When you wake up crying real tears, or simply feeling profoundly sad for no apparent reason, it’s because you have finally touched upon some buried grief through a dream. You may have released it all, or there may be more to come. Either way, this is good and healing. (Don’t you always feel much better after a cry?) Even if you don’t remember the dream, rest assured that tears are better out than in, and although you may become more aware, in the next few days, of a past event that caused you grief, you are well on the way to finally letting it go and moving on.
There will be times, in your past, where you were unable to express your grief, or where you felt you should try to hide it.
There will be times, in your past, where you were unable to express your grief, or where you felt you should try to hide it. Perhaps ‘boys don’t cry’, or you were advised to ‘keep a stiff upper lip’, or you accepted a hurtful situation as normal or something to be endured, so you packed grief away, out of sight. Or perhaps the only way to get through a situation was to pretend to yourself that it wasn’t happening, or wasn’t important, or that you were coping wonderfully, or needed to smile for others, or that you had already healed.
The deeper wound still hurts, affecting how you live your life.
These, and other forms of denial, are like bandaids. They work on the surface, but the deeper wound still hurts, affecting how you live your life.
One day the grief finally breaks through – perhaps accompanied by a dream of a dam bursting, or a tsunami breaking – and you wake up crying.
If you can remember your dream, look for clues about your grief, as understanding the past will help you to accelerate your healing.
What age is the child?
Look for a young child or younger person who seems sad, or hurt, or trying to cover up his or her feelings.
What age is the child?
Ask what happened for you at that age, or that number of years ago. It doesn’t matter whether the child or person looks like you. He or she most likely symbolises the event or your hurt.
Also look for historical markers in your dream, perhaps cars, houses, clothes, or numbers that help to give you a time period to explore.
When you have found the source of your grief, do this dream alchemy practice:
Visualise hugging and comforting yourself as you were back then, or hugging and comforting the child in the dream.
Close your eyes, and visualise hugging and comforting yourself as you were back then, or hugging and comforting the child in the dream. Let her cry all her tears dry, then let her smile and laugh and grow strong and happy. Tell her how wonderful her life will be now that her tears have washed it all away, and see her growing, before your eyes, changing and becoming a strong, happy, powerful, and relieved new you. Merge with her in your mind’s eye, and take her, fully healed, into your heart.
[Extract from 101 Dream Interpretation Tips, Jane Teresa Anderson]
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thats very much true and realistic analysis for crying while sleeping issues.
thanks again Jane
This website is going to help me…I just know it.
Thanks
jessica
Last night I dreamed of the sickness portion of my grandfather’s life before he died, also I dreamed of a huge tsunami that was coming towards me, and finally woke up crying (which have never happened to me before) I am kind of freaking out, and have spent big part of my day crying, but as soon as I read this it helped me understand it a little.
Hi Jazz,
Good to know that this article helped you to understand that your dream was processing – and releasing – your grief around your grandfather’s sickness and death. Since dreams reflect the 24-48 hours beforehand, you might like to contemplate what came up for you during that time to trigger this issue/release.
Jane Teresa
I had a dream where I physically abused someone I loved. my family. I would never ever do such a thing. specially since me and this family of mine went through domestic violence years ago. The dream was so horrible and real. I felt depressed about it for a while. I didn’t feel good afterwards. And I more than cried when I woke up, I was short of breath and shocked and then I cried. I was bawling and I scared everybody in the house. That was probably the worst dream I’ve ever had. Because I was the monster in the nightmare.
Hi J,
Thank you for your contribution. It’s really frightening when you wake up and contemplate your feelings and actions in such a dream, isn’t it? The important thing to remember is that everyone in a dream represents something about you, so those negative feelings and actions in your dream were directed at a part of yourself. Here’s another post to explain this more: http://www.janeteresa.com/dreaming-of-people-you-know-a-checklist/
Hope this helps,
Jane Teresa
Hi.
its long before three or four years back i wokeup in middle of my sleep crying uncontrably calling my mom. I don’ t remember anything nbut just dat my mom was dead. But thnx god she is still wid me.. i don’ t know why i always have such horrible dreams..
Today, I woke up from my dream in tears. I’m only 15. I remember bit’s a pieces of my dream, I was watching a movie in a theater by myself, the movie about me when I was younger. Then the next part that I remember was, I was in a room with my Mom and someone else, we all layed on a bed togeather. That’s when I started to cry, in my dream my mom was saying something and it felt like she was leaving me behind, saying “sorry. I know…” I was saying something back and everyword I said was being type out onto a paper within a picture frame not reaching her. Then I woke up in tears,I know this sounds wierd I know, but I wanted to tell my story becuase I think it’s time for me to let my feelings out. My mom and dad had been devorced when I was really young, I don’t remember the age but I was still a child, and my brother and sister I don’t know if they cried or just tried bottle it up like I did, I pretended it was no big deal but in the last 2 years I have been longing for a mothely figure to help me though my life at the most important times, when only a mother can help their child though the pain and suffering their going though.I wish I had a mom that cared for me.
