The Dream Dictionary from A to Z [Revised edition]. Theresa Cheung

      If body images appear in your dreams, it can help to think of body-related expressions you may use to describe feelings; for example, ‘I lost my head’, ‘feels like I’m losing my right arm’, ‘I don’t have a leg to stand on’, or ‘can you stomach it?’ When we say these things, we are not being literal. We haven’t lost a leg or an arm, we are expressing an emotional response and our unconscious uses images to express the emotions these phrases convey; typically, a sense of loss of direction, helplessness, or confusion. Such dreams often begin to make sense when you view the body images as parts of yourself, and connect their meanings to your emotional responses.

      See also HEALTH.

       Body Image Scenarios

       Anesthetized, Cold, or Dead Body

      The image of an anesthetized body can represent a deadening of feeling, or a loss of passion and creativity in waking life. The same meaning applies to coldness of the body, with the implication of emotional coldness, lack of enthusiasm or distancing oneself from others. If the coldness is in the lower part of the body, this suggests sexual coldness and again, lack of passion. Coldness in the chest (heart) suggests lack of feelings or feeling cold toward someone. Cold feet indicate a fear of doing something or indecision. The image of a dead body in a dream depicts feelings and potential to which we have not given expression in daily life.

       Appearance

      How your body appears in a dream can offer vital clues when it comes to interpretation. In many cases, the interpretation is fairly obvious: if you are smiling you feel confident, if you are frowning you feel annoyed. Are you confident and organized in your dream, or are you tired and unhappy? All these factors represent the state of your mind, and perhaps your health, at the time of the dream. If your body disappears in a dream and you become invisible or you aren’t aware of your body, this clearly suggests that you are feeling ignored, isolated, and perhaps lonely. If you leave your body in a dream, this indicates a need to get away from cares and responsibilities. If you grow tall in your dream, your unconscious may be mirroring waking feelings of satisfaction with yourself; but if you were horrified to shrink small, it may be that you feel insignificant and looked down upon, or that you long to shrink away from a problematic situation. To dream that you are becoming fat is to recognize that you need to widen the scope of your activities in some way. It can also indicate fear of taking on too much responsibility.

       Diseased, Dismembered, Injured, and Deformed Body

      If the body is diseased in a dream, this suggests a sickness of attitude or it could simply indicate extreme emotional and physical fatigue. A dismembered body indicates emotional and mental distress; perhaps you are tearing yourself apart over something or someone, or your life is falling apart. Half a body dream images suggest a lack of balance in your life between your outer and inner life. If the top half of your body is missing, this indicates lack of reasoning and emotional intelligence. If the bottom half is missing, this relates to loss, or denial of instincts and sexuality. If the body is injured or you see injuries, this suggests emotional scars or hurts, or repressed anger. If the body is cut open, this indicates a vital change within yourself or the release of emotional tension. In times past, such dreams were interpreted as the release of ‘evil spirits’, hence the association of a sometimes painful release of tension.

      Loss of limbs in a body usually indicates a sense of inadequacy, sometimes connected with the limb that is lost. For example, loss of legs could suggest an inability to stand up for yourself or someone dependent on you. Loss of an arm could indicate an inability to influence other people, or to give and receive. If your body is burnt in the dream, this suggests an emotional scar, and if the burn is painful, this suggests that you are relating to this hurt in an unhelpful, self-destructive way. If, however, the burning isn’t painful, it has a more positive interpretation: feelings of potential and new beginnings.

      Marks on the body in a dream suggest things you carry with you in life, or experiences that have marked you. If your body is crawling with maggots, this indicates the need to cleanse your body of toxins, infection, or resentment. A murdered body in a dream represents aspects of your life that you find hard to deal with, such as anger toward a family member. Sometimes such anger may be a way of avoiding the real issues involved and, if this is the case, the dream murder may show how you feel about being ‘murdered’ by lack of love or trust. If you are pulling things out of your body in your dream, this suggests growing self-knowledge; you are becoming aware of thoughts and emotions of which you were previously unaware.

      See also HEALTH.

       Left and Right Side of the Body

      Typically, the left side of the body represents feelings, intuition, and the irrational, while the right side suggests the rational and logical. The left side is also associated with maternal influence, and the right with paternal.

       Body Parts

      In dreams, body parts can be interpreted in the following way.

      See also HEALTH.

       Abdomen/Stomach/Belly

      When dreams focus on your abdomen, belly, or stomach, they are referring to repressed feeling and emotions. The stomach is often seen as the center of emotions. This symbol may also have purely physiological origins if you have been experiencing constipation or indigestion. From a psychological point of view, seeing your abdomen in your dream may imply something in your real life that you ‘cannot stomach’ or have difficulties accepting, something you want to get out of your system. If your abdomen is exposed, this signifies trust and vulnerability, and in women it may indicate a desire for motherhood. If you are injured or shot in the stomach, this is about emotional hurt. Traditional folklore says that dreaming of your abdomen can foretell infidelity. A shriveled abdomen warns of lies, a swollen abdomen promises success. To see your navel in your dream represents your being and self. The dream may suggest that you need to find your center and middle ground.

       Anus

      This suggests repressed emotion or an aspect of childish behavior, as the child’s first experience of control is when they gain control over bodily functions. Consider also if you or someone in your life is anal retentive and perhaps needs to loosen up a bit. To see buttocks in your dream represents your instincts and urges. It can also indicate feelings of insecurity, especially if the buttocks are misshapen. If you see your pelvis in a dream, you may be dealing with issues of creativity and self-expression.

       Arm/Armpit/Elbow

      To see your arms in your dream highlights your ability to reach out to others. Alternatively, it may represent the struggles and challenges in your life, loss of confidence and not being able to reach out or create. Consider also the pun ‘arm yourself’, which implies that you need to protect yourself, or be more aggressive and take a firmer stance on things. So if arms appear in your dream, are you defending yourself, fighting or being held, or showing passionate commitment?

      To dream that your arm has been injured or your arms are tied up signifies your inability to care for yourself, or your helplessness in reaching out to others. The right arm signifies your outgoing nature and is associated with masculine energy, while your left arm signifies your supportive or nurturing nature, and is associated with feminine qualities. Losing either arm may suggest that you are failing to recognize its respective characteristics. To dream that you rip someone else’s arms out, indicates that you are extremely upset with something that this person has done or represents, but you have not been able to fully express your anger.

      If you see, notice or smell someone’s armpit in your dream, this represents the characteristics and personality that you choose to display to the public. To smell your armpit in your dream indicates that you are hoping for some kind of acceptance in waking life. If you see your elbow in your dream, perhaps you need more personal space in waking life?

       Back

      To dream of your back represents