Tooth Loss Dreams Fairly Common

Dear Nancy: I’ve had this recurring dream for several years. It doesn’t seem to coincide with any particular events in my life or visits to the dentist. I had a normal, loving childhood with no special trauma around the time I was losing my teeth. I did, however, have unpleasant childhood visits to the dentist. - Marcia

I can feel loose teeth in my mouth with my tongue and suddenly they all fall out in broken shards. I am catching them in my hands. I am horrified and can feel the gaping holes in my mouth. I awaken with an overwhelming sense of relief that it was just a dream.

Dear Marcia: Teeth dreams are actually quite common and usually they depict loss of teeth in some way. Some of the theories about these teeth dreams include:

1. A sign of the dreamer’s fear of aging and of being unattractive.

2. An inner feeling of having “lost face” or of being humiliated in some way.

3. Because teeth enable us to chew, they can be symbolic of “chewing something over” in your mind to better understand it. So the loss of teeth might depict the inability to understand a given situation or person in your life.

4. It may be a warning dream to see your dentist!

5. Teeth can also be a symbol of aggression and assertiveness. The loss of them may have to do with a lost sense of power in one’s life.

As Carl Jung said, “… no dream interpretation can be undertaken without the dreamer.” The one who dreams is the one who knows the dream’s meaning. I hope I’ve given you some ideas to “chew” on, Marcia.

Tips for readers: The environment or setting in a dream can be one of the most important clues to the dream’s meaning. The associations that are evoked by working with the setting can be an easy way to get to the heart of the issue the dream is addressing.

For instance, if the dream takes place in the desert, you might ask yourself, “What in my life feels inhospitable and desolate?” Unless you have positive associations with the desert, the dream may be referring to a part of your life where you feel a lack of growth or deprivation. Other actions and characters in the dream can be viewed with these associations in mind.

Other examples of dream settings and their relationship to the dreamer might be:

School: Is this a teaching dream? Look for any clues or advice you received concerning your life. You may have received inspiration and guidance by listening to the teacher who usually represents a higher wisdom.

Hotels: This tells the dreamer that this issue may be a temporary one. It could also be referring to the dreamer’s feelings of being in transition or uprooted.

Weather: Is it a stormy day or a foggy evening? Storms usually depict turbulent emotions or situations. Fog may represent an inability to see clearly. Be sure to allow yourself to make your own mental connections with your dream settings. One person’s associations with a dream scene may be totally different than another’s.

Allow yourself to play in your mind with these dream environments. They are rich material for the art of dream work.

This column is intended as entertainment. But psychologists who work with clients’ dreams say that dreams can hold a tremendous amount of significance; a particularly disturbing or repetitive dream may indicate the need to see a therapist.

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