Are you interested in exploring your dreams in more depth? The first step is finding a reliable method of recording your dreams. This article will explain how to make a dream journal. While you could make your dream journal a beautiful and complex work of art, it is more important that it does its job.
A simple and convenient solution
There isn’t much point in having a beautifully bound, gem encrusted dream journal if you never get around to writing in it. As you can see from the picture on this page, my dream journal is just a basic flip-style notebook with a standard black biro next to it.
Since my dream journal is compact, it fits neatly on my bedside table, meaning I can simply reach across and jot down my dream before rolling over and going back to sleep.
If you have to leave your bed, or even reach into a drawer, to retrieve your dream journal, this will add an extra layer of inconvenience. You might decide it’s not worth the effort. If you do decide to get out from under the covers, you will also start to fully wake up, and this has two downsides: you will start forgetting some of your dream details and your ego will start interfering, causing you to focus on some parts of the dream over others and to start interpreting your dream.
Another option is to record your dreams on your phone’s note-taking app as you wake up. Taking a voice note can be even better providing you won’t be disturbing anyone.
While keeping a simple notepad dream journal is fine, you will probably want a better way of organising your dreams so you can identify themes and look back at previous dreams.
As detailed in my earlier article on dream journaling, I use a three journal system. I set aside some quality time to convert my scribbled down notes from my flip-pad into a spiral-bound notebook. I then give my dream a short title and record all the details from my notepad into a full narrative of my dream. As you can see, my writing isn’t the neatest, but at least the dream is now legible.
The third part of my system is a Google Docs file. This is simply a reproduction of my notebook linked to an index I built on a Google Sheets file. This helps me to spot and explore recurring dream symbols.
If you want to know how to make a dream journal that’s a bit more polished than my examples, read on:
Commercial dream journals
Instead of making a dream journal yourself, you could always purchase a custom-made dream journal from Amazon or another commercial outlet. There are many different styles to suit different aesthetic tastes. Just make sure you can look inside the journal first to make sure there is enough space to write what you need. A box for the date is useful, but personally, I don’t see much point in noting the specific time of your dreams unless you find yourself waking at exactly the same time each night (e.g. 03.33). Then, you might want to add that to your notes.
Otherwise, keep things simple to ensure you stay in that drowsy state that will help you recall more of your dream as you record it.
Here are some physical journals from Amazon: https://amzn.to/4fIAfi5. Please note that as an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
If you prefer, you could download a set of dream templates, although these can be difficult to organise. mobile journal apps such as Penzu can also be an option for those who prefer to be paper-free.
You could even publish your dream journal as a blog or web page, although you may want to think about how you are going to handle embarrassing dreams or those with details you wouldn’t want to release to the public. The advantage of app and web-based dream journals are the ability to interlink pages and create menus to help categorise your dreams.
How to interpret your dreams
Being able to understand the information provided through your dreams can transform your life:
- In your work/passion, you can unlock knowledge and creative inspiration that can make you achieve more than you ever thought possible.
- In your relationships, you can learn how to understand your emotions and find better ways to handle difficult situations.
- In your day-to-day life, you can solve practical problems, such as deciding which property to buy, overcoming a bad habit or even finding lost property!
Dream dictionaries have their place, but the real secret to interpreting your dreams is following a failsafe system that balances your logical mind and intuition while taming your ego. Based on the framework revealed in my book, Be Your Own #DreamDetective, subscribing to my dream course is the first step to mastering dream interpretation and unlocking the gifts the Dream Source has waiting for you.