FACULTAD DE INGENIERÍA

ESCUELA ACADÉMICA PROFESIONAL DE INGENIERÍA CIVIL

INFORME

“MEANING OF COMMON DREAMS AND NIGHTMARES”

AUTORES:
JACINTO VELASQUEZ, Mirko
VALDIVIEZO CALERO, Karin

ASESOR:
TURRIATE CHÁVEZ, Jairo
CURSO:
INGLES III

NUEVO CHIMBOTE – PERÚ

2017
 INTRODUCTION

At certain stages of sleep, the brainstem is partially deactivated. This structure

communicates the brain and the body, the pyramidal neurons in it are responsible for
transmitting to the members the orders of movement and through it receives much of the
information of what happens in the body. Also partially disabling the frontal lobe, which is
the part of the brain that we use for our executive functions. The rest of the cerebral
functions are in operation practically the same as in wakefulness. That is why during sleep
our mind continues to work and reproduce the world and our behavior in it. To do this, it
uses the same means as in the waking state, ie images, words, sensations and emotions.
However, the structures that have been deactivated give special characteristics to dreams:
they do not produce movements, and they are chaotic, that is, unstructured and
meaningless.
Sleep has two recognized psychological functions:

• There is a strong consensus that it helps to establish long-term memory and

tries to keep the rest going, without waking up.
• Others consider that there are enough indications to consider that dreams
have had a training work to face the situations feared by our species, in fact
during the dreams generated in the REM phase contain schemes of fight or
flight.
II. THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK

THE MEANING OF COMMON DREAMS

Most authors who do worked with dreams in psychotherapy give them a hidden meaning
to be discovered. They are based on the existence of a metaphorical meaning included in
the language and the images that compose its content (Pesant and Zadra 2004, Hill 2000).
For authors who give them meaning, there would be two levels of meaning in the dream:
the manifest content, composed of what has been dreamed and the latent content, which
would be the interpretation. Other authors consider that dreams are disposable products
of our mind with no meaning and no use other than helping to enhance our memory
(Hobson, 2000).

For Seligman (1987) the contents of dreams are chaotic, but our brain does not admit
chaos and begins to give meaning and interpretation since they begin to be remembered
or pointed. In this sense, Seligman distinguishes two types of content in sleep that have a
high visual definition or emotional content that correspond to very specific and
identifiable stimuli and those other phases that are more blurred and verbal than would
correspond to an initial attempt to explain the Transition between two distinct visual or
emotional stimuli. For Seligman the interpretation of dreams is an attempt to make sense
of visual and emotional sensations through verbal elaborations that integrate them into a
more coherent and rational story.

THE INTERPRETATION PROCESS

Irrespective of the psychological theory used in interpretation, two basic principles have
been followed (Pesant and Zadra, 2004):

1. A detailed description of the manifest content of the dream.

2. The generation of associations
1. The free association of psychoanalysis is a way of realizing this association.
Using it, the person who wants to interpret his dream generates all the
associations that come to his head, without any censorship, until there is a
feeling that the meaning has been found in the dream. This method can
take away from the manifest content of the dream. Many authors employ
other forms that allow us to be closer to what we have dreamed of.
2. Another method is the amplification of sleep content. In which the person
is expanding the content that remembers the dream, or adding new
elements of free and / or rational form.
3. Lastly, they can be generated by direct questions from both the person and the
therapist.
The truth is that the methods of interpretation that are used are not reliable, in the sense
that they do not produce a unique result since the latent content depends on when the
interpretation is made, which method is followed and the therapist who helps to perform
it
THE INTERPRETATION OF DREAMS IN COGNITIVE BEHAVIORAL THERAPY

In these circumstances, the use of dream interpretation in cognitive behavioral

psychotherapy is very isolated and has to be associated with specific problems that arise
in the course of therapy. In particular, there are cases in which the patient attaches great
importance to dreams or in which dreams are recurrent nightmares with a significant
impact on the well-being of patients. Therefore, it is interesting to have a method to
interpret them.

THE COLLECTION OF DREAMS

We are all aware that dreams are volatile elements that disappear before we even leave
the bed and that even if one wants to remember them they resist and forget. There are a
number of techniques that improve the collection of dreams (Pesant and Zadra, 2004):

1. Tell yourself several times before falling asleep that you will remember dreams. It
is a method of suggestion.
2. Stay with your eyes closed after waking up, concentrating on what has happened
in our mind just moments before.
3. Have a notebook with a pen on the bedside table so that they can be aimed before they
get up, even if the only thing that is remembered is a static image

Only by intending it can you remember many more dreams.

THE PROCESS OF INTERPRETATION OF DREAMS IN COGNITIVE BEHAVIORAL THERAPY

If we start from the psychological functions of sleep, that is, they are a training in
situations that we fear and avoid, and that enhance emotional memory; Their
interpretation can help us deal with anxiety and automate the process effectively and
automatically. For this, in the dream itself or in the interpretation would have to face
those situations that appear in the manifest content and that are potentially dangerous.

There is a method of interpretation, very simple, that can be done by anyone, and it does
not take long to apply and is based precisely on confronting the feared situations, which is
the clinical method of overcoming fears and phobias.

The Senoi method of dream interpretation:

The Senoi is a mythical town in Australia. Every day as soon as they got up they would
gather in the campfire and tell of their dreams and nightmares of the night.

