This is a great example of how dream content has changed over time: 200 years ago, people were unlikely to have had this dream (unless maybe it was predictive…). The appearance of the phone has also shifted in dreams over recent times, from using a landline to a mobile/cell phone.
A common scenario in dreams seems to be where a person goes to make a phone call but, when they try to dial the numbers, perhaps the digits won’t appear or, if they do, they’re incorrect or in the “wrong” order.
While some may try to explain this away (in their view) as it’s simply because the dream isn’t “real” – eg, you’re not using an actual phone just one “created” by the dream (that therefore isn’t governed by rules of the waking world) – I’ll offer a more symbolic take on it.
Whenever we try to speak, how successful we are in the dream may reflect how effective – or not – we feel we are in waking life.
This is similar to the dream of feeling you can’t speak or the way teeth sometimes crumble into the mouth in a dream, ie. there is an obstacle that’s stopping you from saying what needs to be said.
For some people, the problem is getting to the phone itself, so it’s worth asking yourself what’s stopping you from having the conversation you may feel you need to have. The more graphic or scary the obstacle in the dream – which may even feel like a nightmare – could mirror the level of fear you have speaking your truth in a current day scenario.
It may also be a metaphor for someone in your world at the moment whom you just don’t seem to be able to “get through” to or reach.
If this is about a current situation you’re navigating when awake, perhaps you want to say something but feel you can’t, are finding it hard to make a decision, or every time you try to speak up your mind goes blank, a dream of not being able to “make the call” could explain that. This is where planning and preparing what you want to say – before you need to say it – can help.
On that note, in the case of the phone, this may also be about survival and what some researchers have referred to as a form of “Rehearsal Theory” – eg, your dream creates a scenario from which you need to escape to help you recognise where you may need to improve your coping skills. By trying to use the phone in the dream and you cant, this may cause you to think about what you’d need to do in the event of a real emergency. It could literally be asking you if you have all the numbers you need in your phone, “just in case.”
It could be symbolic in another way though: have you been trying to make a call for help in your waking life? If things have been particularly challenging lately, then your dream may highlight how difficult it can be to ask for help or even a perception that no one is there for you; if that’s the case talking to helpful agencies, your healthcare team or a close friend is probably advised; there will be someone you can talk with.
We may also worry about not being there for others; dreams will often reflect how much we care about our loved ones. So a dream of trying to get help for someone else, may symbolise how much we want to show we care but worry we will fall short in some way. In some cases, where the dream echoes an actual event, this may be replaying a scenario that reflects how we tried to help but feel we failed. Again, speak to someone if the event has caused you distress or you’re tackling uncomfortable feelings like guilt.
I mention in Answers In The Dark that, as with all dreams, and particularly recurring ones, keeping a dream diary can be a helpful way of spotting patterns in your dreaming. This might help you tie the dream to a particular event, anniversary or even emotion that can help you decide what healthy steps to take next.
Delphi is the author of Answers In The Dark: Grief, Sleep and How Dreams Can Help You Heal, out now on Amazon and Hive. The Dreams Maven™ is part of the Helping You Sparkle™ portfolio. You might also like Monday Mojo™.
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