Vincent, I’m so glad you decided to post your dream here and that you’ve realised it’s time to let your feelings out. It’s wonderful that you have shared this publicly, and I know many people reading this will feel and share some of your pain and wish you comfort. Acknowledging the pain, instead of bottling it up, is an important step, Vincent, and it is wonderful that at 15 you have the courage to do this. Many people wait a lifetime and still hold onto their pain, missing out on the opportunity for healing.
I encourage you to write a letter to your mom – whether or not she will ever be able to receive it and read it. On some level, just writing the words is healing. In your dream your words were trapped in a picture frame; though you don’t know what the words were there was a terrible feeling of not being able to reach out and communicate. So it’s time to change the picture in the frame, the feeling that your words are bottled up in the picture frame. So write a letter and let your feelings flow, then add more words to paint a fresh new picture of how you would like your life to be. You could post the letter or go to a beautiful place, read the letter aloud, and perhaps bury it at the foot of a tree or flowering plant so the paper – and your words – will help the tree or plant to flourish.
Whether or not you can ever have your mom back in your life, there are many special women in the world, and I’m sure there are some close to where you live, who can care for you in a motherly way. If you’re still at school, a starting point might be a chat with a school counseller who can point you in the best direction.
Many blessings,
Jane Teresa
I just woke up crying which is something I haven’t done for many years, since I was a child probably. I am only 21 now though. I dreamt my mam and dad were both dead and I was talking to them, they were in heaven with my Grandad. All 3 of these relatives are still alive :S I could see them and I was hugging my mam crying saying I wanted her to take me with them. I was also disturbed that my sister wasn’t crying in my dream. Any ideas what this could mean? I was very shaken up and crying quite hard! Xx
Hi Emma, Dreams always reflect the last 24-48 hours, so the grief you felt in your dream was triggered during the day or two before. Have a think about what your mam, dad, and grandad mean to you, and why you might be sad about losing touch with that now. There’s a part of you (represented by your sister in your dream), that doesn’t express grief. That’s the part that hasn’t cried in many years. Deep down inside you find this bottling up of tears disturbing. You can cry now, it’s ok.
Jane Teresa
I just woke up from and horriibly sad dream that is quite odd as well. I remember every single aspect of the dream. All of it. The smell of the city, the grey sky, everything. I dreamt that I was at a store, and I had met a girl, and we quickly became friends. Then, during a fight with gang memebers, she died. I started crying in the dream, but not hard. Other people she worked/lived with seemed fine. Nobody was sad, but I was. Later on, (I’m guessing days in dream-time) my aunt decides to take me to a spa to relax. I’m waiting for her to get done with her session, when I hear this person coughing. They sound really sick and they sound next door. I go outside and in the room to see. The room is my grandfather’s room. There my grandpa is on the bed, horribly sick and about to die. It was his cough I heard. He saw me and smiled, and acted like it was all okay, even though he looked so frail and sick. Something in me just snapped and I started crying like I never ever would have in real life. I started to sob, and I promised him, because I knew he was dying, that I would see him in paradise. Here comes the weird part. I look back at him, and you know those little cheap animations of stick figures? Like when they walk, it’s shaky? I look back at my grandfather, and he’s one of those, but he’s silently crying. Little tear drops fall from his face, and I can’t take it. I hug him hard, and the dream ends. I wake up and it feels like I’m dying. There’s this overwhelming sadness I feel, and I cried. Hard. Harder than I’ve cried since I was a small child. Like I’m being torn in two. I’ve never felt this way before. This feeling is completely foreign to me. I’m still sobbing and crying and I can’t really stop. It’s been hours, and I’ve just been in my room, crying my eyes and heart out. I was crying while typing this post. :-/ I think the dream touched on my friend earlier, only in real life he was a guy. I quickly became his friend through my dad’s work, and he died in a car accident. My grandfather also comes across to me as himself and my great-grandmother, who I think/know is dying, but nobody will tell me. She’s 94 years old and she’s really bedridden sick. I haven’t seen her in a few months. As for my grandfather, he’s sick too, but not like her. He can still move and is lively. He went through a lot of heart surgery and was close to complete kidney failure, but he’s way better now. Sorry for my long post, but I had type this out. Thanks for your help.
