Dream Issues Options

Hey.
I'm not very skilled at remembering small details of my dreams, mainly because there are bigger issues that I notice and try to evaluate so forgive me for not offering much information.
I had a dream last night which was similar to a previous dream which left me feeling uncomfortable and basically wanted to ask if anyone has had a similar experience and what you make of it.
I will start with the main issue and present the similarities as I go. In my first dream, which was about 2 months ago, I was running from these random people and it was a dark setting, I was running along a typical main road( like a smaller motorway) but there were no cars..... not that I looked to see if they were there I just remember not seeing any. There was a moment when I was running down a spiral staircase which belonged to some ghetto flats and as I was going I became..... extremely slow, I was pulling on the staircase rail to aid me down the stairs, even when I would jump the last few steps to hasten myself it had no effect and I was litterally pulling myself against this unseen force which was like some kind of glue. This is my main issue, the feeling of running as though I was in water or like a website said 'quicksand'.
The dream I had last night was similar in that I was running away from people again, only this time it wasn't random people, it was the police. And this time I remember seeing my friends in the dream who was also running from the police as though we'd done something. Once again, as I was attempting to leap over something, I believe it was a fence which had some bush growing on it, I became incapable of moving faster than a slug as all the other people were perfectly fine, and catching up with me. I managed to pull myself over the fence and tried hiding within the bush which was growing up the fence but as I was, one of the officers leaped over and landed right infront of me and looked straight at me. I remember seeing his face but unfortunatley don't remember if he was someone I actually knew but it was kind of unsettling, because for one, he was chasing me and I have no clue as to why and secondly becuase it was one of the most personal moments of a dream I have had for a while, mainly due to the fact that he was there for me and we were practically face to face, he went to grab me and then I remember I'm running again, with a little more ease at this point, then I woke.
Can I just add that in the first dream, when I was running down the stairs or trying to run should I say, There was this african woman at the bottom just standing there, and then I noticed my exit point was no good becuase there was this metal gate which was locked......I was able to put my arms through the gate because it was like a railing but I could not fit through it and thats when I woke. The black woman became irrelevant to me when I noticed the gate. Also I felt a strong sense of lonliness in the first dream which was not a factor in the second dream.
Anyway, to finish up, my main issue is with this stiffness stuff. Whats it all about.
Peace
AL.
(IMG:style_emoticons/default/wizard.gif)

This post has been edited by al_zaine: Jan 25 2008, 08:09 PM

Decending stairs is often associated with self avoidance, putting one's self down, and just not making much progress in life. The sluggish sensation is probably your unconsciousness' interpretation of feeling overwhelmed and just worn down by the path you are currently on. You trying hasten your trip down the stair signifiies cutting corners, avoiding doing what needs to be done to end this current trend in life. The dark setting just underscores the over all meloncholy tone.

Hey there Acid. I appreciate your input and have considered the implications, most of it qiute illuminating. I agree that I put myself down alot and don't feel as though i'm making any progress in life apart from in decadance. I am very worn out on the path I am on, if you can really call it a path, its more like the Not Path path because it leads to Nothing, vouching for the melancholic theme of the first dream.
the "sluggish" feeling first encountered on the staircase is to me more than a sense of overwhelming, it was more like trying to stop me running... running away from the people who were chasing me, I don't know why they were chasing me, I don't even really know whether they were angry or not all I know was I was being chased and was being 'intercepted' by this unseen force. Maybe I should just go to the people who are chasing me instead of going away from them.

Running from the authorities signifies guilt, knowing that you are breaking the law, doing harm to yourself or others or otherwise doing what you believe is wrong. The fence is a barrier that is trying to stop you to look at what you are doing and face personal responsibility. By jumping over the fence you are avoiding the consequences of your actions and ultimately hurting yourself. You running when you were grabbed shows fear, perhaps disdain towards what the officer represented. Perhaps you are trying to break down your moral up bringing, but you cannot complete this process until you fully face it and give it recognition first.

I don't recall having a sense of guilt in the dream nor that I had done anything wrong, its just they were authority figures which I guess can suggest running from responsibilities and order. My life right now is not exactly chaotic and I try to have routine but the routine is living a bad life. Bad because I don't take advantage of my capabilities or simple test them, instead I stoop and wither.
I really like the part about the fence being a barrier/obstacle. Your opinion on this is resounded throughout this post and considering now, these barriers/obstacles were the central theme in the dream next to the sluggishness when not needed,lol.
Trying to break down moral upbringing is a good one, I definatley need to think about this more.
Whaterver is the reason behind these sleep imaginations I shall attempt to face and recognise.

The black woman represent cultural disambiguation, basically a not knowing your own culture or not understanding certain aspects of who you are and where you're family came from. The closed gate represents a barrier within your mind you have not figured out how to open. It likely relates to not understanding an aspect of yourself, or self denial. You must figure out how to ask the right question, or explore the right paradigm of thought to access this gate. You reaching past the bars signifies you desire to open the gate up. You want to progress past this barrier in your psyche.

Again, your interpretation of the gate being a closed region in my mind which I am trying to reach or open is awesome and kind of so obvious, I'm surprised I didn't think of it myself. Just shows you how unaware I am of my own thought processes and symbology. It's kind of like the gate blocking the entrance to paradise, Eden. Although I know that beyond the gate I was tring to get past, it most certainly isn't the end of the 'path', it's not the final destination. Once I get past that gate I will at some point come across another gate, unless I don't create any obstacles in my life and thereby operating freely in all directions.
The black woman who I saw standing by the gate was the first time I have ever seen her and so far the only time. As you said, I shall 'red flag' her and see if there is any information she holds.

There are other interpretations which pop up in my mind when reading over this, many maybe's.
Tell me what you think of this, its short..... In the dream world isn't everything upside down? reason being is that I had a thought that I was maybe running not down(although thats how it appears in the dream) but I was running up, up into waking consciousness, the dream world has been percieved as the underworld by many cultures and maybe the black woman was the avatar of the underworld(my dream world) and it was her who put the gate there to prevent me from re-entering waking life where I will forget what has occured and to also face those issues. I thought that this could also explain the "sluggishness" as some form of reversed gravitational pull.
Tell em what you reckon, is it plausible?

Peace
Al.