How we breathe connects to how we feel, and while that might seem like an obvious statement, it’s something that’s easily forgotten in a moment of panic or stress. When the body goes into a state of stress or flight or fight, it’s hard to remember how to slow your breathing back down to its normal rhythm, but that’s exactly what will calm you down. We often take breathing for granted, considering how important it is. We don’t tend to notice it unless we’re under stress, we’re ill, or we’ve just finished exercising. Your dream could be drawing your attention to how you feel, and the importance of your breathing, and how much one affects the other. Not being able to breathe in a dream suggests that you suspect a transformation or something coming to an end in the near future.
Breathing directly connects to how we feel, and it can even tell you when your body is reacting to stress or tension though you don’t feel uncomfortable – which is your body telling you that there’s a disconnect between your emotions and really feeling them. Take a deep breath, right now. Let it out slowly. You may find that a tension you hadn’t realized you were carrying in your shoulders or in your jaw or between your eyes relaxes. How you feel greatly affects the tension you carry in your body, and just taking a minute to breathe mindfully makes a difference. Your dream of not being able to breathe is drawing attention to how you feel in your body, how your emotions may be causing you to hold too much tension in your muscles, how you’re tired, and stressed, and how helpful staying grounded can be in managing these feelings.
If you dream of being suffocated by someone or something which restricts your airways, like a bag or another material which you can’t breathe through, this suggests your life is in a transition. You’re moving away from those opinions you’ve had for a long time, those habits which no longer help, and hobbies or dreams that no longer bring you joy. Feeling suffocated in a dream can be caused by feeling trapped in your waking life, and if you die in this dream, your negative thoughts are holding you back. If you dream that someone else is the cause of you not being able to breathe, this indicates you’ve got a deeply ingrained problem which needs confronting, or you need to reconnect with someone that you’ve lost touch with. If you didn’t dream of the cause of being unable to breathe, this dream is a result of a conflict or something which is causing you great anxiety. Something is holding you back from enjoying your life to the fullest, perhaps a relationship or your job. Something that will take a lot of work to change or end. The easiest way to quieten your worry is to resolve the conflict that caused your dream.
Your Dream Meaning At A Glance:
- You are exhausted, and feel you have no time to rest
- A difficult situation has left you struggling to cope
- This dream can reflect how your body is struggling to breathe in waking life, due to asthma or your surroundings
- You feel overwhelmed
- A task from the previous day has left you feeling breathless
- Your sleeping position isn’t the best, and it’s causing some difficulty in breathing, and the discomfort is bleeding into your dream
- You’re under a lot of pressure
Dreaming about Someone Else Unable to Breathe
Dreaming about someone you know being unable to breathe can be a worrying experience. It doesn’t mean that their life or their health is in jeopardy. This dream reflects your waking life feelings of being worried about them. Are they going through a tough time?
Why Your Dream of Not Being Able to Breathe Happened
Your dreams are often influenced by your unconscious mind, and thoughts which rarely come to the surface. These thoughts can cause problems in waking life, can influence you to react negatively, or feel nervous without a clear cause. If you have unresolved problems, they can surface in your dream, which is your subconscious letting you know that you’re still affected by them, and you need to do something about it. Alternatively, this dream can be influenced by your waking life. You might struggle from asthma, or you’ve overwhelmed with worry, and you’re exhausted. What position you sleep in can also cause this dream, if it makes your body struggle to breathe, your dream will reflect this.
From a spiritual point of view, breathing directly connects to your life and how you manage stress. If you dream about being underwater and suffocating, this dream is indicating that you’re struggling with an emotion, as water in a dream is a mirror of your emotions.
The Dream Interpretation Behind Your Dream of Not Being Able to Breathe
When it comes to dreaming about not being able to breathe, there’s usually an emotion which is causing you tension. Do you feel overwhelmed, or under pressure from something? Your body is telling you that you need to take a break. Dreaming about suffocating can suggest that as you are, you’ll find it hard to solve anything, and the slightest problem will be a bigger struggle than it needs to be. This dream is warning you to take some time out for yourself, and only then will you be able to solve issues in the manner you would usually be able to. This dream can also point to something that’s standing in your way, and reflecting carefully about this dream will lead you to a solution.