Hi Tyler,
Thank you for your contribution to this post about crying in dreams and waking up crying. You certainly opened up and began to release a lot of grief there, given that you haven’t cried that hard since you were a small child. On the one hand, as you say, some of this grief has been opened up since your friend died in the car accident and that, in turn, has opened up other locked-up grief about other family members, but, as with all dreams, there is a deeper side.
Notice how, on waking up, you feel like you’re being torn in two. Notice also your reference to animations/stick figures. What’s happening here is that at some time in your past you buried some feelings so deep that it was as if you were being torn in two. You probably became quite cool, keeping your emotions down. Your dream represents that through the figure of your grandfather, a living feeling person representing as an animation.
Dreams reflect the last 24-48 hours. Something in the last two days before your dream triggered those deep feelings, and they’ve come up in your dream. You are getting back in touch with what you had buried, and this is good. Cry it all away. Then, instead of feeling torn in two, you will begin to feel a new sense of wholeness, your beautiful self plus being able to really let the warmth of your heart and feelings show.
Hope this helps. If you want to explore this more deeply and find ways through, you might like to book a session with me.
Jane Teresa
hi, my dad died just over 2 years ago, and was very unexpected, he just didn’t wake up. i often wake up crying real tears. What can i do to stop it?
I had a dream my brother was abusing me physically, I fought him and got away, next I remember telling my mom about it and she became angry not that he hurt me but that I was telling her wat happend, she began hitting me hard wit an umbrella in my back, the final hit, and hardest hit shocked me, I looked at my mom she looked at me she said quickly, your ok, in my mind I felt she mite of been sory for doin that, I began to cry, I cried so hard I started to relize It was a dream and I was asleep but I let out a big long cry but awacould not control crying, almost like I wanted to let out my cry even tho I was awake, I did but not for long, my pillow was soaked wit tears, my eyes were swollen, I was in shocked as I sat up thinking how I herd myself crying in my sleep, waking up and cryin still as I was about to stand up I feel pain in my back exactly where I got hit in my dream, I was so confused because I knew it was a dream but tha physical pain was definantly there, I wen to tha mirror to see if there were marks on my back, there was none but tha pain was there n was real. this happened on oct 5th I woke up around 1230 am I still feel lil sore in my back not intense like yesterday but feels like it really happened. Im so confused about it still.
Hi Emily,
It’s better to let your tears flow than to hold them back. Tears are a sign of the grief you feel, and the more you allow yourself to feel the grief, the sooner you’ll feel more at peace with the situation. You might like to explore the dreams that bring you tears as they will help you to get clearer on your painful emotions. You might also like to talk with a grief counsellor who can help you to understand more about the stages of grieving and how understanding these can help you to feel better.
Jane Teresa
Hi Ness,
When you wake up from a dream suddenly – as you did – your brain ‘feels’ the dream pain for real. But that pain only belonged in your dream. It’s the same when people wake up suddenly from a scary dream of seeing a scary person, and when they open their eyes they see the scary person in their bedroom. Only the scary person is not in the bedroom, it is a leftover visual from the dream, and the brain gets confused and tells you the person is in the room. Another way to understand this is to say that the brain experiences a dream and as long as you keep your eyes closed the brain knows these experiences are a dream. But if you suddenly open your eyes (instead of waking up in the usual slower way), your brain thinks “Oh, she’s got her eyes open, so this thing that I’m seeing or feeling must not be a dream, it must be happening in waking life.”.
You were shocked awake suddenly, which is why the dream pain felt real.
You felt pain in your dream when there was an issue of telling the truth about something. The truth can be shocking and very painful. Dreams always reflect the 24-48 hours beforehand, so have a think about what happened in those two days to release this shock and associated tears.
