Keeping a dream journal and analysing your dreams
Created | Updated Feb 10, 2002
If you have a dream jot it down as soon as you can. In the morning go back over the dream and recall the details. Remembering dreams is rarely a linear process so expect to add notes to everything. When you're reasonably happy with the dream run through a set of questions (given below). These will help you understand how you feel about the dream and how it relates to what is currently going on in your life.
Here is a dream of mine by way of example. I've given it a name, "Sisters on Ice." My own analysis of the dream follows on from this.
SISTERS ON ICE
It's a pre-match warm up for the Olympic Figure Skating. One couple stands out from all the others - two tall women dancing together. They are supposed to be a mixed pair, they look like two teenage boys in drag, or lesbian women. One like Katerina Witt. The other more feminine. Both have shabby hair (Shakespeare's Sister make-up/cropped hair). It transpires that I am the Katerina Witt character and the other, more balletic and composed dancer is my partner (my fiancée). Physically we do not look anything like our real selves, but I know these two characters represent us.
We are going through our moves, enjoying it, easy stuff. We are not doing the "triple axles," keep those for the event. Would not want to injure ourselves before the competition. We imagine/know where and when they'll come. Despite the months of training that has got us this far, I am inclined to add different things, even at the last moment, especially if the dang erous jumps are out during rehearsal. My partner, more sure of herself, is very much "leading me" and keeping me right. Her steadfastness, dependability, allows me to try out the new stuff. She tolerates it like a patient mother. She also knows that it is this experimentation which produces the elements of originality in our routine. We care more about enjoying our own private dance, than the content. This is our time. We're enjoying it. Not taking the warm-up/rehearsal too seriously. We are content with each other and ourselves.
What happened?
We are rehearsing. We're good at what we do. We are not interested in other contestants or on-lookers, though the are there. (It's not busy). Shockingly we have the appearance of a couple of lanky lesbians. We are made up, for ourselves. I'm not convinced this is how we propose appearing in the competition.
Where?
An ice-rink. Precompetition. Things might have been going on in the background to get the rink ready.
The location could very well have been a large, international airport - one off the satellites at Geneva Airport, for example.
Who are you?
One of the dancers. Though male (in a female guise), I am not leading the dance. My partner is the support and probably has a clearer idea what they are doing. Conventional. Stead-fast, whilst I'm inclined to give new moves a go even as we warm up and go through the routine we'll have to perform shortly.
Who are you with?
My partner. My fiancée. Though the characters in the dream are not playing out the relationship I'm aware of who we are as an observer.
Describe
We may have both been dressed in Tuxedo's of sorts. The make-up was very "Cabaret" or Shakespeare's Sister. Over the top Gothic. With dark circles around the eyes and white face make-up.
What do you feel about them?
Two people who are close. Who move together. Who can cope with the one of them trying new things rather than settling for the routine they have already worked out - however good it might be.
What are the various actions in the dream?
Ice-skating. In rehearsal. Probably more personal, with flares of the Impresario from me. I can risk it in rehearsal if not in competition (in the real thing). Though my partner half expects me to repeat any new move that works in the routine that will follow - there is always room to add/cha nge.
The ice dancing with my partner is close, personal, intimate, every day - and very loving. We dance very much "as one" and "get it right" as we rehearse our maverick moves.
How am I as DREAM EGO acting/behaving in this dream?
Passively. Content. The right degree of innovation and support.
What relation does this dream have to my personality?
Spot on. The need to be inventive from within a stable relationship and within stable circumstances (somewhere to live, work).
What symbols in this dream are important to me?
The ice rink is a society - not a stage. The dance is how I (we) live our lives. The appearance is how we feel on the inside.
What are the various feelings in this dream?
There is a feeling of deep, private love with My partner during our ice-skating - our love is not the archetypal "husband at work, wife at home" It is almost the other way around. She has to guide me ... not because I don't know my steps, but because I'm so keen to keep trying something new.
What relation does this dream have to what is happening right now in my life?
A great deal. There is a conflict between wanting to conform (steady income, mortgage, roots) and a desire to remain non-conformist - indeed to go my way. This ideas is encouraged by the "Ice Dance" in which My partner & I are recognised as the most brilliant (though often peculiar/radical) ice dance couple. I enjoyed the feeling that we are (were) seen as odd. Happiness disc 8overed on our terms rather than someone else's.
