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Freud, Sigmund (1856-1939), Austrian
physician, neurologist, and founder of psychoanalysis was the first man in the
western world to attempt to explain the phenomenon of dreaming which every human
experiences every day....Since then Jung, Carl Gustav
(1875-1961), Swiss psychiatrist, who founded the analytical school of
psychology tried to continue what Freud had investigated....Gestalt
Theoreticists have tried to explain dreams but nobody in the domain
of western science really know what, why and how of dreams and dreaming....
To read about what dreams mean from the article in
Globe and Mail which you can click on the
preceding red hilite to read or read by clicking on the next line....but to know
what veD = SCIENCES OF CREATION AND LIFE
tells us about dreams click on
TODAY'S VED LESSON on the left side
of the screen or the preceding red hilited page title or click on the
TODAY VED LESSON and visit the archive item
dated October 13, 2003 titled: "YOUR aatmaa IN YOUR BODY:....HAS 3
STATES...jaagrut (WAKING), s`vp`n (DREAM) AND suSHUp`ti (DEEP SLEEP)"
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Dreams: what we know
"Dreams are always just a little ahead of what's in our conscious mind, which
makes them fascinating on many levels," says Veronica Tonay, a psychology
instructor at the University of California and author of Every Dream
Interpreted. Most people remember an average of one or two dreams a week, she
adds, and about 60 per cent of dreams are unpleasant. Prof. Tonay says research
supports four theories about the relationship of dreams to waking life:
- Dream behaviour reflects waking-life behaviour (as Freud postulated)
- Dream content reflects preoccupations from waking life (Calvin Hall)
- Feelings in dreams tend to be those we are unaware of in waking life
(Jung)
- All parts of dreams reflect the dreamer (Gestalt theorists)
Let's talk nightmares
A nightmare is frequently defined as a long, frightening dream that wakes the
dreamer. Some studies say only disturbing dreams that actually wake the sleeper
up should be termed nightmares, while worrying dreams which do not cause the
dreamer to wake should be termed bad dreams.
People have more bad dreams than they realize, but in most cases don't remember
them, reports dream expert and psychologist Mark Blagrove of Swansea University
in Britain.
Nightmares are especially frightening to a young child who has not learned
what's real and what's make-believe. Also, children tend to fear very different
things at different ages, says Joanne Cantor, author of Mommy, I'm Scared: How
TV and Movies Frighten Children . . . For instance, nasty animals, grotesque
images and monsters will terrify two- to seven-year-olds. Between 8 and 12, kids
fear violence to themselves or to their peers, while teens seem most vulnerable
to stories featuring sexual assault or alien/occult characters.
"Nightmares are annoying, but not particularly worrisome from a medical
perspective," writes Dr. Herschel Lessin of Poughkeepsie, N.Y. "Night terrors
are quite a different thing. The key difference . . . is that children with
night terrors are not really awake. They may look awake and do things that awake
people do, but the reality is: They are still asleep while doing those
activities. Night terrors are very scary to watch for parents. The child is
absolutely terrified and inconsolable. It is also nearly impossible to wake the
child up during an episode."
Thought du jour
"I have encountered few truly prophetic dreams in my practice [as a
psychotherapist], but I have seen many that seemed to say to the dreamer: If you
continue along this particular path, it will probably give rise to such and such
outcome." -- William Alex in Dreams, the Unconscious and Analytical Therapy
(1973)
Social Studies By: MKesterton@globeandmail.ca
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