Jane Teresa
Hi, I woke up crying last night, and can’t fully remember my dream, but I think I was hugging my son. I have 2 boys, ages 4 & 2, and I’m pretty sure I was hugging the older one. He, as I am learning that I did as a child, has a lot of anxiety and social phobias and has selective mutism and possibly a mood disorder. My wife and I have been doing alot of work with him as far as getting him services, he has an IEP and receives speech therapy as well as psychotherapy to help with toileting, etc (my wife and I do couples counseling to help us because we’ve had such a hard time with him). After he was born, I was with him most of the time, we were always together and very close. So i was with him while my wife worked up until he was 2. Thats when I started medical school, where I’ve been for the past 2 years, with 2 more and then a residency to go. Since I started school he has had a really difficult time. At that same time his younger brother was born, and he started going to a daycare that we’ve since changed him from, but which was horrible. These events brought alot of changes to his life, and kind of all at once. Knowing that he has such a hard time getting though the day kills me. I would rather still be home with him but I try to tell him that daddy goes to school so we can have a yard, go on vacations, have fun, help people, etc. I think I feel so guilty for not being around as much as I need to be, and as much as I want to be. I had to fight tooth and nail to be able to get out of seeing patients in clinic on Halloween so I could go out with them. But I don’t cry enough in life, I would like to cry more. I feel a lump in my throat now as I type this, but nothing is coming out. I felt great and horrible at the same time last night – I feel like I would like it to happen more often. I tell him all the time how much I love him, I give him a kiss every night when I come home, they’re already in bed asleep, and then I see them for maybe 20 min in the AM before I have to leave for school. I have no real outlet for emotions. I miss them terribly, I just want to be home with them. I want to cry more. Is there any way to jump start those emotions before I goto bed? Thanks for a great post!
Hi, I just woke up from a really wierd but sad and sort of strange dream. This 1 guy, his name is Khanya, he likes starting fights at school. I’m my dream, I was standing up for the kids that were being threatened. The teacher was right in front of him. He hit me a few times(Khanya) but I was ok then he said he was gonna hit one of me friends, I stood up for him and Khanya ended up hitting me, HARD! Next thing I know, I am in a wheelchair. I seemed to be really sick. I still remember how on the day before Khanya hit me, I had planned to go to the arcade with my familia and we were also going to go outside to some carnival. Anyway so I’m in this wheelchair. Its a saturday, the day we were meant 2 b at the arcade. I’m really sad cuz we arnt there, together. Anyway, in my dream it skips Saturday and moves straight to Sunday, the day I am going to die. Its like I know I am about to die becuz I gather my things and I am crying HEAVILY!! So much so that I can’t even see. But I can see my mom and dad standing in the doorway. I can see them crying too. Next thing my little brother(Neo, who is my life and the one that I could never live without, even thought we have arguements) runs in and says,”Are you going?” I nod and I am still crying like mad. He sort of cries but without really using tears. He just moans and basically go’s ‘WAAAAAAAAAAAAH’ without the use of tears which I found sort of strange because wen I visit my fwends, he misses me like crazy. Anyway, I wake up and as I wake up I immediatly start crying. I feel sad and I never want to lose my family. Please give me suggestions of what it could mean… Thanx!!
Hi DC, Thank you for your post, and I appreciate the layers of frustration and anxiety that you are experiencing. Dreaming of hugging your older son most likely reflects not only embracing some of the issues you’ve outlined here, but at a deeper level, embracing aspects of yourself. These most likely include embracing the ‘part’ of yourself that is also four years old, i.e. the last four years of fatherhood, and also perhaps yourself as a four year old child, given that you experienced similar anxieties including (? I think) selective mutism. In moving through fathering your son, you are also encountering any of your own similar unresolved issues and emotions from your own childhood. Given the nature of selective mutism and social phobias, it’s likely that you may have suppressed some emotions as a child, although I’m sure you have explored and expressed many emotions and issues during your couples therapy. My feeling is that, in your dream, you began to embrace (integrate) childhood emotions, and this opened up some grief, the tears you awoke crying. So this is a good start. Take comfort that you must be doing something right to have begun this process, to have begun to cry in a dream. You ask how you can cry more, how you can jump start those emotions before bed. I suggest, DC, you might like to write a letter to yourself as a child, or perhaps just a few sentences each night before you sleep. Imagine your child self as you remember him, embrace him and comfort him with your words. As you fall asleep, picture and feel yourself hugging yourself as a child. Begin with this. Your dreams will work deeper. You may also like to book a session or two with me by skype: http://www.dream.net.au/services/membership.cfm
Hope this helps,
Jane Teresa
Hi Zoey, There’s a lot in your dream and this blog isn’t really about interpreting (interpretation is an in-depth service), but here’s a hint to help you on your way: Notice that in your dream you twice mention “standing up” for people, and then you end up in a wheelchair because you can no longer stand up. When you notice a pair of opposites like this in a dream, it’s a clue to an issue that is bothering you. So your issue is about standing up – or not standing up – for yourself, and when this gets you in trouble (either way). It’s about needing to find a balance, to be able to stand up for what is right, in a gentle way, not in a way that threatens. And it’s about having courage to stand up in this gentle way, not to fear it so much that you end up feeling powerless. Think about the things you value about your family, and about the way that you would like to live your life from this point forward. Stand up gently but firmly for your values.
