Grief and bereavement Dream Meanings

Dreams in which you woke up crying or feeling sad because you have had a dream in which you were bereaved can be a cathartic experience, helping you work through grief towards accepting the loss of a loved one in real life. If, however, you were grieving for someone who is still alive and healthy in your dream, have you neglected your responsibilities towards that person or is your dreaming mind using the death of a loved one as a symbol of something that needs to end in your waking life? What is it about you or your life that the deceased person in your dream could be representing? Inhibition or recklessness perhaps? Or could the deceased represent a quality that has departed from your life, such as fun or relaxation? You may also fear that your relationship with this person might actually end in waking life.

Whatever the identity of the deceased person, dreams of being bereaved also bring up issues of loneliness. Perhaps you feel that your partner is neglecting you or you feel you are losing touch with your friends. Such dreams may be urging you to make a conscious effort to reconnect with other people

A house is often interpreted as a symbol of the dreamer and represents the place from which you withdraw to live your inner life. A dark, cold or empty house can symbolize a profound sense of loss, suggesting that you feel deprived of emotional warmth. Images of ashes and dust in dreams are also often associated with the loss of a treasured person or thing in waking life.

If you dream of an empty purse, you are mourning—through a classic symbol of death and bereavement—for the comfort and happiness we all crave. On a literal level, however, it may signify that you overvalue material things in life.

See also LIFE STAGES; SPIRITS AND GHOSTS.