Additional information

October 24, 2011

Dreaming Is Free

O.k., I don't even like Blondie all that much, but it was that or a MLKJ reference, and this seemed less cliche.  Yes, that's right, it's time for my first semi useful research post, also known as the reason I started this blog.   I figured I would start on something easy, but still something that most of us can relate to: Dreams.  As I'm sure most of you have experienced, our tall acquaintance seems capable of influencing our dreams, and even without his hand some dreams seem to have a deeper purpose, and a higher function.

Dreaming begins when a person enters R.E.M (Rapid Eye Movement) sleep, which tends to be around 90 minutes after they fall asleep.  While there is no generally accepted explanation for why we dream, it is evident that without entering REM sleep we quickly lose the ability to function.  People who have gone several days without entering rem sleep often experience hallucinations, shortened attention spans, an inability so perform complex mental functions, and occasionally physiological reactions.  Dreams can seem to last hours or days, but in actuality they rarely last for longer than ten minutes.  This, more than anything, is a testament to the human brains untapped potential, if our subconscious is able to play out fantasies of such detail that much faster than we could ever experience them in real life, than the brain is capable of compiling and compressing more data in its free time than all the supercomputers in the world.  This also means that if our favorite dream demon can send these images to us, then he is capable of processing as much as our minds can handle on a consinouns and deliberate level.  There are many theories as to the purpose of dreams, including the ideas that they effect our long term memory, how we perceive individual memories, and how we remove unused emotions or sensations, these theories are not all bound together, but neither are they mutually exclusive, meaning if one had power over dreaming, he could possibly effect all these other mental functions as well.

Dreaming also has psychological implications.  Dreams are often seen as an opportunity to play out different scenarios in our head, with improved understanding of the results but no risk to ourselves.  Many people have claimed that dreaming has provided them with answers to problems that they couldn't solve while awake, showing another example of how much potential we have locked away.  Our favorite pervert, Freud, believed that dreams were a chance for the Id to live out its fantasies without the repercussions that would normally keep the ego or superego from stopping it.  He also believed that dreams were a way to conquer our emotions in stressful or confusing situations.

Dream interpretation is a heavily explored and long existing field of study, bordering on the realm of accepted science.  Many notable psychologists and ancient civilizations have contributed to the study of understanding dreams.  Despite all of these, or perhaps because of them, we are often left with many different interpretations for each dream.  One person could claim that a single dream represents several different issues manifesting themselves in a single scene, and someone else could say that the same dream focuses solely on a single issue, unrelated to the other person’s interpretations.  The fact is, to fully understand most dreams you need a lot of context, education, and practice, and I have very little of any in this field, so I'm not even going to try to fully explore this topic.

EDIT: A new note, one that is primairly speculation at this point, but I have found enough information that I feel comfortable talking about it here with the proper disclaimer.  There is evidence that the Slender Man is not the only creature capable of entering people's dreams.  At this point what evidence I have found leans towards the theory that whoever or whatever intiates the dream has the most power over the reciver.  This means that, if I am correct, Slender Man and creatures of a similar nature do not actually enter your dreams, rather they "manufacture" dreams, which they then place in your mind for you to view and interact with.  again this is just a theory, and it does not diminish the effects a dream can have on your mind, it is just an explination of how these dreams can occur.  I think that He can still "enter" dreams, but he does not have as much control in this situtaion as it is still "your dream."  Take from this what you will, it is hardly a breakthrough, but I always love stumbling across new information.  If you have any new ideas or evidence let me know.

Well that's all I have on the topic of dreaming for now, though new discoveries do happen from time to time, and every now and then my research will reveal some new light on a topic I have already explored, so it is entirely possible I will return and improve this information from time to time.  I know for a fact my roommate just committed to writing a paper on this subject, so maybe I'll steal some of his work when he is finished.  Also, please do share some of your own dreams below, I'm interested in seeing what all of your experiences are.




See you around

FreedomCaged

13 comments:

  1. Very good Om

    I've already shared all the recent dreams, sleep paralysis and sickness I thought might be significant on my blog and in comments on Sunshine's blog, so I shall not repeat them here... However, there is one dream I remember having as a child that I don't think I've mentioned... I had been caught and was being held by a giant spider. I could see those who hurt me walking away in the distance as it told me that it would keep me forever. I was fairly happy with that and I woke up standing on my bed, arms outstretched.

    Not exactly a coded message from the Rake or anything, just a dream that I thought was interesting.

    How about you dear?
    Have you had any interesting dreams recently or in the past that you'd care to share?

    ReplyDelete
  2. I actually have a funny story about dreams. I used to get this dream all the time about walking down a hallway to a door, but I never opened it. Then Order of the Pheonix came out and it was weird because Harry had about the exact same dream. I didn't really have it much after that.

    xo
    BR

    ReplyDelete
  3. Ha, ha! Well now, I've made a hypocrite of myself already. XD
    Responding to your comments without reading your blog first... Some of what I said seems silly now in retrospect. Oh well, we all make mistakes, right?

    In any event, you re quite the interesting anomaly, aren't you? I'm skeptical of your stated relationship with the Tall Man however... A well founded skepticism I believe, given "Rule Number One." Regardless, any insight into all of this mess I can glean from you is a valuable asset to my own research... I'll just have to remember to take everything you say with a grain of salt.