Hope this helps,
Jane Teresa
I was very close with my grandparents and took care of my grandmother
In deep sickness, and never had a chance to say good bye to her before she past away. Yet my grandfather past away few years before her and the same day years later she past on that same day herself! Greed in the family took over and nothing was how it was suppose to be before she past and how she and grandpa wanted the Will! The oldest ended up changing it in his favour while leaving the rest of the family in dark.
So where my dream comes in, I was in the setting of my grabdparents house and there was a missing letter and it couldn’t be put together or read so I managed to piece the message together… And it was almost saying its ok and she left me some watch I’ve never seen in my life and my uncle was mad but ended up agreeing upon letting me have it… I held the watch and I could feel my grandfathers presence! It was so moving I could feel and see and smell that home!
I always dream of being in the same areas Mostlikly as a child! Or a misson, and always sad or pain or surrounded by water!!
This dream I woke up in dead tears and looking above me and thanking and loving my grandparents! Very moving like they sent a message thru my dream!
Miss and love them so much the ying and yang to my life!!!
It’s the second time today I have woken up from my dreams crying. First one was with a baby, and the second one was with me dad talking to me and he seemed upset with me. That both made me really sad I could not stop crying. What does this mean? Any one know? I don’t wanna have another one.
Hi Gab,
Thank you for your very moving contribution. What a comforting dream, indicating that you are coming to terms with your grief and loss. I wonder if the watch represents time, reminding you of special times, more valuable than money. If your grandfather were alive today, what advice might he give you? Ah, maybe you’ve already said it here: a way to bring the yin and yang balance into your life.
By the way, I wonder if those dreams about missions are a play on words. Do you feel you have a mission in life around sadness and pain?
Jane Teresa
Hi Anthea,
As I mentioned in the blog, waking up crying is good, showing that grief is being released. Think of rainbows: sunshine after rain.
You are releasing some sadness. Good! Better gone than kept inside. (This site is not really about interpretation. If you wanted to book a consultation with me, I’d be asking for more details of your dream before it could be interpreted.)
Hope this helps and assures you.
Jane Teresa
I am extremely glad I found this
I woke up from a nightmare and just cried because I could still remember the feeling I was having in the dream. It was horrible, lonely,violent, and just full of regret. Never in my life have I had such a dream. Thank you. With the newely learned knowledge I can comfort that little girl with the hurt dog and tell her everything is going to be okay.
Thank you Lupe. I’m glad the article helped. The ‘give back the belief’ dream alchemy is powerful. You will notice some deep changes. Don’t be surprised if you find yourself a bit weepy over the next couple of days. It’s all part of releasing the rest of that grief. Everything is indeed ok.
Jane Teresa
Last night I had a vivid dream that my family and I were standing in a circle around my sick grandmother, (who died over 8 years ago) and were discussing how she wouldn’t be there for my wedding. She suffered and died from ALS, a very dehumanizing disease, and I had only been 12 years old at the time and basically ignored her sick presence in my house, because I never wanted to deal with it. After she passed, I felt sad and relief, but last night I dreamed of writing her a letter maintaining our close relationship while she was still sick, and I remember trying so hard not to cry (making that face that hurts) in my dream, but waking up bawling. I couldn’t stop the rest of the night and I feel off and down today, but this website has made me realize I had been feeling guilt all of this time for basically giving up on her, and I am still just sad. Hopefully now I will stop having nights like this.
Hi Sara,
Thank you for writing about your dream and the insights you gained form reading this blog. You are certainly releasing the sadness now. Good! Remember to be very kind to yourself and remember that at age 12 most girls are not emotionally mature enough to cope with the situation you faced. It was very traumatic for you, so you naturally distanced yourself. Knowing you were so young, you can let go of that feeling of guilt. You were just 12.
At the same time, you might want to wonder why you had this dream now. Is there something else in your life you might have been “giving up on” – within yourself – recently?
