The Song Fight Bulletin Board

When I have a dream where I can't run fast or even walk at an acceptable speed, it's like I'm stuck in place. The upside is that if I jump, I just kind of float there forever rather than falling down.

I have dreams where yellowjackets or leeches are flying at me constantly and I have to bat them away. The yellowjacket dreams always take place in Georgia and the leech dreams take place near water, usually on wooden bridges.

Once I had a dream where I was on a huge bridge above a canyon in a rainforest. I was tied to a chair. Someone shot me in the neck and threw me off the bridge. I woke up and my neck hurt.

<b>SPUD</b>

From Dreammoods.com: (I LOVE that site and have been visiting it for years)

To dream that you are trying to run but cannot make your feet move as fast as you want them to, signifies lack of self-esteem and self-confidence. It may also reflect your actual state of REM paralysis while in the dream state.

Hoblit wrote:signifies lack of self-esteem and self-confidence

hmmm. I find this site suspect.

Hoblit wrote:<b>SPUD</b>

From Dreammoods.com: (I LOVE that site and have been visiting it for years)

To dream that you are trying to run but cannot make your feet move as fast as you want them to, signifies lack of self-esteem and self-confidence. It may also reflect your actual state of REM paralysis while in the dream state.

I could see how Steve's dream could fit this interpretation, because he said he was in a race, but couldn't run fast and the other guys in the race were passing him up. The fear in this one seems to be the fear of losing something that is important to him, due to his own limitations, or thoughts of possible limitations. But I've never heard it being linked to low self esteem.

I'm no expert, but I have heard and read that the first thing about dream interpretation is remembering how you felt during the dream. How you feel is actually what your subconscious is trying to make aware to your conscious, or something like that. Everything that you dream about is stuff that you already know, but you are avoiding it or not paying attention to it. The brain knows that you need visual images to understand things better or to convince yourself about things that you are not accepting.

For example, in a dream about being chased:
#1. Do you feel your life is in danger? Do you feel you will be killed if caught?

#2. Do you feel that you could stop and confront the chaser, but you just don't want to at this time?

#3. Do you recognize the person chasing you?

#4. Is the person chasing you just some random looking person that you never met?

#5. Is it an animal that is chasing you?

#6. Can you fly or run really fast while being chased?

#7. Is it hard to run while being chased?

Because of the fact that our brains are writing and directing our dreams, the dream will include our natural human instinctual behaviors and emotions that are built into the human brain, such as fear, happiness, sadness, etc etc. So basically, if we are trying to avoid something that we fear, we run from it and try to hide. Avoidance is a form of fear, just not as much as running from a guy chasing you with a shotgun.

I've heard that if you can't make out who or what is chasing you, but you are desperately trying to get away or hide from it, it is you trying to run away from or avoid yourself. It is usually because of negative behavior in your life that you know for a fact is effecting you in a bad way. Could be drug or alcohol use, a failing relationship, not performing well at your job, etc.

If you see a random person chasing you, and you fear for your life. Or you are chased into a dead end or cage and there is no way out. It is generally someone in your life that is more powerful than you are and it is building up and getting out of your control. Of course it means different things to different people. To a child it could be a parent and you are getting behind in chores or you broke the neighbors window and you are living each day in fear that they will find out it was you. To an adult, it could be the government and you are behind on your taxes and you know you need to pay them, but you just can't bring yourself to doing it, or you keep forgetting to send in your car registration and your tags aren't current, so you fear getting pulled over by the man, etc.

Animals chasing you seem to be the easiest to interpret if I remember right. It generally just means that someone you know well doesn't like you, or so you feel. A bully, a co-worker, even the dog up the street.

Being able to fly or run fast while being chased, like fodroy mentioned, generally is a sign of confidence that you know that you can face challenges head on and conquer, even if you don't show it in your conscious state.

Being able to fly or run fast while not being chased, just for fun is a symbol of being proud of yourself. You have done something good and your brain's happy emotion is connecting both subconsciously and consciously.

I need to mention, this is just my interpretation based on things I've read and heard through the years, so please don't quote me on anything. I suggest Google for more detailed interpretations, or maybe Hoblits site that he mentioned.

Billy's Little Trip wrote:Hoblits

Hoblit's

Even if I never make any earth shattering music here at SF, Spud will single handedly make me a better speller and brilliantly punctuational.

Spud wrote:

Hoblit wrote:signifies lack of self-esteem and self-confidence

hmmm. I find this site suspect.

well, there is the physical alternative offered in the interpretation. I found that same or similar interpretation on the web other places. However, if you look a little deeper it might signify not a lack of self-esteem or confidence in general as it might be more specific.

Dreams reflect our lives in real time. You can even use your dreams to help diagnose items in your waking life. (This is reason number one for my interest in dreams)

One could offer you a project that seems overwhelming at first OR alternatively a deadline might be closing in. These things might cause just enough doubt in your ability to meet the demand even if just temporarily. Or perhaps you hope that you get the right present for your wife or daughter or a friend you really hope to impress.

Or you could have mild sleep paralysis as the second half of that statement makes.

"Mild sleep paralysis" is like "mild breathing." Or, approached from a different perspective, "mild death."

(Sleep paralysis is actually a normal, important part of the sleep process. It's when things fail in some way - kicking in when the person is conscious, or not kicking in at all - that it's problematic.)

fluffy wrote:"Mild sleep paralysis" is like "mild breathing." Or, approached from a different perspective, "mild death."

(Sleep paralysis is actually a normal, important part of the sleep process. It's when things fail in some way - kicking in when the person is conscious, or not kicking in at all - that it's problematic.)

Ok, here is a hair...could you split this long ways for me?

I only meant the 'mild' part in his consciousness of the paralysis while dreaming.

<img src="http://members.aol.com/caspirgost/maxval2.jpg">
<i>Max: It just so happens that your friend here is only mostly dead.</i>

I've had sleep paralysis set in while still conscious, several times throughout my life, at completely irregular and unpredictable intervals. It almost always happens when I'm in bed trying to go to sleep. It's kind of scary and awful, even though it shouldn't be. It's just kind of unsettling to lose motor control and still be thinking. There's always some irrational fear of permanent paralysis attached, so I used to freak out a lot when it happened, especially when I was a kid. I'm not really so worried if it happens, these days, but I still will my way out of it as quickly as possible, because it's still an uncomfortable feeling. The worst part might be, if it happens, it can often happen again, because, you know, I'm still trying to go to sleep, which is what lead to it in the first place. I remember episodes where I went into and came out of that state at least three times before total sleep actually occurred.