You May Say I’m a Dreamer, But I’m Not The Only One

I’ve had a lot of weird dreams over the years. I’m a pretty consistent dreamer and, at times, can even lucid dream. I’ve always wondered what the content of my dreams said about me.

When I was a kid, I had very vivid nightmares, some of which I can even recall to this day. One of them was a dream where someone had made clones of all the children in the neighborhood. My clone threw itself in front of a garbage truck while my mother watched. No matter how much I screamed that the clone was not me, that I was alive and right next to her, I could not console her.

In college was when my dreams really started to take vivid and sometimes violent turns. I recall one where I was in an elevator with a young girl in one of my college buildings. Our elevator got to our floor, and I heard gunshots. I was quick to press the door-close button, but he allegedly heard it, and right before it was about to close, he stuck his hand in and opened it. He came in and demanded that I take his gun and shoot myself, or he would shoot the little girl. I looked at the little girl and apologized, then turned back to the man who was holding the gun out for me and shot myself in the face.

After breaking up with a boyfriend right before my sophomore year of college, I often dreamt that we were back together. Not in a pleasant way, but in a way that made me panic— how could I have let this happen? How could I have gotten back together with him again? I would wake up in a panic and would have to remind myself it wasn’t real. I had these dreams for almost two years.

I dream about other boys, too: ones who hurt me or ones I can’t get over. One of them, I simply dreamt of looking into his blue eyes for nearly a year. Another boy, I dreamt he tried to kill my family and me.

I often dream of the same things: teeth falling out, finding cash, driving a car but something is wrong with it, being late or unprepared, being chased and murdered, having to chase or contain multiple rats or guinea pigs, or being in love with a faceless character (those are the best ones).

And in between dreams of love and murder are dreams that are just plain weird. For example, I had a dream where I was sitting in the backseat of a Jeep, and something felt off, so I asked the girl next to me if this was a dream. She thought about it a moment, shrugged, and said: “I think so.” I looked out the front window of the Jeep and saw a man floating around like a DVD screen saver. I was so shook by her response that I decided to crash the car to make myself wake up (though I do this often, I do not suggest this plan of action on the off chance it is not a dream). 

I always try to make sense of my dreams and while some aspects do make sense, I don’t necessarily think it all means something. According to this website, my dreams about unknown lovers are telling me “that what [I] long for, what [I am] missing, is within [me]. This is why [I] have always known him and why [I] miss it.” While this idea is rather nice, I think I’m just lonely. And my teeth falling out in my dreams? That’s an extremely common one among dreamers, and might just be because I’m a teeth-grinder when I sleep. 

Dreams may reveal parts of our personalities that we didn’t know were there. My actions in my dreams are instinctual, yet I have doubts that I would make the same decisions in real life. Would I be so quick to shoot myself in my face for the non-guaranteed safety of an unknown little girl? I’m not so sure.

Either way, whether they mean something or not, whether they are a glimpse into your decision-making skills or just fantasy, I think it is at least interesting to dissect them. You may learn something, you may not. You may make connections to your life, or it may be complete baloney. 

I want to hear your most weird, messed up, funny, depressing, or interesting dreams! Comment below or on one of my social media posts!

Also, pro-tip, sleeping with a weighted blanket will get you the deepest REM sleep of your life!