Today I woke up in terror that I haven’t ever felt before in my entire life.
I had a nightmare. It was so lucid, so real.
The short version & weird stuff aside..
My Nightmare Went Like This:
I was getting my wisdom teeth removed in Chiang Mai, Thailand. This is actually scheduled for next month.
In the dream I was shocked at how fast & painless the surgery was. In reality I won’t be fully unconscious, so I will enjoy the wonders of listening & feeling my 4 wisdom teeth being ripped out.
Anyways, after the surgery I have to find my way home.
First, I’m feeling quite a bit out of it and like I’ll pass out. The experience was terrifying, and I’m exhausted. I just want to rest.
I have no idea how to find my way home. I’ll have to call a taxi and I’m scared of being scammed or robbed.
Luckily I get home, but then my mouth starting hurting… like, a LOT.
I take some pain medication, and while I become out of it from fatigue, shock, and medication, I call my ex-girlfriend and blabber nonsense to her.
Later in the dream I’m terrified that I will die after the surgery alone in my apartment. I don’t have any friends or support in Chiang Mai, I can’t eat solid foods, and I’m exhausted.
I cry out in pain & anguish, and lay in fear.
The wisdom teeth surgery really fucked me up, I feel alone & don’t have support, I miss my ex-girlfriend a ton, and I’m not sure how to take care of myself post-surgery.
I then wake up in my bed at the crack of dawn. I feel terrified, and I can’t fully go back to sleep.
Dreams Reveal Your True Subconscious
Dreams are extremely strange. Also in that dream I was walking on a high-way in Phoenix, and my ex-girlfriend was showing me a video in a previous dream with a mutual friend (I know the meaning to that other dream too but I won’t share it).
That being said, dreams communicate what you’re really feeling about something.
I can’t say whether they predict the future (also I’ve had some strange occurrences..) but one thing is certain is that dreams tell you how you’re feeling.
Before this dream I wasn’t so nervous about my wisdom teeth in Chiang Mai.
The clinic has amazing reviews, it was recommended to me, it’s extremely cheap, yet the surgeon that will be removing my teeth is extremely qualified.
The receptionist was also very nice too, and not in a “trying to steal your $” type of way but in a very authentic way.
For example, she said that if I felt uncomfortable I could meet the surgeon in person free-of-charge in order to feel things out, or that I could remove one tooth before considering the rest to “test the waters.”
Considering all of their amazing reviews and the phenomenal treatment by the dental clinic’s staff, I elected to instantly schedule all 4 wisdom teeth on a single day with local anesthesia only- this means I won’t be fully unconscious.
This also means that it might be slightly painful, and quite uncomfortable as I listen to them rip open my gum & tear out my 4 wisdom teeth. But, it’s cheaper, and I’ve handled some crazy shit before.
Back on point here I wasn’t thinking so much about this or even concerned about it, but the dream revealed something to me: I’m actually terrified about the surgery.
In fact, I already knew I was terrified about the experience of removing my wisdom teeth given that I procrastinated on it in the USA & Bulgaria.
However, this dream revealed to me steps to fix the fear. By revealing my subconscious feelings about a situation, it provided insight on what actions to take moving forward.
Dreams Provide Insight & Action
In this case I realized I need to do a few things:
First, I must secure safe transportation to and from the dental clinic. I should also be stocked up on sufficient pain medication because my teeth started hurting too.
Second, I must not call my ex-girlfriend following the surgery. I may have to block her, or tell her beforehand that I’m getting a surgery and to disregard any texts or calls.
Third, I must secure sustenance following the surgery. I’ll want to make sure I’m stocked up on soup & home foods, as well as water, in order to make eating & drinking as easy as possible following the surgery.
I’ll essentially re-create my entire apartment to be an “idiot’s survival zone” as I’d like to call it because I don’t know how fucked I’ll be post-surgery.
By “idiot’s survival zone” I mean that I should be fully shaved, stocked up on toilet paper, have clean clothes prepared, food prepared, water prepared, as well as movies, entertainment, and medication so that I can spend the majority of my time resting.
Finally, I realized that I should aggressively create a social circle in Chiang Mai so that I can have a local contact to rely on.
This is something I know that I can do, but now I know to keep an eye out for trustworthy individuals & to invest heavily in those relationships early on so that they take care of me if I need them to.
Knowing this plan of action makes me feel a ton more secure. This surgery is something I know I can overcome, as I’ve overcame insane degrees of chronic pain & other problems- this is comparatively a walk in the park, but now I know how to minimize damages.
Dreams Are Your Subconscious Calling Out To You
You may or may not have had a dreaming experience like this, but either way you should pay attention to your dreams.
