Are Dreams a Necessary Part of Forgetting? (Part one)

     “Not the power to remember, but its very opposite, the power to forget, is a necessary condition for our existence.”

-Sholem Asch

    

     Lately, in order to delve deeper into the realm of dreaming, I began reading a thought provoking book by Morton F. Reiser called, Memory in Mind and Brain: What Dream Imagery Reveals. While reading, I learned of the intriguing idea that dreaming is an evolutionary state of mind, which helps humans forget information. So, the ability to dream assists our brain in filtering out nonessential information that would otherwise overwhelm it if we couldn't dream. After all, most people don't remember their dreams when they wake up, if a person does it's usually from their last REM sleep.
     After I absorbed this knowledge, I began to wonder: If dreaming is evolutionary to assist us in forgetting information, does it then stand that we are meant to forget our experiences? If that is the case, how does dreaming choose what we forget? I also want to know, What 

The Scream
Artist: Edvard Munch

experiences have I forgotten already? Could the lessons I've learned and forgotten from those experiences improve my daily life? I wonder also if my dreams portray the information that will be forgotten, and if I remember the dream does this indicate that knowledge will not in essence be deleted? On the other hand, does this hint that the information from dreams I don't remember are lost to me forever?
     There are instances I believe that it's necessary for an individual to forget just because its difficult to remember information in disuse; however, I wonder what would happen if we were allowed to choose what we forget. Now that I'm getting older, I would like to be able to remember all those moments where I learned hard, eye opening, self-aware, etc. lessons because I desire to become the best person I can; and if our dreams pick and chooses what an individual forgets, is this information permanently erased, or can it be revealed through our dreams if we scrutinize them closely? 

     Since, our memories are often intimately woven into our dreams; we have to investigate the psychological nature of our dreams to better our understanding of what insights our dreams reveal about ourselves. If our dreams are connected to our memories, does this imply that our dreams make just as many connections to what we know, like our mind when we learn new information? If our dreams assist our brain with forgetting, where does this information go? Does the dreaming part of our minds have access to this forgotten information? The idea of dreams being able to form connections like our minds can is interesting because  I wonder if an individual were to analyze their dreams closer would they discover more connections their dreams reveal about their life through strange or seemingly random dream events?
      This  is intriguing because  I desire to find out of the subtle thoughts and feelings my dreams are portraying. Also, I wondered: How would I be able to recognize the subtle psychological nature of my dreams if I'm trying to analyze them myself, wouldn't I be biased towards seeing the positive aspects, or such of my dreams? Do I have another individual analyze my dreams, but how would their biases influence the interpretation of the dream? I believe that the interpretations of dreams by multiple individuals are credible and helpful in understanding a dream; however, the individual should decide for themselves what information/advice to take to heart because after all it is their dream.

What are Dreams?

     Do you ponder the meanings of your dreams? Have you researched dream meanings and wondered if they apply to you, or even which interpretation of dream manuals  books, etc. contains the information that would interpret your dreams correctly? I  ask myself these questions when I reflect back on my dreams, but I have never had the time to spend researching the intriguing subject of dreaming until now. There are many branches of dreaming that I am currently interested in researching, which include but aren't limited to: What are the views and interpretations that various cultures have on dreaming, What are the psychological and biological views and aspects of dreaming, How is dreaming intertwined with our perceptions, memories, emotions, and consciousness, and How are my own dreams, and the dreams of others influenced by the relationships between these aspects of our minds? This first blog will address the knowledge I have currently garnered, and my thoughts on the assorted information. :D

     First things first, What is the definition of dreams/dreaming in this case? Although there are many ways to utilize the word dream, the following definitions will clear up any questions as to which use of the word dream I will be referring to in this blog, unless stated otherwise. According to Dictionary.com, dreams are a succession of images, thoughts, or emotions that occur in our mind while we sleep. Similarly, another definition of dreams on Merriam-Webster.com was, a dream is a series of thoughts, visions, or feelings occuring during sleep. Now that I have addressed which definition of dream I will be referring to, I had also accrued an addtional qustion I desired to know the answer to: What are the various types of dreams people experience?  So, There were two websites that I chose in order to investigate the types of dreams individuals experience, easynight.org and DreamDictionary.org. My interpretation of the main types of dreams people can experience are: nightmares, daydreams, lucid dreams, recurring dreams, ordinary dreams, prophetic dreams, and thematic dreams. My thoughts on a few of these dream types are as follows:

