DREAM IN A DIFFERENT WORLD
              Compiled by Ms. Nidhi kaul
  Counseling Psychologist, Apollo Hospital

In simple words, dreams are a series of thoughts, images or emotions occurring during sleep .

Dreams represent a world of imagery in which our darkest fears, deepest secrets, and most passionate fantasies break out from the unconscious mind and only at this time become present to our own consciousness. There are several key questions that need to be addressed; for instance, "Why do we dream? What do dreams mean? And, where do dreams come from?" The answers to these questions are not that simple; however, recent studies and research has come a long way into divulging the human psyche and what dreams really are.

Dreaming is associated with rapid eye movement (REM ) sleep, a lighter form of sleep that occurs during the later portion of the sleep cycle, characterized by rapid horizontal eye movements, stimulation of the pons, increased respiratory and heart rate, and temporary paralysis of the body.

Scientists believe everybody dreams, but sometimes we forget. We tend to forget when we naturally pass out of sleep through the traditional cycle. If a person is awoken directly from REM sleep (i.e. by an alarm clock), they are much more likely to remember the dream from that REM cycle. Although it's most likely that not all dreams will be remembered because they occur in REM cycles, which are interrupted by periods of “delta sleep” which in turn have a tendency to cause the memory of previous dreams to fade.

Psychologists have also concluded that our daily activities while we are awake can have an effect on our dreams. However, scientists are unsure as to what degree of an impact this makes, it is nonetheless substantial enough.

So why do we dream? There are a few theories as to why we dream. One of the first theories regarding dreams and dreaming was given by Sigmund Freud. Freud saw dreams as wish fulfillment i.e. disguised way to satisfy unconscious desires that are too upsetting to face consciously. Freud called dreams the “royal road” to the knowledge of the unconscious mind. Freud's analysis of dreams brought about much controversy, especially amongst contemporary psychologists.

Another psychologist, Carl Jung agreed with Freud to a certain extent, but said that the meaning of dreams were much more complicated and thus very hard to interpret correctly.

In some cultures, the interpretations of dreams have huge significance. Studies done on some Amazonian tribes show just how important the interpretations of dreams are to some cultures. To the Sonenekuiñaji people, dreams are sources of knowledge and channels of communication between multiple worlds that feed back dynamic information. They even use dreams to develop the names for their own children!!!

But the question is , What are Dreams Really Made of ?

Dreams are a true reflection of oneself at that particular point in one's life. They encompass all of our thoughts, our emotions, our beliefs, and our desires. They are signposts literally telling you the nature of things to come.

There are five different types of dreams : ordinary, lucid, telepathic, premonitory, and nightmare. They often blend and merge with one another.

ORDINARY DREAMS
During the day our conscious minds are active, but at night the subconscious takes over. Ordinary dreams are based on the activity of the unconscious in response to what we have seen or heard in our waking hours. Even a single thought can trigger a dream

LUCID DREAMS
A lucid dream is one that you can control because you are aware that you are dreaming. You can also decide what to dream about before going to sleep and then dream about the very thing that you planned to.

TELEPATHIC DREAMS
Telepathy, known as “the language of the angels,” allows the dead and the living to speak in dreamland. In this meeting place, death is no barrier, and the living cross the threshold into a heavenly sphere of existence. This mental communication can also occur mind-to-mind between two living people. Extended telepathy during sleep is a communion between two worlds, the night time world of the soul and the daytime world of the body.

PREMONITORY DREAMS
Premonitory dreams are similar to telepathic dreams in that our spirit leaves our body and ventures on a voyage of discovery. Premonitory dreams are special because they reveal the future and allow the dreamer to see truths that are not accessible in waking life. In telepathic dreams, one can also detect information about an imminent event.

NIGHTMARES
Most nightmares are linked to early childhood, when a person is inexperienced and therefore dependent on others. Before the age of three, the child has not yet developed a sense of conscience and of right and wrong. Nightmares are representations of a suppressed, original fear commonly created by excessively strict parental or sibling moral standards and the threat of punishment in the face of innocence. In nightmares one may perceive a warning for oneself or for a loved one. Not all nightmares are nasty predictions or unwholesome signs. A nightmare may also relate to an old, unsolved problem that is so frightening to face that the person is unable to continue to dream and the emotional terror wakes him in distress without offering a solution.

" Don't be pushed by your problems. Be led by your dreams. ”