Chasing dreams revealed
It’s you do you have dreams of being chased? Do you run to a hiding place in your nightmares, hoping you don’t get caught? Does the experience make you feel terrified?
If the answer is yes, you wouldn’t be alone. One of the most common types of dreams involves scenarios where a person is being stalked. Sometimes, you know who’s after you. Other times, only their presence can be felt.
Sound familiar?
After such dreams, many people report feeling deep fear. Some even wake up screaming, drenched in sweat.
Chasing dreams explored
As a consultant, I have worked with many people (men and women) who have shared with me the specific details of their dreams. We talk about everything from dreams about death to dreams about a love interest.
While I don’t pretend to have all the answers, I have done a lot of research into the content of dreams in an effort to help people better understand their meaning.
Before proceeding further, you have the right to know who is the author of this piece. I know if I read this page, I would be curious. Here is a quick thumbnail sketch.
I hold a Ph.D. in psychology and teach college-level courses in the behavioral sciences for a number of institutions, including NYIT.
In addition, I am a certified clinical hypnotherapist and also hold a credential in Transcendental Meditation. Finally, I became licensed in the state of Illinois as a mental health counselor.
With all that being said…
I’m not trying to put myself out there as a dream interpretation guru. But here’s the thing – anyone who tries to tell you they’re an “expert” in dream analysis isn’t being straight with you.
This is because dreams are completely subjective in nature. Much depends on the theoretical orientation of the interpreter. a $10.00 term used to describe the type of psychology the practitioner subscribes to.
Speaking for myself, I identify as a cognitive behavioral therapist (CBT) and follow integrated approaches from the third wave of CBT.
Most of what we know about our dreams comes from the famous psychiatrist, Carl Jung. He is largely credited with its conception active imagination (Chodorow, 1997). Think of this as the mind’s gateway to the unconscious and other spiritual dimensions.
That said, it’s time to move on to the real reason you came to this page – to understand what do chasing dreams mean.
I will tell you what I share with students and clients when they come to me with a dream analysis question. Are you ready? Here it goes:
Dreams must be viewed through the lens of symbolism and cannot be taken literally.
I mention it now for fundamental purposes. This will help provide context to everything that follows. To keep things simple, I’ve created this post in the traditional question and answer format. I hope I can help you get to the answers you’re looking for quickly.
What do chasing dreams mean?
When a person dreams of someone (or something) chasing them, it usually represents an unconscious fear. In many cases, the intensity of this fear is directly related to something a person is worried about.
There is some research that suggests that bad dreams are nothing more than mental projections of unmet psychological needs. But there’s a big difference between having an unpleasant dream and one that involves a chase – well, at least for me.
Some psychologists believe that it is important to identify WHERE does the chasing. But what if you don’t know “who” it is?
Usually, what I hear is: “I could tell something was chasing me so I ran. I could feel it was bad, but that’s about it!”
Others have common variations of the above. Examples include only being able to see the person’s eyes, such as bright red slits. I’ve even had a few people tell me they saw monsters running after them with golden eyes.
What’s interesting is that men seem to have more dreams of being chased by a group (aka: a pack of wolves), while women report being chased by an object (like a creature).
I have no data to support this observation and can only tell you what was shared with me during the counseling sessions. In my opinion, this makes sense because children in general are the ones who dream of fighting – usually against two or three people at once.
What does it mean to hide in dreams?
A common dynamic as part of a classic chase dream is the person running from a creature and finding a place to hide. Let’s say in your dreamscape, you are being chased by a beast in the foggy forest.
From a place of fear (and desire to survive), you find a huge oak tree with a large trunk. Acting as a pillar, you hide behind the tree until the danger has passed.
FYI: I didn’t just make this script up. I have heard manifestations of this exact same situation from at least a dozen customers.
Here is a recent example from a student who wrote to me three weeks ago.
“I knew something was chasing me so I hid behind a tree. I waited there until I felt safe to leave. But then I suddenly woke up!”
