Dreaming You are Dreaming

To dream that you are dreaming can mean a lack of attention to everyday affairs. It can also suggest you are only dreaming, only imagining, or that you haven’t woken up to something. But more likely it is a way to hide feelings we do not wish to acknowledge.

What you experience when you “wake up” in a dream suggests the meaning is very significant. Your dream creator is telling you to really be aware of what the dream is trying to communicate. It could also be a first step to the lucid state.

Bruce Marcot says, “ I’m sure I’m not the only one to have dreams within dreams … such as experiencing a nightmare and waking up in bed, only to discover that it’s still a dream because something unearthly happens and then I finally, really wake up from that”.

Example: And even if I was the subject of the dream I developed two techniques to avoid having to deal with the emotions arising in the dream.  One way was to change myself into another person and become the observer of that person;  the other way was, when things got really scary, to ask myself whether or not I was dreaming and turn the dream into a dream within the dream; only realizing that they were both in fact dreams, when I awakened.  I was always quite relieved that I could do this and avoid having to handle situations that I would rather not have dealt with.

This dreamer has developed a massive technique of repression, a way of avoiding instead of dealing with his fears. See Masters of Nightmares

But there is another definition of dreaming within a dream – lucid dreaming. See dream within a dream

Example: I noticed thousands of small stone’s embedded in the earth like a mosaic. I had never noticed these before, despite having walked that hill in dreams many times. I believe the boy threw a piece into the sky, making it fall like a meteorite.

In this case the person does not dream that they are dreaming, but in their dream remembers other dreams. The resulting insight into this was seen as; it means through an inner weakness or instability; I have not made it a conscious or whole life reality; I have not built it into my waking life. Therfore it remains a dream.

But here is an example of waking in a dream:

Example: In my dream I was watching a fern grow. It was small, but opened very rapidly. As I watched, I became aware that the fern was an image representing a process occurring within myself, one that I grew increasingly aware of as I watched. Then I was fully awake in my dream and realised that my dream (perhaps any dream) was an expression in images of actual events occurring unconsciously in myself. I felt enormous excitement, as if I were witnessing something of great importance.

Useful questions and hints:

What feelings are in the dream, and can you acknowledge them?

What is the surface you and what is the deeper you feelings?

What are the differences between the do dreams?

See Secrets of Power Dreaming – Techniques for Exploring your Dreams – Programmed

Comments

-Dusti Gunville 2017-09-10 18:08:14

I had a dream in a dream today. But it was weird this is the second one I had. Normally I can interpret my dreams. I usually can figure out the meaning. But this one I don’t get. In my dream I was laying down to have a nap before we went to go look at this place we were thinking about moving into. I wake up in the car on our way there I look at my fiance an ask where we are going he said the house it’s like I fell back asleep woke up again we were at the house an I was in the car I ask our roommate if we seen the house already he looked at me strange an said yes. I ask him did I go in an he said yes. So I explained to him that I feel like I dreamt it I don’t remember being there. He looked at me so weird. The car starts moving ther3 was no one driving I look at my roommate an said what the he’ll is going on know ones driving the car he looks at me an tells me to calm down it’s ok. I look in my purse there was alot of money in there. It’s like I had the down payment for the house. My fiance is in the basement of some house an won’t let me go down of course I’m mad. In my head I’m thinking this is a dream this can’t be real. I wake up from my dream in my dream. We are driving now driving passed a grocery store an there was a stove outside an the burnings was on I look at my fiance an ask him if he left the burner on he smiles so I force him to stop an I run to the stove an turn it off an then I wake up for real. They both felt so real it’s so messed up

-Helen 2017-09-01 5:57:25

I’m not sure if this is a dream within a dream or what it is?! Last night I dreamt that someone else and I were firing a water gun at our class. In the dream it was the second time we had done it so were likely to get excluded. However this was mixed up with being my real age of 48 and being a chair of governors of a school. My mother was better JV called but I was also resigning my position of chair. Then I don’t know if I was waking up for real at any point, I think so because I was aware of getting really annoyed by all this stupid dreaming and then had two people analysing my dream! But they didn’t help!! Went on and on and was quite mixed up. Are you able to shed any light please?? Thank you

-Kristina Jarrett 2017-07-30 20:56:54

I had a dream that I was dreaming that I had a little girl. (I didn’t actually dream I gave birth). She was beautiful. Upon waking from the dream inside my dream. I felt very happy but yet confused knowing I’m not supposed to be able to have kids. I went to make breakfast and woke up. What does this mean.

    -Tony Crisp 2017-08-01 8:03:39

    Hi – It would help you to understand your dreams, if you would read – http://dreamhawk.com/news/summing-up/ and also http://dreamhawk.com/dream-encyclopedia/features-found-on-site/ which has so much information in.

