Sometimes the sights, sounds, tastes, smells and textures in a dream can be so realistic that upon awakening it is hard to believe that they were only part of a dream.
An intensely realistic dream that excites your senses can shock you into changing your point of view or into taking action regarding a waking life situation.
According to the evolutionary theory of dreams, we evolved to dream in order to learn how to deal with threatening situations. Our brains make our dreams as realistic as possible so that we don’t spend time wondering if the threats we are presented with are real or not. If you lived in prehistoric times and a large predator was chasing you, it could be dangerous for you to stop and think about whether the situation was real or if it was only a dream.
Usually, when you dream, you no longer sense things in the external world. However, very strong sensations, such as loud alarms or pungent smells, can make their way from your bedroom into your dream world, where they will be incorporated into your dream.
Sight
The things that you see in a dream can symbolize aspects of your waking life. Your unconscious is making you see something in your dream that represents something that you need to look at in waking life.
What does the environment in your dream look like? The view that you have in your dream reflects how you see yourself and how you see your life.
If you dream that someone is looking at you, your unconscious may be telling you that you need to look at things from another perspective.
If you are looking for something in your dream, you may be looking for something in your waking life, such as an answer to a problem. You may also feel that you have lost something valuable, for example, your energy or your youth.
If you dream that you are looking directly into someone’s eyes, you may feel that you see “eye to eye” with them in waking life. If you are unable to look into someone’s eyes in your dream, you may be feeling guilty about something.
A dream that your eyes are shut or that you are blind can be a message that you need to pay attention to something that you have been ignoring in waking life.
The colors that you see in your dreams can provide an important message, particularly if they stand out in some way.
Dreams of Blind People
Do blind people see things in their dreams? That depends on whether they have ever been able to see, and for how long.
People who were born blind or who became blind at a very young age do not see in their dreams. People who became blind when they were older do see in their dreams.
Neuroscientist Mark Solms found that people with types of brain damage that prevent them from seeing certain things in waking life also cannot see them in their dreams. For example, people who can’t see faces in waking life can’t see faces in their dreams.
Hearing
A dream that focuses on hearing can be a sign that you need to hear what is happening around you or listen to what other people are telling you.
People who have been blind since birth or since they were very young tend to have dreams that focus mostly on sounds and on hearing.
Smell
Smells are the most primitive form of communication, and provide a window into the emotional, primitive, non-rational parts of our brains. The smells in our dreams provide insight into our emotions. If you dream of a pleasant smell, you may be feeling happy and content. A repulsive smell can mean that you are troubled or have had a traumatic experience.
Smells in dreams can be triggered by memories. If you dream of a strong smell, ask yourself if that smell reminds you of anything. Did someone you once knew wear cologne or perfume with a similar scent? Does the smell remind you of a type of food that someone you once knew used to cook?
Taste
A dream about taste is often a message about your likes and dislikes – your “tastes.”
If you dream that you have a bad taste in your mouth, you may feel that your life is unsatisfying.
A dream that you sit down to a meal but find that you have lost your appetite can mean that something you once enjoyed no longer appeals to you.
If you swallow something in a dream, you may be holding back your emotions, or you may need to take in an important piece of information.
A dream that you are chewing something can mean that you need to “chew over” the facts before you make a decision about something.
If you dream that you like the taste of something that you normally do not like in waking life, your unconscious may be telling you to open yourself up to a new learning experience. Think about what the thing you tasted may represent.
Touch
Dreams about touching or being touched usually have to do with intimacy and being connected to other people.
If touch is an important part of your dream, you may need to reach out to someone.
If you dream that you are surrounded by people who avoid touching you, you may have difficulty reaching out to other people in waking life. If you actively avoid being touched in a dream, you may be angry with someone in waking life.
Touching someone in a dream can symbolize transferring power or responsibility.
Something that feels hard in a dream can represent emotional coldness. Something that is soft can represent a need to be comforted.