Jane Teresa
Last night I woke up 4 times and fell asleep into tha same dream it was horrible and each time I was cryin tryin to wake up. In my dream I felt a strong hold, as if I was being held down , there was a tight grip around my wristsand felt heavy weight on my legs, I couldnt, speak,yell, or cry for help, ive had dreams as this before and I usually wake up after screaming out tha words jesus, however this time instead of jus bein in fear of bein held down by evil forces in this dream I indured pain so bad everytime I woke up I still felt pain, everytime I atempted to scream out tha words jesus, I felt pain on my right side right below my ribs felt as someone or something was squeezing or putin great
pressure to tha point I couldnt scream, everytime I called to tja name of jesus I felt more and more pressure, I would wake up breating fast realizing It was a drea I would fall back asleep in to tha same dream I tried to open my eyes but I couldnt, I woke up and fell asleep 3 more times into tha same dream I m crying and as soon as I compose myself I fall into tha horible dream again, my question is how was I able to go back
to tha same horrible dream theres time I want to go to sleep to finish a dream its imossible, also tha pain under my ribs remained after waking up tha more I cryied when awake tha more I felt tha pain under my ribs this
is while awake. Wat is tha reason for such evilness in my dream its ways tha same in a dark humid room, I never see anyone or anything but its like torture to me and its very hard to cry or speak and hard to wake up, now im a christian and I dont invite any evilness in my home or mind or life why such an attack in my sleep. I have had similar dreams before eversince I was 10yrs old im 32 now n tha dreams are gettin more painful after im wake in my real life,can a person die in real life if not able to suceed in waking urself up or gettin out of a evil dream such as tha ones I experience from time to time.
Hi Ness,
A good question. Plenty of people have woken up very much alive (like you) after such scary dreams, and though we’ll never be able to ask those who die in their sleep what they were dreaming when they passed, my feeling after over 20 years of research and consultations is that our lives are not threatened by our frightening dreams. So let’s look instead at how you can stop having this experience, and start enjoying your dreams and getting good healthy sleep.
By the way, since you’ve been having this kind of dream since you we’re ten, the waking life situation that causes you to dream this dream first began when you were ten. So that might give you a clue.
Dreams are symbolic, and not what they seem. Dreams are all about your feelings and how you see the world around you and how you respond to it. Rest assured there’s nothing evil trying to get at you in your sleep. It’s more about you wrestling with your own feelings of good and evil in the world.
This blog is not about offering interpretation (you can consult me by checking my services on the blog menu). I highly recommend you get my ebook “How to stop bad dreams ….” which outlines many scary dreams (including ones similar to yours), helps you to understand them, and gives you exercises to do to stop them. You can buy it here (instant download so you can start reading right away):
http://www.dream.net.au/shop/stop_bad_dreams.cfm
Jane Teresa
4 nights ago I woke up to the worst feeling ever. I was dreaming that my dad was picking me up along with my 3yr old baby brother. My dad was driving a classic mustang (a car that he knows I wan) and I got in the car but instead of putting my brother in his baby seat I sat him next to me,in the front seat. At this point I notice my dad uncomfortable about something and we don’t exchange word, I then put on my seat belt but not on my baby brother just me and just hold him tight. As were driving my brother flies out the window and I see my face like OMG eyes and mouth wide open and look at my dad and all he does is shake his head in disappointment. This makes me go back to my seat with my hands on my mouth like in shock because my dad keeps on driving and that means were not stoping and were certainly not going back for my brother…. I’ve had nightmares were my heart is pounding and I’m scared. I’ve had dreams that make feel sad and happy as well. But after having this dream not only did I wake up crying but also felt worst painful feeling my heart has ever felt and it hurt so bad I just had to take my hand and kinda grave my chest and start asking for it to stop. But this I guess made it worst and just couldn’t stop crying like crazy. I don’t even know for how long this was going on but fell asleep that way,crying and my heart feeling that way. Throughout the day I was just puzzled onto why I woke up like that. Till I told my friend and we talked about it and joking around I told her “maybe my soul was that sad or needed to cry” we both laughed. And then I came across this and I can see that I’m not the only one who’s had an experience like this. :/
Hi Jay,
Thank you for contributing your dream, and helping other people realise they’re not alone and that these dreams are not what they seem. You were right, weren’t you, about some deep part of yourself being sad and needing to cry? The shock feeling in your dream was also something you needed to release. I wonder what happened for you in the one or two days before your dream to trigger this release.
Jane Teresa
This morning I woke sobbing and in my dream I was crying my eyes out as well. I was crying over my father. In my dream we were helping my aunt and little cousin pick up their food and ice cream and my mom said see what your dad does for us? And I remember staring at her angry and telling her what she means because he’s never done a single thing in his life for us. And she ignored me! I was sobbing and sobbing over the absence of my father (they were angry resentful tears) and my mom did not care. She thought I was being over dramatic and selfish. Hague thought I was throwing an unnecessary tantrum. In fact my family was even having a party next door and were completely oblivious to my sobbing. I continued to cry over him and continued to yell about him doing nothing for us and I was just completely ignored. My dad left me and my mom when I was about a year old. He came to visit maybe twice, the last time being when I was 4. I haven’t heard from him since. I don’t know where he is or what ever happened to him. I have never expressed any sadness of his absence in my life mainly because I have a very strong single working mother who attempted and succeeded in giving me everything I needed. I also have an uncle who is very strong father figure in my life. All in all I never expressed any grief towards the absence of my father, I simply shrugged it off as something normal that happens everyday to many people and simply I could have a worse situation but I don’t. Perhaps my dream is bringing up any suppressed hurt and helplessness I felt towards my situation. This was very long I know but I just had to talk about what just happened.