    Nothing can replace your own ability to understand your dream. With a little effort you can do this by practising what is described in – http://dreamhawk.com/dream-encyclopedia/acting-on-your-dream/#BeingPerson or http://dreamhawk.com/dream-dictionary/getting-at-your-dreams-meaning/

    Tony

    Kristina – So it has nothing to do with being physically pregnant, but because you are a woman, it is about your wonderful power of creation. But what I see is that those drives need not be expressed through producing a physical child. This does not mean they need to be frustrated or repressed, but that they be accepted and directed into another direction. It is innate in women to dream of being creative and giving birth in their dreams. So I believe that such a dream baby is a very real part of you – though an inner and not an outer part. It is because you are a female mammal and females are designed to have babies – it is instinctive and unavoidable to at least dream of creating a child.

    You can be creative in many different ways without having to give birth to a physical baby. But your dream baby represents a new aspect of you trying to emerge and be cared for and developed. It can be in music and the arts, in caring or professions of any sort.

-Max 2017-07-17 19:55:46

I had a dream in which I was dreaming. In my 2nd dream I was aware that I was dreaming. I was in a town submerged underwater under a star lit sky but everyone and everything behaved normally. My dad sent me a text that was meant for the version of me that was asleep in my first dream, but I received it in my 2nd dream for some reason. Since I knew I was having a lucid dream In my 2nd dream, I told my dad I’d text him later because I didn’t want to wake up, I wanted to control my dream (but I couldn’t for some reason). Then I woke up into my initial dream.

-Jesse Vasquez 2017-05-31 4:49:02

I had a dream within a dream.. At first i was dreaming i was working but was not related to my real job anyways there was people with me so i remember looking up into to the sky and i saw a few objects flying at first i thought it was ufos then after the person in my dream said something regarding missiles coming from Korea and they where missiles of of those missiles changed directions quickly and started flying straight towards us as it was coming down i became the missile i dont know its weird like i was in the sky flying down like if i was in the missile point of view and sure enough i hit the ground and exploded and then i woke up where i was working at but i was still dreaming i didnt know until i actually woke up and noticed i had a dream within a dream what does this mean?

-Julie 2017-05-18 21:31:56

hi,
I have had two dreams lately that stand out in my mind. the first was of my late brother that i am visiting, only in my dream he is fine and i am going to give him some money, My daughter who has never met him suddenly appears in the dream and runs to hug him. This made me incredibly sad when i woke up, I felt that he was the only person in my family that i have not helped and i would never get that opertunity.
can you interpret please.

My second dream was a dream within another dream, i dreamt im awake and walking out of my bedroom and as i did, i noticed my home was transformed, where my prayer room is now stands a massive window overlooking a deep very clean and blue ocean. I was not afraid and then suddently a shark was uneathed in a wave as i looked on. I awoke thereafter wondering what to make of this. thank you, Julie

-Jasmine 2017-05-07 11:36:56

I have had lucid/ vivid dreams my whole life. They are in such hreat detail that i can tell you dream from start to finish i had when i was five. I usually only have them once or twice a year, but lately ive had them once or twice a week. Sometimes i can choose what i want othe times i feel like im being pulled. I know that im dreaming always, but phisicaly i can feel it. If im stabbed and wake up i feel that area. If im pulled or hurt i can always feel it when i awake and it goes away after a few seconds.

Im writing because something odd happened that never happened before. I ahad a dream within a dream, but could not Remeber my second dream when i awoke inside the first dream. I first woke in a between area then moved to tje first dream. As i walking i knew i could not Remeber the secound dream. I saw a door that could lead me there. I towords and someone tried to stop me and ran inside with me. I awoke in that dream under water suffocating. I say suffocating because i was phisicaly suffocating in my sleep. Something pushed me out and i could see myself go through both states of my dreams and wake up. I remember my first dream and the between area vivdly like usual, but have no idea about the second dream.

-Bethany 2017-03-16 13:09:08

in my dream last night I dreamt I was dreaming and being chased through an old abandoned warehouse it was in total darkness I couldn’t see what was chasing me just a shadow. Do you know what this might mean?

-David 2017-02-14 14:50:45

I’ve had a dream within a dream several times before, but last night had a dream within a dream within a dream. I remember much of the original dream. Is this common?

-Siobhan Beckford 2017-02-13 20:47:35

Hi,

I literally just had a dream within a dream and then woke up in the dream and continued the dream until I woke up in reality.

In the dream I’m living with a good friend of mine and we share a bedroom. I decide to go to sleep and get in bed. I then dream of my ex boyfriend who for some reason drags me by my feet in the bed, not in a hurtful way but to like move my bed. Then he gets in bed next to me and holds my hand (this is something he used to do in reality) it’s at this point I realise that I’m having a dream within a dream but I remember telling myself I’m just dreaming but enjoy the moment. Then i fall in the dream within a dream and wake up on the floor. my friend who is getting dressed to go out with her boyfriend ask me if I’m ok and the normal dream continues which I remain for awhile but can’t actually remember the details.

