Cancer
There are two major links with dreaming of cancer. The first is that many people meet cancer in their dream because it represents death. So the dream is a way of experiencing their fears about death.
The second is that cancer depicts parts of ones emotional or thinking character that are sick and/or unhealthy. With these dreams you need to consider what part of the body you dream has cancer, then understand it psychological meaning. See: body – Body Dreams – Dream Body – Body Images.
Example: Before I knew I was ill with cancer I dreamt that an angel came to me and explained that before we are born we are all angels and are without limitations. When we are born we take on a life of limitations in order to learn something important to us. Then when we die at the end of that life we return to being an angel. All the limitations of life then disappear again.
The man who dreamt this died within a years of lung cancer – he had smoked heavily all his adult life.
Example: Dear Tony, My beloved sister passed away last week of brain cancer after 7 struggling years. I haven’t dreamt of her, however my cousin dreamt of her the morning after her funeral. He dreamt – There was a bright calm meadow, with a small white cottage at the far distant end. My sister then appeared at the foreground of the meadow – appearing as she did before she was ill, and very happy and giddy giggling shyly and smiling to my cousin. She was beautiful and her smile was calm and beautiful to my cousin. My cousin said he felt happiness with her just like the familiar feeling he had with her as when they were kids together growing up. She appeared very happy. Just as he was about to take a photo of her and she posed for him with her smile, his alarm went off in his bedroom and so he suddenly woke up from the dream.
The remarkable thing about the alarm is that he works at home and so never sets the alarm to go off, but it did go off suddenly in his room.
The time on the alarm clock he saw was 8:28am. August 28 was her birthday.
Example: I am “alive” in this underground chamber with thousands of other people (hell is other people). But the girl and I take the chance to escape. Actually I am chasing her on a motorcycle, then I join her. But it is too late, I am nearly dead with cancer when they catch up with me (and let me go walking down the road). (I am afraid that I have cancer.) The dreamer never developed cancer.
In some dreams we see someone else with cancer, but to start with they need to be considered as representing a facet of yourself – such as your worrying anxious self; your sexual self; your business or streetwise self, etc. Dreams accurately predicting the future are very rare. So it is unlikely though not impossible that the person you dream has cancer actually has it or will get it.
Occasionally the dream is an expression of how we feel about other people’s – especially our mother’s – emotional influence on us. This influence might be eating away at our own sense of well being. Or in some cases we sense it in the social attitudes we live amidst that is likewise eating away at our own health and wholeness.
Occasionally it is an awareness of illness in part of ones body. If this is suspected get a good health check. See Example under Death.
Useful Questions and Hints:
Does this feel like a ‘fear of death’ dream? If so see death and dreams.
Am I becoming aware of attitudes or inner problems that are being shown in the dream as cancer – if so can I put into words what they are?
If I describe myself as the cancer in the dream, what do I say, and what do I understand from this?
Comments
I’ve had a huge fear of death for about 16 years but only recently have a started to fear cancer after a friends daughter was put on chemo medication for her health condition. About 4 weeks ago after having a discussion with my Aunty about death and passing over that same night I dreamt I was in a Drs office being told I had stage 1 breast cancer. The next dream was 2 nights ago and I was in a run down old hospital waiting for chemo and the receptionist told me I was obviously in the early stages of cancer. This has scared the life out of me !!
Sarah – I too was scared so much of death, one day I could hardly breathe because of fear. But one day I decided to meet it face to face, and when I did I lived through a strange experience, I experienced my body simple as a shell that Life left behind to form other bodies. I realised that fundamentally I am an expression of Life.
That may not mean much to you, but I believe I see where your fear stems from. It has been pumped onto us is that the fundamental particle of the universe was the atom. Nothing in scientific research at the time could prove that anything existed beyond the atom, and the atom is a physical object. Therefore, nothing other than physical substance was ‘real’. This, so it appeared, disproved the possibility of personal awareness being anything other than some trick of chemicals, molecules and atoms in the brain and body. Personal awareness does not exist except as a product of the physical brain. There could be no spirit or life after death because, after all, we are only atoms! Nothing in our consciousness can exist unless it is produced by the brain. And our brain is made of atoms and so will perish, and as we are nothing more than our body, we too will die.
