Every night, the moment I fall asleep, I awaken in another realm. I never paid much attention to it before, but ever since I began writing to heal and express myself, I can no longer ignore it.

It’s time to talk about it. I think it’s not just humans who dream but animals too.

I’ve seen dog twitching his legs, moving his whiskers, and even let out a small bark too in sleep, as if he’s lost in a world of his own.

Its inside us all

Even my seven-year-old sometimes whines or cries in his sleep about this or that from his daily life.

Once i tried to keep a log of dream but no matter how hard i tried to recall and jolt it down, i could barely write one or two lines maximum.

Not only is it hard to recall & write but it is equally weird to read them later. Reading it, it feels like, what’s going on here? Have I gone crazy?

Better i stop it right here unless i have some conclusion, some latest information to understand it better.

Still a few observations i would like to share with you which are as follows.

The context

You can think of it as the backdrop or setting where the events of your dream unfold.

This environment can be familiar or completely unknown, and it’s often a mix of both. For instance, I had a dream where I was unexpectedly selected for a job in an office with a dark history — someone had taken their life there, making the space eerie and undesirable. Although I recognized the location, everything else was unclear. I didn’t even recall applying for the job, yet I found myself acing the interview. To describe it in my own words, the context of the dream world is somewhat established, but also vague and open to interpretation.

Dreams are created in fragments and pieces in our minds, as in this scene where there is nothing in Henry’s mother’s house and fridge. Later we came to know even she was not alive.

The content

Regardless of the situation, the core content is always about you, and interestingly, you are also the frame of reference through which you experience and interpret that content. I mean here we are watching ourselves in the dream, in other words “the observer is the observed”. This is an intriguing perspective that reveals the hidden mysteries of our mind. Most dreams have some commonality behind them; in my case, I often see myself in a vulnerable position in public and trying to escape from it.

Here it’s important to share some relevant context that I’ve struggled with severe anxiety & depression in recent past, which often led me to imagine worst-case scenarios of public embarrassment. This anxiety became overwhelming, which led to me to seek professional help from both a psychiatrist and a psychologist. So, it’s somehow relatable why i have a common underlying theme in my dreams, my worst fear.

The closest reference i could find

The 2005 film “Stay” offers an interesting glimpse into the inner workings of our minds, reflecting the fragmented and often inconsistent nature of dreams. The film’s unique editing style, marked by abrupt scene cuts and non-linear storytelling, captures the extraordinary presentation of dreams, blurring the lines between reality and the subconscious that we experience every night.

What about you? i am curious to know if you have something similar to share. Let me know in the comments about your observation.

Good night, sweet dreams!

Desi Neo.