Carl Jung said…
Posted by Michelle Moquin on November 15th, 2008
“A dream not investigated is like a letter left unopened.”
And I will add ‘to ourselves’ because I have been told in the few dream interpretation classes that I took, that all parts of the dream are the dreamer. Sounds a little self-absorbed to me but then when you’re taking about self indulging in self help or self growth courses like I did 20 years ago, It really is all about self….meaning ME :)
I’m done with the many years of that. Not the growth part but definitely the daily self analyzing. One can spend lifetimes trying to figure out why and still be stuck in the frustration of not knowing. But I always ask, ‘Why do you need to know why? What will you do with it then? Anytime I have figured out the ‘why’, it gives me the answer but doesn’t leave me with much else. The issue is still there, you’ve just discovered how it got there. I say move on, delete the need to understand, and just accept it or change it. I know for some, easier said than done.
This is not to say that I don’t believe in psychotherapy. I do for some. For some it may be very helpful. For others, it is just a crutch to lean on for many years drudging up the same old stuff and analyzing it over and over again. I believe therapists should help you tackle your issue(s) and then send you on your way. And the good ones do just that. Therapy should not be a codependent life long course.
Okay, enough said on that. I am getting a bit off topic. What I really wanted to share was my dream from last night. I dream every night as most people do but unlike some I remember my dreams very vividly and often. And as much as I like Jung’s saying, if I examined all of the dreams that I remembered I would be self analyzing all day long…and didn’t I say that that part of my life was over?
But every once in awhile I have a dream that really speaks to me. Last night was one of those. I woke up this morning and I felt very tired, and the memory of my dream left me heavy headed. Let me share the meat of it which is the part that I remember vividly:
I was sitting in the passenger side of the very first car that I owned in my late teens, a Mazda RX3, however, I believe I was at my present age. The car was parked at the top of a very steep hill and the emergency brake was on and the passenger door was open. Suddenly, the emergency brake no longer held the car and the car started to roll down the hill…slowly at first and then it started to pick up speed. I yanked on the emergency brake but it did nothing. My thought was, ‘The door’s open. Do I jump out of the car which may bring harm to me, possibly death, or do I crawl over into the driver’s seat and gain control?’ I decided to crawl over, gain control of the wheel and steer the car down the hill to safety.
So that’s it. If I analyze this dream to me it is pretty self explanatory. The car to me represents my life. And it was my first car which always holds a special place in one’s life, emphasizing again the specialness of life. Because to me life is special, especially to the person whose life it is.
The emergency brake that I have always been able to count on has failed. The emergency brake is the metaphor for my safety. The brake is always there for me to use when needed. For me it is someone or something that has always been there protecting me; my safety net, or you could say the guardian angel in my life. The fact that the emergency brake is still present tells me that my guardian angel will always be there. The fact that I feel that I am in an emergency situation and my brake is not working tells me that maybe I am yanking on the brake unnecessarily. That there really is no emergency….all I have to do is have faith and take control of my life.
Hmm….have I been feeling out of control of my life lately? Have I been relying on my guardian angel too much, considering events in my life as emergencies when they are not? If so, this part of the dream tells me that the brake, my guardian angel, is always there, a little worn out maybe :) but that I need to trust myself more and not always rely on the yanking of the brake or the calling to my angel.
I see the car, my life zooming down the hill uncontrollable, with no one at the helm. I have two choices:
I either jump out of the moving car – the door is open – how easy would that be? But to escape my life, to me, would be instant death. I mean how do I escape my own life and live? And lets say I do live. What kind of life do I have when I are not fully engaged in my life? I am scathed from the fall and my car, my life, is out of control, no one at the wheel. An accident waiting to happen. I have lost the connection – What is the point of living if you can call it living?
Or do I fully engage in my life? Do I manage to crawl over and take control of my car, my life, and steer it in the direction I want to go? There are no free rides and being in the passenger seat is definitely not a control position especially when there is no driver present. Truly living life to the fullest means that one is engaged in life, in the driver’s seat and in control. Thankfully and not surprisingly, in my dream, I chose the latter.
What I like about dream analysis is that no one can tell you what your dream means better than you. Yes, others can suggest what they think that it means but unless it resonates for you, it will not be true for you. What I said above resonates with me. When I woke up this morning and went over the details, it was crystal clear.
To answer my own question, I don’t feel out of control in my life. I actually feel very in control and this dream was just driving the point home – no pun intended. :) To me this dream was just reiterating and showing support of what I already know about myself. This dream says a lot to me and more than I actually wrote here. I didn’t want to be too long winded, after all it is all about ME :) All I can say is that I’m happy I opened up this letter to myself.