But in 1900 Max Planck proposed a revolutionary new view of the universe in publishing the quantum theory. Since then the theory has gathered strength through an enormous amount of research, and is suggesting a universe in which the atom is by no means the fundamental material of our body or the cosmos. In fact, it says that the core of our being is an almost indescribable condition of infinite potential which can never die and exhibits properties shown by people during near death experiences. See http://dreamhawk.com/dream-encyclopedia/near-death-experiences/ and http://dreamhawk.com/news/there-is-a-huge-change-happening/
You are far more than a body. I know because I have been there.
Tony
Hey i had a dream last night of me having cancer i am not afraid of death neither am i suggering right now nor i think there is some problem but this dream really horrified me and actually i am really happy tight now but this dream just destroyed me
Dear Palak – As you can read in this article:
“There are two major links with dreaming of cancer. The first is that many people meet cancer in their dream because it represents death. So the dream is a way of experiencing their fears about death.
The second is that cancer depicts parts of one’s emotional or thinking character that are sick and/or unhealthy. With these dreams you need to consider what part of the body you dream has cancer, then understand it psychological meaning.”
Unfortunately you do not mention what part of the body you dream has cancer, nor do you describe your dream; http://dreamhawk.com/dream-dictionary/give-us-enough-information/
So perhaps you feel like posting again with enough information?
Anna 🙂
A few nights ago I had this dream it has been the first time I have had it. I had a brain tumour and I was dying but I was with my family and loved ones I was told it was a brain tumour but In my dream I got on with life I can remember being with family and then later on in my dream I got this sudden pain in my head and something told me I was going to die I got my father to round up my family so I could tell them I loved them and j was on the sofa with my girlfriend I told my family and girlfriend I loved them but then u slipped away and well died … My girlfriend told me I was crying in my sleep but this I don’t know of? Any ideas
It’s like I was seeing my self getting shot over and over again by some faceless man. And after laying there for a while I got up and walked away. Then I went to this prayer circle for work and we were passing around cards with names on them which had people’s names I worked with. I apparently kept telling one of my coworkers I gave the girl who had gotten shot( me in the dream) a blood transfusion or something similar to that. And she (a different girl someone I actually work with) claimed she had cancer after getting blood and the doctors told her I had it.
I had a dream last night where a very close old friend (someone I do not talk to anymore) was with me at my mom and dad’s house for a get together for me. He was walking inside until he almost fell and lost balance told me not to worry about it his mom will explain later on down the line. Me being me asked him to tell me what was going on as the fact he started throwing up blood, and had to have me show him to the restroom. He came out we sat down on my bed and told me he has cancer. Then I woke up. This is not the first time I have seen this. I have had this dream for a week and each time it’s just a different friend in a different place with me telling me they have cancer.
(What could this mean?)
I keep having a vivid dream where I die of stage 4 breast cancer. When I wake up, I’m in tears because it seems so real. What does this mean? Am I sick?
I had a dream where my mom died of cancer, everyone else is getting over it, but I am very depressed. My mom actually does have a history of cancer in her family, I don’t know if the dream will happen or not please help!
Tony,
So I had a WEIRD dream last night. My mom, who passed away in August (unexpectedly) was in it.
Anyways, here is the dream;
I was terminally ill with cancer. Unsure as to what or where the cancer was bc it was never said. I was telling my mom that I was dying, I could feel my chest rattle every time I breathed, and could hear it. It sounded just like my aunt right before she passed away (July of last year). She was my moms sister. Anyways, back to the dream. So I had the rattle in my chest (so real feeling!). I told my mom I had little time left. I was calm, and remember thinking I was ok because I was getting to go see my aunt. My mom kept telling me “you are not dying.” She was fairly calm about her objections also. There were a few other details to the dream, like traveling. I remember my mom driving me places, just unsure as to where those places were.
