How many times have you woken up thinking: oh, luckily, it was only a dream!
There are all kinds of dreams and not all of them are pleasant and calming, on the contrary.
The world of dreams is an endless realm we all journey through.
People have never determined what dreams actually represent, although there have been various, very meaningful, and scientifically based attempts.
Dreams are associated with our brain activity, that is for certain.
Our brain works all the time, regardless of whether we were asleep or awake.
During our resting stage, sleep, our brain processes tons of information.
Some claim dreams represent our channel of processing various piled-up information.
There is definitely some truth to that. It probably happens to you, even on a regular basis, that you dream about things you have experienced recently, even if those were not particularly important or striking.
If you had some intense experiences or you have gone through something that really shook your emotional state, it is not very unlikely you dream about it.
If you have met someone you really like, your obsessive thoughts about the person may lead to dreaming about that person.
These are all common scenarios of how dreams and our waking lives are interconnected.
However, sometimes people have the most bizarre dreams, something they could never associate with anything that has ever happened to them.
People have strange dreams, in which mysterious beings occur, they dream about finding themselves in historical times, they dream about gods and demons and so much more.
Of course, all of it could be influenced by fiction, popular culture, books, and what else not.
However, since old times, people have been associating dreams with prophecies and sought in them omens, good or bad.
Saints and prophets of the past have had prophetic dreams. Great kings of the past had their dream interpreters.
Dreams are complex. There is probably some truth in every attempt to determine and define what dreams really are.
Both science and beliefs tell important things about dreams. Dreams are commonly associated with emotions, especially suppressed ones.
Dreams about certain health issues and attacks, such as the inability to breathe, could be really unpleasant and disturbing.
Let us find out what could be the possible explanation for having dreams about being unable to breathe.
Dreams of Not Being Able to Breathe – Biblical and General Info
Our ability to breathe is associated with ourselves being alive. All living creatures breathe.
The very experience of breathing varies, depending on the situations we find ourselves in. Our emotions always affect our breathing.
If we were excited, be it out of pure joy or anxiety, our heart beats faster, and our breath becomes shallow and fast.
We cannot prevent it from happening, although we could learn some techniques to calm ourselves – and our breathing – down.
Breathing is also a mirror of our health. Severe respiratory problems could lead to a very dangerous state, associated with our ability to breathe.
Even if you catch a cold or something like that, it will affect your ability to breathe at least a bit.
What does it mean if you have a dream about being unable to breathe? There could be many reasons for that and we will list some of the most common.
Once we do so, we will talk about different dreams associated with an inability to breathe properly.
There are no particular biblical explanations for being unable to breathe.
However, suffocation and inability to breathe could be associated with our sinful nature and the consequence of sin, as sinful actions would leave us with guilt and negative, overwhelming emotions.
Dreams of Being Unable to Breathe – Health Concerns
If you dream about being unable to breathe properly, regardless of the particular scenario, it could be a reflection of actual health issues.
Maybe you are aware of that and dreams only emphasize the problem.
For example, people who suffer from sinus problems, who have asthma or another chronic breathing problem may dream about it.
Their dreams do not have to be associated with their actual health problem, but it is likely they will dream about having difficulty breathing.
Sleep apnea, in which people stop breathing while they are asleep could be a threatening health problem.
If you keep dreaming about not being able to breathe and also feel exhausted as if you never get enough sleep, seek medical advice.
Dreams about being unable to breathe could be also associated with heart problems, mental health issues, and more.
If they keep repeating and also leave you very tired, it would be good to ask for a doctor’s opinion on that.
Dreams of Being Unable to Breathe – Exhaustion
If you often have a dream about being unable to breathe or having difficulty breathing, it could be a sign of general exhaustion, physical, mental, and/or emotional. Your energy is low and you likely feel drained.
It reflects on your dreams. Breathing is associated with good physical condition, vitality, health, balance in life, with good mental and emotional state. Any turbulence affects how we breathe.
Maybe you have neglected your physical condition, due to many occupations and obligations
. You have lost your stamina and vigor and even a simple physical exercise feels terrible and leaves you with your heart pounding insanely.
You find it hard to catch your breath, even when doing simple tasks, like climbing stairs.
Dreaming about being unable to breathe can often be a reflection of such a state. It is definitely a sign you have to do something about it.
Mental and emotional exhaustion can also lead to dreams about not being able to breathe.
More on that in the following paragraphs connecting dreams about breathing difficulties, emotions, and the state of one’s mind.
Dreams About Being Unable to Breathe – Dealing with Trauma
Dreams about not being able to breathe could be associated with an unprocessed trauma from your past.
It often happens that we take our negative experiences for granted.
In reality, our minds and heart try to protect us from it by suppressing it.
We may even forget about it or feel as if we have forgotten it.
We may act as if nothing really dramatic happened and try to live up to that, convincing ourselves and others we have gone through it and are done with it.
However, in many cases, it is not what actually happens. People instinctively suppress their negative experiences and act as if everything was completely fine.
It affects their lives, but they are usually not even aware of it.
All traumas find a way to manifest in our lives until we process them.
Dreams are a powerful channel for processing suppressed emotions, thoughts, and experiences causing them.
Dreams about not being able to breathe could likely be associated with trauma.
The traumatic experience suffocates us on a deeper level, usually on a level of our subconscious mind.
However, it is always there, spying on us and making our life more difficult than it should be.
If you often dream about not being able to breathe, think about your past and how it affects your current life.
If there was something you recognize and acknowledge as bad, do not simply take it as resolved, think through it.
Oftentimes we do not process our traumas properly or at all. A dream about not being able to breathe could be a good indicator of unresolved trauma.
