It was 1978 and I was part of a Gestalt Therapy training group in the US. I disliked the group intensely for many reasons. However, a major insight came from a session of ‘two-chair’ work I did with a violent dream. In the Gestalt process, speaking as the attacking force, I realized how angry I was with the group and how I unconsciously wanted to kill/get rid of everyone! It felt true and enlivening to speak from that angry part of me.
Gestalt dreamwork seems simple but has profound effects. In essence, you treat each object, person and event in the dream as a part of your self. Using dialogue, either with an empty chair, speaking out loud or writing, you give voice to the different parts symbolized in the dream. The dream ego (the “I”) is one part among many; to become whole, we need to integrate all aspects of the self, particularly those that are hidden, avoided or disconnected.
For example, you have a dream about a car driving down a road. There are four aspects: the “I”, the car, the road and the driving. Each part has its own being and intention; each forms a node in a matrix of relationships with all others. Here is an imaginary dialog:
- Me: I am driving down the road, wanting to get to my destination as quickly as possible. It’s that simple.
- Car: I am just a means to an end, to get from one place to another. No-one cares how I feel—I am just driven!
- Road: I feel used, trodden on, driven over, ignored and forgotten.
- Driving: This is too fast. I want to take my time and be mindful. Can’t you slow down?
This simple example shows how even a dream fragment can open up unexpected areas for exploration and awareness. The intention is not to interpret the dream but to bring it vividly to life in the moment. Gestalt dreamwork is an accessible and effective way to open up any dream and gain insight into its implicit emotions and motivations.