You spend (hopefully) about a third of your life sleeping, and roughly two of those eight recommended nightly hours dreaming.
It would seem foolish, then, to ignore your dreams completely. Even if you only remember a handful of them, and scientists still don’t completely understand why we dream, it can be fascinating to reflect on what happens when your mind is put on sleep mode.
Whether you find yourself in a blissful dream that you wish would never end or a stressful nightmare that leads you to wake with anxiety, keeping a dream journal can help you discover important insights about what’s going on in your waking life.
What Do You Put in a Dream Journal?
So, what exactly do you put in a dream journal, and what’s the best way to do it? We’ll cover everything you need to know in the steps below.
1. Write as many details as you can.
This isn’t always easy, but try to remember everything you can about your dream, including:
- Where you were
- Who you were with
- What you saw (objects, colors, events)
- What you heard
- How you felt emotionally (during the dream and upon waking)
All of these details are important, but noting how you feel overall during and after the dream is perhaps the most important observation. Are you left with a warm, happy, content feeling, or are you scared, anxious, and disturbed?
Symbols and imagery can provide very useful and telling insights, but ultimately it’s the feeling you’re left with that will give you the most clue’s about your dream’s meaning.
2. Feel free to include images.
If putting your dream into words is too challenging, draw it out! You can include doodles and sketches in your dream journal.
Or, if you dreamt of a real place or find an image or artwork that perfectly captures what you experienced in your dream (as has happened to me many times), feel free to print it out and include it in your journal entry.
3. Look for parallels to your actual life.
To compare your dreams to your actual life, it’s helpful to write a brief summary of what happened each day (as you might do in a regular journal or diary).
Then, as you write down what your dreams are about, you can look for possible connections to what’s been going on in your life lately. On the other hand, you can also see how your dreams from the previous night may have affected the kind of day you had and how you felt.
4. Pay attention to patterns.
Once you’ve developed a habit of recording the details of your dreams, you can start to look for patterns and analyze them.
Are there any constants in your dreams? Perhaps a certain person is almost always with you, or your dreams take place in the same location.
Do you have any recurring dreams? Does that dream come along when you’re feeling a certain way, or a certain situation arises in your life?
If you’re dreaming of the same things repeatedly, this may be a sign of issues you need to confront or get closure on in your waking life.
5. Reach for your journal ASAP.
It’s best to keep your dream journal as close to your bed as possible, so as soon as you wake up, you can record everything you remember about your dreams.
The more time that passes, the harder it will be to remember the details of your dream, so it’s important to have it on standby as soon as you wake.
What Does a Dream Journal Do?
Keeping a dream journal can provide the following benefits.
Improve your memory.
Writing down your dreams can not only help you to remember what you dreamt about, but also improve your memory in general.
The average person has 3-5 dreams per night, but most are quickly forgotten. Even the ones you remember upon waking up will lose detail and become more vague as hours or even minutes pass, which is why it’s best to write what you remember as soon as you wake up.
Trying to recall those details and paying closer attention to what your dreams are about will also help you to remember them more easily in the future, while exercising the part of your brain that builds memory.
Identify patterns.
Over time, keeping a dream journal can reveal insightful patterns about both your dreams and waking life.
Look for recurrent themes and imagery and ask yourself what they mean to you. Think about how you felt during the dream.
While dream dictionaries can provide helpful insights to the possible symbolism behind key images in your dreams, the things that occur in your dreams are also unique to you and your life, so only you can decide what they ultimately mean to you.
Process your thoughts and emotions.
Writing down and reflecting on your dreams can help you to better understand and process your thoughts and emotions, including ones you may not have been fully aware of.
It’s no surprise that a sweet dream can help you start the day on a positive note, while a nightmare gets you going with anxiety and tension.
Journaling about your dreams can help you understand why you feel the way that you do each day and even recognize patterns in what triggers certain thoughts and emotions.
Learn to control your dreams.
Do you ever wish that you could control what happens in your dreams? Well, dream journaling can help you do that!
Lucid dreaming, or the state in which you can consciously manipulate (to some extent) what happens in your dreams, is made easier by dream journaling.
Uncover creative solutions.
Dreams aren’t always restricted by real-life rules and conventions, as you may have noticed if you’ve ever dreamt about flying or talking animals.
You can use these wild scenarios to your advantage by writing about them, which might provide the little spark of creative inspiration that you needed to break through writer’s block or find an innovative solution to a problem.
Give your dreams a chance to think outside the box you confine yourself to in the waking world!
Dream Journal Template
You can record details of your dream any way you’d like, but below is a template of key information that is helpful to include. You can download and print the dream journal template here.
Date:
Where I was:
Who was there:
Atmosphere/weather:
Images:
Sounds:
What happened:
How I felt:
How I feel now:
My interpretation:
Image or drawing (optional):
What Are the Benefits of Dreams?
Despite all of our scientific advancements over the years, dreams are still one area that remain a relative mystery.
However, researchers now believe that dreams can help you process emotions and consolidate memories. But whatever their reason, dreams offer plenty of material to reflect on, so why not use it to grow?
Do you write down your dreams? Share your thoughts about dream journals in the comments below!
If you enjoyed this post, then you might also like:
- How to Write a Compelling Dream Sequence: The Dos and Don’ts of Writing Dream Scenes
- How to Journal: 8 Tips for Getting the Most from Your Writing Time
- Why You Should Keep a Reading Journal: Tips for More Reflective Reading
- 8 Best Journal Apps to Track Your Gratitude, Health, and Memories
As a blog writer for TCK Publishing, Kaelyn loves crafting fun and helpful content for writers, readers, and creative minds alike. She has a degree in International Affairs with a minor in Italian Studies, but her true passion has always been writing. Working remotely allows her to do even more of the things she loves, like traveling, cooking, and spending time with her family.
