Starlight, star bright, as I fall asleep, may I have a good dream tonight. It is a known fact that when a person enters into a deep slumber, there is a possibility that he/she will travel through dreamland. Dreams are a tool for people to break away from the realities of life, and enter into a magical land of possibilities. Throughout my life, I have had many dreams; some remaining on the scale of normal, while others have left me puzzled. Since I have lost my eyesight, my dreams have not changed in terms of them being in color with imagery. Due to the high visual nature surrounding dreams, it is hard for some sighted people to fathom how blind/visually impaired individuals can share in this experience. Within these past seven years, I have noticed that there is a common interest by sighted people on whether or not blind/visually impaired individuals have dreams. Particularly, at my field placement in graduate school, a fellow intern told me that she and her boyfriend were having a discussion pertaining to dreams. According to the intern, she and her boyfriend were wondering if blind people had dreams. The answer to this question is yes. Like everyone else, blind people do have dreams; varying in content and appearance.
According to different studies, there is a relationship between vision imagery in dreams, when a person becomes blind/visually impaired, and the extent to their blindness. Among the literature and studies, there was a consensus that people who are born blind/visually impaired or lose their sight at an early age have little to no imagery in their dreams. Whereas, people who lose their eyesight when they are older have visual imagery and memory of what things may look like. However, dreams are not solely based on visual aspects, but instead auditory, smell, touch, and taste can be a part of the experience as well. Dreams are all about one’s imagination and perceptions.
In terms of my own experience when it comes to dreams, I am not shocked at the fact that I still have them. However, what puzzles me is that in all of my dreams I still have my eyesight. Two signifiers that send the message I am sighted is first; I am able to see what is around me. In my dreams, I have vivid images of my family; old/new friends, scenery, etc. Secondly, I am not traveling with my white cane. I am not a dream interpreter, nor can I help but wonder what the meaning is behind my dreams. Who knows, it could be a sign that one day I might have the opportunity to regain my eyesight. Whatever the case may be, one thing remains to be true, I will never give up having hope or faith that one day my dreams will turn into a reality, and I will be able to see with my eyes again!
that's actually really cool. i'd never even thought about that, but it makes sense that you'd be sighted in your dreams.
ReplyDeletenow i'm wondering if people who were born blind can see in their dreams, or if they're blind in dreamland as well ..
All of the research that I found talked about how congenitally blind individuals do dream, but there is little to no visual imagery. With this said, I assume that people who are born blind do not have sight in their dreams.
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