34
Dream Skills
TIPS FOR
DREAM RECALL
Always keep a notebook and pen by
your bedside. The dream sequence too
easily fades the moment day-to-day
thoughts ll your conscious mind, such
as “It’s time to get up and get moving.”
The crucial aspects may be lost forever
if you fail to scribble those waking
memories down at once. Some people
make themselves turn on the light in the
middle of the night if a powerful dream
impacts them suciently and they know
they should note it or lose it.
Write notes
The moment you surface to consciousness,
aware you have just come out of an important
dream, grab your notebook and ll the pages
with every detail you can capture. (See pages
37–39 for guidance on the kind of things you
should be writing down here.) Try not to make it
short and factual: this is not a business meeting
between conscious and unconscious. Key
qualities of the dream message may hide in the
less obvious.
If it proves impossible to get anything
written—mornings are full of domestic activity
and other outer-world demands—then try to
memorize at least one word (for example, “cars”)
and keep it in mind until you can record the rest.
You are bound to lose out on the full record, but
this encourages you to practice dream
journaling and will at least help you get started.
Keep a dream diary
Keeping a dream diary is not only an interesting
record of your life, but also allows you to look
US_034-035_Dream_recall.indd 34 04/06/2019 11:15
35
Tips for Dream Recall
back on your past emotional states. You may
be amazed at the insights your diary oers.
Even on a week-by-week or monthly basis,
reading through your written words at the
height of the dreams’ impression will prove
intriguing, if not revealing. It is not always
possible to decode a dream on the same day.
Events may need to unfold for the full
signicance to be understood. (See pages 36–41
for step-by-step advice on how to decode your
dream.) Remember, your dreaming self knows a
huge amount more than your waking self does:
allow it to have awareness of coming activities
or encounters, even if this would not be called a
precognitive dream. (See pages 28–29 for more
on precognitive dreams.)
Analyze your felt sense
Once you have written the dream story down,
make sure your felt sense—as described by
psychologist Dr. Eugene Gendlin in his book
Focusing (see Further Reading on page 211)—
has also been noted. By felt sense, we mean to
check out how the body is feeling—what
tensions or otherwise have been generated
by the dream. (See page 32 for more on this
method of insight.) Your bodily sensations can
provide vital memory triggers.
USEFUL TOOLS
A hardback notebook
Keep a little notebook—preferably unlined,
because you might want to make a quick
sketch to illustrate the narrative—by your
bedside. Flimsy, loose pages are not a good
idea, as they are little better than the back of
an envelope—plus they get lost.
A journal
Dream journals are to be taken seriously.
They hold precious records from your
unconscious self trying to help you
consciously grow and move forward.
A small ashlight
It is sensible to have a small ashlight
nearby, especially if you are concerned
about not waking up a partner. Smartphone
ashlights are not recommended because
they cast a strong light—as would, of course,
a bedside lamp.
A smartphone or voice recorder
Speaking your thoughts into a smartphone
or other recording device is good, but
disturbing another might be an issue unless
you tiptoe to the bathroom.
“
REMEMBER, YOUR DREAMING
SELF KNOWS A HUGE AMOUNT
MORE THAN YOUR WAKING
SELF DOES.
”
US_034-035_Dream_recall.indd 35 17/06/2019 16:18
..................Content has been hidden....................
You can't read the all page of ebook, please click here login for view all page.