Who or what is the adversary in the dream?
There wasn't. Our attitude to other competitors who might have been warming up on the rink or who we will face in competition is that we are unassailable.
My real life experience of ice-skating is awful - on two occasions, I have been temporarily concussed after backward falls. There was never any feeling of uncertainty or danger. WE were in our element. Totally at east with the skating.
What or who is the helping or healing force/agent in this dream?
My partner. Because at the end of a difficult "work" day I have my partner and we are "off on our own" doing our own thing and doing it very well. For ourselves more than for others.
In previous dreams "Winter Sports" in particular skiing, has always represented my desire to l ive in France. In this dream, ice-skating, I feel it represents a compromise - it does hint at being abroad, but maybe not in the Alps. It certainly removes snow and skiing as a priority.
My partner. And more so in this latest dream than before. She is taking the lead, guiding my steps, giving me advice, keeping me in her arms. Yet, we are very much a "team" on equal terms, represented by the androgynous manner of our dress and roles. When I break free and have a quick go and something new within the rhythm of our dance she watches with pride knowing that I'll rejoin the dance where required.
What is being wounded in this dream?
Nothing.
What is being healed in this dream?
Doubts about how we should govern our lives.
What would I like to av oid in this dream?
Falling over. Being seen as a fool by anyone bothered to watch our dance. Being rejected by my partner.
What actions might this dream be suggesting I consider?
What I do with my partner, however odd it might look to people from the outside, is OUR THING! So be it!
What does this dream want from me?
It is saying, "Be yourself." Stray very far from this, such as attempting to join in someone else's activity and I will be nudged out - who wants to join a municipal restaurant meal anyway, when in Truth to be the starts of a Jean-Paul Goude ice-skating show!
W h a t choices c a n I , a n d w i l l I , m a k e a s a r e s u l t o f h a v i n g t h i s d r e a m ?
C o n t i n u e t o b e m y s e l f . S t r i v e t o m a k e m y l i f e a n d r e l a t i o n s h i p w i t h W a n d a a l l t h e b i z a r r e a n d w o n d e r f u l t h i n g s i t w a n t s t o b e . I n o t h e r people's e y e s , bizarre and rich . I t matters to us that our contemporaries see as as "odd." Why? Because we struggle to live in France. We lead a lifestyle which others see as strange ... and which they might envy.
What does this dream want from me?
I must stop trying to be conventional. It doesn't work. I must press on with trying to achieve the personal and professional goals that matter to both my partner and I.
What questions does this dream ask of me?
What is more important? Fitting in with a load of strangers, or being happy with my partner in a fantastic relationship? What is more important? Putting on an image (facade) to fool (or impress) old acquaintances, or building on a unique, special, intimate relationship with my partner?
Who or what is my companion in this dream?
My partner! A strong, experienced, skilled, feminine, athletic My partner. A confident person who "knows the steps" and gladly guides me in mine.
Why did I need this dream?
How I live matters as much to me as what I do to earn a living. If I can earn a living in a way which allows me to live where and how I desire then I should do so.
Why am I not dealing with this situation?
The usual conf lict between the desire to do my own thing and the need to conform in order to earn a living. I am, but not full-heartedly. Necessity dictates that I earn a living.
What choices can I, and will I, make because of having this dream?
It highlights my priorities. My partner, and building a life, our Life, with her, is and must be my priority. It is. We must build.... Look forward, not backwards.
What do you want to ask us your dream spirits?
Are you the ones feeding my confidence?
Why are you sometimes afraid of us, your dream spirits?
I'm not, am I? I let you have your say, understand (usually) what you say and try and build on it. You are, after all, my "alter-ego", my real "inner" self.
Why have I had this dream now?
Other choices are being thrown in my path - retracing my steps (old friends) or making a go of it with strangers ... but there clearly is no choice. My partner is everything I need to satisfy my desire to have a partner and live an "irregular" or "bizarre" life-style.
What can happen if I work actively with this dream?
I can remind myself, vividly, of where my life should be going. I should be aspiring to the bizarre, not the mundane. I should be pressing on with "our" ambitions, not turning back on them.