Your Dream and Anxiety
Everyday worries that seem small at first can accumulate, and lead to you feeling helpless or out of control, and the lack of contentment can bleed into your dreams, making you more worried when you wake. Take a deep breath, and look at your problems one at a time. Fix the easiest thing first, even if you have to break it into chunks. The rest won’t seem so hard after that.
Dreaming about Being Unable to Catch Your Breath
Dreaming of not being able to catch your breath at all, where you inhale and inhale and nothing happens, is a sign you’re under a tremendous amount of stress. The only thing to do here is to take time out for yourself, before you burn out completely, as that will take a lot longer to recover from. This dream is reflecting the tension you’re holding in waking life.
What does it Mean to Dream of Struggling for Breath?
Struggling for breath in your dream suggests a great anxiety or fear is pretty much lying on top of you, and it’s big enough that you can’t see anything beyond it. A situation or a relationship is causing you to struggle with the everyday, and everything is taking its toll. You have two choices here: persevere, and run the risk of exhausting yourself further, or take the time to ground yourself. Take a few minutes out of your day to relax. You’ll feel at least a little better.
What does it Mean to Dream of Being Unable to Breathe Because of Smoke?
Dreaming of not being able to breathe because you’re surrounded by smoke suggests you’re blinded in some way. You’ve lost perspective, or the one you’re clinging to isn’t the truth. Is it something you believe that’s led you astray, or has someone persuaded you into believing something which is false? You may have become too dependent on someone, and this can lead to a loss of control, of getting hurt when they make a wrong decision or let you down.
What does it Mean to Dream of Someone Strangling You?
Dreaming of someone strangling you can mean different things. If the person strangling you was a stranger, this is either an unresolved conflict which is still affecting you, or you’re rejecting part of yourself, and it’s hurting you. If the person was someone you know, this indicates a conflict with them, or their behavior will cause you some issues that may be difficult to deal with. They may be overpowering you in a situation, or making sure you have little say in a decision which affects you directly.
What does Dreaming about Holding Your Breath Mean?
If you dream of not being able to breathe because you’re holding your breath, this suggests that a decision or a behavior you’re indulging is causing you problems. You are your own worst enemy, here. You may need to give up on something, at least for now, in order to move forward in life. This dream can also suggest that adopting a strong sense of self-discipline, or cultivating a strong will, can help you in the future. This dream also suggests that you’re focusing too much on yourself, and not enough on those around you.
What does it Mean to Dream about Suffocating Underwater?
Dreaming about suffocating underwater indicates you’re in the middle of emotional turmoil. You’re struggling with an emotion, and it’s holding you back. Alternatively, if you’re submerged in this water in your dream, this indicates you’re in the middle of a process of rebirth or renewal, and sometimes the hardest place to be is right in the middle. Keep going. You’ve got this.
What does it Mean to Dream of Being Temporarily Unable to Breathe?
If you’re unable to breathe for what feels like a short while in your dream, something is causing you to feel trapped in your life. While this is a common feeling, it doesn’t have to be. You don’t have to feel trapped – doesn’t that sound odd? You’re in control. Even if you’re in a situation where you have no power to change, focus on the little things. The good things that bring you happiness, and the rotten stuff will matter just a tiny bit less, and you’ll breathe a little easier.
To conclude, not being able to breathe in your dream is a reflection of an imbalance in waking life. You may be under a lot of pressure and feel you have no time to enjoy yourself, or someone is affecting you negatively, and you need to find a way to bring yourself back into balance. Create a new equilibrium, and things will get easier. Drop any habits or hobbies that no longer enrich your life if you need to, to help create a renewed sense of wellbeing. Perhaps you’re overthinking other people’s opinions of you, and you’re creating a problem where there really isn’t one. Don’t we have enough of those already? This dream can be a result of your subconscious telling you that something’s wrong, and it’s only by listening to yourself here and taking action that you’ll feel right again.
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