Keeping A Dream Journal. David Van Nuys, Ph.D. Keeping a dream journal can
be very rewarding. I've been doing it for more than 30 years. A dream journal is ...
Keeping A Dream Journal David Van Nuys, Ph.D. Keeping a dream journal can be very rewarding. I’ve been doing it for more than 30 years. A dream journal is not the same as a diary. You are not compelled to write in it every day or to record all the events of the day. Dreams are very elusive. They tend to disappear, like smoke, shortly after awakening. Few of us can remember more than a handful of dreams despite a lifetime of many thousands of them. Keeping a dream journal gives you material to work on and a longitudinal view that otherwise would not be possible. Keeping a dream journal is a way of spending quality time with yourself. It will also help to stimulate dream recall, signaling your unconscious that you are willing to take it seriously. Here are some hints for keeping a dream journal: •
Always write your dream in the present tense. This helps recall and helps it to be more vivid, putting yourself back into it.
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Your written account will probably feel less than totally accurate but force yourself to record what you can anyway.
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After you’ve recorded your dream. Give it a title. Much like the headline of a newspaper story. Some examples from my journal: “Secret Knowledge,” “Held by Nazis,” “Going Through Cold Water” and “Watch Out for The Predators.” You can see that the title already sheds some light on the meaning.
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Below the dream, I write a short section I call “Associations,” in which I write notes about the preceding day and any associations or meanings that immediately come to me. Notice any synchronicities between your dream and the day following the dream. Come back and append those to your day’s entry.
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Many people like to have colored pens or pencils close by to illustrate their dreams, draw pictures of the dream or characters in the dream. Be willing to be playful rather than deadly serious.
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Feel free to use the dream for other creative approaches, e.g. write a poem using words or ideas from the dream, give the characters in your dream a voice, dialog with characters or objects in your dream.