What is being accepted in this dream?
That My partner can be (and is) everything!
What new questions come up from this dreamwork?
The usual ones. How do I earn a living? By combining my "imaginative" activities with a means to earn a living.
Here is a dream of mine by way of example. I've given it a name, "Sisters on Ice." My own analysis of the dream follows on from this.
SISTERS ON ICE
It's a pre-match warm up for the Olympic Figure Skating. One couple stands out from all the others - two tall women dancing together. They are supposed to be a mixed pair, they look like two teenage boys in drag, or lesbian women. One like Katerina Witt. The other more feminine. Both have shabby hair (Shakespeare's Sister make-up/cropped hair). It transpires that I am the Katerina Witt character and the other, more balletic and composed dancer is my partner (my fiancée). Physically we do not look anything like our real selves, but I know these two characters represent us.
We are going through our moves, enjoying it, easy stuff. We are not doing the "triple axles," keep those for the event. Would not want to injure ourselves before the competition. We imagine/know where and when they'll come. Despite the months of training that has got us this far, I am inclined to add different things, even at the last moment, especially if the dang erous jumps are out during rehearsal. My partner, more sure of herself, is very much "leading me" and keeping me right. Her steadfastness, dependability, allows me to try out the new stuff. She tolerates it like a patient mother. She also knows that it is this experimentation which produces the elements of originality in our routine. We care more about enjoying our own private dance, than the content. This is our time. We're enjoying it. Not taking the warm-up/rehearsal too seriously. We are content with each other and ourselves.
What happened?
We are rehearsing. We're good at what we do. We are not interested in other contestants or on-lookers, though the are there. (It's not busy). Shockingly we have the appearance of a couple of lanky lesbians. We are made up, for ourselves. I'm not convinced this is how we propose appearing in the competition.
Where?
An ice-rink. Precompetition. Things might have been going on in the background to get the rink ready.
The location could very well have been a large, international airport - one off the satellites at Geneva Airport, for example.
Who are you?
One of the dancers. Though male (in a female guise), I am not leading the dance. My partner is the support and probably has a clearer idea what they are doing. Conventional. Stead-fast, whilst I'm inclined to give new moves a go even as we warm up and go through the routine we'll have to perform shortly.
Who are you with?
My partner. My fiancée. Though the characters in the dream are not playing out the relationship I'm aware of who we are as an observer.
Describe
We may have both been dressed in Tuxedo's of sorts. The make-up was very "Cabaret" or Shakespeare's Sister. Over the top Gothic. With dark circles around the eyes and white face make-up.
What do you feel about them?
Two people who are close. Who move together. Who can cope with the one of them trying new things rather than settling for the routine they have already worked out - however good it might be.
What are the various actions in the dream?
Ice-skating. In rehearsal. Probably more personal, with flares of the Impresario from me. I can risk it in rehearsal if not in competition (in the real thing). Though my partner half expects me to repeat any new move that works in the routine that will follow - there is always room to add/cha nge.
The ice dancing with my partner is close, personal, intimate, every day - and very loving. We dance very much "as one" and "get it right" as we rehearse our maverick moves.
How am I as DREAM EGO acting/behaving in this dream?
Passively. Content. The right degree of innovation and support.
What relation does this dream have to my personality?
Spot on. The need to be inventive from within a stable relationship and within stable circumstances (somewhere to live, work).
What symbols in this dream are important to me?
The ice rink is a society - not a stage. The dance is how I (we) live our lives. The appearance is how we feel on the inside.
What are the various feelings in this dream?
There is a feeling of deep, private love with My partner during our ice-skating - our love is not the archetypal "husband at work, wife at home" It is almost the other way around. She has to guide me ... not because I don't know my steps, but because I'm so keen to keep trying something new.
What relation does this dream have to what is happening right now in my life?
A great deal. There is a conflict between wanting to conform (steady income, mortgage, roots) and a desire to remain non-conformist - indeed to go my way. This ideas is encouraged by the "Ice Dance" in which My partner & I are recognised as the most brilliant (though often peculiar/radical) ice dance couple. I enjoyed the feeling that we are (were) seen as odd. Happiness disc 8overed on our terms rather than someone else's.
Who or what is the adversary in the dream?
