characteristics?
  • What happens in the dream?
  • How does the dream end?

Dream: I am flying, swimming or dancing 


joyfully



Description: You are flying, feeling free. Your flight may evolve as an escape from some bad situation. In an alternate version, you may be moving freely through water or dancing with abandon.
Frequency: Although the frequency of this dream varies widely, those who have experienced it often remember it as a favorite dream.
Usual meanings: You feel great, able to soar as high as you wish, you feel as though your possibilities are limitless and that you can transcend anything. Flying dreams can also be tied to spiritual aspirations. Swimming may suggest the feeling that you can explore your depths confidently, and dancing may reflect joy in your body, an increasing sensuality.
Questions to ask yourself:
  • What restrictions do you feel you've overcome?
  • What successes have been yours recently in waking life?
  • Have you recently felt a spiritual connection?

Dream: I am in a natural or manmade 


disaster



Description: You are confronted with overwhelming natural or man-made disasters. The dream may involve a flood, torrential rain or tidal wave. Variations include earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, lava, firestorms, lightning strikes, tornadoes, typhoons, cyclones, hurricanes, or some other desolation. Man-made disasters include attacks by atomic bombs, chemical warfare, and so forth. You are usually terrified in a catastrophe dream, as you rlife seems in jeopardy. (Dreams of drowning that are not connected with a disaster are classified with Falling or Drowning dreams. Dreams about getting wounded or dying that do not involve a calamity are classed with Injury or Death dreams.)
Frequency: Disaster dreams are fairly common. Some people have them often, others only in times of crisis. They typically occur when you feel that some waking life emergency is impending or has just taken place.
Usual meanings: You may believe that something in your waking life feels like a disaster or that you feel destroyed by circumstances and fear that you cannot survive this catastrophe. You may be feeling overwhelmed by something that seems chaotic.
Questions to ask yourself:
Earthquake or disaster variation:
  • What situations in your waking life feel at risk?
  • What did you do in the dream to escape destruction?
  • How can you get the help you need in the waking world to stabilize the situation and yourself?
  • Is there any possible benefit from the drastic change that's underway?
Flood variation:
  • What situation in waking life is making you feel overwhelmed?
  • Do you feel profoundly sad about current life circumstances?
  • What did you do in the dream to save yourself?
  • What can you do in the waking situation to improve it or get support? Tornado or great wind variation:
  • What is it in waking life that is making you feel storm-tossed?
  • What did you do in your dream to protect yourself from the storm?
  • How can you improve your waking life situation?
  • How can you resolve your inner turmoil and return to a stable state?
Fire or volcano variation:
  • What is waking life is making you feel hotly aroused right now? Anger? Passion? Fever? Inflammation?
  • What did you do to cope with the destructive fire in the dream?
  • What do you need to do about the waking circumstances?
  • How can you calm your internal fire?
Snowstorm or ice storm variation:
  • What situation in your waking life might be making you feel frozen out or loveless at this time?
  • Is there any circumstance at present that makes you feel frozen with grief?
  • Is there something in your environment making you feel cold with fear?
  • How did I cope with the ice and cold in my dream? Did I take action?
  • What can I learn about my waking life situation to thaw out any icy feelings or invite warm, loving ones?
War and explosion variations:
  • What is making me feel under angry attack at the moment?
  • What did you do in the dream to protect yourself and others?
  • What could you have done in the dream to protect yourself and others better?
  • How can you best resolve or cope in the waking state with the anger present in you or others?
  • What might you learn from this period of inner and/or outer conflict?


Dream: I am being menaced by a spirit



Description: You are being berated by someone who is deceased. You may feel terrified, guilty, resentful or abandoned. There are a number of variations to this jarring but rare dream theme. It may range from mild admonishment to an outright curse, or a sense of being haunted.
Frequency: Dreams of being menaced by a sprit are unusual. Some people have them occasionally, others only in dire conditions. They typically occur when you feel guilty, responsible for a death, ambivalent about the deceased, or extremely anxious about an impending or recent death.
Usual meanings: You feel alarmed, questioning whether you have done all that you could. You may question whether you are responsible for what occurred or could have done more to help. You may be questioning whether you did the right thing, feeling guilty or that you are being punished for something.
Questions to ask yourself:
  • What happens during your dream?
  • What is/was your relationship like with the person in the dream?
  • What are your emotions in the dream?

Dream: I am discovering new spaces



Description: You discover a marvelous new space. There are several variations to this theme. You may open a door in your ordinary house to discover a whole new room or section of the house that you had no idea was there. You may be walking in a familiar neighborhood and come across an area or a vista that you have never seen before. These new spaces are invariably beautiful, spectacular or special in some positive way. This dream often contains a door or window.
Frequency: Discovering new spaces is a fairly unusual them. This dream typically occurs when you feel that a new aspect of your personality is opening up, a potential you had not anticipated.
Usual meanings: You feel as though you've found something wonderful and amazing that you didn't know was there before. This may be just what you want, or something that you want to explore. You may feel as though things are opening up, that you feel free.
Questions to ask yourself:
  • Have you met a new love interest?
  • Are you unlocking an emotional area that you have kept tightly closed in the past?
  • Is your health improving dramatically?
  • Are you feeling more open to spirituality?

Dream: I am falling or drowning



Description: You are falling through the air, frightened. A variation may be that you are sinking in water, in danger of drowning.
Frequency: Falling is one of the most common nightmares; drowning dreams are less so. Falling dreams usually occur when you feel insecure, and drowning dreams take place when you feel overwhelmed. Falling dreams may be accompanied by an actual fall from bed. Drowning dreams have been associated with severe edema.
Usual meanings: Falling dreams often signify that you feel insecure or as though you have no support. Drowning dreams often occur when you feel overwhelmed by having too much to do and are feeling ready to give up.
Questions to ask yourself:
If your dream is about falling:
  • What situation have you "fallen into" that needs attention?
  • Who or what has "let you down" recently?
  • What can you do about the situation?
If your dream is about drowning:
  • What situation in your waking life feels overwhelming?
  • Where do you feel inundated with work?
  • What can you do about this problem?

Dream: I am healed, born or reborn



Description: You or another person is healed, gives birth or is reborn.
Frequency: Relatively rare, it may accompany a new start in your waking life or recovery from an illness.
Usual meanings: You are feeling hopeful, renewed or better, or that something is stirring to life within you. When you or another person is giving birth, it often means that you feel as though you are improving or that something new has been born in you. A common dream during pregnancy, it represents your hopes for your new baby. If you are grieving, the birth imagery may express your hope for a new life for your loved one.
Questions to ask yourself:
  • What has been restored or what is new in your life?
  • Who or what has come into or is coming into your waking life?
  • How can you nourish this new part of yourself?


Dream: I am being guided by a spirit



Description: You encounter a deceased person who was significant in your life and a message is conveyed. There are several variations on this theme that may leave you with a feeling of wonderment, bittersweet joy or exaltation. They may also inspire you to change your life path or give you a belief in an afterlife. They feel real.
Frequency: Many of the motifs are common; others are rare. These dreams typically occur during active grief, which may last years.
Usual meanings: "I'm okay", "I'll always love you", "Go ahead", "Congratulations", "Here's a gift", "Please forgive me" and others.
Questions to ask yourself:
  • What happens in your dream?
  • Who is the spirit in your dream?
  • What is the person/spirit saying to you?