Understand Dreams

“There do seem to be some universal dream themes. Among the most common are not being prepared, such as for a test… being chased or attacked… and not being in control. The details of these dreams differ from culture to culture–the out-of-control car in your dream might be a runaway horse in a part of the world without cars — but the themes appear everywhere.

“Perhaps these dreams reflect something basic about the human condition,” says David Kahn, PhD researcher and instructor at Harvard University Medical School, Boston, and chair of the International Association for the Study of Dreams. www.asdreams.org “We all worry about being unprepared, being attacked and lacking control.”

Common dream themes are the result of common human concerns… concerns that anyone can have, but don’t always admit! Certain dreams simply reflect what you may be worried or concerned about. Once you identify what the underlying concern is — and address it — perhaps you won’t have that troublesome dream again.

That’s the positive way to deal with unpleasant dreams. Try to discover what it’s saying. If it’s saying “hey, you’re concerned about “such and such.” Then, you can reflect and hopefully resolve the concern by admitting it and then deciding a possible course of action on your part that will essentially resolve the issue. Think it through. Pray about it. Seek advice from a trusted friend if necessary. And, be willing to deal with this correctly, fairly and maturely.

The dream is there to let you know what’s going on within. Now, you can take the appropriate action. Sometimes it may be as simple as becoming aware; and now that you are, somehow the issue is resolved. Or perhaps it’s an issue that needs your forgiveness. So try that. Forgive the person or the situation and let go.

Finally, you’ve heard the old saying: “Let go and let God.” If it’s a concern you can’t do anything about, pray and ask God to handle it. Thank Him for that and then trust Him to do it. And remember… Faith sees the answer before it comes… Love, Ruthanna

Protect your dreams, and your health, by arming yourself with knowledge. A friend sent me the following in an e-mail which I’m now passing along to you… I warn you, it’s controversial. If you are not already aware of these things, you may be shocked and want to say “This can’t be true!” Let me say, I wish it were not. I hope it is not. But, if he’s right, let’s ask ourselves what we can do to first protect ourselves and then those we love and others. Herein, I present Dr. Brown’s observations and warnings for your consideration. I offer this without condemnation of the entities he mentions. In fact, we congratulate the Girl Scouts for their response to the truth; and we can only hope all of them will be alerted and take the appropriate action to protect the publics health and wellbeing. Lastly, it is my hope this information will motivate you to take care of yourself… and be well. Most sincerely, Ruthanna

Dr. Stephen A. Brown, PhD. writes:

Oftentimes, the average individual has no awareness of the machinations underlying the marketing of drugs to our population and the insidious contamination of our food supply by chemicals injurious to ourselves and our children. As an example, one can consider the recent decision of the Girl Scouts to modify their cookies and remove the dangerous trans fatty acids. For years, those of us knowledgeable about these machinations would not even consider allowing our children to either consume or sell such cookies.

You have no doubt recently heard about Vioxx and the many deaths attributed to it. In time, you will learn about mercury poisoning and the real dangers of mercury fillings or the presence of fluorinated water and the use of sodium laurel and laureth compounds in hair and tooth products. There are many more such dangerous chemicals that the average American unwittingly allows into the diet of their family. Further study will reveal for example the very real relationship of ingestions of soft drinks from aluminum cans and Coca Cola, as the belated awareness of the former practice of spraying for mosquitoes so compromised the health of a former generation.

There is so much more, even the unwarranted use of vaccinations forced upon our children and passively accepted as essential by so many who are completely unaware of the degree to which they compromise their immune systems and in part lead to the high incidence of obesity, diabetes and the many immune compromised disease categories often puzzling so many of my medical friends in their true desire to assist their patients. Only today, so many good citizens are being literally forced to reexamine their nutrient intake as they have become victims of their own ignorance and the greed based marketing paradigms of companies whose profit incentive supersedes any concern for the true impact of their products upon the health of the consumer.

One need only examine the tobacco and milk www.notmilk.com industries to realize this. After all, who would feel comfortable about drinking cow pus if they actually knew that is what they were drinking. Certainly, no parent would actually support the early development of sexual hormones and growth of body parts purposefully but do so unknowingly through their use of milk containing growth hormones and other substances used to increase agricultural profitability. In any case, there is much more available for any of us to research about this but we will soon realize that the words FDA Approved are no true guarantee of the safety of our family or the clear efficacy of a drug whose side effects are often far more life threatening than the condition they ostensibly alleviate. Of course, as indicated in the enclosed, one is wise to recognize that far too few individuals consider the consequences of their choices too far beyond their immediate benefit. Certainly, we have become increasingly aware, even over the past few years, that government does not always hold our own interests at the forefront of its choices.

