Some methods have been shown to aid in the analysis of dreams. First, make sure you're interested in dreams. I ask patients about their dreams from the first treatment (usually in the context of asking about sleep). In particular, I ask about recurring dreams, nightmares, or other important dreams. Associations from dreams made the day before or the night before are more effective than earlier dreams.
The first time I was treated, I tried to prepare the patient for the treatment, and towards the end of the session, I would talk about the importance of dreams. If the patient claims not to have dreamed or cannot remember what he had, I usually give the following instructions: "Prepare a notepad at the bedside." Write down any dreams you can remember in the morning or at night. In the morning, even before you open your eyes, revisit the dream. Ignore the things you say to yourself that are like, 'It's so clear, I certainly won't forget it, so I don't have to write it down.' After this constant urging of the patient (which can sometimes take months), even the most stubborn person will begin to recall the dream.
Although I usually don't record during the treatment (except for the first or two meetings), I usually write down descriptions of the dreams. These dreams are usually complex and include many small but meaningful details. Moreover, during the treatment, important dreams will be repeated again and again in the discussion, which would be useful if there was a record. (Some therapists will ask patients to describe the same dream repeatedly, because the difference between the two descriptions may provide clues to the importance of the dream.) I have found that if patients are asked to describe dreams in the present tense, they usually make them feel like they are re-entering the dream, making the description of the dream very real.
Usually, the first question I ask is related to the mood of the dream. "What are the emotions you experience in different parts of your dreams like?" What is the core emotion of this dream? "Then I ask the patient to choose different parts of the dream and make free associations with their contents. Or I'll choose meaningful parts to "grind" carefully. I told the patient, "Please take a few minutes to think about this part of the dream." Think freely. Don't suppress any ideas, and don't ignore some of them because they look silly or inconsequential. ”
Of course, I also ask about what happened the day before (the so-called "daytime remnants"). I have often found Freud to find it true that dreams are usually based on so-called "daytime remnants," but in order for images to be important enough to be included in dreams, they must be reinforced by some old, meaningful, emotional concern of the patient.
Sometimes, all the characters that appear in the dream can be seen as different aspects of the dreamer. Pierce, a Gestalt therapist, developed some very powerful techniques for analyzing dreams. He believed that everything in the dream represented a certain aspect of the dreamer, and he would have the patient speak as everyone who appeared in the dream. I remember once analyzing a dream of a male patient who dreamed that his car could not start because the spark plug was broken. Pierce asked the patient to speak on behalf of different parts of the dream, including the car, the spark plug, and the passengers. This intervention clearly shows the patient's procrastination and ambivalence that prevents him from doing things, and he does not want to live as he has designed. Pierce helps the patient find other paths in life and the call to life that the patient does not notice.
Excerpt from "A Gift to a Psychotherapist"
Irvin D. Yalom 著
Translated by Zhang Yiling