Are you repeatedly dreaming about the same person? There is a lot of discussion behind the meaning of dreams, with the general belief that they reveal the depths of our subconscious, including our fears and desires. But what does it mean if you dream about the same person regularly when you hit the hay?
According to a clinical psychologist, having recurring dreams about the same person shouldn't be taken too literally. Whether it's our partners, close friends or family, we create emotional bonds with people that give us security and safety.
Having recurring dreams is a common phenomenon, with two-thirds of us experiencing them. These dreams may not mean that you are obsessed with this individual but may symbolise your feelings and worries. Some of us may dream about the people we spend a lot of time with, while others may dream of those we miss — such as those who are no longer with us.
"The model of the mind is very true to the idea of a computer," clinical psychologist Dr John Mayer told Elite Daily. "When we go to sleep, that little computer will keep churning. It doesn't just turn off and stop. We have a perception that we're blank when we sleep – but [the brain] keeps going."
Dreaming can help our brains sort through information while we sleep. Dr Mayer also said that dreaming about someone over and over again shouldn't be interpreted in a literal way. That person might actually be symbolising certain stress or anxiety we are going through.
For example, if you dream about the same colleague, you might not have an issue with that particular individual but a more general work situation to work through.
"The dreams are usually not exactly the same each time, but the recurring theme is usually something in your head that is somehow unresolved. It just keeps repeating over and over again in that computer," he said. "So if the data is the same in the machine, you need to replace it with other data, or resolve that conflict, or solve that problem."
Have you ever dreamed about yourself from someone else’s view and wondered what that means? Maybe you thought that you were experiencing the dream as someone else, or maybe even as an out of body experience.
This is called a third person dream, or dreaming in the third person point of view, and it is actually more common than you may think. Often, people who dream in 3rd person say that it’s like watching a movie play out as they watch themselves do different things.
Whatever sort of third person perspective dreams you’re having, we’re here to help you interpret the dream perspective meaning of seeing yourself from someone else’s perspective, or point of view, in your dreams.
Contents show
What Are Third Person POV Dreams?
Can Your Dreams Change Perspective?
Some Possible Meanings of Dreaming In Third Person
What Are Third Person POV Dreams?
Dreams tend to manifest most commonly from two different point of views (POVs). First person is the most common, with third person being the second most common way that people experience their dreams.
Ashley, a spiritual coach at The Awakened State, defines this type of dream as:
[…] where you witness the dream from an audience viewpoint as a disembodied watcher or point of awareness.
So, dreaming in the third person is basically just watching or seeing yourself in the dream instead of experiencing the dream first hand. So, instead of feeling the soft fur of a dog that you pet in your dream, you instead see yourself petting the dog.
A person on Reddit describes third person dreaming and the experience as this:
Even when I am a character in my own dreams, I’m usually watching myself do things from a distance, like in a video game.
For the reason described above, this type of dream is often called a cinematic dream. This due to the experience basically feeling like a movie playing in your head, where you’re the camera operator instead of the star actor.
What’s really cool about these 3rd person, or cinematic dreams, is that you often experience camera zooms and slow motion shots, just like when you watch a real movie. These types of dream are also often characterized by jumping from scene to scene, just like in the cinema.
Many people who dream in the third person also experience serialized dreams, meaning that each night their dream picks up with the previous night’s storyline or plot. Now you see why these dreams are often called cinematic or movie-like dreams.
Here’s a question to ask yourself if you’re having these dreams – when you see something in 3rd person, is it really like a movie or is it like being there but removed from what is happening? It may be hard to tell the difference. I guess if you feel like you can not be affected by what’s happening, then it’s truly 3rd person removed.
I know I’ve had dreams that shift out of 1st person to 3rd person almost as if to protect me. Like I may be in a fire then suddenly I’m just watching the fire as if it were a movie.
One interesting thing that I’ve learned when researching this type of dreaming is that third person perspective dreams are often associated with the nREM (non REM) period pf sleeping.
Can Your Dreams Change Perspective?
If you talk to anyone who has experienced third person dreaming perspective, then you already know the answer to this question.
Not only can your dream switch between third person and first person point of view, but that perspective can change back and forth several times in a single dream.
Sometimes you’re the passive viewer of the dream, and then suddenly you are experiencing the dream from first person point of view.
My dreams often change perspective back and forth. For example if I am watching the movie in a dream, it’s likely that it will eventually become a dream with me in it as a character, but then it can switch back to me watching the end credits.
Some Possible Meanings of Dreaming In Third Person
There are a variety of reasons why you might be dreaming about yourself in third person. So, if you’re wondering what does dreaming in the third person mean? then let us help you make some sense of it.
You see yourself as equal.
It may be you just see yourself as equal among others. Like your dream gives “fair treatment” to all its characters.
This symbolism seems to coincide with losing a sense of self in the dreams. Like, you’re watching the characters like a camera, but you’re not one of the characters, and you don’t really have a personhood as the passive viewer.
You feel removed from your life.
You may be experiencing feelings in your waking like that have you feeling removed or not part of something, which leads to the 3rd person POV dreaming.
You feel like you have no control.
In your waking life, you may feel like you have no control over what’s happening to you or how your life is progressing – like you’re just watching it happen and can’t do anything about it.
So, what does it really mean for you?
The most important place to start is… how did you feel IN the dream. Feelings in dreams are never disguised, so how you felt IN the dream is how you feel about its subject in your waking life.