I thought about writing this entry after a very insightful conversation I recently took part in on a Fench forum related to overweight and obesity. The topic of the conversation was “how do we perceive ourselves in our dreams”, and it got many, many varied answers.
There were those who’d see themselves as they were before, when they still were slim. There were those who, like me, had never really known themselves slim, for having been overweight since childhood. There were the ones who’d see themselves as “fat and ugly”, ashamed even in the sanctum of their dreams. These are only but a few examples of the responses this thread generated. I found it fascinating.
Myself, I never really “see” my body in my dreams, unless said dream involves a mirror or a similar item. I “am”, just like I am in my waking life. After all, when I’m working, cooking or lifting weights, I don’t spend my time looking at my stomach or my butt, except from time to time only, so it seems logical to me that the sensation of my body isn’t the primary thing my nights are focused on.
On the other hand, I must admit that my dreams are usually a little special. Perhaps because I’m a writer, perhaps mbecause I’ve always had a running imagination, they’re more like stories of which I’m the “hero”, and as such, I’m not necessarily myself. Well, I am myself, in a way, but more like if I was placed in an acting role, complete with clothes and flesh, while retaining the ability to jump from one character to the other. That’s it—my dreams are like books, and I’m reading chapter after chapter, with and protagnonists not necessarily reappearing in each of them. In there, I can be just me, or a woman, or a man, or even an animal, without any difficulty.
I know, it may seem weird. I never dream of these classic images of falling, being surrounded by unknown people who mock me, feeling like I’m suffocating… nothing like that. A good deal of stories ideas, I’ve got them from dreams, even if 90 percents are not usable directly due to being too stupid. I’ll dream the kind of adventures where I’m in a train with my boyfriend, and we’ll have to disarm a bomb bought at IKEA by using the nifty little key provided to build furniture. That is the kind of things I dream of. There’s not enough room nor time left to worry about my appearance in these!
If I’m aware of my body in my dreams, if this body is slim or fat or much more than fat or whatever else, then I honestly can’t remember it at all. But I still wonder if I’m an exception, and in what way other people, who also have weight issues, do perceive themselves.
September 11th, 2005 at 23:00
I had a dream I was Angelina Jolie once…that was nice.
September 18th, 2005 at 22:59
I’m the same way, I never really “see” myself in dreams. In fact, I remember my dreams so rarely, that I’m racking my brain trying to remember the last time I even had a dream with me in it! But I love that your dreams are a source of inspiration for your writing, how wonderfully creative that must be! So, I wonder, did you find out how the majority of people perceive themselves in dreams according to this forum?
Beverly
September 19th, 2005 at 13:38
Beverly, I haven’t checked the forum post in a few days now, but last I did, the majority was either “perceiving myself as slim/still slim” or “perceiving myself as fat” (the latter often with an added sense of shame an ugliness). Looks like I’m still an exception in this. The whole thing would deserve so much more attention, I think; if someone was once to really gather such data and perform an extensive study on it, it could sure wield very interesting results and trends.