Readers: So enough about ME….Any ‘letters’ you want to share? Blog me.
Anonz: What a nice surprise to hear from you. I thought you were off fighting the good fight but I am pleased to hear that you are in training. I wish you luck in passing your course.
In regards to Obama and the RNC – thanks for sharing. I am looking forward to Obama in office too. He has a challenging time ahead of him. And now with the RNC pitting OTW’s against each other. Hmm…maybe he might need some help.
Madaline: Any suggestions in giving Obama a helping hand?
I’m off to the beach to walk Lucy. Have a beautiful day everyone!
Gratefully your blog host,
michelle
Aka BABE: Your Bad Ass Bitch Editor
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November 15th, 2008 at 2:20 pm
Very insightful dream interpretation! I think you have hit that one on the head! I have been having some of those similar feelings myself regarding the guardian and relying too much on rather than myself.
November 15th, 2008 at 8:31 pm
Michelle
I love reading your blog. You write so meaningfully. I dream of meeting you. Thank you for sharing with us who have so little to look forward to. I live in a man’s world. Sometimes I dream that you let Madaline loose and she destroyed all the evil men in my country.
Thanks for listening
Nawzad
November 15th, 2008 at 8:34 pm
Nawzad
Pray to Allah for your salvation. Do not pray to infidels. You have lost your way.
Abu
November 15th, 2008 at 8:38 pm
Michelle
sir
Should I provide an opportunity for him to appoint a Supreme Court Justice from the section that is bought and paid for by the RNC?
Sir
Madaline
November 15th, 2008 at 8:54 pm
Perhaps the most meaningful arguments we’ll ever have are those the cause of which cannot now be remembered, for they teach us a valuable lesson about the need to keep things in perspective, I shall always try to remember the relative unimportance o past arguments when facing tomorrow’s disagreements.
Part of keeping life in perspective is constantly reminding ourselves of our true priorities. It is so easy to ignore the truly important things when faced with our daily tasks and problems. I will make every effort to remember how much you mean to me and to show it every day.
I truly do place your feelings above my foolish pride of the moment and I will try never to forget that. I want for you your dreams and your wishes. They are my dreams and wishes for you. This i shall remember.
Dimw
November 16th, 2008 at 7:42 am
HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE CAN MASK HEART ATTACK SYMPTOMS
High blood pressure, also called hypertension, is a tricky problem. Because people who have it often don’t experience any symptoms or unusual pain or sensations, many tend to underestimate the serious health risks of hypertension, and fail to seek treatment or take medication as prescribed. And now yet another challenge with hypertension has emerged: People with this condition are less likely to experience angina (or chest pain) during exercise, which means they may miss an important warning sign of a heart attack.
WHY HBP IS THE SILENT KILLER
At the Montreal Heart Institute in Canada, more than 900 people took exercise stress tests to diagnose possible cardiac ischemia, a condition that may occur when blood flow to the heart muscle is narrowed or obstructed. A stress test consists of walking on a treadmill while blood pressure is measured and the heart is closely monitored via EKG for abnormalities and to see if and at what level the patient reports pain, is out of breath, or reaches 90% of the maximal heart rate for his/her age.
Researcher Bianca D’Antono, PhD, and her colleagues compared these results to participants’ self-reported pain scores. They found that people with greater increases in systolic (the number on top) blood pressure during the stress test, whether or not they actually had hypertension, less frequently experienced chest pain — or experienced it less intensely — than those with lower blood pressure responses. The implication? Greater blood pressure reactivity to stress may decrease the perception of heart pain, possibly increasing the chance of suffering from a silent heart attack or developing silent angina.
TAKE CARE OF YOUR CONDITION
This study serves as a critical reminder of how important it is to follow your doctor’s instructions when you have high blood pressure. First of all, seek regular medical treatment and don’t skip doses of your medication — even when you feel perfectly fine. Proper nutrition, adequate management of stress and regular exercise are also helpful in controlling high blood pressure and associated risks. Talk to your doctor about the level of exercise that is right for you and, during workouts, pay attention if you experience anything else unusual, not just pain — including excessive fatigue, shortness of breath and perspiration. These are signs that you may be overdoing, and it might be better to slow down or call it quits for the day. Other symptoms that can accompany a heart attack are arm or back pain, nausea and vomiting, dizziness or fainting and palpitations.
Source(s): ?
Bianca D’Antono, PhD, clinician-scientist, Montreal Heart Institute and University of Montreal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
Anil Nigam, MD, MSc, preventive cardiologist, Montreal Heart Institute and University of Montreal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.