Dream questions: Experts on meaning, nightmares, sleep paralysis and more

One hypothesis, the experts say, is that people tend to constantly have interests and dreams about those topics. According to Barrett, repetitive dreams can bring happiness, but in general they are more likely to cause anxiety. Many therapists, she says, believe that dreams like this often refer to “more meaningful long-term personality issues,” such as a person’s personality traits, defense mechanisms, ways of coping. vices and beliefs about the world.