Falling in Dreams – Interpretation and Symbolism

Some dream researchers suggest falling is one of the main themes in dreams. In the sample used for this book, the words fall, falls, fell, falling occur 72 times in 1,000 dreams.

The words find, finds, finding, found occur 297 times. And the words connected with looking and seeing occur 1,077 times.

During our development or growth we ‘fall’ from our mother’s womb when ripe; being dropped by a parent must be our earliest sense of insecurity; we fall many times as we learn to stand and walk; as we explore our boundaries in running, climbing, jumping and riding, falling is a big danger, at times it could mean death. Out of this we create the ways falling is used in dreams.

Example: ‘I am sitting in a high window box facing outwards, with my son and a friend of his on my left. I feel very scared of falling and ask my son and his friend to climb back into the building. I feel too scared to move until they shift’ (Trevor N). At the time of the dream Trevor was working, for the first time in his life, as a full-time freelance journalist. His wife was out of work and his frequency of sales low enough to cause them to be running out of money.

The building behind him in the dream felt like a place he had worked nine to five —security. Falling was failure, getting in debt, dropping into the feelings of self doubt and being incapable.

In general, then, falling represents loss of confidence; threat to usual sources of security such as relationship, source of money, social image, beliefs; tension. Sometimes it is loss of social grace; losing face, moral failure—falling into temptation; coming down to earth from a too lofty attitude, sexual surrender.

Example: ‘I was on a road which led up to the hospital I was put in at three. I felt a sense of an awful past as I looked at the road. Then I was standing on the edge of a precipice or cliff. My wife was about four yards away near the road. I stepped in an area of soft earth. It gave beneath my weight and I sank up to my waist. I realised the cliff edge was unstable and the whole area would fall. I was sinking and shouting to my wife to help me. She was gaily walking about and made light of my call for help. I cried out again. Still she ignored me. I shouted again for her help. She took no notice and I sank deeper, the ground gave way and I fell to my death’ (Barry 1). Through being put in a hospital at three without his mother, Barry had a deep seated fear that any woman he loved could desen him. His fall is the loss of any sense of bonding between him and his wife out of this fear. His death is the dying of his feeling of love and relationship, and the pain it causes. Understanding these fears, Barry was able to leave them behind in later dreams and in life.

By learning to meet our insecurities (perhaps by using the last question in dream processing) we can dare more in life. This is in essence the same as meeting the fear of falling off our bike as we learn to ride.

If we never master the fear we cannot ride. Therefore some dreams take falling into realms beyond fear.

The following examples illustrate this.

Example: ‘Near where I stood in the school gymnasium was a diving board, about 20 ft off the ground. Girls were learning to dive off the board and land flat on their back on the floor.

If they landed flat they didn’t hurt themselves—like falling backwards standing up’ (Barry I).

The school is where we learn. Once we learn to fall ‘flat on our back’, i.e. fail, without being devastated or ‘hurt’ by it, we can be more creative. Going fast to an edge and falling: could mean overwork and danger of breakdown of health.

Example: ‘As I prayed I realised I could fly. I lifted off the ground about 3 feet and found I could completely relax while going higher or falling back down. So it was like free fall. I went into a wonderful surrendered relaxation. My whole body sagging, floating in space. It was a very deep meditative experience (Sarah D). Sarah has found an attitude which enables her to soar/dare or fall/fail without being so afraid of being hurt or dying emotionally. This gives a form of freedom many people never experience. This does not arise from denying or suppressing fears.

Seeing things fall: sense of danger or change in regard to what is represented. Person falling: wish to be rid of them, or anxiety in regard to what they represent; end of a relationship. Child, son falling: see baby; son and daughter under family. House falling down, personal stress; illness; personal change and growth due to letting old habits and attitudes crumble. Example: ‘I was standing outside my mother’s house to the right.

The ground in front had fallen away.

The house was about to cave in. I felt no fear or horror. Instead I was thinking about new beginnings and the possibility of a new house’ (Helen B). Helen is here becoming more independent and leaving behind attitudes and dependency.

See also: flying. ^[1]

Universal Landscape: Loss of control.

Dreaming Lens: Were you falling or watching someone fall? How fast was the fall? How long did it go on? What fears came up while you were falling? Did you have a sense of surrender to the falling? What incited the fall? Were you pushed? Did you trip? Did you jump? Did you land in the dream, or wake up first?

Personal Focus: One of the most frequently occurring dream images, all human beings have experienced falling in a dream. A fall can be very frightening; however, the real danger is not the fall itself, but the sudden stop that is likely to follow. Therefore, the real source of the fear associated with this symbol is what may occur and the anxiety about not being able to directly impact the outcome of a situation.

