Dreams. Why, how, and when?

I have no idea, but just writing that, would be a short post. I just feel like writing something. Things I think about, that makes me wonder. Sadly, some of these questions have no answer (yet), but it's still interresting to think about.

Dreams... Why do we dream, what decides what we dream, why can some remember dreams, and some can't, why can some feel in dreams and some can't, how do we dream, can we affect what we dream...

Some of these questions have answers, and some don't. Many have theories, including me, but theories don't make history. Facts do.

Why do we dream? No answer to that yet. Some say that it's a way for the mind to process the impressions we've encountered subcontiously during the day. But I'm not satisfied with that, it raises too many questions. HOW exactly does dreaming help the mind processing impressions? Doesn't it just rob the brain from the break it needs when we sleep?

I used to dream a lot. And in all my dreams, I could feel, I could think, I could touch, I felt pain, and sometimes, I was even aware that I was dreaming (which I of course exploided to the fullest). When I got those dreams, I was always tired when I woke up, no matter how long I'd been sleeping. Doesn't that suggest that dreaming keeps the mind busy instead of helping it relax as some people say?

What decides what we dream. In that department, I can go with the theory above. That the impressions we got into our skulls during the day, and life in generel, at least HELPS deciding what we dream. With some dreams, it's pretty straight forward. You're afraid to lose your job, so you dream about your job. But mostly, dreams are more subtle than that. Therefore most people and scientists believe that everything in dreams, has a meaning. Like if you dream about a house, the house represents yourself. Personally, I don't think it's that complicated. I think that the mind just mixes up the impressions randomly. That dream interpretation stuff, almost makes it seem like dreams have a will of it's own.

Why can some remember dreams, and some can't. I have a very good theory for this (at least I think it's good ^^). As I said, I used to dream a lot (and very real). At that time, I was extremely pholosophical. I couldn't turn off my brain, for even a minute. Everything was racing in my head. Caused me to get stress, and I had to take pills to keep it down. I had a lot going in my life at the same time, I lived at a school, where everything happened at the same time, everyday. Lots of rutines. Because of the routines, I had good memory, because everyday was different. I know this sounds contradicting, but it isn't. Maybe you'll understand if I say it the opposite way.

As it is for me NOW, I sleep at random times, I'm msotly awake between 20-58 hours at a time, eat when there's food (not often), and at any given time. Because of that, the days are all the same, because there are no single days for me. I wake up at 6:57 pm monday evening (example), I eat at 10:17 pm, I'm awake through the evening, night, next morning, next afternoon, next evening, next night, and go to bed at wednesday morning. If someone asks me "what did you eat tuesday?", I have no idea. Because I don't know when, in the time I was awake, tuesday was. And I remember eating, but I don't remember what, and when.

Therefore I can't remember my dreams anymore either. I wake up, and I know I dreamt, but I can't remember what I dreamt. Like I could remember I ate, but not WHAT I ate. The more structure you have in your everyday life, the more likely you are too remember your dreams. And the more you think about things (especially your dreams when you remember them), and the more you just take some time to do nothing. No games, no computer, no tv, no reading. Just sit, and be alone with yourself and your thoughts, the more likely you are to remember your dreams. As that continues, you will also increase the chances of being aware that you're dreaming.

I miss that now, even though I'm dreaming more, and I remember my dreams better than I did a few months back, it's not as strong. When I DID dream that way, I wanted it to stop. See... If any of you were to consider doing this, to improve your awareness during dreams, I have to warn you. My case was extreme. I was afraid to sleep, because even the most innoscent dreams, can be terrifying, if everything in it, is as if you were awake. And nightmares would have me shaking for weeks.

I can give an example. In a period of tmie, I was terrified of demons (yes I was, I admit it), so I dreamt about them every night in that time. I remember one dream 100% clearly. I was in my room with my dad, and I wanted to show him how I felt, when I got scared. We sat down on our knee's in my room, with our backs to the door. Then I got chills, REAL chills, and I said to my dad "Can you feel the hairs standing up on the back of your neck?", "Yes..." he said quietly. Then I said "that's when they're here". Then I felt a hand on my shoulder. A cold, heavy hand, and a chill swept through my body. I said "that's not your hand on my shoulder is it...", then my dad said "... No". I knew it. I looked at the hand, and it was grey, it looked dead and swallen. I took it, and I bit through it, almost biting off the index and ring fingers off it. I could taste the dead meat, and feel it behind me teeth, EXACTLY as if I was awake. The demon made a sound that can't be explained or recreated, and I woke up almost screaming.

If you think of this as a dream, it might not be that bad. But try thinking of it as real. That's how I experienced it.

How do we dream? With that, I mean what exactly happens in your brain when you're dreaming. No one knows that for sure either, they can just see how the brainwaves react on an EEG (electroencephalogram), but how the brain itself does it, is unknown. Like most other thigns that has to do with the brain...

Can we affect what we dream? Yes we can. Depending on which person you are (active/inactive dreamer), it can take time, or you can do it in one evening. There are different things you can do.

Unfortunately, I just don't remember them (: I remember this one. Give yourself pre suggestions before you go to sleep. It's kind of a self hypnosis (no hypnosis is not a paranormal magic thing). What you basically do, is telling your subconscience what to believe or process. An example. You want to dream about you and your fiancé getting married. Then you imagine that and say to yourself "me and my fiancé WILL get married, because that would make me happy". The subconscience doesn't understand negatives. So if you said "I hope me and my fiancé won't break up, because if we do, I'll be sad". The words "not" and "don't", simply doesn't exist. It's just lack of positive. If you keep thinking this, your subconscienceness will believe it, and the chances of you having a positive dream about this event, will increase.

So now, a lot of questions still remain. One of the smaller ones, but still significant to me since I started off being awake in my dreams, then ended up not dreaming at all, is this... What's really best? Not remember your nightmares, but not remembering the good dreams either, or feeling every part of a good dream as if it was real, but also feeling pain and deep fear in your nightmares?