This morning’s email is my gift to you. Too often personal or family crisis becomes the inspiration for an individual to delve further into the role he or she plays in their own health. I can recall my own childhood when my mother had no idea that she had been so mislead by the milk industry to even believe that the ingestion of milk resulted in strong bones through the calcium contained in it. Had she only know the difficulty of using such calcium and the resultant allergies it caused me. She was quick to believe the marketing propaganda about margarine which today many realize is fraught with dangers. In like fashion, many of you will discover the insidious nature of Splenda and the other so called sugar substitutes and how immune threatening they are to the lives and health of you and your family.

Happy reading of the below enclosure.. I would suggest, if you have further interest, looking into subscribing to Doctor Mercola’s newsletter, www.mercola.com/forms/subscribe.htm

David Kahn, PhD researcher and instructor at Harvard University Medical School, Boston, answers that question:

“When we sleep, some areas of our brain become more active while others become inactive. Thus, we’re able to access certain realistic memories and images, but we can’t always make the logical associations that go along with them. The nonsensical images in our dreams are our brain’s attempts to fill in these missing pieces.”

Nonsensical images may be only nonsensical at first. But, if this happens to be a dream in which God is attempting to send you a message, then you will no doubt discover after further consideration, that the nonsensical was symbolic. Once you understand what the symbolism represents, you then begin to understand the dream’s meaning for you.

Another thing to keep in mind is that a lot of mystery still surrounds this whole subject of dreams. That is why people, like Dr. David Kahn at Harvard University, continue to study dreams and dreamers. It is entirely possible that some dreams don’t make any sense because they don’t, and some are nonsensical because they are! In other words, maybe your stomach is upset because of something you ate before going to bed and that’s the cause of a silly, dumb or stupid dream.

Personally, I wouldn’t get too concerned about a nonsensical dream because there could be so many reasons for it. But, before I brushed it off, I would pray and ask God if there’s any kind of a message there, just in case. The good news is, if it was too symbolic for you and you need to hear it again, the message will come in a different dream. And, next time, it may be easier to interpret. God is Good and He’ll give you more chances to hear what He’s saying. “Sweet Dreams” Ruthanna

“Sleep paralysis while dreaming is perfectly normal. In fact, we would be at risk if we didn’t experience it. Our bodies become paralyzed during the dream stages of sleep to prevent us from physically acting out whatever we’re doing in our dreams. Without sleep paralysis, we might sleepwalk out a window or punch our spouse as we fight off a dream attacker. Medications are available for those who don’t always experience sleep paralysis naturally.

“Occasionally, sleep paralysis will continue momentarily after we wake up. This can be scary, but it generally lasts only a few seconds.”

Thank you, Dr. David Kahn, Harvard University Medical School, Boston.

Knowledge is power, and it is helpful to understand all that goes on during a dream, so we can relax and fully cooperate with the process. Apparently, sleep paralysis is nothing to fear, just something to understand. And now we do! “Sweet Dreams” Ruthanna

Dr. Kahn, of Harvard University Medical School, says:

“The content of recurring dreams frequently seems to be related to issues in our lives that lack closure or resolution. If you address the underlying issue, the dream is likely to go away.

“For example, if you feel that you are not in control of your life, you might have recurring dreams of driving a car without brakes or rowing a boat that’s being swept toward a waterfall. (The dream’s details are likely to vary from night to night.) If you start to feel more in control of your life, you will probably have these dreams less often.”

I agree with Dr. Kahn. Troublesome recurring dreams are coming to you at night over and over to signal that you have issues to resolve when you wake up! When dreams are attempting to “serve” you (to help you) they may have to say the same thing in different ways, over and over, until you get it!

As always, my best advice is to pray and ask God “what is this dream trying to tell me?” God loves you and He uses dreams to send you important messages. Be blessed by your dreams. Grow because of your dreams. Learn to interpret your dreams. Love and appreciate them for the wonderful gift they are! Your friend, Ruthanna

We all have “nightmares” occasionally… dreams in which we feel terrified or dreams that leave us upset or distraught. But only because we don’t understand them at first. Now, here’s a new thought for you. Nightmares are not always bad. Stop and think. Yes, it was scary or frightening, but more importantly what was it trying to tell you? You see, that is the question. Don’t get all caught up in the emotion. Don’t be too quick to label it “bad.” Instead, ask yourself, “what was it trying to tell me?” Stress could very well be the cause; or interwoven within all the emotion may very well be an important message. The emotion was necessary to get your attention! It did, yes? Now, ask the wisdom within you (God, the Holy Spirit) for the understanding or interpretation. Listen and Learn.

Here’s some additional insight provided by David Kahn, PhD researcher and instructor at Harvard University Medical School, Boston, and chair of the International Association for the Study of Dreams. www.asdreams.org

“Nightmares are very normal. They usually don’t suggest any mental or physical problem, although occasionally they may be related to stress.”

