Throw an enthusiastic fist pump in the air if you can relate to this next statement. You awaken from a night of sleep when the remnants of your dreams—bizarre dreams—gush in, along with wondering why your dreams took a turn for weird when you became pregnant. “Did I really just dream about giving birth to a goat?” Yes, you did. And it’s ok. As you read the possible meanings, remember that dreams hold no true and absolute meaning—interpret with the ol’ grain-of-salt mentality and have a little fun as you attempt to decipher your own pregnancy dreams. Here are the seven most common pregnancy dreams and what they reveal.
Dreaming about giving birth
Dreaming about the actual birth process tends to reach its peak during the third trimester. This dream may communicate worries about not having control or the process deviating from your plan. Or, the dream may be a reflection of your excited anticipation of the arrival of your baby.
Giving birth to inanimate objects or animals
No need to worry in response to this type of dream. A pregnancy dream about giving birth to an animal can be a type of preparatory dream—a living critter to take care of without the pressures or fears that you are more likely to perceive when nurturing a baby. Think of this dream as a type of dress rehearsal for the real event in response to fears about the responsibilities of raising a baby.
Dreams about water: swimming, drowning, ocean
Water-based dreams can be a frequent theme during pregnancy. The symbolism of water may represent a relation to the baby’s womb experience. However, the specific experience with water alters the possible meaning.
Dreams about swimming may convey a link with the baby’s prenatal experience as well as with nature. If you are dreaming about drowning—never a fun dream—you may feel overwhelmed or worried about where and when your water might break. You’re in the middle of paying for groceries with a long line of impatient customers and … clean up in aisle four. A dream more indicative of the impending childbirth—the ocean—is particularly symbolic with the rhythm of the waves.
Forgetting about the baby or losing the baby
Freud’s influence on the world of dream interpretation may offer a path to understanding this dream theme. Based on the idea of projection, your worries about stepping into the role of parent and the responsibility of sustaining the life of your baby may be projected in a dream about forgetting or losing your baby. Taking time for mental and emotional preparation of parenthood may help to quell these dreams.
Feeling trapped
Two possible meanings may help you to untangle pregnancy dreams in which you feel trapped. One meaning suggests a connection to the baby’s current experience: enclosed in the womb. The second meaning may speak to feelings of an approaching loss of freedom that comes with parent territory. Do either meanings fit your pregnancy dreams of the sense of feeling trapped?
Weird feelings about your spouse
Pregnancy dreams in which your spouse or even ex-partners take center stage may each communicate an emotional underbelly. A dream in which your spouse is cheating can suggest a concern about your spouse viewing you as less attractive in context of the bodily changes of pregnancy. Did you dream about an ex-partner from years ago? This theme may imply hesitancy about the role of parent and the loss of your previous life of fewer responsibilities.
Sex dreams
A dream about conception can refer to establishing a bond with the baby and more likely occurs during the start of pregnancy. And if you notice the act of sex being a continual focus of your dreams, you’re not alone. Remember, dreams about sex can be affected by the physiological changes, including hormones, that take place during pregnancy. Because pregnant women need sex, this dream could also be your desire talking while you are asleep.