15 Most Common Nightmares

12a'

5 – Apocalypse Scenarios,

5b

  • Apocalyptic dreams, where an asteroid destroys the Earth or a violent hurricane rips apart your neighbourhood, often indicate anxiety or impending fear. Weather, like life, is often unpredictable and cannot be controlled, which causes what the French call le stress.
  • This type of nightmare often indicates a looming disaster in your waking life. You might have an upcoming test that you’re not prepared for, or you’re putting off going to the doctor even though that weird lump on your body has grown so big it’s now talking to you.
  • Although these dreams generally mean you’re under tremendous amounts of stress, there is one upside if you’re a writer who keeps a dream journal. Try mining your dreams for details to write a kick-arse post-Apocalyptic story. Everyone loves those.

4 – Missing Important Events,

4b

  • Nightmares about missing important dates, like your wedding or a brain surgery appointment, are common for people with fast-paced, high-pressure lives. Since the modern world is stressful as balls, this is pretty much everyone.
  • Often these dreams are linked to worries we’re not meeting others’ expectations, or they’re signs we need to better manage our time.
  • I wish these dreams were more literal. Like, no one would misinterpret them if they involved being chased up the street by a giant anthropomorphic clock.

3 – Seeing the Dead,

3c

  • This chilling type of nightmare is often associated with an inability to let go or accept change.
  • Dreamers who experience it might encounter someone they know who has recently passed away, or they might be haunted by the ghosts of random strangers. Either way, these nightmares usually signify a fear of the unknown.
  • Sometimes they occur when the dreamer is anxious about personal illness. There have been many cases of terminal illness sufferers being contacted by apparitions in this way.

2 – Monsters,

2a

  • Coming face to face with a monster or terrifying creature in your dreams can represent a number of things. It can mean you need to up your meds again, or it can represent a loss of control or fear of something on the horizon.
  • For career-oriented people, monster dreams could represent spiralling work commitments that have been neglected out of fear.
  • Since monsters are creatures of imagination, dreaming about them could indicate the dreamer is dealing with something they don’t understand or want to face. Things like the monster’s size, colour and temperament all affect the dream’s interpretation.
  • No matter what this dream means, it is generally taken as a sign that something needs to addressed to restore order.

1 – Being Trapped,

1b

  • Dreams about being trapped or unable to move are common for sufferers of claustrophobic anxiety, a condition involving a fear of confined spaces.
  • This nightmare has a pretty straightforward metaphor: it’s commonly experienced by people who are trapped in their current situation, whether it be financial problems, a dead-end job or a crappy relationship.
  • It can also be a manifestation of the fear of not being able to reach our full potential due to circumstances beyond our control.
  • If your dream involves being literally trapped in a box, this could your subconscious’s way of telling you to think outside the box every once in awhile in real life. Or, you know, it could mean you should stop sleeping in coffins. That shit isn’t good for your back.

INFO & IMAGE SOURCES

Reactions
  • Creepy (37%)
  • Epic (23%)
  • Wat (20%)
  • Lewd (11%)
  • No (9%)