    As for dreams, I can't really speak of any offhand. I blame the unfamiliar ceiling... still not sleeping too well here, so I'm not getting... or at least, not remembering... much of any dreams. Need a little more time to adjust.

    Onewinged left behind some dream logs though... I'll probably touch on those sometime...

    ReplyDelete
  4. My dreams, well I hate to dissapoint you, Storyweaver, but I can't remember most of mine. Although there was one dream, when He was still stalking me that I think he sent: I was standing in a dense forest, after a few minutes of slince all the trees would begin trashing and convulsing, but there was still no sound. I would try running to find a way out, but the branchs would just reach out and claw at me (I frequently woke up with scratchs on my arms)and then quite suddenly the entire area would go up in flames. It wasn't just the trees that burned down, though, it felt like all of existance burned down, and when it finally burned out their was nothing, no light, no sky, no ground. It always ended the same way, with the sensations of myself... shrinking. It's odd and terrifing feeling as though you are getting smaller without so much as a referance point to confirm it, words cannot do it justice.

    Also, welcome Gargoyle, its always so nice to meet a fellow researcher, dont worry about your comments, nothing seemed that foolish to me. And don't worry to much about "Rule Number One" as you called it, I may not be completly honest all the time, but I do try to keep a good reputation, no point in being untrustworty.

    See you around
    -Free

    ReplyDelete
  5. Have you read Executor's blog?
    http://thyexecutor.blogspot.com/

    If not, it might be of interest to you in light of your recent edit

    ReplyDelete
  6. I hadn't seen it yet, thanks for the tip, Storyweaver.

    See you around
    -Free

    ReplyDelete
  7. To this, I raise this point: Dreaming is the mind's way of safely going insane each night. It calms us, excites us, gives us sanctuary from our thoughts and problems, and allows us to function at a state that we wouldn't otherwise be able to imagine.

    Dreams mean so many things. Personal interpretations will always vary because of our set of morals, upbringing, and set of beliefs. Hell, the level of our intellect can heavily influence what a specific dream can mean. I am a shameless researcher when it comes to finding out what I need. Dreams, it seems, is a subject universally agreed to be necessary and useful.

    The people that deny them, deny themselves. Even nightmares can give us release, and power over our fears and secret anxieties. We are always afraid of something or another, and giving a face to these subconscious worries (like the Boogeyman) can give us the ability to focus, and have something to 'fight.' Even something so super powerful as Eldritch Abominations and Fears and whatever else you might encounter help us in a ridiculous amount of ways.

    A minor rant here and there, I am sorry for that sweetheart. Let me know if you want to continue this conversation later. <3

    ReplyDelete
  8. Don't be sorry at all Tide, I don't even consider it a rant, in fact I quite liked this comment. In fact I quite agree with you on several points, each dream is uniquely based on the dreamer, we are all so diffrent in so many ways, and this is no less true in our minds. A dream and its meaning is like a fingerprint to identify its creator, only infinately more complex and beutiful. Oh how this makes me wish I could remember more of my own dreams, but sadly my brain seems more content keeping them locked away.

    And yes, nightmares do give us the chance to fight, and Fears do give us a chance to overcome our weaknesses. Though I must admit, I belive they do far more harm than good. I am quite willing to continue this conversation, after all, while facts and figures may be the groundwork for any research, it is insight and debate that truly makes it successful.

    Also, StoryWeaver, I did look into the Executor's blog and I can not thank you enough for the recomendation, it was very helpful. It also pointed me towards The Shady Lady, who, as you can imagin, intriuged me a great deal. The fact that she was able to hold her mental ground, and the fact that she has her own "Cage" buried in her mind both quite intriuge me. Thank you again for the advise.

    See you around
    -Free

    ReplyDelete
  9. Are you sure you don't remember your dreams? Mine tend to be happier than waking life, so I tend to enjoy sleeping a bit more. I would hate to have the nightmares that plague so many of our colleagues.

    But then again, the Fears are nightmares reborn. Hmm. And oh yes, they wind up being the death of us, but... how do I say this? With every negative there is a positive, and vice versa. Equivalent exchange and all that.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Yes well, I am heavily aware of my subcincious in waking hours, so I don't have to worry about dull real life boring me to much. Like I stated before the only dream I still remember wasn't even mine. My dreams stay where they were created: in the dark recesses of my mind, far beyond my own mental reach, I imagain I dream, but I couldn't hazard a guess about what.

    I see your point about the balance, though, it's one of the great things Newton got right: for every action there is a reaction, oppisite, be every bit as strong. Eqilibrium is a wonderful thing, we teeter on the edge of victory, only to be thrown to the precipice of defeat. We move back slowly from one side to the other until we find overselves in the center, with either the knowledge or capabilities to reach or ultimante goal, but never both. My that was a bit over the top wasn't it, but the point still stands, we are always working towards victory, and always being pushed towards defeat, and that just makes the whole experince that much more dynamic.

    See you around
    -Cage

    ReplyDelete
  11. Again, you're welcome Om. I'm glad that you're benefiting from the advice. As for Shady, I must say that I was also very impressed by her mental resilience.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Shady is as always a favorite Lady of mine. You won't go wrong looking to her, I can tell you that much.

    ReplyDelete