Why Therapists Might Explore Dreams in Therapy

Dreams are invitations from the deeper layers of our being. They come when the mind quiets and the body softens, offering us truths that often live beyond language. These aren’t just passing images or strange nighttime stories—they’re messages from the unconscious, rich with emotion, memory, and meaning. For therapists, dream work is a powerful way to access what can’t always be reached through words alone. It helps us move beneath the surface and listen to the parts of ourselves that have been waiting to be heard.

Like the practice of Focusing, working with dreams is about tuning into what’s felt—not just what’s thought. Dreams live in the body. They carry sensation, tension, emotion. When we explore them with curiosity and presence, we begin to notice how they echo our lived experiences. A dream of being trapped, lost, chased—these are not just metaphors. They often point to something real and unresolved within us. Something that the body remembers, even when the mind doesn’t.

And within dreams, we often meet inner figures—the anima and animus, the feminine and masculine energies within. These parts might show up as lovers, mentors, strangers, or even adversaries. They hold aspects of ourselves we’ve repressed or disowned. Working with them is not about analyzing—it’s about reconnecting. About making space for the full range of who we are to come forward, even the parts we’ve tried to forget. This is the heart of Jung’s individuation: becoming whole through integration.

Dreams speak in a symbolic language. It’s not meant to be rushed or solved. It asks for patience, presence, and a willingness to sit with what’s unknown. Just like with Focusing, we learn to trust the process, even when it doesn’t make perfect sense. Over time, the meaning unfolds—not just in the mind, but in the body, in the heart, in the choices we begin to make.

Dream work invites us into a more holistic way of healing—one that honors the wisdom of the unconscious, the intelligence of the body, and the deep knowing of the soul. When we allow ourselves to listen, not just interpret, we create space for real transformation.

When therapists engage with dreams, they’re not just exploring symbols—they’re entering into a deeper, more intimate relationship with the Self. Dreams come through raw and unfiltered, speaking the language of the unconscious. They carry the parts of us we’ve tucked away: the quiet fears, the longings we don’t say out loud, the fragments of self we’ve forgotten or pushed down. In this way, dream work becomes a sacred portal—a pathway back to wholeness. It echoes the intentions of both Jungian and Focusing work: to come home to the full truth of who we are.

Dreamwork isn’t about decoding or analyzing from a distance. It’s about presence. It’s about making space for the entire person to be felt and seen. Each dream image holds a thread, a sensation, a memory. And when we meet those images with care—without rushing to interpret—we begin to welcome back the pieces of ourselves that have been exiled. Just like in Focusing, this is integration. Not forced, not fixed. But gently unfolding, as we learn to listen to what’s been waiting in the quiet.

This work is holistic. It honours the body, the psyche, the soul. All are needed. All are speaking. And when we give space to dreams—to the felt sense they evoke, to the emotional undercurrents they carry—we invite something deeper to move through. Dreams stop being just “things we had at night,” and start becoming part of the healing itself: guiding, revealing, realigning.

In this space, clients aren’t just understanding themselves—they’re reconnecting with themselves. And that reconnection is what allows real healing to take root. It’s not about perfection. It’s about presence. And it’s from that place that wholeness begins to return.

Reference:

Gendlin, E. T. (2003). Let Your Body Interpret Your Dreams. The Gestalt Journal Press.