The deeper meaning of falling dreams is to surrender yourself to the lack of control you are experiencing in a difficult situation. In any situation where there is no control to be had, letting go is the only powerful choice to make. Most dreams of falling do not consummate in landing, further cementing the symbolic connection with surrender when a dream of falling appears.

Where and how you land will be directly tied into the quality of your descent. The more graceful the fall, the more likely you will benefit from where you wind up. The Dreaming Lens will offer you subtleties of meaning by examining the way you are falling in your dream. Falling backward indicates not being able to see the direction you are taking. Facing forward might enable you to see what you are facing, but your fall still indicates lack of control. Spiral twisting is an even stronger loss, as in spiraling out of control. The amount of fear felt in the dream is the barometer of how much unconscious fear is being suppressed. A fall that is easy and flows with a sense of surrender might be telling you that you are ready to let go of control in some situation. It is also possible that falling in a dream could be a compensatory dream, indicating that some inflation is going on in your waking life. ^[2]

(1) If the falling is a result of climbing or flying, the symbolism is probably straightforward: having ‘got above yourself, you are now paying the price; or the dream may be warning you of possible future disastrous consequences of present behaviour or ambitions - as in the proverbial ‘Pride before a fall’ - in which case your present ambitions are out of tune with your real self, your real capacities.

It is not necessarily a case of conscious self-aggrandizement; indeed, usually one is not conscious of it at all. Hence the need for the dream! Self-inflation may be of two kinds: where the ego is ‘possessed’ by some unconscious factor; or where the ego will not deign to pay attention to the unconscious; or both.

If you are prone to accidents, these may be symptomatic of an ego that is too much under the control of (unintegrated) unconscious forces.

(2) The fear of falling felt in a dream may be symbolic of your real-life fear of letting go. Perhaps the dream is urging you to stop resisting an impulse from the unconscious.

The anxiety expressing itself in a dream of falling may best be dealt with by letting yourself go with the fall, with a view to both finding out what it is that you are frightened of and finding a way of transforming the anxiety-response into a more positive and creative response. Strephon Kaplan-Williams recommends that you stay with the falling in the dream itself (having prepared yourself to do so beforehand), not wake up before the end of the dream. As a way of preparing yourself to do that, you might try writing out the dream again - or re-living it in imagination - only this time letting the fall complete itself. You may learn a lot from this.

See also: Flying, section(4) and Introduction, pages 14—15 and 38-39. ^[3]

It is thought that every person will dream of falling at least five times in their life. The source of this narrative stems from insecurity. Just as in the dream, we have no control of the situation and find ourselves plummeting downwards, there’s a sense of losing control in the real world. You may feel overwhelmed emotionally, mentally or physically. Events have spiralled, and you feel anxious about the outcome. If you find yourself hanging on in some way, this suggests that you’re still trying to maintain your grip on reality. The more you struggle in the dream, the more you’re fighting the situation.

Look to your surroundings for more specific clues, for example, if you fall from an office block window and you currently work in an office, this hints at career chaos and disappointment. If you plunge headfirst into water, then this relates to your emotional life, and it could be a personal relationship that is causing you distress. Dreams of falling also indicate a sense of failure. Ask yourself, why do I think I have failed? What could I honestly have done differently? Remember that every experience good or bad, has something positive to teach us. ^[4]

A warning not to be such a realist. It might be better to just let go, as in Abyss, Cliff, Shot, Parachute, Flying, and be more open to something new. Also fear of being destroyed, as in Descent. Points to loss due to miscalculation on the part of the dreamer (See also: the myth of Daedalus, Icarus) or is a sign of unjustified euphoria and arrogance. This symbol often appears in dreams during times when a person has difficulty achieving orgasm and during acute midlife crisis.

Doubt and insecurity. You need to let go, as in Brook, Leaf, and Parachute. Dreams of falling often appear if you are in the process of transition to a new stage in life. Particularly when you are trying out something new, you will first, just as in the dream, fall flat on your face.

A falling dream happens again and again if you are fighting against your own limitations.

It is very helpful to change falling dreams into flying dreams.

According to Freud, falling dreams are always sexual. In the case of women, the question revolves around giving in to erotic desires (fallen women). Freud has dealt with the symbol of falling extensively in his Interpretation of Dreams. ^[5]

Falling, and the accompanying sense of vertigo, is, along with flying, one of the most often reported dream topics. Falling dreams typically occur during the first stage of sleep. Dreams in this stage are often accompanied by muscle spasms of the arms, legs, and the whole body. Sometimes when we have these falling dreams, we feel our whole body jerk or twitch, which provokes us to awaken.