Hi Jackie,
Thank you for contributing your experience. It feels good to tell the story and help release the emotions from the dream and from long ago, doesn’t it? Since dreams process the last 24-48 hours, have a think about issues or feelings that came up for you prior to the dream that may have resonated with the unconscious grief. The release of grief will shift your feelings and views about both the past and the recent issues/experiences. You may find some things begin to look quite different to you, in a positive way.
Jane Teresa
Last week i was crying in my dream that my brother died and i woke up crying alott of tears coming out. And my father died like 15yrs ago and yesterday i had a crazyyyy dream that i saw him walking in the street smoking a cigarette it was very weird i dont remember all of it but i woke up crying again my pillow was soaked from tears . Its crazyi never cried and woke up crying before in my dream now all of a sudden it happened twice in one week? Thank you for your time and help “Tony “
This morning I woke up from a horrible dream. I was with old class mates in an outdoor lecture situation and we weren’t really paying attention. There was a male authority figure and someone who appeared to be like me with a cocky personality not looks (much better looking) suddenly we’re running through a house away from this man and old classmates are acting like nothing’s going on. The male figure kills the man like me and catches me smoking weed and puts me down about it. Then I’m in my grandmothers dining room in a meeting situation, there’s a 3-4 people at the table but I’m only focusing on my exs father dressed in a joke super hero outfi. We discuss how I finished my ex and he says he’s disappointed in me then my ex appearsand were in a place we both know and shes smiling a laughing and we lay on the grass hugging and saying how much we love eachother and then I wake up and cry my eyes out? Does this mean I’m not over her (I am probably not)
I had two dreams last night and awoke crying from each. The first one I was being robbed in a library with a gun at my back.
The man was being so violent I knew he was going to shoot even though i gave him what he asked for. I could feel the gun on my back even after I woke up. The second dream I was trying to protect my nephew from a man I thought was dangerous. He began chasing us. I hid my nephew safely but he still was chasing me and killing other strangers to get to me. Right before he killed me he said i “should have been nicer to him”. Once again I woke up in tears. I thought this would have something to do with the 7 anniversary of my brother being killed.
Thank you for contributing your dream Tony. Isn’t it wonderful that your grief is finally releasing?
You might like to read this article on dreams of death and dying:
http://www.dream.net.au/library/death_dreams.cfm
Jane Teresa
Hi Chris, I think you’ve answered your own question. Crying – releasing the grief – is a key step on the way to letting go. Remember, if you want help with understanding a dream (and help with letting go and moving forward), I offer a range of professional consultations at: http://www.dream.net.au/
Jane Teresa
Hi Lia, Since dreams process our conscious and unconscious experiences of the last 24-48 hours, it is likely that your dreams are processing the anniversary, if that is very much on your mind now. There is more in your dream, elements of protection and emotional boundaries. You might like to consult me at http://www.dream.net.au/ for further help. It’s good that you’re waking up crying, releasing that grief.
Jane Teresa
OMG…I just woke up crying my eyes out. I thought it was about missing my grandson & gandaughter ( 5 & 3) who I raised for 4 & 2 years, but after reading your sight I believe it’s the healing I’ve been longing for since I was a very very young girl. I am now 51 and just happen to be living in the same house and sleeping in the same bedroom I grew up in. I had an alcoholic father who abused my mom up until I was like 6 or 7. I remember her all bloody, but don’t remember him. he passed away in ’78. He never wanted children, I never got to really know him except he was an addict and very abusive. always went through life feeling unwanted plus I’m a recovering addict myself. thank you for your insight….Victoria
Hi Victoria,
Thank you for your reflections on your dream, how it relates, and the healing it reflects. You’re spot on.
Many blessings,
Jane Teresa
Hey ya
I’m only 18 and my dream that seemed odd was that I was dreaming that I was in the mall looking to buy some glasses and I’m walking with my ‘husband’ and we’re talking about how we’ve been married for a whole year and a half, but the thing is out of the blue he doesn’t seem to remember me and he didn’t love me anymore, he stops but I keep on walking as he tells me that we should go our separate ways and as I carry on walking I’m hiding my face as I can feel tears running down my face, then I tune around and he’s gone, out of sight, I turn the other to find my younger sister waiting for me to run up to her and just cry in her arms, as if she knew what’s happened. As we’re walking to the car he calls out to me from behind and asks me do, I love him? My instant reply was “I said it before, I always have and always will” but I’m shouting it at him and crying so intensely and breathing heavily that I wake up trying to catch my breath as though it actually happened and my pillow soaking with my tears.