There wasn't. Our attitude to other competitors who might have been warming up on the rink or who we will face in competition is that we are unassailable.
My real life experience of ice-skating is awful - on two occasions, I have been temporarily concussed after backward falls. There was never any feeling of uncertainty or danger. WE were in our element. Totally at east with the skating.
What or who is the helping or healing force/agent in this dream?
My partner. Because at the end of a difficult "work" day I have my partner and we are "off on our own" doing our own thing and doing it very well. For ourselves more than for others.
In previous dreams "Winter Sports" in particular skiing, has always represented my desire to l ive in France. In this dream, ice-skating, I feel it represents a compromise - it does hint at being abroad, but maybe not in the Alps. It certainly removes snow and skiing as a priority.
My partner. And more so in this latest dream than before. She is taking the lead, guiding my steps, giving me advice, keeping me in her arms. Yet, we are very much a "team" on equal terms, represented by the androgynous manner of our dress and roles. When I break free and have a quick go and something new within the rhythm of our dance she watches with pride knowing that I'll rejoin the dance where required.
What is being wounded in this dream?
Nothing.
What is being healed in this dream?
Doubts about how we should govern our lives.
What would I like to av oid in this dream?
Falling over. Being seen as a fool by anyone bothered to watch our dance. Being rejected by my partner.
What actions might this dream be suggesting I consider?
What I do with my partner, however odd it might look to people from the outside, is OUR THING! So be it!
What does this dream want from me?
It is saying, "Be yourself." Stray very far from this, such as attempting to join in someone else's activity and I will be nudged out - who wants to join a municipal restaurant meal anyway, when in Truth to be the starts of a Jean-Paul Goude ice-skating show!
W h a t choices c a n I , a n d w i l l I , m a k e a s a r e s u l t o f h a v i n g t h i s d r e a m ?
C o n t i n u e t o b e m y s e l f . S t r i v e t o m a k e m y l i f e a n d r e l a t i o n s h i p w i t h W a n d a a l l t h e b i z a r r e a n d w o n d e r f u l t h i n g s i t w a n t s t o b e . I n o t h e r people's e y e s , bizarre and rich . I t matters to us that our contemporaries see as as "odd." Why? Because we struggle to live in France. We lead a lifestyle which others see as strange ... and which they might envy.
What does this dream want from me?
I must stop trying to be conventional. It doesn't work. I must press on with trying to achieve the personal and professional goals that matter to both my partner and I.
What questions does this dream ask of me?
What is more important? Fitting in with a load of strangers, or being happy with my partner in a fantastic relationship? What is more important? Putting on an image (facade) to fool (or impress) old acquaintances, or building on a unique, special, intimate relationship with my partner?
Who or what is my companion in this dream?
My partner! A strong, experienced, skilled, feminine, athletic My partner. A confident person who "knows the steps" and gladly guides me in mine.
Why did I need this dream?
How I live matters as much to me as what I do to earn a living. If I can earn a living in a way which allows me to live where and how I desire then I should do so.
Why am I not dealing with this situation?
The usual conf lict between the desire to do my own thing and the need to conform in order to earn a living. I am, but not full-heartedly. Necessity dictates that I earn a living.
What choices can I, and will I, make because of having this dream?
It highlights my priorities. My partner, and building a life, our Life, with her, is and must be my priority. It is. We must build.... Look forward, not backwards.
What do you want to ask us your dream spirits?
Are you the ones feeding my confidence?
Why are you sometimes afraid of us, your dream spirits?
I'm not, am I? I let you have your say, understand (usually) what you say and try and build on it. You are, after all, my "alter-ego", my real "inner" self.
Why have I had this dream now?
Other choices are being thrown in my path - retracing my steps (old friends) or making a go of it with strangers ... but there clearly is no choice. My partner is everything I need to satisfy my desire to have a partner and live an "irregular" or "bizarre" life-style.
What can happen if I work actively with this dream?
I can remind myself, vividly, of where my life should be going. I should be aspiring to the bizarre, not the mundane. I should be pressing on with "our" ambitions, not turning back on them.
What is being accepted in this dream?
That My partner can be (and is) everything!
What new questions come up from this dreamwork?
The usual ones. How do I earn a living? By combining my "imaginative" activities with a means to earn a living.