Typically, the act of falling in dreams suggests loss of control and anxiety in the sleeper’s waking life. The anxiety could be related to work, or it could be related to sexual inhibition or low self-esteem. Such may be the fear of the fall that you could awake with a jolt.

If this occurs, it is important to remember the circumstances of the fall in your dream, as this will help you understand its hidden message. According to Freudian theory, dreams of falling indicate that you are contemplating giving into a sexual urge or impulse. You may be lacking indiscretion. According to biblical interpretations, dreams about falling have a negative overtone and suggest that man is acting and walking according to his own way of thinking, and not that of the Lord. ^[6]

Symbol: A bad fall into an abyss often brings an undcfinable feeling of relief.

Vision: For a woman, dreaming about falling is a metaphor for letting herself go. Falling means that you’re stumbling into an unpleasant situation. Feeling the act of falling, physically, is not a cause for alarm.

It is simply a case of “getting back into your body”—waking up too quickly It might also be a sign of low blood pressure. Falling into a ditch: your reputation will suffer. Falling over something: a certain matter is made clear to you. Stumbling without falling: things could have been a lot worse. Watching others falling: you’re going to unmask your enemies just in time.

See also: AMBITION AND SUCCESS. ^[8]

Beating self up.Repatterning is needed. This is a common dream which usually represents underlying fears and feelings of inadequacy and helplessness. Interpret your dream by considering your primary fears, current difficulties, and situations in your life that seem to be on a downward spiral, especially those situations that seem outside of your control (financial, romantic,etc.). Some people believe that if you keep falling in your dream and don’t wake up that you will die at the point of impact. This is absolutely not true. In a falling dream you wake up out of fear and not because of danger of dying. Superstition based dream interpretations say that if you fall a long distance in your dream and get hurt, be prepared for really hard times ahead; but if you fall and are not injured your upsets will be minor and temporary. ^[9]

Falling is a very common dream metaphor and it reflects in our general language. We fall in and out of love, we fall in and out with people, and we fall over ourselves and others. We fall on hard times, we fall from grace and we fall asleep! • Falling captures a primal human emotion. Falling dreams recapture that feeling of being vulnerable and out of control.

• They occur when we feel the ground beneath us has given way, or when we’re feeling particularly vulnerable or insecure as happens when we fall in love or fall out with someone.

• When this dream occurs reflect on what you feel has “fallen apart” in your life or where you feel unsupported or lacking in confidence. ^[10]

A feeling or fear of losing a sense of security or control.

A sudden lack of foundation in your life, such as a situation in which “the rug is pulled out from under you.” Experiencing or fearing abandonment, especially by someone or something that provides critical support (a partner, employer, God, etc.).

An object falling can represent: a loss (or loss of control) of whatever that object represents in your life, the idea of “coming back down to Earth” or facing reality, the idea of an unseen force in action (such as a belief that “grounds” your behavior).

Normally, dreams in which you fall are the result of “falling while sleeping,” provoked by physiological causes. However, in symbolic terms they express a loss of emotional balance or self-control. Maybe you are afraid, in real life, of letting yourself get carried away. Anxiety is closely linked to this dream. It reflects insecurity, low self-confidence, fear of failure, or inability to take care of a situation. (See also: ABYSS)

According to oneiric sources consulted, dreaming that you fall into mud means that someone has lied about you. Other dreams of this type predict economic losses. ^[12]

Human beings have two ancient primal fears: fear of falling, and fear of loud noises.

Dreaming of falling often implies the fear of losing control and resulting disaster.

If the dreamer falls a great distance, then he should start finding solutions right away, for there is danger of severe complications.

If the dreamer falls a short distance and is unhurt, the damage will be minimal and can easily be set right.

A pun: Something important will happen, or difficulties will be resolved, by the “fall” (autumn). Astrological parallel: Scorpio Tarot parallel: The Tower ^[13]

Dreaming of falling is often a dream symbol for the fear of failure, or failing to live up to someone’s expectations.

If you dream you are falling but you are not frightened or harmed, it shows that you will meet with adversity but overcome it with ease.

If the fall greatly frightens you then will you under go a major struggle in life.

If you are injured in the fall you will lose many friends. As a side note, it is also said that waking with a feeling of falling means that you’ve been astral travelling, and the falling feeling is your spirit returning to the body. ^[14]

(See also: Abyss, Cliff, Climbing, Ladder, Stairs)

The need for improved balance and control; feeling helpless.

