Dark Side of Dreams: Decoding 9 Common Nightmares

Dreams as well and nightmares have been the subject of many experiments.

Despite all our advanced knowledge of the human body and psyche, the world of dreams remains an enigma.

有 multipule theories, none of which feels like it could be the right one.

Sigmund Freud, among others, theorized about dreams and nightmares.

This is quite literally a topic that’s always left open for discussion.

What We Do Know About Nightmares

Experiments determined that bad dreams occur during REM sleep.

This phase of sleep stimulates learning in our brains, causing it to send out many different signals at once.

This, then, causes the need for the cortex to make some sense of all those images and signals. Hence we dream up a story.

Nightmares are most commonly experienced by children. 

An interesting fact is that they’re more common for women than men, when it comes to adults.

All Is True At Once

Some scientist claim that dreams have no meaning at all, and that it’s just our brain being active at random.

Others, like aforementioned Sigmund Freud, say that dreams, good or bad, reflect our unconscious fears and desires.

Therefore, we should pay attention to them and discuss them in therapy.

Other sources say that otherworldly forces are contacting us through dreams, offering warnings and affirmations.

And all of us have likely experienced all of these.

At times, we dream something so nonsensical, we can only laugh about it.

Other times, you can clearly recognize the stress and issues you’re actually experiencing in your dream.

It’s common to dream about your teeth falling out if you’re late for a dentists appointment, for example.

Also, you may dream that you failed a particular test you’re studying for.

What About Night Terrors?

Though night terrors often get confused for nightmares, there is an important difference between these two trypes of dreams.

A night terror doesn’t occur during REM sleep, but during the first few hours.

They cause the sleeper to thrash, scream and even have a hard time waking up.

Usually, upon waking up, they can’t remember what it was they dreamed of.

Don’t Speak of Your Nightmare Before Noon

This is an interesting superstition. It’s age old and stems from the fear of nightmares becoming reality.

So, the next time you have a bad dream, hold off on telling about it until noon.

It’s believed that noon is the time when a new day truly starts. So it’s safe to speak of a yesterday’s nightmare without the fear of it coming true.

These Are the 9 Common Nightmares

I am of the belief that nigthmares come to us for a reason, be it psychological or supernatural.

We’ll look at the reasons behind these common nightmares:

1. Teeth falling out

2. Being chased

3. Exposed in public

4. Failing an exam

5. Flying

6. Falling

7. Losing control of a vehicle

8. Being trapped

9. Being late

Dreaming of Losing Your Teeth

Firstly, this nightmare could have a rational cause. You might be anxious about your dental health, or reluctant to see a dentist out of fear.

However, it also has many potential psychological causes.

Losing your teeth in a nightmare may be due to the fear of how other people see you.

You may be feeling rejected, embarrassed or unattractive.

It could also hint to the subconscious fear of aging, as losing teeth is commonly related with old age.

Another thing that’s potentially hiding behind this nightmare is 缺乏控制.

You may be feeling powerless and vulnerable.

Having to Run Away From Someone

This nightmare means you’re trying to avoid something in your waking life.

Be it responsibility, a situation or your own feelings. This nightmare hints that you don’t want to face whatever it is and that you’re feeling overwhelmed.

Sometimes, our own negative feelings, bad memories or past experiences can manifest as an ominous figure in our dreams.

如果您 going through a major life transition, that could also help explain this dream.

And lastly, it could be a reflection of a traumatic past experience. Perhaps you were caught in a dangerous situation which you barely escaped.

Naturally, we don’t want to face such bad feelings consciously, so they may swim up in our subconsciousness.

Being Naked in Public

There is an actual phobia related to being exposed in front of other people, called nudophobia.

There are many possible underlying reasons behind this nightmare.

Social anxiety is one of them. You may feel unable to fit in and afraid of being judged by others. You may also be experiencing issues with 信心.

This nightmare is related to negative body image, as well. You could be insecure about your skin or weight, or any other part of yourself.

If you’ve ever experienced being embarrassed or shamed in a public setting, that negative experience could be resurfacing in your dreams.

In case someone else is being nude in public, and not yourself, it could be related to your fear of exposing them.

You might be having a hard time keeping a secret about that person.

Failing an Important Test

Personally, this was a reoccurring dream for me in college.

同样、 you may be dealing with stress and anxiety related to your studies. The more you obsess about grades and passing, the more likely it is to weigh upon your psyche.

However, there are other underlying causes behind this particular nightmare.

You may be feeling inadequate in your personal life or career.

Feeling as though you’re failing to meet expectations can come to you in the form of this nightmare.

Being unprepared for work or school, as well as remembering past failures, can cause you to dream yourself failing an exam.

Flying in Your Nightmare

In a pleasant dream, ability to fly is related to overcoming your fears. It can also represent your spiritual and emotional growth.

However, if you’re stressed and afraid during your flight, it may indicate quite the opposite.

An uneasy flying experience may indicate that you are being stopped from doing what you want, by someone or something.

Experiencing fear as you fly can also mean that you don’t feel confident about meeting your goals and expectations.

It can be strongly related to feeling like you’re losing control or being overwhelmed.

Helplessly Falling

I’ve often heard people say that falling in your dreams (both good and bad ones) means you’re growing.

Commonly, you may read about this nightmare being related to insecurity, fear of failure, and again, 失控.

All of them can, however, be linked to growing.

It could be that you are physically growing up or evolving mentally.

A 变化 is happening, we feel like we don’t really know ourselves anymore and it doesn’t feel very promising.

I’d call this a growing pains nightmare.

Scientifically, this is explained with brain chemistry. During REM phase your awareness and sense of orientation is suppressed.

Dreaming that you’re helplessly falling can be due to feeling lost and disoriented.

Being Unable to Control a Vehicle

This is a nightmare which represents literally that you feel out of control.

It may mean you aren’t feeling adequate to handle an issue in your life.

And it can also mean that you feel controlled as opposed to being in control.

Perhaps someone is making important decisions for you and you lack the confidence to stand up for yourself.

It could potentially indicate that you are anxious about where you’re going with your life.

Otherwise it could reflect the fear of injury or a past experience with a car acciedent.

Feeling or Being Trapped

Being trapped, lost or otherwise unable to leave a place can be a terrible experience.

You feel endangered, anxious and disoriented.

When nightmares are concerned, you can be 进退维谷 in a city, in a building, elevator, forest, some unknown place or even the nightmare itself!

This nightmare suggests you’re in need of a change and that you seek 指导.

Change, of course, never comes easy. You may be experiencing stress and fear about the future.

如果您 claustrophobic, this nightmare can also reflect a traumatic experience or irrational fear.

Being Late for an Appointment

It’s said that this nightmare often occurs before big and life changing events.

It stems from feeling unprepared, afraid and maybe even not good enough.

You may be experiencing a lot of stress at work, which leads you to worry about your performance.

Or you’re overall feeling like you let people down. Guilt and shame related to that come to haunt you in your nightmares.

It’s recommended to organize a relaxing and stable sleeping routine, to avoid additional stress.