I’ve often wondered if there is any significance to recurring dreams. Is it a sign of things to come? Is it a reflection of things that I worry about? Is my subconscious trying to send me a message? Is God trying to use these dreams to speak to me?
There are three recurring dreams that I have:
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1) Unprepared for my Final Exam
In this dream, I’m registered for a History course. For some reason I’ve never attended any of the classes, haven’t done any assignments, and haven’t read the textbook. The semester is coming to an end and the final exam is coming up. I am panicking and wondering why the heck I haven’t done any work on this class! I have this looming feeling of failure and am blaming myself for letting this happen. The interesting thing is that I know at least 4 other people that have had similar recurring dreams. I wonder if we have something in common.
2) Driving with my Eyes Closed
In this recurring dream I realize that I am driving but my eyes are completely shut. I know that if I do not open my eyes I will crash. So I try to open my eyes but I cannot. I’m very panicked and frustrated and just waiting for the crash to happen. But I never crash in the dream – I’m just constantly stuck in the moment. It’s the worst feeling ever.
3) My car’s brakes don’t work
In this dream I am trying to stop the car (either parking or coming to a stop). I press on the brakes but they do not work. I am not slowing down. And I’m about to crash. So I press harder, but it doesn’t work. Like the previous dream, I never crash. I’m just stuck in the moment before the crash.
I dislike my recurring dreams. It would be different if my recurring dreams were about good things, like beaches, BBQ ribs, massages and Lucky Charms. But my recurring dreams leave me feeling fearful and anxious. I wake up from these dreams feeling tired from going through a stressful experience.
One day as I was telling my wife about these dreams and wondering aloud what they mean, she told me about David Benner’s book Sacred Companions [affiliate link]. Benner says, “Dreams are most useful in spiritual growth when we prayerfully listen to them rather than seek to interpret them. We should receive them as gifts from God, asking him what he wishes to draw to our attention through them.”
In the book Benner introduces the TTAQ method for reflecting on dreams.
Title – give the dream a title
Theme – note its overall theme
Affect – note the dominant emotions in the dream as you prayerfully reflect on it
Question – note the potential questions the dream poses for you
Using this method of reflection, my wife and I have noticed a similar theme in my recurring dreams about the fear of losing control.
I’m curious to see if anyone else has had recurring dreams. If so, how have you responded to them? And have you found the dreams to be of any significance in your life?