So, what does the act of hiding mean in dreams? Well, it’s not what you might think. Most people say that hiding symbolizes fear and self-protection.
But what if I told you that hiding really means something to you – as a secret? In many cases, that’s exactly what I believe happens.
So instead of hiding your physical face (aka your body), what you’re actually doing – symbolically – is protecting information. The entity chasing you usually represents a threat to this material.
Another variation on the concealment theme relates to unconscious fears of exposure. To cut to the chase, I talk about discovery like this:
- A scam
- Unable
- fake (in a way)
- Ignorance of a subject
- Somewhat “weak”
I have seen this dynamic most often in people struggling with a condition called impostor syndrome. This is basically a situation where a person is unable to accept his personal achievements and consider himself a fraud.
An interesting observation is how often imposter syndrome seems to occur in organizational leaders I have worked with, such as senior executives and CEOs. So many of them have shared with me – in confidence – that they feel like they are “faking it”.
Does it make sense?
Finally, I also want to say that I have seen the chase-and-hide dynamic play out with college students. Usually, these dreams happen around the time of big exams. And when you think about it – isn’t that a computer? After all, there are only two outcomes to a test: pass or fail.
What can I learn about myself when I dream about being chased?
With an open mind, you can learn a lot about yourself from dreams. With chase-and-hide dreams, you may be able to identify deep sources of shame.
Additionally, you may be able to identify if someone or something is causing you pain.
Keep in mind that dreams can also be projections of anxiety. I often joke with some of my clients, “Just because you went to sleep doesn’t mean your anxiety went to sleep too.”
The hard truth is that some mental health issues can lead to nightmares, especially various forms of depression. I’m not saying if you have bad dreams you have mental health issues. But I am saying that people who struggle with certain kinds of problems report bad dreams more often.
If I get caught in a dream, does it mean I will die?
This is an old urban legend. Many people believe that if they dream of someone grabbing or ‘catching’ them – especially when they are hiding, it means that they will die in real life.
That is, they don’t wake up.
Honestly, this is a bunch of nonsense. I can understand why people do this, because scary dreams lend themselves to scary results. Read this page on the meaning of death in dreams to learn more.
What else can cause dreams about chasing?
In addition to various forms of internal conflict, there are external influences that can affect the material of dreams. A big one is medication.
If you’ve ever watched those commercials on TV where the narrator talks about the side effects of a certain drug, you’ve undoubtedly heard: “[fill in the blank] may cause sleep disturbances or nightmares in some people.”
That’s why it’s important to ask your doctor questions about any new prescriptions.
In addition, substances can also cause people to have dreams that they chase. Examples include alcohol, cannabis, and psychedelic pills such as ecstasy. Technically, “dreams” are hallucinations, but the person experiences the content as a dream.
Are the dream gates to another dimension?
Earlier, I mentioned that dreams should be viewed through the lens of symbolism. This is very true. But the symbolism should not be taken to exclude other possibilities.
Believe it or not, there are some cultures that believe that dreams are a pathway to supernatural communication – openings to other realms of existence that transcend this time and space.
Native Americans, for example, believe in spirit animals. In this way, a turtle or a wolf appearing in a dream symbolizes a life lesson. Example: wolves represent wisdom, turtles – patience.
Where else can I learn about dream interpretation?
You will find a lot of information on the Internet. Some of them are great. Others, not so much. What I encourage people to do is keep a dream journal. This helps them capture images, which are usually associated with subjects. Then all you have to do is explore the images and find their definitions from various sources.
I personally like the book Understanding the dream you dreamed by Milligan (see Amazon). It is written without all the psycho-cotton that we so often see in dream analysis books.
In closing, I’ll leave you with this. Dreams can be a wonderful source of self-knowledge. Don’t be afraid of them. Instead, try to learn something about yourself.
Have you experienced chasing dreams? What do they mean to you?
References:
Chodorow, J. (1997). Jung on Active Imagination. Routledge.
Photo credits: Pixabay
More: Find out what snakes mean in dreams
