DREAM ON…..

N kavya

Dream is a succession of images, ideas, emotions, and sensations that usually occur involuntarily in the mind during certain stages of sleep.

The content and function of dreams have been topics of scientific, philosophical, and religious interest throughout recorded history. Dream interpretation was practiced by the Babylonians in the third millennium BCE and even earlier by the ancient Sumerians. .Dreams figure prominently in major world religions. The dream experience for early humans, according to one interpretation, gave rise to the notion of a human ‘soul’ as a central element in much religious thought.

Psychologist Calvin S. Hall considered dreams part of the cognition process or a type of thinking that happens as you sleep. Hall believed dreams could offer important insight into how you view yourself and others, your problems and conflicts, and the world in general. Many psychologists believed dreams played an important role in cognitive processes including memory and emotion regulation. Domhoff also noted that, although dreams may shed some light on heavy concerns, they might not have any real purpose, because he stated normally human beings forget most of their dreams. William Dement, who helped found the field of sleep medicine, suggested that, while dreams may lack a clear purpose, they can still convey meaningful messages.

Many experts do not believe dreams have much meaning but believe they still serve a purpose. The existing theories outline a few of these purposes.

1. Threat simulation theory
2. Activation-Synthesis theory
3. Dreams as emotional regulation
4. Continual-activation theory

Psychotherapist, Eliza Boquin, states “For vivid dreamers, our body can often experience what is happening in the dream.”
Certified dream analyst and speaker Lauri Loewenberg says while you are sleeping your brain is conjuring up around five dreams per night. That is a lot of subconscious thoughts to unpack. And although every dream is unique, they do tend to follow certain symbolic patterns.

How to examine your own dreams -:

1. Make sure you are getting proper sleep –: Research says that if we get enough sleep (7 to 9 hours) each night. This may, in turn, boost dream recall.

2. Review the dream –: when you wake up from the dream, lie calmly and analyze the visions, emotions, people, and places and mainly pay attention to small details because it would play a significant role in examining the dream.

3. Write it down –: Have a journal and start writing what all you saw the colors and visions, also your moods and feelings.

4. Make connections to your own life -: connecting these facts to your everyday life, would connect to your past life experiences and in some cases might even show some glimpses of your future. There are also many dreams interpretation books that you can interpret and gain more insights into.

Dreaming and sleep are intertwined. Dreams occur mainly in the rapid-eye movement (REM) stage of sleep when brain activity is high and resembles that of being awake. No one knows for certain what purposes dream serve. But at the end of the day, their true function might not really matter. It depends on each individual If you find them meaningful, then they add value to you or do not concern you.