My mom and Aunt Lesa played a huge role in the dream, mom visually, aunt only in thought. Mom was more the support and comfort in my physical life, aunt was comfort in what was to become my life after death.
Dear Tony,
I had the most disturbing dream a few nights ago about my wife disappearing one day. I looked for her for a year with no sign of her. I knew she was out there and I couldn’t stop trying to find her. After many many months, I spotted her in a crowded place and she looked very thin, with long brown wavy hair (she is blonde). She tried to leave but I caught up with her and was so happy to see her and so angry at the same time. I angrily questioned her for why she left me with no warning. She then pulled off her long brown wig to reveal very short hair regrowth. With tears in her eyes, she began to tell me over and over again that it is okay now, and she is getting better. It was like she didn’t think I could handle her being so sick. I was so upset to think this and she had to go through something like that alone.
My wife woke me up because I was crying in my sleep. It was so vivid and realistic, that i held her and cried for over an hour. Please help me understand this dream. It has haunted me for days.
Dear Carey – It is good to release your tears for it helps you to re-connect on a deeper level with your anima, your INNER female and of course your wife too.
The anima is the female within the male, shown as a woman in a man’s dream. Physically a man is predominantly male, but also has nipples and produces some female hormones. Psychologically, we may only express part of our potential in everyday life. In a man, the more feeling and caring side may be given less expression. Apart from this some functions, such as intuition and unconscious creativity may also be held in latency. These secondary or latent characteristics are depicted by the female in male dreams. The femaleness or maleness must not be confused with personality. The conscious personality is a very flexible and shapeshifting thing. It can be male or female in quality no matter what the body gender. But in dreams, the female is the receptive, creative aspect of this shapeshifting personality.
Please continue reading at http://dreamhawk.com/dream-encyclopedia/archetype-of-the-anima-jungs-view-of-the-female-in-the-male/
The way I see your dream is that you did not have a real connection with your inner female and so with what she symbolises, which made her disappear in your dream.
Then your dream expresses that part of your thoughts and with that your emotions was making you feel sick.
See http://dreamhawk.com/news/avoiding-being-my-own-victim/
Perhaps that is also the reason why you broke the connection with your inner female; to protect yourself? Perhaps you learned to do that because you felt abused in the past; emotionally or in any other way?
It is like disconnecting your head (thinking) from your body (feeling) and when you do that you “live in your head”, experiencing life intellectually, not emotionally.
I wonder if your inner female was healed because of the loving and caring relationship you have with your wife and if you did any form of psychotherapy.
Your dream does express that you do care now, that you can feel AND express it; “With tears in her eyes, she began to tell me over and over again that it is okay now, and she is getting better. It was like she didn’t think I could handle her being so sick. I was so upset to think this and she had to go through something like that alone.”
A beautiful, touching Dream dear Carey.
If you feel like exploring it for yourself, you can use http://dreamhawk.com/dream-dictionary/practical-techniques-for-understanding-your-dreams/
Anna 🙂
I read your article and I can relate. But I dreamt about this yesterday me and my dad don’t have a strong relationship like we used to but I love him no matter what and he doesn’t understand me sadly. So this dream I had my mom came to me in the kitchen telling me she wanted to tell me something important about my dad and me repeatedly saying what is it? So I go to my dad and he tells me he has leukimia a type of cancer and that he started to take medications… But he had said he is going to die soon… I couldn’t take it in my dream I was so sad and I couldn’t stop crying. What does this exactly mean? Please reply
Hi, I wonder if u can me. I had a dream last night that I was diagnosed with breast cancer. It was soo real, I had to get my 2 breast off and was told I was in stage 13 and if u got them off I would be ok. I know their isn’t such thing as stage 13 tho.
what does this mean ?
annadevlaam@gmail.comKayleigh – Your dream is not about having breast cancer – you are right, there is no such thing as stage 13 – and it is about a fear hunting you.See http://dreamhawk.com/dream-dictionary/breasts/QUOTE
In woman’s dream: In quite a number of women’s dreams the breasts appear in a health sense,connected with the anxiety about breast cancer. To dream of that does not mean you have cancer, only that you are anxious.The breasts also link with how positive you feel about your own womanhood and ability to feel proud and easy with your sexual as well as intellectual functions. So in some women’s dreams the breasts are exposed to say, “See, I am a real woman.”