When someone had a bad dream, everyone was looking for a solution. But it was a
solution that did not try to avoid the fear nor to leave the situation fleeing; But they tried
to solve it by facing what they feared in the dream.
ORIGIN OF NIGHTMARES

Although nightmares that appear sporadically may be a normal response to stress or

worry, the Nighmares study, performed by Sleep Medicine physician James F. Pagel Jr. and
published in the American Family Physician, noted that if recurring May be a symptom of
psychiatric problems. A conclusion that confirmed another research published in the
magazine Sleep and done in Finland by the University of Turku and the National Institute
of Health: it was shown that suffering from depression and insomnia is a cause of
nightmares while we sleep.

"Nightmares can depend on diseases derived from two major fields: psychiatry and
neurology. In the psychiatric field, virtually all diseases are associated with nightmares,
and depression is number one. But also post-traumatic stress disorder, which follows a
murder, an accident or a violation, in which these dreams are a fundamental symptom.
They may also be linked to schizophrenia, obsessive-compulsive disorders and
neurological diseases, either by the disease itself or by the side effects of the drugs, "says
García-Borreguero. "We know something about the causes, but not enough," he admits.

10 MOST COMMON NIGHTMARES AND THEIR MEANINGS

1. DREAMING OF NATURAL DISASTERS:

Dreaming of an earthquake, a tsunami, a major storm or any other natural disaster is
more common than one might think and it is the nightmare that begins this list.
Disasters or natural catastrophes represent an imminent fear in the unconscious, a
strong feeling of anxiety. Experts point out that it can also manifest situations that, like
climate, can´t be controlled and involve minor nervous breakdowns. It is also a sign of a
problem of social and emotional relationship.

2. DREAM WITH A DECEASED:

The appearance of a deceased or a loved one who died in our dream activity is also
very frequent. The explanation for this type of nightmare is directly related to the
emotional struggles that we all have before the loss of a loved one, in addition, in these
dreams is determinant the way in which the deceased perished.

3. DREAM ABOUT MISSING AN IMPORTANT EVENT:

Many people dream that important events such as a wedding, an important event, a
trip, a flight, etc. are lost. Commonly, the interpretation of this nightmare, like that of
many others, is linked with feelings of anxiety and fear about the possibility of failing or
being unable to meet the expectations of a person who represents a certain type of
power. It is strongly linked to the concept of responsibility, negativity and pessimism.
4. TO DREAM OF BEING NAKED IN PUBLIC:
Nudity is rather a taboo issue and being naked in public in dreams is a recurring
nightmare especially in teenagers. However, experts say that its significance may be
realizing a serious problem, directly related to low self-esteem, lack of communication
and problems of relationship with the peer group.
5. TO DREAM THAT YOUR TEETH ARE FALLING:
A nightmare that is also associated especially with problems of self-esteem, insecurity
and conflicts in the personality is to dream that the teeth are detached. It is also a
nightmare common among adolescents and is very similar to being naked in public,
although this is more recurrent than the previous one mentioned. Fear of being judged
by vulgarity, anxiety, and strong concern for how other individuals consider the
physical aspect of the person are key points behind this nightmare.
6. TO DREAM THAT THEY HURT US OR CAUSE US A WOUND:
The abilities of our brain during the dream activity is most fascinating and dreams can
be very, very real, especially when we dream that we hurt ourselves, give us a blow or
someone inflicts a wound on our body. It is a common nightmare and its
interpretation suggests the vulnerability or weakness that is feeling who dreams of
this. It is especially related to problems in the development of character and
personality.
7. TO DREAM THAT YOU LOSE YOUR PARTNER OR ANOTHER LOVED ONE:
Another common nightmare and especially related to the insecurity, the anxiety and,
above all, the fear of the solitude. This is characterized by the departure of a loved
one, who can be either a couple or a friend, a relative or someone very close and is
interpreted as a feeling of inferiority, lack of self-confidence and dependence on
another person.
8. DREAM OF BEING TRAPPED OR LOCKED IN PLACE:
This is the worst nightmare of those who suffer from claustrophobic disorders or who
have suffered from traumatic experiences related to confinement, and it is a
nightmare that they are often victims of abductions. There is also a more symbolic
interpretation that suggests that this type of nightmare is often also suffered by those
who unconsciously feel trapped in everyday situations, with financial, labor, routine
and emotional problems.
9. DREAM THAT WE FALL:
How many times did you dream that you were falling and woke up with the violent
shaking of your body when reacting? As it is the second most common nightmare and
according to several interpretations, it is a manifestation of the excess of stress and
anxiety that an individual feels before the incapacity to control a problem in its
personal life.
10. TO DREAM THAT THEY PERSECUTE US:
Dreaming that they are chasing us is the most frequent nightmare. Generally one
dreams that a considerably dangerous animal, a person with bad intentions or a
fictional being and of paranormal type, follows us or it tries to attack us. According to
experts, this nightmare is when we feel afraid in the face of confrontation, it may be
against the boss of the job, a teacher, an abusive parent or an emotional relationship
that jeopardizes their continuity. It has also been noted that this dream is more
intense and recurrent when the person has suffered abuse of any kind.
 III. CONCLUSIONS

 Dreams have many meanings only we have to analyze each one and think
like this one and if they have sense the dreams in the daily life.
 It is recommended that in order to have beautiful dreams we must be
relaxed and without much concern.
 It is advisable to avoid horror movies and go to bed as quickly as possible,
because people who sleep late have dreams of terror and anxiety.
 IV. BIBLIOGRAPHIC REFERENCES

 http://elpais.com/elpais/2015/05/28/buenavida/1432823905_305981.html

 http://www.psicoterapeutas.com/pacientes/interpretasuenyo.htm

 http://www.vix.com/es/btg/curiosidades/5004/las-10-pesadillas-mas-comunes-y-
sus-significados