Preparing for dreamwork

I look forward to doing dreamwork with you. If you are new to dreamwork, please know that I honor each dream as much as I honor you, the dreamer.  

One-to-one sessions, Dream groups, & workshops

WHAT TO BRING

Please bring a dream.  If you have an unusually lengthy dream, focus on the part that had the most energy or drew your curiosity and attention. You may wish to take notes about what we discuss. I recommend you bring your journal or paper and pen. Most importantly, bring a sense of wonder and curiosity.

WRITE IT DOWN

Step one -

Give your dream a title.  This step informs the psyche that the dream is important to you.  Think of it like a ‘read receipt’ in text. It’s an acknowledgement that it’s been received and you’re working on it.  

Step two -

Write down your dream as it happened. Typewritten or handwritten. It's ok if you can only recall a portion or just a fragment of the dream. We can work with what you recall. Write your dream in first person, present tense, such as ”It’s dusk and I’m in a house that’s unfamiliar…” Don’t stress about this.  If it ends up in past tense that’s ok.  No one but you will see what you’ve written down. This is about ease in sharing your dream, whether it be with me or in group setting, so that I/we may place ourselves within your dream. Only share what happened and what you saw or experienced in the dream. Set aside expository elements. For example, your dream includes a friend with whom you’ve had a recent falling out. Don’t include the “falling out” unless it happened in the dream. We want to place ourselves within the dream and what it’s trying to teach us.

Dream sharing is a bit like storytelling…

Keeping a dream journal has many benefits and purposes.  For our time together, writing down the dream is for ease in sharing.  However, it’s not an absolute necessity. Dream sharing, like storytelling, has an oral history across time and many cultures, so feel free to share it from memory.   Visual storytelling is another way to keep a dream journal.  Drawing, painting, and collage are just a few ways to creatively embody dreams. 

“But I don’t remember my dreams”

Sometimes it’s difficult to recall our dreams. We’re awakened by an alarm clock, a cat’s mew, or morning routines to meet the day. Just the slightest movement and poof, the dream has flown away. There are ways to encourage dream recall. I’m sure you’ve seen articles that suggest having a journal next to your bed. However, by the time you reach for pen and paper the dream can dissipate. I recommend the following to all those who want to recall their dreams:

  • As you awaken, and if you can, lie still with eyes closed. Sometimes the dream or a dream fragment remains. Take a few moments to revisit the dream or fragment. See it in your mind’s eye. Was there a stand-out color, scene, or feeling?

  • Notice what felt-sense awakened you. Sometimes we awaken and have an overwhelming feeling or energy. Make a mental note of that. It too is part of the dream.

  • “I only recall one thing.” That’s ok, we can work with a dream fragment. In fact, it’s the very element we recall that has the most to offer. Quantity is not the goal of dreamwork. Some work a single big dream over the course of months. Others may experience the energy and felt-sense of a single image or dream over many years.

  • After awakening, once you’ve spent a few moments revisiting your dream, then make notes in a journal or notebook. Some make audio recordings. Others make a list of the most important elements on their phone or tablet. We don’t always have the time to write and contemplate, but with very quick notes you will be able to return to the dream at another time when you can write out the entirety of the dream and reflect.

  • The act of recalling and writing down or sharing a single dream or fragment lets the psyche know you’re paying attention. You’ll find that once you begin doing this, more dreams will be recalled more easily.

  • We dream several times a night which means that we don’t recall most dreams, but the ones that rise to our memory are the ones we’re meant to contemplate. If your dream flies away upon awakening, do not worry, you’ll receive more dreams.

For movement classes only

Movement classes differ from individual sessions, groups, and workshops in that we work with our dreams entirely through the body. During movement classes, I will ask that participants consider an image, symbol, narrative, or energy that they would like to focus on. I may ask participants to volunteer a dream image or energy that we can explore as a class. Classes will be primarily focused on movement improvisation and movement intuition with dream imagery as a springboard. Participants in movement classes are not required to bring a dream, written or otherwise. I will offer many prompts to ignite imagination and the sensory.

WHAT TO EXPECT

As a practitioner, I hold myself to ethics and practices that respect both you and your dream.  Please visit my Ethics and Disclaimer page to learn in detail the practices by which I abide. I hope these commitments offer you a sense of confidence in having me as your dream guide:

  • maintain confidentiality, always

  • be entirely present and listen deeply

  • create a safe and brave space for sharing, and

  • provide an atmosphere for the dreamer to explore, discover, and embody their dreams.

Occasionally, what rises from our dreams is difficult. Sometimes dream images do not fit the perceptions of our waking lives and great emotions are sparked. We will turn to wonder and hold the entirety of the dream as sacred.

As we step into the dream, we arrive in the non-linear, our soul's language. We may explore energy, image, symbol, the sensory, and more. It's my belief and my experience that dreams come to us in service of healing and wholeness. It's my hope that this framework for our session creates a meaningful experience for you and one that supports your own spiritual practice and journey.

'Til soon, DW