INSIDE DOUGLAS COLLEGE / MARCH 27, 1990

 

 

 

Dreams can enhance our lives

We you dream in colour or
black and white, your dreams
can help you resolve all kinds of day-
to-day problems, according to
psychologist Louise Moreau.

Moreau says everyone dreams
at least 90 minutes a night, and
everyone can use their dreams to
help make decisions, solve
problems, become more creative or
accomplish personal goals.

"The trick," says Moreau, "is
learning to recall dreams and then
interpreting what they’re trying to
tell you — and it’s surprisingly easy.
It’s just like learning any new skill
or technique."

Moreau, who wrote her masters
thesis on dreaming and its uses in
counselling, is conducting a four-
part night school course at the Col-

 

Dreams were once used
for healing and decision
making, and in many
cultures, still are.

 

lege called Sleep On It beginning
April 10.

"The workshop will help par-
ticipants get in touch with the sleep-
ing side of their personality," says
Moreau.

Partly because of scientific skep-
ticism, and partly because of 19th
century church concerns about
satanic ties, she says dream inter-
pretation had been all but forgotten
by Western society. But attitudes are
slowly changing, and people are
beginning to realize that under-
standing dreams can enhance all
aspects of our lives.

Moreau says dreams were once
commonly used for healing and
decision making and in many cul-
tures, still are. For example, Native
Indians still use dreams for spiritual
guidance.

"The power of dreams is in the
wealth of past and present experien-
ces, long since forgotten by the con-
science mind, but readily accessible
in the subconscious mind by dream-
ing," says Moreau.

Becoming more aware of your
dreams can be a valuable learning
experience, she adds, especially if
you are having recurring dreams or
nightmares. "You may be having
them and not know it, yet your sub-
conscious is in effect trying
desperately to tell you something."

The first step in learning to un-
derstand your dreams, is learning to
improve dream recall, Moreau says.
This is done by recognizing the
value in dreams and eliminating
negative attitudes, and then practis-
ing self-suggestion before going to
sleep. Moreau says most people can
learn to recall dreams in great detail
within a month’s time.

The second step is interpreta-
tion. "We've come a long way from
lying on the psychoanalyst’s couch
and having our dreams analyzed,"
says Moreau. "We have lots and lots
of information available to us in our
dreams that we can understand
quite readily ourselves."

Moreau says dreams can be in-
terpreted directly, symbolically or
spiritually, but everything has a
meaning. For example, in a dream
about monsters, one would analyze
what sort of fear is represented by

the monster, or what characteristics
may be related to your own per-
sonality.

The key to dream interpretation

 

The key to dream
interpretation and recall
lies in keeping a" dream

journal."

 

and recall lies in keeping a ‘dream
journal’, according to Moreau.
When recorded as soon after the
dream as possible, all the details and
their significance can be more easily
analyzed by yourself or with assis-
tance from someone else offering a
more objective perspective.

The third stage in getting the
most from your dreams is training
yourself to dream about specific
problems you would like to solve.
Called ‘dream incubation’, it invol-
ves exploring all aspects of your
problem while lying in bed before
going to sleep, then reciting an ‘in-
cubation phrase’ to focus your con-
science thoughts. This sows the
‘seed’ for your dream.

The four-part course Sleep On It
is offered on Tuesdays from 7 p.m.
to 9 p.m on April 10, 17 24, and May
1. The fee is $36. To register call 527-
5472. @