It also makes sleeping more fun, as well as higher quality!
I used to never want to go to sleep on time, but now I am genuinely excited for a good night’s rest.
My new night routine provides me with amazing dreams which are always teaching me things.
That being said, some dreams are random as fuck, so don’t expect every dream to be a mystical wonder of enlightenment.
Sometimes you’ll wake up and go “what the hell?” That’s okay.
Other times though you will have dreams that are worth interpreting. In fact, I try to interpret all of my dreams just in case, but of course keeping in mind that not every dream has some deep meaning like last night’s dream.
How To Interpret Dreams
Dream interpretation is a practice. No one can give you a code to interpret your dreams, and in my opinion many of the online “dream interpretation” websites are a load of shit.
The best thing you can do is constantly practice. Pay attention to recurring themes, as well as what’s happening in your dream as well as life.
The #1 best way to interpret your dream is to ask this: how did I feel in the dream?
In last night’s dream, I felt terrified. If you feel love, anger, fear, jealousy, neglect, or anything else in your dream, then it may reveal certain things via symbols to you.
For example, after me & my ex-girlfriend broke up I had a dream of her shooting herself.
I knew that this was symbolic for the “death” of the relationship. The pain I felt from the break up was as if she had died, and in a sense who she was to me died because we were no longer together.
In that dream there was no clear “action item.” Instead it just made me realize just how much the break up hurt me because this girl really was everything to me.
Another example of this is a month before I had a dream of my ex-girlfriend (current at that time) cheating on me with another man.
During the dream I didn’t feel jealous or angered, just neglected. I had already known consciously that I was beginning to feel neglected & disrespected in the relationship, and the dream of her cheating on me was a symbol for how I felt.
She never cheated on me, and I never suspected that she did.
Don’t over-interpret your dreams. I could’ve freaked out and been like “omg are you cheating on me?!”
Obviously she wasn’t; pay attention to your feelings- this is the best advice I’ve ever been given when it comes to interpreting a dream.
Realize that some shit is random in a dream, but some shit is extremely symbolic. Again, just practice interpreting your dreams and you’ll begin to understand & love yourself more deeply. It’s okay to make mistakes!
How To Dream More
If you aren’t dreaming, that’s a problem. Dreaming improves your quality of sleep greatly, and it’s associated with feeling more well-rested.
I’m no expert at this, but here’s what has worked for me:
Wake up at the same time every day. Go to bed at roughly around the same time each day too.
If possible, get sunlight in the morning. I like to wake up with the sunrise as this is what is most natural.
Stand in the sunlight, drink some water, etc. in the morning- by getting light in the morning you set your circadian rhythm to actually make you tired at a good time.
As for the night, I like to turn my electronics off 1+ hour(s) before bed. Last night I turned my electronics off 2 hours before bed and may have gone to bed an hour earlier.
I like to dim the lights, and do relaxing things like do laundry, cut nails, shave, read, journal, etc.
Dimming the lights & turning off electronics is key because electronics emit “blue light” which keep you awake.
Experiment with what works best for you. Your night routine should be relaxing & enjoying.
Key word is “enjoying” here. No need to suffer your way through a night routine you don’t like! Just do something to power you down gently.
I also like to take a magnesium supplement, and then meditate in the dark directly before going to bed.
What all of this does is it helps me “power down” from a busy day. It also allows my brain to release “sleep chemicals” so that I’m actually primed for bed when I go to bed, rather than going to bed super pumped up and hoping to transition quickly to sleep.
One final thing I’d say to dreaming more is pay attention to your dreams. Occasionally I’ll write my dreams down but not so often.
Paying attention to my dreams seems to be all that is required of me to dream more often.
I must re-iterate that a regular sleep schedule is key. Don’t use alcohol or drugs before bed too.
Enjoy The Process
You should try enjoy the process of this- this is your life after-all, so no need to suffer!
Practicing dreaming more, sleeping better, and developing a “night routine” has really helped me in terms of productivity, willpower, and other “waking” moments of my life.
Your dreams tell a lot about you. There is a lot of speculation surrounding dreams such as whether it can predict the future, etc. but it’s up to you whether or not you want to believe it.
One thing is certain and that’s that dreams indicate how you feel about a particular thing, and it also communicates things to you via symbols.
At the very least, dreams are fascinating and wonderful. When I wake up after having had a very vivid dream, I feel so much more energized than when I was sleeping poorly & not dreaming at all.
Based on my research, regular dreaming is a sign of good rest & a healthy mind.
Get to it! Your subconscious dream world is just waiting to be explored & communicate with you- what does it have to say for you?
Let me know 🙂
-Michael
