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Dreams in the Making

Note: This is the sixth article of a new series I'm writing titled In the Making. If you enjoyed this article be sure to check out the previous five articles and stay tuned for all future articles.

Introduction


When I say ‘dream’, what’s the first thing you think of? Is it the little movie that plays in your head when you go to sleep? Is it a goal you desperately want to achieve? Is it neither of those things?


Dreams are a very broad and complex topic. They are your hopes and your fears. They are your targets and your fantasies. They play such a big role in our psychological wellbeing and we can’t even explain them all that well. Below, I will tackle every aspect of the word ‘dream’ and attempt to oversimplify the process on how to create said dreams.

The General Approach


I think that the most successful way of portraying dreams was achieved by Pete Docter and his Pixar film, Inside Out. After transporting our short term memories to our long term memory, our brains subconsciously create a fantasy summary of those memories. The bigger and more intense dreams are often the ones that we care more about in real life. This is why it is very common for us to dream about our loved ones and our hobbies.


This links on to the other meaning of the word ‘dream’. The ideas and goals that we value, or people that we aspire to be are often referred to as our ‘dreams’. For example, “I dream to be a famous athlete.” or “Graduating from Oxford with a degree in law would be my dream.” These are ideas and outcomes that are desired by us and could potentially become our future achievements. In some cases, some people will even dream about things that would never come true to them, such as being paid in candy (Marshall Eriksen, How I Met Your Mother).


In both cases, most people tend to dream about stuff that they value, such as becoming rich or finding true love. Each dream is tailor made to suit each individual’s interests.

The Scientific Approach


So where are dreams in our subconscious formed? They occur during the period in our sleep cycle known as the Rapid Eye Movement (REM) phase. These REM dreams can last from 30 seconds up to 30 minutes per dream. Usually, during the early stages of REM (90 after you first go to sleep), the periods of REM are shorter and thus you have shorter dreams. As you sleep (e.g. 2:30, 4:00, 5:30, etc.), you REM periods get longer and thus your dreams get longer. If you wake up during your REM period for some reason, you are more likely to remember the dream you were having.


What’s amazing is that we don’t remember our dreams when we wake up. Why is this? Essentially, it’s because our brains can’t process the information when we’re awake. How is this possible? Dreams are merely a succession of images, emotions and sensations happening in a short period of time. How are we unable to process this when we’re awake? Due to changing levels of acetylcholine and norepinephrine in our brains during sleep, we are actually in a less functional state of mind and thus we respond to processes of information differently. To put it simply, we can’t understand when we’re awake because our brains are too smart to comprehend the jumbled information that is our dream.

The Figurative Approach


What are some of the best ways for us to form reasonable and achievable dreams in real life? The best way is to make a list. Figure out what is reasonable and achievable to you that you would actually want to pursue. If necessary, put up an incentive at the end as well to make the dream even more worthwhile. Set up a plan with step markers to show progress towards the goal. Finally, achieve the goal and feel happy that you did.


For example,


My Dream of Becoming a Professional Tennis Player

  1. Learn to play tennis

    1. ½ - 1 year

  2. Practice and get better

    1. 2 - 3 years

    2. Work on serving especially

  3. Experiment with both singles and doubles

    1. Know how to play both

    2. Know tactics for both

    3. Which is my favourite?

  4. Try out for school team

    1. B team in first year

    2. A team by second year

  5. Get competition experience

    1. Enter solo tournament

    2. Enter team tournament (from school?)

  6. Slowly start to win competitions

    1. Trophies and medals to show for it

  7. Graduate from school and join the collegiate team (if any?)

    1. If not, find outside source to continue playing

  8. When ready, try to qualify for professional tournament

    1. Start with small tournaments

    2. Work up to grand slams

  9. Start winning tournaments

    1. Patience

  10. Become a professional tennis player!

How will you keep this up practically? Focus. Determination. Resilience. All of which can be read in my article, Focus in the Making. If you keep your goal in mind, practice hard and smart, work with the right people and enter the right events, you will get there. Faith.

Conclusion


As proven, dreams are an extremely complex and interesting subject, which I could write a whole series in detail if I wanted to. The main idea of this piece of writing is to give an introduction to dreams, oneirology (the study of dreams) and a few takeaways. What are these takeaways?


  1. The best dreams are the ones that portray the ideas and figures you value the most

  2. When thinking about dreams and targets, make them challenging but also realistic

  3. Don’t try remembering your REM dreams, you’d look stupid for trying


For those wondering about nightmares, they’re dreams that you care about as well, but they’re counterproductive. Best not to think about them. Happy dreaming!


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