Dr David Malkin

Dreams

Dreams have been used for healing purposes since ancient times.Asclepius was the Greek god of healing and medicine.Temples in ancient Greece were devoted to him and people would sleep there and report their dreams to the priest the following day.On the basis of those reports the priest would prescribe a cure.In more modern times the founders of psychotherapy, Freud and Jung, used dreams as the 'royal road' to the unconscious.Psychological healing was attempted by analysing the latent messages carried by the dream whist the dreamer is asleep.Freud used a method of chain associations from a dream image whilst Jung advocated amplifying the symbol but staying close to it.Jung also proposed using archetypal or collective levels of interpretation rather than just personal ones.In essence,the methods are designed to tell the dreamer something which is hidden from their everyday awareness.This awareness then forms the basis for more informed choices,fuller awareness,and emotional regulation.This vehicle was used to attempt to cure a variety of neurotic ailments such as anxiety and depression.

Current day psychologists,counsellors,and therapists continue to use dreams as a medium not only for relieving psychological distress but also for personal growth and self regulation.This can be a value adding exercise to healthy living.Dream work methodology has been extended to include gestalting,or acting out,a dream. Psychodramatic techniques are sometimes used to enliven a dream. Art therapy and modelling can also be used to extract meaning from dreams.Many people feel that dreams are quite meaningless because they often do not appear to make sense.This is because dreams involve symbolic,or associative,logic not everyday sequential logic.Hence,one should not be fearful or ashamed by content that probably is referring to something which is not literal.People in dreams can often represent aspects or qualities of personality.

Although some symbols can have a common meaning,the dreamer themself is the authority on what makes sense to them.The sense of fit of an interpretation or suggestion is very personal and ideosyncratic.Over time the dreamer can become familiar with their own dream code so as to recognise more easily what continues to arise in ongoing dreaming.Working with a therapist who is familiar with dreamwork can be valuable to get started and because some meanings become more apparent when talking out loud to another person.Writing dreams down can become a worthwhile habit together with the date to keep a track of events.Using a bound blank book is worthwhile to keep a record rather than scraps of paper which are easily lost or disorganised.Generally dreams disappear quickly so it is important to have writing materials easily to hand when first waking up without other distractions such as the radio.Dreams are considered to intend to be helpful,even the nightmares.

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