hey everyone and welcome to top think today we're going to learn what your dreams reveal
about you now let's begin can you learn from your dreams do your dreams reflect real people
places and ideas psychologists have gone back and forth on this question some believe dreams
are gateways into your abstract mind others say dreams are nothing but subconscious garble
a random collection of sights sounds and emotions but whose rights where do your dreams come from
and what do they really mean in the mid 1900s calvin s hall was one of the leading experts in
dream research paul conducted several famous studies on the meaning of dreams one study
conducted in 1953 analyzed over 10 000 individual dreams in this video we're going to talk about
one of calvin hall's greatest contributions the cognitive theory of dreams in his theory hall
redefines dreams and where they come from your dreams he says reflect elements of your reality
but not in linear straightforward ways alright let's say you dream about the richest person on
the planet that doesn't mean your dream is going to come true but even unrealistic dreams can teach
you important lessons lessons about yourself about the world and about your direction in life because
dreams according to calvin hall embody your thoughts the dream is a collection of images
and stimuli a dream is a subconscious projection that you imagine when you sleep but dreams may
also transform your thoughts into sensory stimuli images and landscapes so what exactly can we learn
from our dreams what do individual dreams teach us about our own cognition number one the dream
mirror in hall's theory he compares your dreams to a mirror when you dream your subconscious
reflects your selfhood back at you but there's a catch your subconscious isn't always true to life
that reflection isn't your real self it's your dream self now your dream self represents your
own conceptions of who you are it's constructed from all kinds of ideas misconceptions and biases
it shows your personality the way you perceive it okay let's say you dream of falling into a
deep ocean you try to swim to the surface but it gets farther and farther away the next night
you dream of a dark road you take turn after turn but every road leads you deeper into the darkness
and then the night after that you experience the same feeling this time you're trapped inside an
endless hallway you see a light at the end of the tunnel but no matter how fast you run you never
get there what do all these dreams have in common each dream shows you a perception of yourself
in the ocean on a dark road and in the endless hallway you see yourself as one thing powerless
in these dreams you have lost control you have become overwhelmed you're unable to overcome
the challenge that's standing in front of you ultimately these dreams show you your own weakness
now of course this is just one example some dreams show strength some show courage and confidence
others show fear and insecurity the possibilities are limitless but hall argues that nothing
presents a more honest view of yourself than your dreams number two social reflections what
do you really think of your friends and family according to calvin hall your dreams reflect
more than just your selfhood they also reflect your honest opinions of the people in your life
if you're harboring deeper issues a dream will bring that conflict to the forefront of your mind
dreams can turn emotional turmoil into stories images and sounds imagine for example your best
friend you've known your friend for most of your life maybe you grew up together maybe you played
the same sports you two are almost inseparable but one night you have a dream about your friend
and in that dream you and your friend are running a marathon you try to keep up but your friend
pulls ahead of you they get further and further away and you can't catch up the first time you
don't think much of it but you have similar dreams for the rest of the week eventually you notice a
pattern patterns like these could represent deeper conflicts maybe your friend has taken a new job or
started spending time with new people you may be scared that you're going to lose them so that fear
manifests in your dreams alright let's try another example let's say you've been dreaming about dogs
all week in your daily life you like dogs if a dog runs up to you you smile and scratch its head
but in your dreams you're being chased and attacked every one of these dreams feels like
a nightmare deep down you may be afraid of dogs even if that fear has never come to the surface
according to calvin hall patterns or dream series are windows into your thoughts just
like your dream self dreams create dream friends and dream family members these people represent
your conceptions of them sometimes you discover love and trust and other times
you discover fear or intimidation but you have to identify these issues before you can fix them
number three nervous nightmares what do your dreams tell you about your personality
a 2010 study from the international review of neurobiology discovered something interesting
about your dreams specifically about your nightmares we've all had nightmares at some
points like dreams they vary wildly from standing naked in a crowd to monsters in the woods
but they all have one thing in common every nightmare is colored by negative emotions
fear anxiety humiliation a nightmare cooks up a stew of negativity which may haunt you
throughout the day but why did researchers take a special interest in our nightmares they found
that certain personalities have more nightmares than others on average people who have frequent
nightmares are worriers and overthinkers people with this personality type are prone to guilt
and frustration and they experience significant stress on a regular basis sometimes that tension
comes from their environment or their lifestyle but most of the time it's all in their head
worry and stress may affect your subconscious when you fall asleep your negativity may seep
into your dreams so instead of happy exciting stories you may conjure up a nightmare
number four strange experiences how well do you remember your dreams dream recall is a rare talent
most people forget their dreams within seconds of waking up
hours of images slip out of their brain like those dreams never ever happened now a handful
of people do remember their dreams and their dreams may have a positive impact on their life
they remember the lessons they learned so they carry those lessons into their lives according
to our 2010 study this talent is correlated with one personality trait openness openness is your
receptiveness to new experiences do you try things you've never tried before do you value unique
opinions and perspectives if you have a strong dream memory you may rank highly in this category
you're open to new experiences so your brain is receptive to the strangeness of your dreams
number five worldly interpretations dream worlds are nothing like the real world you may dream of
a mountain made of ice cream or a city floating on the clouds but you can't experience anything like
that in real life does that mean our dreamscapes have nothing to teach us let's say you're dreaming
of your hometown suddenly you hear a storm brewing in the distance that storm sweeps across
your neighborhood picking you up and swirling you in the air maybe you dream of a desolate
battlefield explosions burst all around you and for mile after mile you see nothing but wreckage
neither of these dreamscapes reflect your reality but your dreamscapes may mean something according
to calvin hall they're created by your opinions of the world around you now in both of our examples
you saw chaos and destruction in your dream you stepped into a dangerous environment so in reality
your world may feel like a dangerous place the emotions are the same only the images have changed
not all dreamscapes are dangerous or scary some are uplifting and beautiful
you may dream of a cool breeze blowing across a flowering meadow you see the sun setting
over the ocean if you see these dreamscapes your world may seem like a majestic place
you may feel happy and calm in your environment so those emotions may be reflected in your dreams
number six persistent obstacles do your dreams repeat themselves do you run
into the same obstacles time after time these patterns may not be a coincidence
calvin hall says that persistent obstacles represent greater conflicts in your life
locked doors are a common dream obstacle whether you're chasing something or running away a locked
door stops your story in its tracks there's no key there's no way around and suddenly you feel stuck
authority figures are another common obstacle let's say you're dreaming about your future career
you're about to accomplish a lifelong goal when an authority figure steps in your way
it could be a king a parent or a teacher it may be someone from your past or someone you've
never met before either way this person prevents you from accomplishing your goal
if you encounter dream obstacles there may be conflicts you need to resolve
you may be facing a roadblock in your career you may feel trapped by a job relationship or
lifestyle you may not realize anything's wrong until you see that obstacle in your dreams
dreams aren't always accurate some dreams may be meaningful and some may not
the truth is most stream research is theoretical dreams may be useless collections of stimuli
but they may also reflect your thoughts and emotions even if your dreams are meaningless
you can still learn powerful lessons from your sleeping brain hey thanks
for watching top think and be sure to subscribe because more incredible content is on the way