A recent survey on recurring dreams by ThePleasantDream, which included 506 participants across the globe, highlighted that 71.8% of participants had recurring dreams and the dream theme was – “You’re taking a test in school.”
Of the 506 participants, the maximum participation came from The United States of America with 31.1%, followed by 20.9% from India.
The team collected data through an online survey conducted on the website and on social media platforms to monitor all about recurring dreams and its effects.
Let’s see what the research revealed.
What do the statistics say?
Of the 506 participants, about 65.5% were female, 28.6% were males and 5.8% preferred to not reveal their gender. Besides, the participants mostly belonged to the age group of 18-30. In addition, 71.8% encountered recurring dreams, 7.8% denied them, and 20.4% were unsure.
When we asked our participants which recurring dreams did, they see more often, then the answer was “You’re taking a test in school.” About 28.59% participants foresee this dream. It is further followed by “being chased or attacked,” which was seen by 16.88% and “falling endlessly” by 11.63%.
Apart from these, there were various others dreams that people foresee and they are –
| Which dream is the most recurring? | % |
| You’re taking a test in school | 28.59% |
| Being chased or attacked | 16.88% |
| Falling endlessly | 11.63% |
| Being surrounded by insects or bugs | 3.69% |
| Flying uncontrollably | 3.18% |
| Losing teeth | 2.63% |
| Not sure | 2.14% |
| Being stuck in an inescapable location | 1.58% |
| Losing control of a car | 1.58% |
| Arriving late for a crucial life event or appointment | 1.06% |
| Being surrounded by animals | 1.06% |
| Car stolen | 1.06% |
| Fighting | 1.06% |
| Night terrors | 1.06% |
| Anything | 0.53% |
| Auntie | 0.53% |
| Be in former school as a teacher or visitor | 0.53% |
| Being with my ex-husband | 0.53% |
| Black hole | 0.53% |
| Buried alive | 0.53% |
| Cannibalism | 0.53% |
| Climbing something and being near/in running water. | 0.53% |
| Dad dying | 0.53% |
| Deceased husband | 0.53% |
| Dream of being in deep water usually swimming, often involves rocks | 0.53% |
| Escaping from drowning | 0.53% |
| Ex | 0.53% |
| Ex-husband and mother-in-law | 0.53% |
| Expecting employment interview result | 0.53% |
| Falling from the clouds and landing safe | 0.53% |
| Falling in a pit | 0.53% |
| Fantasy things | 0.53% |
| Going to the shops | 0.53% |
| Grocery store or a lake | 0.53% |
| Having a little baby | 0.53% |
| Having Diamond and also picking eggs | 0.53% |
| Hurricanes and storms | 0.53% |
| I am in high school yet but I completed high school 2 years ago | 0.53% |
| I am in my aunt’s house hiding in a basement | 0.53% |
| Ice cream | 0.53% |
| Losing my car at an airport | 0.53% |
| Moving | 0.53% |
| My husband cheating on me | 0.53% |
| Queen | 0.53% |
| Running up hill | 0.53% |
| Seeing dragon | 0.53% |
| Seeing green vegetation | 0.53% |
| Seeing my husband with other women | 0.53% |
| Sleeping with ex and spend most of time together | 0.53% |
| Snakes and new born babies | 0.53% |
| Snakes, animals, children | 0.53% |
| Someone fainting | 0.53% |
| Time travel | 0.53% |
| Tornadoes | 0.53% |
| Touching and feeling the same person I loved | 0.53% |
| Various | 0.53% |
| When I am helping a prophet to do some work | 0.53% |
When did the participants start having their recurring dreams?
We asked our participants when they encountered their first recurring dream and we realised there is a close competition between childhood and adolescence/teenage. About 37.8% answered having recurring dream in childhood, 35.1% answered adolescence/teenage and 27% answered adulthood.
The nature of the dreams
When asked about the nature of their dreams, about 59.5% answered having dream that are mix of both (negative & positive). Following this, negative dreams have maximum takers with 27.6% and positive 13%.
Besides, we asked the participants – how similar their recurring dreams were and 60.7% of participants think that every time they had a dream it was 50-80-% similar than the previous one. 26.2% believed that their dreams were 50% similar while 13.1% had the same dream every time.
Thereafter, we also asked the frequency of their recurring dreams.
- 25.8% admitted to seeing recurring dreams once a week.
- 24.2% accepted that they had recurring dreams once in 2-3 months.
- 16.3% had once a month & 14.2% had once in six months.
- 11.1% had once a year & 2.6% people don’t remember their dream.
- 2.6% see recurring dreams every day while 1.6% had dreams greater than a year.
Reasons behind the recurring dreams
We wished to dive deeper to know whether the participants knew the reasons behind their recurring dreams and the reasons were quite interesting.
- 48.9% did not know the reason behind recurring dreams.
- 18.1% think anxiety/depression to be the reason behind the recurring dreams.
- 17% thought it is because of some life event and 11.7% think it is due to some supernatural force.
- While 3.2% feel that past life is the reason behind their recurring dreams.
Expert’s opinion
Dr. Nereida Gonzalez-Berrios, MD, reviewer and certified psychiatrist of ThePleasantDream, commented, “some of the key reasons of recurring dreams are – some unresolved conflicts, unmet needs, past life events that cause frustration, substance abuse, medication & mental disorders such as PTSD and BPD.”
She further adds,” however, recurring dreams can be controlled if you follow a definite sleep schedule, practice meditation or avoid stimulants that affect your sleep. If nothing works, you can seek professional help.”