     Daydreams. A daydream as found in the above websites, is a fantasy that we have while we are awake, or a fantasy that the brain creates in order to ponder important but not currently pressing issues. I would like to challenge these brief assumptions of what a daydreams is because I believe that in order to define daydreaming, you have to address all aspects of a daydream. I would merely like to add that daydreams aren't just for important issues an individual is currently handling in their life, but that daydreams also occur to help a person pass time when they know they could be reading to better educate themselves, but they just don't have the energy to pick up a book. Also, another part of what should be added to the definition of a daydream, is that daydreams help a person to relieve stress or relax because if an individual has a deadline to meet, the resulting stress can induce an uneventful lethargy where half-asked work is completed, and if this said person were to daydream for a small time period of time they would be able to return to their work with a renewed energy, and thus increase the quality of the work they are trying to complete.

     Nightmares. According to the above websites, a nightmare is a dream that can be both real and fantasized; they are upsetting or terrifying, and usually induce strong feelings of anxiety, horror, fear, and hopelessness. Additionally, nightmares result in order to assist people in relieving the pressures and stresses of their daily life. This information sparked some questions that I desire to know: Are nightmares a result of stress? If an individual doesn't have nightmares, or doesn't have them often, does this imply that said person isn't stressed?  Something that I would like to add to this definition of a nightmare is: a nightmare can also alert a person of their feelings toward other individuals, and increase their self awareness becasue nightmares can generate an understanding of emotions a person is experiencing about various topics in a way that can't occur in reality. I believe that not all nightmares are meaningless, and in fact can be beneficial for people because of my own experiences with nightmares. When I was younger I had various types of terrifying dreams that helped me to understand myself, and my feelings towards various places and people more accurately, than if I was to try the various methods that help others in slef awareness. The first shocking nightmare that I remember, which allowed me a better self understanding was: In this dream, my siblings had come running to me terrified of some presence that was lurking in my darkened room. As such, I decided to investigate this presence in the hopes of eliminating whatever was dwelling in my abode. As I approached my slightly ajar door, I became increasingly fearful of what lurked behind the door. After my painfully slow approach to the door, I was about to push it open further into my darkened room, but the door flew open so fast and the intruder appeared that I woke up immediately, and was unable to sleep the rest of that very long night. What I had seen had been my own face. This dream made me think deeply about who I was and all the events that had occured in my life, and I gained a better understanding of how I feel when I make decisions, and overall helped increase how happy I was with life. When I have nightmares I analyze them  to gain a better self understanding , and maybe this knowlede may help you gain a better self awareness.

     Lucid dreams. The above websites portray a lucid dream as: a type of dreaming where an individual is aware that they are dreaming, and is capable of controlling the dream as they wish. In this type of dream, the ability to fly is the most common ability people take advantage of when they are lucid dreaming. I understand the joy of controlling one's dream, or even having the ability to end one's nightmares at a desired moment; however, why would a person desire to control their dreams when they could learn a lot about themselfs if they didn't. This brought up other questions that I desired to investigate: If a person had the ability to lucid dream every time they dreamed, would that person lose an opportunity to learn more about themselves? This subject strengthened my desire to find out more of the biological and psychological aspect of lucid dreaming, and if there was any aspect of the mind that greatly influenced these types of dreams.

     I understand that so much of the knowlede that inhabits this world will be out of my reach no matter how old I become; and I accept that I'm not going to be able to understand, or even have enough time on this planet to discover all of this information. Also, I'm not going to be able to discover everything there is about dreams, but I'm not going to let this deter me from discovering what I can about dreaming with the time I am investing into dreams, and I'll share this knowlege in the hopes that it inspires others to become more proactive in their own research. 

Sources: 

     "Dream Types." Dream Dictionary Dream Types Comments. N.p., n.d.

          Web. 14 Oct. 2013.  <http://www.dreamdionary.org/types/>.

     "Types of Dreams." Easynight.org. N.p.,n.d. Web. 14. Oct. 2013.

          <http://easynight.org/types-of-dreams/index.htm>.