Just to give you some back details in real life about a week ago I broke up with my ex boyfriend for the 4th time! And my friend who was in the dream knows him well that’s how we met. She also is not talking to him at the moment as she is upset with how he has been treating me, any insight would be great!

-john k. 2017-01-29 10:56:20

I keep having dreams within a dream, and I am not kidding, sometimes 3 dreams in a dream…..very scary.. what is wrong with me… they are not nightmares, but they are so realistic… the one dream that got me to go to a website and say something, was a dream I had that I could not wake up from… it kept going on for more than 3 times….im not sure if it was 4 but it shook me up….

-Jonathan Starr 2017-01-26 19:05:49

Hello this never happen to me before first time. I never usually remember my dreams they usually spotty kinda like can’t remember em.but this dream was way different. While i was in my second dream(I dreamt I was get chased I was n a ditch like a slue army crawling n a voice told me go under water so I took a breath went under was pitch black. Intill I see em lights under while under Water then I wake up in my dream telling my brother n sister they said was just a dream but to me was scary. Then my wife wakes me up was normal. My story thoughts crazy.

-Blr 2017-01-20 11:47:25

Hey, so I’ve had a dream I was on highway that ultimately changed and I ended up in a room. I had a dream that there were terrorist and we (myself, my son, my kids father, a lady unknown. As I’ve never seen her face before) so we start running and the terrorist gets closer and she yells to my son to run as she gets shot in the back, only for me to wake up not consciously but in my dream for the same thing to happen again we’re all running when the same unknown lady yells for my son to run as she’s shot in the back and in the dream I’m thinking omg what I dreamt came true. So the terrorist makes his way and find me my son and my kids father to shoot but it missed I said thank you for sparing me and he comes back and says you die and shoots again but there’s no bullet left. My kids father and I look at each other in relief like wow did that just happen. Then I say get your stuff we’re moving right now and then I wake up.

-Kylie 2017-01-19 15:33:31

I had a nightmare within a nightmare last night. I dreamt about a figure with no face. When I woke up from the dream (I was still dreaming obviously) I went downstairs and outside and the figure was still out to get me. Then I actually woke up, Any ideas if this means anything?

    -Tony Crisp 2017-01-20 10:46:21

    Hi – I am going to halt from answering your posts – the reason is that in so many of your post I give the same information to. This is because most people do not understand the difference between dreaming and waking life.

    So, most of what I put in answers is my attempt at explain what dreams are really about. It would help you to understand your dreams, if you would read – http://dreamhawk.com/approaches-to-being/questions-2/#Summing

    Tony

-Jerneja 2017-01-13 8:05:34

I had a dream within a dream today, never happened before, but I dream a lot and remember most dreams. Today I dreamt (then realized when I woke up in the middle of the night that I was dreaming a dream)..about someone walking beside my bed, I heard slippers sliding around it and I even whispered to my boyfriend..psst there is someone walking, can you hear it (well, he even woke up to listen-he never wakes up-he sleeps so firmly everytime..)..for real.he didn’t wake up..I And then I got scarred and covered my head with a blanket and in few minutes I woke up and realized I had a dream within a dream.. What should this mean 🙂 ?

    -Tony Crisp 2017-01-13 9:57:25

    Hi – I must take time to upgrade the dream dictionary, so must halt from answering your posts – I started revising the dictionary in 2006, and haven’t neared the end yet. I believe someone else may start giving interpretations.

    So, for a while I urge you to read http://dreamhawk.com/approaches-to-being/i-am-no-longer-interpreting-dreams/ – It describes ways that can help you. And often it would help too if you looked at http://dreamhawk.com/approaches-to-being/questions-2/#Summing

    Tony

    So, whenever we dream its images are not like real life, because a dream is nothing like outer life where things could hurt you, but is an image like on a cinema screen, so that even if a gun is pointed at you and fired it can do no damage – except if you run in fear; so all the things that scare you are simply your own fears projected onto the screen of your sleeping mind. See http://dreamhawk.com/dream-dictionary/useful-techniques/

    It is also important to realise that every image, every scary or terrifying thing, is taken place inside you, in your mind, as you sleep. This means that every awful animal, every scary thing or person, is created out of your own fears and must not be seen as outside you as happens in waking awareness. The problem is that we are often scared of or frightened of actually experiencing our emotions and so they confront us in our dreams.

    So, are you scared of someone entering or of dead people? See http://dreamhawk.com/dream-dictionary/useful-techniques/

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