My Dream
While I cannot say I remember any particular dreams that made an impression on me, there is a certain type of dreams that keeps repeating often. In it, I am always being approached by a person that is trying to kill me. In particular, it is most often done with a knife, and I am unable to avoid it. My movements feel sluggish, and most attempts at protecting myself do not work. I can kind of feel that it is going to happen, and that a person is trying to kill me even before they attempt to do anything, but it seems inevitable. These dreams occur rather frequently, so I have become accustomed to them for the most part.
Interpretation of the Dream
I will analyze this dream according to the gestalt method and Freud’s ideas. The gestalt therapy approach supposes that people should interact their dreams via roleplay, while acting as all of the participants or places in them, in order to understand themselves better (“Becoming the dream – A gestalt approach,” n.d.). In the case of applying this approach to myself, I would need to imagine myself as the one stabbing me with a knife, and understand their thought process. While I cannot imagine much of the thought process of that person, I suppose that they think I should die. Playing as myself, then, I do not want that to happen, and am using any and all available methods to stop that. Applying the gestalt outlook on this examination, I would suppose I have a certain desire to die. I do not think this assessment is wholly true, or applicable to my dream, but I cannot tell for certain. Freud’s understanding of such dreams is that they are typical, and often signify a presence of anxiety (Freud, 2014). This interpretation, for me, seems quite believable and straightforward. Personally, I think much of my dreams is how my brain deals with stress, or tries to handle the general anxieties life presents.
References
Freud, S. (2014). The interpretation of dreams. Modern Library.
O’Mahony, H. (n.d.). Becoming the dream – A gestalt approach. IAHIP Ltd.