“If we listen patiently to our dreams and the messages they contain . . .
they will eventually lead us to health . . . how much better to take
advice from the other half of yourself than from another person”
Dr. Ann Faraday
Many of us are fascinated by our dreams. Often this apparently random jumble of images we experience every night is confusing and just plain unfathomable. So why should we try to gain any meaning from our dreams? Is there any meaning to be gained from our dreams? And how do we go about interpreting our dreams?
The next Dream Interpretation Workshop will run on Sunday 12 September 2010 from 11am to 4.30pm. To book, send an email to debbie@theacademyofdreams.com
At The Academy’s Dream Interpretation Workshop, you will be introduced to two methods of dream interpretation that can give you great insight into your dreams.
- You will uncover what you REALLY think and feel about a situation (not what you think you should be feeling);
- You will be able to access your deeper truer wishes and become aware of what you want;
- You can therefore adjust your waking life to follow the wisdom that you have unlocked from your dream;
Previous participants have said:
‘I found the whole day really interesting. It was fascinating to see how many different interpretations were possible for someone’s dream. I thought the day was structured very well and everything was presented in a way that was easy to follow and understand. I thoroughly enjoyed it!’ (Jade Aurousseau, London)
‘Very fun, interesting in a relaxed environment’ (Zoe Norris)
‘Important work – helping people to improve their awareness of living’ (Claudia Nielson)
‘Well organised, interesting, chance to share dreams, well worth attending’ (Helen Wright)
‘The very relaxed atmosphere which made it easy to speak out and talk through the issues’. (A.W)
Background to the Academy ’s Dream Interpretation Methods
Dream interpretation is about not taking the images we see in dreams literally, but as a representation of something else in our lives. Fritz Perls, the father of Gestalt psychotherapy, believed that each part of the dream represented an aspect of the dreamer. At the Academy of Dreams, we believe that each part of the dream will either represent an aspect of the dreamer, or else represent someone else in the dreamer’s life. We use this to analyse and understand the hidden messages that our dreams are sending us about our emotional lives in the waking world.
The Academy is grateful to Dr Gayle Delaney, who is a pioneer in the world of dream interpretation. Dr Delaney also stresses that the dream interpreter should perhaps more correctly be called a ‘dream interviewer’, as it is only the dreamer herself who has the key to unlock the dream. The ‘interpreter’ is merely interviewing the dreamer to help facilitate the discovery of the hidden meaning.
Dream Interpretation from a Gestalt perspective
Prior to scientific work on sleeping and dreaming, psychologists from the nineteenth century onwards were studying a different perspective of dreaming. They were looking not at the workings of the brain during sleep but rather at the meaning of the images produced. Dreams spoke in metaphors and the work of many psychologists and psychiatrists centred on understanding the language of dreams.
Fritz Perls thought that the dream was the ‘royal road to integration’, because the dream could help the dreamer to reclaim lost parts of himself in order to become a whole being.
Perls believed that the dream was a ‘projection’. In other words, the dreamer projected characteristics or parts of himself onto other people or objects in the dream. Often these would be the parts that had been ignored, rejected or suppressed.
The job of the therapist was to help the dreamer accept and reintegrate the disowned parts of himself. As the dreamer realises that all parts of the dream might represent him, he begins to reclaim ownership of the lost parts and his range of possible identities might shift, revealing a new extended sense of self.
Perls introduced a procedure in the dream enquiry process:
First the therapist would ask the dreamer to tell the dream in its entirety in the present tense. The rationale behind this was to bring the dreamer’s feelings from the dream into the here and now.
The therapist could then ask the dreamer to talk from the perspective of each element; animate or inanimate, in the dream. So for example if the dreamer dreamed of being chased across a field, the therapist might ask the dreamer to speak from three different perspectives: the dreamer himself; the pursuer; and the field. Each new perspective might bring an unexpected realisation.
The Academy also works with dream interpretation from the perspective of Carl Jung. Jung regarded dreams as involuntary and spontaneous psychic products which were often difficult to understand because they were expressed in symbols and pictures.
At the Academy of Dreams we also use the work of Jung to explain the meaning of the dream.
Dream Group
To help you to unravel and interpret your dreams, The Academy of Dreams also runs monthly Dream Groups which take place in central London on the third Friday of every month from 7-9pm. The cost is £10. If you would like to attend, simply send an email to debbie@theacademyofdreams.com
