"To concern ourselves with dreams is a way of reflecting on ourselves -a way of self-reflection. It is not our ego-consciousness reflecting on itself; rather, it turns its attention to the objective actuality of the dream as a communication or message from the unconscious, unitary soul of humanity." - Carl Jung
Dreams are universal and an integral part of depth psychotherapy, bringing healing to the psyche. I believe that dreams come to us for a purpose and exploring them can help us tap into the unconscious to hear the message from our soul. Exploring your dreams within the safety of the therapeutic relationship can bring personal growth, help you access your imagination and creativity, and awaken an awareness to psyche.
I draw from the work of Carl Jung, James Hillman, Stephen Aizenstat, and Robert Johnson. There are many possibilities for understanding your dreams and I will bring a respectful curiosity to the process of exploring them, keeping in mind that it is your dream and you will have the final say in the meaning of it.
You will be encouraged to keep a dream journal and bring the images into the session to explore together with the therapist in the session. The images have something to say about our personal lives and also relate to the world in a deep way. We will work together to amplify the images and bring out deep and rich meaning from the unconscious that will benefit you in waking life.
DREAMS
by Mary Oliver
All night
the dark buds of dreams
open
richly.
In the center
of every petal
is a letter,
and you imagine
if you could only remember
and string them all together
they would spell the answer.
It is a long night,
and not an easy one--
you have so many branches,
and there are diversions--
birds that come and go,
the black fox that lies down
to sleep beneath you,
the moon staring
with her bone-white eye.
Finally you have spent
all the energy you can
and you drag from the ground
the muddy skirt of your roots
and leap awake
with two or three syllables
like water in your mouth
and a sense
of loss--a memory
not yet of a word,
certainly not yet the answer--
only how it feels
when deep in the tree
all the locks click open,
and the fire surges through the wood,
and the blossoms blossom.