You are running on an empty street and you know someone is after you, though you can’t quite make out who this person is. Your heart is racing and every nerve in your body is tense with anticipation. You know you are seconds away from someone tapping you on the shoulder. And then you wake up. It frustrates you because this is not the first time you’re dreaming of this. What does this mean, you ask? These are what we call recurring dreams and they can happen to anyone.
Today, we are going to look at what causes recurring dreams, what is the reason why these particular dreams keep coming back to us, and if there is any way to stop them from doing so. Let’s begin!
What Are Recurring Dreams?
Recurring dreams don’t usually have a special theme, actually they can be quite basic. Like the experience of someone following you or the sprint to get to an exam that you already know has started. What differentiates recurring dreams from the things we usually dream about at night is the fact that we keep having them over and over again. The dreams might not be exactly the same, so small variations can occur, but overall they are extremely similar. They can happen every night, once a week, or even once a month. They can last for a couple of weeks or months, or for a person’s entire life in some rare cases.
70% of females and 65% of males experience recurring dreams. Some people are deeply disturbed by them, even if they are not necessarily recurring nightmares. They can be, but they don’t have to. One of the reasons people fear them so much is because they don’t understand the reason why these dreams keep repeating. It must mean something, they believe, and they are right.
Causes of Recurring Dreams
There is more than one thing that can explain why you’re having recurring dreams. The most likely scenario is that you have some unresolved issues that your brain is focusing on even when you are sleeping. If you are stressed out about something in your life, it can cause recurring dreams. That is until you manage to deal with the problem and relax.
Another cause of recurring dreams can be a trauma that someone experienced in the past and that they are not over yet. The dream might be trying to point to something that you have to cope with. Or something that you fear and regard as a weakness.
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) can be yet another cause of recurring dreams. Most people suffer from PTSD as a result of being victims of abuse, war veterans, or rape victims. In this case, some people will constantly relive their trauma through recurring dreams. They can seem extremely real and terrify the person who is experiencing them. In the case of PTSD, the best course of action would be to seek the help of a professional therapist. He or she can help you work through your trauma and process it.
Are Recurring Dreams Useful?
They can be, since they usually relate to an issue that you are not consciously aware of. They can make you pay attention to something by constantly repeating until you start asking yourself why this is happening and what can it mean. Most often than not, once you make sense of the dream and deal with the issue that is causing it, the recurring dreams will stop bothering you.
If you have a recurring dream, it might be a sign that you are constantly doing something that does not benefit you in any way. If this is the case, once you break with this pattern, you should notice a difference in your dreams too.
You learned to run from what you feel, and that’s why you have nightmares. To deny is to invite madness. To accept is to control. – Megan Chance
Recurring dreams are also sings that you care too much about a particular thing in your life. That the fear of failing at it is causing you to have these repetitive dreams. Now, this can be particularly true in the case of students who dream about failing a test the night before they actually have to take it. This is definitely not a bad thing, though it can stress out the student even more.
Another way in which recurring dreams can be useful to us is by making us face our fears. For instance, if you keep dreaming that you are being chased by someone, the moment you finally turn to face that person is the moment you have managed to gather the courage and face your issue. In a way, recurring dreams can also empower you and make you grow.
How to Understand and Overcome Recurring Dreams
The first thing you have to remember is that when you have a dream that keeps repeating itself, even if it is a dream about someone else, this dream is actually trying to tell you something about yourself. Consequently, it will always be related to you in the end. That is why when trying to analyze it and make sense of it, you have to keep the experience highly personal.
Then, the next thing you should convince yourself of is that in order for you to stop having these recurring dreams, something in your current life situation has to change. This is not always easy to accept and let alone accomplish, which is why we wanted to stress it out. Accept the fact that in confronting whatever is bothering you, you might stumble upon disturbing or traumatic events. Ultimately, you will have to work through them. Of course, this is not always the case, but it is better to prepare yourself for the unexpected.
What we advise you to do in order to start the process of overcoming recurring dreams is to start a dream journal. There, you can write down every single detail of the dream that is haunting your subconscious. Try to remember when you had this dream for the first time. Was there something happening in your life at that moment that could explain it? Try to think of as many details as possible. Then, identify the most recent instance of the same dream. See if you can find any similarities between the two. Patterns are very important since they can allow you to understand the situation that is causing the recurring dreams and that you have to deal with.
Dream variations might be a clue that you are making progress and working towards getting rid of the dream. Look for hidden clues and get ready to do some serious detective work. Dreams contain a lot of hidden meanings and symbolism, and you have to learn to see beyond appearances. The important thing is to be patient and not get discouraged when something fails to make sense. If you are resilient, you will make sense of the dream sooner or later.
Everything Summed up
Recurring dreams can be a source of additional stress in our lives, especially if they are particularly frightening. So the natural thing to do is try to deal with them and pay attention to what they’re trying to signal. The best course of action is to detail every recurring dream in a dream journal and look for similarities between them, but also for variations. Furthermore, remember to correlate them with things happening in your life in that particular moment. Keep an open mind and be patient, since the world of dreams can often be challenging and intricate.
Related Links:
Dreaming into the Darkness, Spiritual and Psychological Use of Dreams