Going beyond safe boundaries and losing yourself; overextension.

A phobia: The fear of falling (or fear of heights) may manifest in a dream to help you overcome the anxiety.

Letting go of something you perceived as an important foothold can cause falling dreams, like the first time a young person moves into her / his own apartment.

Lost status or the proverbial “fall from grace.” ^[15]

1- To dream of falling shows a lack of confidence in our own ability. We may feel threatened by a lack of security, whether real or imagined. We fear being chopped by friends or colleagues.

2- Falling has come to be interpreted as surrender (particularly sexual) and with moral failure, of not being as one should.

3- We may feci we are slipping away from a situation, essentially we are losing our place. This can be because of others’ negative influence. ^[16]

Falling is a universal dream motif. Psychologists speculate that fearful falling dreams are rooted in our early experiences as toddlers learning to walk. Falling dreams often reflect a sense that one has failed or “fallen down” in life.

Dreams of falling also occur when one feels completely overwhelmed or out of control, such as during a divorce or the loss of a job. ^[17]

Falling in your dream may come as a response to some failure. It may comment on feelings of loss of control. It may also be a response to falling from grace or falling from your stature in life. Falling dreams may recur when you have lost a significant relationship, or have faced a personal disaster in your career, or have been diagnosed with a particular illness. ^[18]

Falling, in a dream, is a very familiar sensation to everyone.

It is a symbol of fear. It may be a violation of the moral code, which, to women, is disastrous. Falling may also mean failure in your work or in the management of your home.

It is not an encouraging dream. ^[19]

Falling dreams are very common and often happen when we’ve started something new, like a year of school or a job. Falling a long height and landing safely in a dream means you should trust your instincts to safely lead you out of difficulty. ^[20]

Symbolic of a loss of control or uncontrollable circumstances in life. Watching someone else fall may be a warning for you to pray for the person in free-fall. Falling is also a sign of not having any godly guidance, Prov. 11:14 ^[21]

Falling dreams are not uncommon.

The Gypsies say they indicate that you are unhappy, especially with personal relationships, and want to get out of a situation. ^[22]

1. Taking eyes off God;

2. Complete loss of support;

3. Intense trial;

4. Surrender;

5. Separation from God; Eph. 4:18; Heb. 2:14, 15; Matt. 15:19. ^[23]

This dream is merely a warning to ‘’watch your step1, in connection with business, members oi the opposite sex, and physical fitness. ^[24]

Fear of failure, signifying a desire for higher achievement ^[25]

lucky numbers: 03-04-13-28-35-46

amusement park ride, from an: let yourself enjoy the struggle as you do the solution.

bridge, a: wil sink as low as your highs were high.

high place, a: feeling emotional y out of control, now that warranted fright is absent.

medium height: lack of support wil cause you to activate your true strength.

arising again, and: keep re-experiencing unfinished deed until you accomplish it.

dying: ask friend to subsidize your project; but not to fail in your place.

awaking with a start, in the ocean and then: loss of faith in yourself.

children: anticipate the breathing process stopping until assured that the child is wel .

ditch, into a: salvage your reputation from your low opinion of yourself.

enemies: do not confide your secret fear of not being in control.

floor, to the: are menaced by the danger of total isolation.

friends: fear of being deceived wil make you so.

frightened, and being: wil experience an obscure guilt for a moral lapse.

from the edge of a cliff: the status you have reached needs basic human contact.

black hole, into a: are highly sensitive to your environment.

into the rocks: some obstacle is hindering your presentation.

water: seek spiritual insights now.

ladder, a: one rung does not a failure make; step up and try again.

roof, a: your mental equilibrium is going, going, gone!

space, outer: unfulfil ed desire for support and affection.

grave hole, in a: have lost your sense of self-worth and mental equilibrium.

hurt, and being: financial losses are imminent if you repeat past mistakes.

children: wil make the wrong move; put off your decision.

injured, being: wil endure hardship from having lost the esteem of friends.

without: wil be victorious in your struggles and hardship wil turn to care.

ocean, in the: wil be il until you immerse yourself in healing your mind.

others: a timely unmasking of your enemies as you sustain a fal at their expense.

over something: let go of that object or situation you have lost control of.

physical act of: sense of coming back into reality after a dream trip.

relatives: loss of esteem among those you love and respect.

stumbling, and: have put distorted value on a chance of trouble.

without: can salvage a tricky situation, by returning more gently each night.

thrown in the ocean by enemies, being: wil be persecuted for loss of self-control.

water, in the: risk the fulfil ment of a death wish for your enemy. ^[26]

Falling Dream Meaning

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