Once you’ve done with the negative past experience, such disturbing dreams may go away.
Dreams About Breathing Difficulties – Anxiety, Stress,Tension
An anxious state usually affects how we breathe. A panic attack, which is a serious medical condition that sometimes requires immediate medical help is associated with the inability to breathe.
Out of extreme panic, patients really cannot breathe, which is quite a dangerous state.
If you dream about not being able to breathe properly or that you cannot breathe at all, it could be a sign of anxiety, inability to deal with a stressful situation, and extreme tension.
There could be thousands of reasons why you feel anxious and tense, from the most mundane things to serious issues.
Whatever might be the case, it could affect your dreams.
If that were the case – anxiety, stress, and tension – it is very likely you cannot even sleep properly.
People who are under stress, and who feel anxious and tense, often suffer from sleeping disorders. They cannot get enough quality sleep.
It also affects dreams. Dreams about not being able to breathe could be associated with your anxious thoughts, but also with your sleeping problems, and inability to get a good quality rest.
Therefore, such a dream indicates you need to find a solution to these issues.
Try mild exercises, find some advice on how to calm down and deal with things that cause you anxiety. Practice some form of calming technique.
If there were thoughts that bother you, talk to your loved ones and try to find support while going through hard times.
Dreams About Being Unable to Breath – Relationship Issues
Dreams about not being able to breathe are often associated with certain unresolved arguments with people, toxic relationships, with problematic relationships in general.
In the first place, such a dream could be associated with a relationship that makes us feel as if we cannot breathe.
Not having enough freedom in a relationship and being unable to express your own desires and thoughts could be very tiresome and, sadly, it happens very often.
People let others control them because they feel weak or unable to take things into their own hands or for whatever other reason, but it happens.
Think about your relationships, be they romantic ones, friendships, or something else.
Is your partner always the one who decides what to do and where to go? Does your opinion in relationships count?
How do you feel about that? Do you feel restricted and caged? If your answers were positive, no wonder you have a dream about not being able to breathe.
It is because you really feel like you cannot breathe in your relationship.
You feel dependent and restricted, controlled by another person. Now, it does not automatically makes the other one bad; it is about how you perceive and position yourself.
The time has come you talk to yourself and consider how you want a relationship to look like.
You certainly want to have some freedom to do things you are passionate about or to decide on your mutual activities. You want your voice to matter.
Maybe the relationship is not good for you. It could be a toxic, draining relationship that leaves you with a feeling you cannot breathe. If that were the case, it is probably that you should end t.
There could be many other similar scenarios, of course, depending on your life experience and your current situation.
Dreams about not being able to breathe could be in tight connection with toxic relationships we should end in order to breathe deeply and freely.
Dreams About Not Being Able to Breathe – Common Types
In the next part of our article, we will discuss some of the most common types of dreams about not being able to breathe.
Those include dreams about an inability to catch your breath, as well as various types of other factors causing the inability to breathe.
Dreams about trying to catch your breath
Dreams about having difficulty catching your breath are quite common and they are usually associated with tension and anxiety.
Dreams about not being able to breathe properly and struggling to do it are usually in connection to stress.
You are certainly familiar with that unpleasant feeling of not being able to take a deep breath when you are very excited and anxious about something, we have all experienced that.
However, if you dream about it all the time, there is probably something you should work on.
People who do not have good coping mechanisms, who cannot deal with stressful situations properly, and who always feel alarmed and reactive are likely to have dreams of this sort.
Such a dream is usually associated with a certain situation that bothers you greatly.
Even if you do not think about it when going to sleep, it remains in your subconscious mind and bothers you.
Maybe you have too much work to do and a short deadline, so you feel under stress and very tense, thinking about whether you will be capable of finishing the task in the expected time frame.
Sure, it could be distressing.
However, it is not something you should let bother you to the point it leaves you with that feeling of not being able to breathe, of not being able to live normally.
We all have some stress from time to time, but we should take it as easier as possible.
Organize yourself and simply follow the steps, do not overthink, just do the best you can. See how it will reflect on your dreams.
Dreams about not being able to breathe and drowning
Dreams about drowning and not being able to breathe underwater are a sign that you feel overwhelmed in life. Water is the symbol of emotions. Y
ou probably have very intense emotions about something and you feel as if you cannot control them at all.
It does not necessarily mean the emotions you are currently experiencing are negative per se.
However, they control you far more than it is good for you. You have completely surrendered to them.
Even positive emotions, such as being in love, for example, can affect your life badly and leave you feeling overwhelmed and chaotic.
Try to hold your reins, while still enjoying the ride.
In other cases, those emotions could be negative ones.
Fear, anxiety, anger, sadness, and else, usually a mixture of these, leave people with an impression they are drowning, not being able to catch their breath.
See what circumstances make you feel like that. Think about things you do in life and situations that make you feel tense and pressured.
Is it really worth it? Sometimes we take things too seriously.
However, if there were some things you need to process, you should let yourself feel all emotions.
Sometimes we feel like drowning because we actually do not allow ourselves to feel sad if things were sad.
Instead of processing the emotion, it piles up, suffocates us, and makes us feel as if we are falling to the bottom of a dark ocean.
Dreams about Suffocating in Smoke
If you dream about being unable to breathe in smoke, it indicates hidden truths, lies, and deception.
Either you are the one who is being lied or you were the one who did not act quite honestly.
You feel as if suffocating in your own or others’ lies.
The truth is always the best cure for everything, although not always the most pleasant one.
If someone lied to you, find a way to accept the fact and, more importantly, to accept the truth.
If you were the one to create the smokescreen, take the courage for being honest.