Mike Jolkovski’s alert regarding a misguided article about dreams in the Washington Post resulted in my writing the following letter that was printed yesterday.
Much Ado About Dreams
The article’s discussion of the dream process was tilted toward sources representing only one side of an ongoing scientific controversy: reports mainly from non-clinicians who don’t deal with dreams on a daily basis.
While dream interpretation is no longer the centerpiece of psychoanalysis as it was during Freud’s time, it is still useful in understanding the human psyche. For example, revisiting the writer’s Ang Lee dream you might discover the hidden meaning by employing the procedure Freud used to decode his own dreams.
After writing down your dream, start at the beginning and, word by word, associate freely (without judging anything as silly or without potential meaning) and note whatever images and thoughts come to mind. Eventually,with practice and willingness to accept unpleasant and surprising thoughts about yourself, you can discover a dream’s meaning.
Myron S. Lazar, PhD
Clinical Professor
Departments of Psychiatry and Clinical Psychology
University of Texas Southwestern Medical
Center
Myron S. Lazar, Ph.D.
Training & Supervising Analyst
Dallas Psychoanalytic Center
8215 Westchester Dr.
Suite 316
Dallas, Texas 75225
214-691-1153