Do you see the same words in your day-time journal as you do in your dream records?

Sometimes we need a breakthrough when working on dreams.  Sometimes it can seems as if we labour day and night to understand what our dreams are telling us, and though we may feel we can decipher the symbols, somehow the greater meaning, the real insight that makes go “yes!  I get it!” still manages to elude us.

 

At times like these, it can help to write a journal, or diary.  Keeping a record of daytime activities, thoughts, feelings and relationships can be an incredibly useful tool to understanding both our dreams, and consequently, our entire selves, much more clearly.  A day time record and reflection of life is a complement to our night time dream records and reflections.  The two work together, like night and day, dark and light, subconscious and conscious, providing balance and unity to our self exploration.

If you are unfamiliar or new to journaling, there a few things to keep in mind as you get started.  Firstly, keep it light.  This activity is not meant to feel like a chore, but should be something you enjoy.  Don’t worry how many pages you write or how often you do it.  Just do it when you feel inspired, or need to get something off your chest.  It shouldn’t weigh you down.  Secondly, write what you feel. That’s not to say you shouldn’t write about what events and relationships are happening in your life, as these can be really helpful in giving a context to what is going on.  But equally, a journal should not be like a shopping list. “Got up, went to work, traffic bad, filed report, came home, went to gym, ate dinner, went to bed” – this is not a particularly useful journal entry.  ”Can’t be bothered writing today, feel so tired and work is stressing me out.  But relieved I at least finished that report” would be a far more useful entry.  Journaling should include what we think and feel, as well as what we do.

Does reflecting on dreams make life look a little different?

 

 

Keeping a journal in this way, and reflecting back on what we have written from time to time can be a helpful tool in coming to understand ourselves better, just on its own.  But when we combine this activity with the practice of doing dream work, we can notice far more powerful and profound effects.  We may start to discover things about ourselves that are really surprising, we may reach real breakthroughs in understanding, things that change how we look at ourselves and the world, things that change what we believe and how we behave.

In order to do this, we can start by looking for connections.  Though this is the easiest and most obvious way to start, it can provide really interesting insights.  We may write a record of dream such as “dreamed of trying to call my mother, but the person on the other end of the phone says its my office, and  keeps putting me on hold and won’t connect me.  All I keep hearing is static.”  So for dream work we might analyse the symbols and think we aren’t able to communicate (the phone) with our wise caring self (mother).  But somehow this doesn’t really ring true enough.  Maybe it doesn’t feel wrong, but its like we are still missing something.

So we start journaling.  And one day we write “I just don’t feel satisfied at work anymore, I feel like my life is on hold and I wish I could just do something more creative.”  Suddenly the dream takes on a new meaning.  Being “on hold” we notice as words both in our dream record, and in our journal.  And now the “mother” is not simply our wise caring self, but the creative part of our personality that we are putting on hold by being in the office all day.  As this dream is resolved and understood, it makes way for new dreams to come, ones that don’t simply articulate the problem, but can even provide a solution.

Another way dream records and journaling can work to provide new insight is by identifying patterns.  This takes time and patience, and requires looking back over dreams and day time reflections to notice how certain dreams may correspond with certain feelings or actions.  Maybe we frequently dream of tidal waves when deadlines are approaching, or of a wild animal after a night with a lover.  These patterns can start to help us decode the symbols in our dreams, so when the symbol turns up again, we know what it is referring to.  As we become more skillful with this art, our dreams may even start to put the familiar symbols together in new ways to help reveal even deeper meaning.  Maybe we will dream of a wild animal facing a tidal wave, as we approach a deadline to marriage, for example.  Our dreams, confident we understand the animal and the tidal wave, help us to understand and cope with feelings in new situations.  This is one way dreams help us to grow and learn.