Anna
I had such a crazy dream last night, I have to share and find out what it means. I was at church/hospital and there was a mom and little girl. The little girl had cancer and for whatever reason had to get a shot at the end of the day to pretty much end her life and relief her off her pain. I spent the entire day reading to this little girl and singing to her and watching movies until it was time. Now the dream gets really weird, so the mom and the daughter had to do this in a helicopter and idk why. So they’re up in the air and im with my entire family and we are sad because of the loss of the little girl. all of a sudden, we see the helicopter comes crashing down and everyone jumps in the lake in fear it will crash on them. Im in the water and look up to see the helicopter is heading straight for me. And as I hear my family freaking out it crashes into me and then I wake up. What in the world does this mean? It will be driving me crazy.
I was wondering if you have any insight into a dream I had last night. It has been nagging at me all day. In the dream I was at a gathering, it was a group of my husband’s friends. Two of his female friends walked up. As we all said hello to them, the first whispered that the second wasn’t feeling well. As I looked at the second woman I noticed her right arm was in a sling. She proceeded to show us a decaying mangled hand, arm and shoulder. (It was disgusting and the dream was very graphic and real) she told us that she had “flesh eating cancer” (I know this is not a thing) and that it had all started with a pain in her right breast. I have very real and vivid dreams several times a week, but there is something about this one. I feel like I need to tell her to go to the doctors… or something. I just know I’m not supposed to ignore this one. So here I am, asking you. Any interpretations? Thanks!
Hi. Just wanted to ask something,i dreamt about cancer just a couple of days ago and read your article and it’s true i do have a fear of death since i was 6. But something really weird in my dream is that the person who has a cancer (she have a big tumor in her head) is a little girl that i have never ever ever met before but i knew that she was a real girl because her image in my dream was so vivid and my mind can’t just make that such picture if it doesn’t really exist. After i dreamt about her,i dreamt about something else (same night) one thing led to another and another and another.My dream doesn’t make sense but i can never forget that girl whoever she is.
Jannelle – Dear J. you are still thinking of dreams as being the same as waking life. Dreams are completely different and take place in a different dimension and arise from our core self which is very different to your personality. So to catch up, please read http://dreamhawk.com/approaches-to-being/questions-2/ – http://dreamhawk.com/dream-dictionary/core/
The young girl is a representation of you at a certain age. So it doesn’t look like you because it would be scary to see yourself with a big head tumour – so we hide the truth from ourselves.
But the truth isn’t that you have a head tumour, but your fear of it when you heard about it at a certain age, stayed in your head/mind/memory. The early fear of death was a start to a whole series of inner events that can build up over time and leave you feeling not the best you can.
I was born dead, then experience death again while having a medical operation and so was terrified of death. To cut a long story short one can easily overcome and be healed of such fears by facing them. You might do this by using http://dreamhawk.com/dream-encyclopedia/acting-on-your-dream/#BeingPerson or http://dreamhawk.com/approaches-to-being/lifes-little-secrets/ or even http://dreamhawk.com/dream-dictionary/fear-dealing-with/
Tony
Dear Tony,
the only experience I have had with cancer was my great grandmother (died of Breast cancer) and also a good friend recently had a Breast cancer scare. In my dream I was diagnosed with leukaemia and was told that I was terminal – for some reason the dream wasn’t a sad dream, the feeling was calm and I had all my friends with me while I was trying to fight the cancer. At one point in the dream I was begging my cancer cells to go away so I could be happy and live a long time and I also tried to find any sort of medicine to help me. Another big part of my dream was telling me friends about the cancer – what was surprising about this was that my closest friends didn’t care but my other friends were more supportive. This dream has made me a bit emotional and I don’t know if it would have anything to do with my current health concerns (nothing major) but it’s always something on my mind