Have you ever had a weird dream and woken up super confused? Or have you ever wondered why you dream at all? I definitely have–sometimes I even get excited to go to sleep just to see what I’ll dream about! We dream for many reasons, and many times dreams have meaning behind them. According to Healthline, there are quite a few beliefs and theories as to why we dream.

Dreams can serve as therapists because they put together feelings that you may not confront while you are conscious. For example, you might have a dream that you’re being chased by someone or something, which could mean that your conscious self is avoiding something. I personally think it’s really cool that your brain is just trying to help you out. 

One downside to dreams are nightmares. Nightmares can be pretty intense and leave you waking up scared or worried. Some causes of nightmares are anxiety and stress. You might have had a really stressful day, and then when you go to sleep, instead of having a fun or interesting dream, you have a scary nightmare. If you find yourself having nightmares frequently, ask yourself if you have been stressed or anxious. Once that stress is relieved, you will likely have fewer nightmares.

There is a lot more behind dreams, but those are the theories I found most interesting.