Dreams - Your Secret Code: An Insight into the Psychology of Dreamwork with Dr. Maria
- Dr. Maria Z Kempinska
- Dec 9
- 5 min read
Written by: Dr. Maria Z Kempinska, MBE, PhD, MA, BACP
Your dreams are your secret, special and sacred code for understanding what is
happening inside your mind. The psyche has a deep well that invites us to understand
many aspects of ourselves should we take up the dream gauntlet. Well you may say:
how do you know what my dreams mean? Our unconscious is the container for our past
experiences, our thoughts and feelings. Over time we have stored all the events in our
lives. Some say that understanding our dreams actually is the doorway to our soul. The
joy of our unconscious is that it is like a cinema showing our own flms and replays with
images that are specifically related to us. Our unconscious chooses these images for us
to understand which includes how our family, our culture, our society and our personal
relationships impact us. Accepting that our dreams have a meaning specifically for you is
the first step.
History tells us that all cultures respected their dreams
Dream interpretations date back to 3000-4000 B.C., where they were documented on clay tablets. The bible alone has over seven hundred references to dreams.
In the Greek and Roman eras, dreams were seen in a religious context. They were
believed to be direct messages from the gods or from the dead. People of that
time looked to their dreams for solutions on what to do or what course of action to take.
Greek philosopher, Aristotle believed that dreams were a result of physiological
functions. Dreams were able to diagnose illness and predict onset of diseases.
During the Hellenistic period, the main focus of dreams was centered around its
ability to heal. Temples, called Asclepieions, were built around the healing power of
dreams.
In Egypt, priests also acted as dream interpreters. The Egyptians recorded
their dreams in hieroglyphics. People with particular vivid and significant dreams were
believed to be blessed and were considered special.
The Chinese believed that the soul leaves the body to go into this world. However, if they should be suddenly awakened, their soul may fail to return to the body.
Native American tribes and Mexican civilizations see those dreams as a
way of visiting and having contact with their ancestors. Dreams also helped to point their
mission or role in life. In the early 19th century, dreams were dismissed as stemming
from anxiety, a household noise or even indigestion. Hence there was really no meaning to it. Later in the 19th century, CG Jung wrote about dreams and how they revealed elements in his life. His dream also revealed the concept of the collective unconscious.
Dream Incubation for Healing
North American Indians
Every dream has doorway to multi-dimensional reality which Shamans/mystics/creators
have gone through as an Invitation for healing.
Greeks: Galen: ‘We have made a few men healthy by correcting the disproportion of
their emotions’ Aslepios appears as a power that restores balance in a life. He ordered
some to compose comic mimes and certain songs’ and others to take up vigorous
exercise including hunting, horse riding, and martial arts to ‘arouse passion when it was
weak’ and to restore ‘measure’ in a patient. Sculpture, carving, engraving, painting,
singing, writing poetry, stories, sewing, knitting and so on are all expressions of our inner
world.
Interpreting the dream
It is literal and symbolic and mythological and each culture has its own interpretation
of the objects in the dream.
Literally – ordinary physical life – the dream mirrors our waking life- something that can
happen during the day repeats itself. Looking for a new job. etc.
Symbolic – psychological – dream symbols into words. Symbol takes from what we know
into the world – (Jung is my preferred approach) - In order to understand the dream we
have to understand who and what is in our dream and how they relate to the person
having the dream. This is done through association. We may dream of a spider or a cross
or bird which may also be significant in a particular culture.
Once we understand our dream there is a depth that words do not reach. The symbol
conquers barriers, their effect resonates mentally physically and spiritually.
If 10 people have a dream of eating in a dining room each will have a variety of
interpretations that are unique and personal. What does the table look like? What food
was being served? Who else was there? What was the room? Have you been in this
room? And so the questions will drill down into your experience or association to amplify
your decision to dream about dining in this room. Symbolically in the general sense of
your life is the shared food or nourishment that you are potentially expected to adhere
to? What are the rules in that dining room, who is in charge and what do those people
mean to you? Who is in control and what are the masculine and feminine elements of
these people at your dining table. Are you willingly eating or are you being forced by
social norms to eat at this table? Every person would have their own interpretation.
The more we bring up other emotional associations, the more we become conscious of
our problem and solution – and the more the dream is doing its job. By the emotional
associations, the instinct tells us where it’s damaged and what the ego can do to heal that
damage. Your dream can reveal what you really need. Especially if you have had to hide
your feelings and actions to please others most of your life. The ‘faun’ style to yourrelationships may have stayed with you from childhood often is revealed and now needs to be relinquished. Your dreams will awaken this aspect of your behaviour in time which you can adjust and learn to communicate your needs with care and effectively.
There is always so much in dreams that the root of the dream may be crying out for you
to recognise themes of control, negation of self, co-operation, family expectation, power
and much more.
Understanding your dreams will help you understand your uniqueness
Understand your own psychological aspects which when awakened can be addressed.
Jungian concepts (archetypes, Shadow - your hidden nature which can be self sabotage,
jealousy, anger, but also in recognising those elements we reveal other more positive
aspects of our psyche - our gold. Self - what are your needs, not just wants, but what is
right for you. Individuation understanding your true self and living accordingly and in
harmony with the world which is an eternal quest since the world is constantly changing)
and in the dream these psychological elements will appear in the form of a personality
that your psyche has chosen to depict their meaning to reveal to you their role in your
self-knowledge.
Recognize psychological “diseases” (e.g., stress, emptiness) as signals of
repressed archetypes, per Jung’s “gods have become diseases.” Apollo the God
of indulgence ‘drugs sex and rock’n’roll and how this theme plays out in your life.
Use practical tools (journaling, active imagination, mindfulness) to explore their
unconscious and conscious selves.
Identify personal values, strengths, and shadows through reflective exercises.
Explore deep rooted issues that have been hidden but are ready to be healed.
✨ If you’d like to explore how dream work in therapy could support you, get in touch with us today.