“Science really has no answer as to whether it’s better to wake someone who is having a nightmare or let him sleep. My personal feeling is that it’s best to let the person sleep because when we’re dreaming, we’re in the rapid eye movement (REM) stage. You don’t want to deprive people of REM sleep, which is an important stage in our sleep cycle. If you’re a parent and just can’t stand to see your child upset during a nightmare, it’s okay to wake him gently.”

Yes! By allowing them to speak to us, to warn us and to guide us! They will come to do just that, but you have to recognize and receive the messages by being open and receptive. You not only have to want to hear, but you have to be willing to hear and then seek to know how to hear. That’s what I try to do in my book offered here on this website for only $9.95. It’s a great investment for a lifetime of being able to hear what a dream is saying to help you live life to the fullest, avoid disasters and receive the guidance that will definitely help you improve your life. Let’s also check in with Dr. Kahn at Harvard University Medical School and see how he answers this question:

“The things that appear in our dreams often carry an emotional tug for us during our waking lives. Since the dreaming mind is unconstrained, we might think of these things in different ways when we’re asleep than we do when we’re awake, potentially helping us gain some insight into ourselves.

“For example, a woman dreamed that she missed her highway exit while driving to meet her boyfriend. In the dream, she was so concerned about being late that she put her car in reverse and backed up to the exit despite the dangers. When asked, ‘What does this dream mean to you?’ the woman answered that she didn’t want to disappoint her boyfriend by being late. She hadn’t previously realized how concerned she was about this boyfriend’s opinion of her.

“What we should not do is let others tell us what our dreams represent. Such interpretations tend to be projections of the person doing the analysis, not the dreamer.”

Thank you, Dr. David Kahn. You have just confirmed what I came to believe as well, and wrote about in my book, that the dreamer is the best one to interpret the dream dreamed. Others can help, but the message in the dream was for the dreamer and he or she is the only one who can fully understand and appreciate it.

Within each individual is the power and the ability to interpret one’s own dream. Pray and ask the Holy Spirit to help you understand your dreams and you will be amazed how it will come to you. While driving down the road or taking a shower, all of a sudden you’ll just know. The understanding you asked for is literally just dropped into your mind (spirit) and you get the message! Are you gettin’ it? God bless you as you experience the adventure of understanding your dreams! Love, Ruthanna

YES! It’s called lucid dreaming!

Dr. David Kahn, researcher and instructor in the department of psychiatry at Harvard University Medical School, Boston elaborates:

“The only way to control dreams is through something called lucid dreaming. In a lucid dream, the dreamer is aware that he/she is dreaming. Once armed with this awareness, it might be possible to take control of the dream — for example, by changing a frightening dream into something more pleasant. Perhaps the knife in a pursuer’s hand becomes a large piece of cake.

“Lucid dreaming isn’t easy, but it seems anyone can accomplish it with effort. If you’d like to try, think about the situations common in your dreams but impossible or unlikely in real life, such as flying without a plane or being chased by killers. Every night before you go to sleep, remind yourself, ‘If I’m flying, I must be dreaming.’ It could take weeks or months, but eventually you may achieve a lucid dream. Some who have mastered lucid dreaming say it becomes easier once you get the hang of it.”

Some say they don’t dream; others say they can’t remember their dreams. What does this mean? David Kahn, PhD at Harvard University Medical School answers:

“You almost certainly do dream, but you don’t remember that you do. The part of the brain that remembers what we’ve just said or done is essentially off-line when we sleep, so the vast majority of dreams are forgotten.

“If you keep a pad or a tape recorder by your bed and jot down your dreams before they disappear, you are more likely to remember them.

“There’s also evidence that we can will ourselves to retain more dreams. Before you go to sleep and after you wake up, tell yourself you want to remember.

“The only people who might not dream are those with stroke damage or who have lesions on specific parts of the brain. Even in these extreme cases, it isn’t clear whether these people don’t dream or whether they are just incapable of remembering dreams.”

And, there you have it. We surely do dream! We just don’t always remember them. But you can change that with a little will power. Try prayer… and ask God to help you remember. He will, because He wants to speak to you in your dreams. And, if He wants to speak to you about something in your life; He will surely help you receive and remember the dream. That’s my opinion and I’m sticking to it! Check out my book here. It’s only $9.95 and it will help you understand how to interpret your own dreams. God bless. Love, Ruthanna

May peace break into your house and steal all sadness or strife.
May love and laughter fill your heart and spill out into your life!
May the pockets of your jeans become magnets attracting $100 bills.
May any tears you cry be only joy-filled.
May your clothes smell of success.
May the problems you had… forget your home address!
And may your world, my very dear friend,
be filled with much happiness!
In simple words …………

MAY 2008 BE THE BEST YEAR OF YOUR LIFE!
AND, MAY ALL YOUR GREAT DREAMS COME TRUE!