Shanice
Hello,
A couple days ago I woke up crying when i started to cry in my dream. When I read your artcle it got me thinking, my dream was about something that has never happened, it was focused around the death of my schools chaplaincy leader who i am close with but he isnt dead. It was a very strange dream. But why would i dream about this?
Thanks
Kelsey
Hi Shanice,
Thank you for your contribution. You might like to ask yourself what began a year and a half ago in your life, since your dream refers to a sadness around feeling that something that’s been in your life that long is coming to an end.
Jane Teresa
Hi Kelsey,
People in our dreams are symbols reflecting our own conscious and unconscious beliefs and feelings. Ask yourself how you see your chaplain. What’s his personality? What does he represent to you? Your dream reflects sadness around feeling that you’re losing touch with what he represents. Death in a dream often symbolises a sense of an ending. Endings can be good when they lead us – through change – to something new. Other times our dreams can alert us to what we are not giving energy to, letting die. Think symbols, not real people.
Here’s an article about dreams, what they are:
http://www.dream.net.au/aboutjane/about_dreams.cfm
Jane Teresa
Hi Jane Teresa, My dad’s an alcoholic. The earliest I remember it starting to get abusive was when I was around 14 years old. I’m currently in my 20′s. My dad is still drinking to this day, but I’ve accepted it. I’m not really sure why I had this dream early this morning. I think all of the feelings/stress i’m experiencing now is bringing up the feelings and loss I feel around my dad. I feel sad because my dad is starting to forget things and i’m worried that he will never quit drinking..never finding his happiness in life.
Here was my dream: I’m trying to talk to my dad on my cellphone, but the signal is really bad, and I can’t hear a lot. My mom is off to the side arguing with me about different types of games? Shes’ getting really stressed and irritable, looking frustrated and sad. It just makes me mad to see her like this. (I used to hate to come home to my mom like this because it would stress me out too..) In this dream, I tell my mom that I know what i’m doing when choosing a game. I say that i’ve been doing it for awhile.. I then try to walk away from my mom and call my dad back. My mom then says “that was 200 years ago. Your dad is long and gone,” meaning he died or disappeared. I get really sad and say “no.” I somehow get a chance to go back to a time when he was still alive. In the dream, I look like i’m in my 20′s (my current age) and I go to a time when he was laying in his bed sleeping. It’s my chance to see him, so I walk into his bedroom and see his pants on a chair wondering if hes not dressed..because I didn’t want him to be nude. I saw that he had pants on, so I climbed into bed with him and cuddled up next to him. He holds me and I start crying hysterically. In the dream, he seems like he understands why i’m crying. He lets me cry.
Going back to when he wasn’t there anymore, there’s a baby and some other kid. They won’t know my dad unless they get to seem him like I did, going back in time. So after i’m done crying with my dad, I grab them and throw them onto the bed so that they can get a hold of the memory of my Dad. It seemed like the memory was before he became an alcoholic..I then see my dad’s dog laying on the floor and he looks old. I get really sad again, and I wake up crying, feeling like my dad is gone and will never be back.
Could this be me letting go of some grief as well?
I’m wondering if the kids were myself at different ages..?
If you could comment on this, I’d appreciate it so much!
Hi Amanda,
You do indeed seem to be feeling and releasing grief in your dream. That’s wonderful. Consider everyone in a dream as an aspect of yourself. In answer to your question, those children may represent yourself at those ages, or they may refer to more recent times. For example, the baby may represent something new in your life, something that’s been in your life for the same time as the age of the baby (e.g. an attitude, relationship, situation), something new that would benefit from releasing the grief and moving into acceptance.
If you’d like to honour your dream by exploring it deeply with me, please book a consultation here:
http://janeteresaanderson.com/consultations/phone-or-skype-consultation/
Jane Teresa
Hi Jane,
I’m so glad I read your article, it gave me more of an understanding of my dream. I just recently woke up crying because in my dream, my family and I just got out of Sunday mass at church. It was my birthday, and all I wanted on my birthday was to eat together with my whole family at a restaurants. All my aunts and uncles and grandparents and cousins were there. Suddenly, they all started saying their goodbyes and I asked where was everybody going? A random person’s reply was, “we have a lot of things to do.” Then I started balling or crying a lot. And I said, “that as all I wanted, I just wanted to be with my family.”
What does this mean?