Your Nightmares Explained： Scientists Reveal How Bad Dreams Reflect Our Daily Frustrations

Many of us have had recurring and disturbing nightmares that are difficult to comprehend. Now， research has discovered these dreams are a reflection of our daily struggles. In particular， feeling of lack independence， incompetence or being misunderstood can trigger nightmares， scientists claim.

These feelings suggest that a person’s “basic psychological needs” are not being met， and nightmares occur when we haven’t processed these emotions properly.

A number of recurring themes seem to crop up during disturbing dreams. These may include being trapped， chased or attacked， or failing at an important task.

Previous research has identified what some of these dreams might mean. For instance， people who are frustrated with their daily lives tend to have recurring dreams in which they were falling， failing or being attacked. Those who feel under pressure in real life are more likely to experience a dream in which they are unprepared for something important like an exam.

Falling from a height

In their latest study on nightmares， Cardiff University found a recurring dream about falling from a height could mean someone feels frustrated in their daily lives.

“We found that people whose recurring dreams were felt to have more negative emotions in them also felt more incompetent， isolated， or pressured by others in their daily life，” Dr Netta Weinstein told MailOnline.

Dr Weinstein said that finding help for challenges in life could help to alleviate recurring dreams.

Failing

Dr Weinstein said that recurring dreams in which people experience failure were also common among those who frequently felt frustrated.

Research has previously shown that those who feel under pressure in real life are more likely to experience a dream in which they are unprepared for something important like an exam or a meeting.

“I used to be a teacher， so my typical stress dream was about the whole classroom getting out of control. I would be feeling powerless or helpless to manage a situation，” Margaret Bowater， president of the Dream Network Aotearoa New Zealand， told Stuff.

She said the dream is a metaphor for falling short， possibly falling out of favour， or maybe not living up to the expectations of yourself or others.

Feeling trapped

Those who feel trapped in their dreams likely feel trapped in real life， Ms Bowater told Stuff.

“A dream is trying to show， or repeat， something back to you，” she said. “It’s usually using concrete imagery for something that is not necessarily a concrete thing to say.”

Being chased or attacked

Dr Weinstein said frequently being attacked in your dreams may show you are frustrated in your day to day activities.

According to UK dream expert Ian Wallace， being chased or attacked is the most common dream from all around the world， regardless of country， creed or culture.

Being chased by an animal indicates there is an instinctive impulse that you are finding hard to contain in waking life.

When a monster is pursuing you， it reflects that you have a raw and powerful talent but are finding it challenging to evolve and refine it.

If a man， woman or a gang is chasing you， then you have the opportunity to assert a particular talent but may be running away from some of the responsibilities involved in displaying your abilities.

Dreams with negative emotions

In Dr Weinstein’s new study， she found that people who are frustrated with their lives have dreams with more negative themes that made them frightened， angry or sad.

When asked to interpret their own dreams， they tended to do so using more negative words. Participants whose psychological needs were met were more likely to describe their dreams positively.

許多人都曾有過反復(fù)出現(xiàn)的難以解釋的可怕惡夢?，F(xiàn)在，研究發(fā)現(xiàn)，這些惡夢其實是我們?nèi)粘＠Ь车恼凵??？茖W(xué)家聲稱，缺乏自主性、無能或被誤解的感覺都可能引發(fā)惡夢。

這些感覺意味著一個人的“基本心理需求”沒有被滿足，當(dāng)我們沒能適當(dāng)?shù)叵@些情感時，就產(chǎn)生了惡夢。

這些令人不安的夢中，似乎有好幾個反復(fù)出現(xiàn)的主題，包括被困住、被追趕、被攻擊，或者搞砸了一項重要的任務(wù)。

先前的研究已經(jīng)確定其中一些惡夢的暗示意義。比如，對日常生活感到沮喪的人通常會反復(fù)做墜落、失敗或被攻擊的惡夢。那些在真實生活中感受到壓力的人更可能會夢見在考試等重要事情前沒做好準(zhǔn)備。

夢見從高處墜落

卡迪夫大學(xué)在對惡夢的最新研究中發(fā)現(xiàn)，總是做從高處墜落的夢意味著做夢者在日常生活中有挫敗感。

涅塔·溫斯坦博士告訴《每日郵報》網(wǎng)站說：“我們發(fā)現(xiàn)總是反復(fù)做帶有負(fù)面情緒惡夢的人，在日常生活中也會感到更無能、被孤立，或者遭受來自他人的壓力?！?/p>

溫斯坦博士說，在應(yīng)對生活中的挑戰(zhàn)時尋求支援，有助于減少這種惡夢反復(fù)發(fā)生。

夢見失敗

溫斯坦博士說，反復(fù)夢見失敗的人一般都是那些經(jīng)常有挫敗感的人。

先前的研究顯示，那些在真實生活中感受到壓力的人更可能會夢見在考試或會議等重要事情前沒做好準(zhǔn)備。

新西蘭奧特亞羅瓦夢之網(wǎng)總裁瑪格麗特·波瓦特告訴《Stuff》雜志說：“我曾當(dāng)過老師，所以我典型的壓力夢就是整個教室失去控制。我感覺無力控制局面，或感到無助?！?/p>

她說，這種夢暗示著你沒能達標(biāo)，可能是失寵，也可能是沒能達到自己或他人的期望值。

夢見被困住

波瓦特告訴《Stuff》雜志說，那些在夢中感覺被困住的人很可能在真實生活中也有這種受困的感覺。

她說：“你的夢試圖向你展示或重復(fù)某些發(fā)生在你身上的事情。夢通常用具體的意象來反映抽象的感覺。”

夢見被追趕或被攻擊

溫斯坦博士說，經(jīng)常夢見被攻擊說明你在日?；顒又杏写鞌「?。

英國解夢專家伊恩·華萊士說，夢見被追趕或被攻擊是全世界最常見的夢，無論是哪個國家、信仰或文化。

夢見被動物追趕說明你在清醒的生活中感到難以抑制的本能的沖動。

如果夢見一個妖怪在追趕你，反映出你有強大的天分但是難以發(fā)揚和完善。

如果夢見一個男人、女人或一伙人在追趕你，這暗示著你有機會表現(xiàn)某種獨特的才能，但可能會因此而逃離某些與之相關(guān)的責(zé)任。

帶有負(fù)面情緒的夢

在溫斯坦博士的新研究中，她發(fā)現(xiàn)對自己的生活感到沮喪的人會做更多負(fù)面主題的夢，這些夢會讓他們感到驚恐、生氣或悲傷。

當(dāng)被要求解釋自己的夢境時，他們一般會選用更消極的字眼。而心理需求得到滿足的人更可能積極地描述自己的夢境。