Dreams and nightmares are considered to be two entirely different things because we experience them in different ways.
While a dream may leave you feeling a little dazed but overall light and essentially “good” when you wake up, a nightmare may have you rise from your slumber breaking out in a sweat!
However, the truth is that it’s up to you to interpret your dreams before you just label them either “good” or “bad.”
Dreaming of a killer in your sleep definitely isn’t the most pleasant experience, but there could be deep symbolism in your dream.
Learning how to effectively understand what’s going on in your subconscious can not only help you improve your reality greatly, but it can help to stop letting fear and labeling of nightmares control your sleep experiences.
Let’s explore the different things your dreams may be trying to tell you about your waking life if you experience one of these intense dreams.
IMPORTANT TO NOTE!
We have to include this very cautionary note for your safety and others.
Just because you have a frightening dream about a killer does not mean that you should harm yourself or others!
Your dreams are a way for your subconscious to communicate with you about some of the deepest, darkest secrets, emotions, and fears you may be holding within that need to be brought to light.
Many times, your mind is speaking to you in these intense symbolic ways to help you unveil what is really going on within and help you on your healing journey, not to take any negative actions in real life.
These types of dreams usually do not hold predictive qualities, but more symbolic meanings that are worth exploring.
What does it mean to dream of killing another person in your sleep?
Murder and killing is such a taboo subject that many of us try to avoid — but unfortunately it is something that does happen in our human experience.
It is something that you hear about on the news, in movies, and even read about in books.
This means that even if you consciously shun this type of behavior, your subconscious mind picks up on the symbolism and the emotions attached to it.
This is very similar to the idea of death and dying.
These are subjects that bring up emotions that many of us are afraid to explore.
Most times, these intense dreams that involve a violent crime means that you may have feelings that are overwhelming or have been repressed for too long.
Now, they are showing up within your dreams where you no longer have that logical, conscious boundary because they need to be addressed.
This can be especially true if you dream of actually taking the action yourself against someone you know.
That particular person could be making you feel powerless.
Or, you could really need to remove this person from your life so that you can feel back in control again.
You may be fearful to do this, thinking that it could cause a violent conflict of some sort.
Trying to ignore confrontation isn’t always the best way to handle these emotions because obviously your subconscious mind is still affected by it and you are unconsciously creating internal emotional turmoil.
What does it mean to have a dream that someone is trying to kill me?
Being chased down by a known murderer or someone who is threatening your safety can be a very scary dream to have.
While you may be quick to jump to the conclusion that someone is after you, this could just lead to fear and be more difficult to understand the deeper meaning of the dream.
Truly, this type of dream could be revealing your fear about certain people in your life.
You could be unconsciously confused about their motivations in your life.
When you’re around the person in real life, you could pick up on negative energies that don’t match up with the persona that they’re putting on.
Or, these types of dreams could come up after conflicts with a particular person because the relationship dynamics are changing and muddled after the argument.
Themes Found in Killer Dreams
These types of scary dreams can actually hold a lot more meaning than you may have originally thought.
Here are some common themes that have been found through dream interpretation.
Fear of Change
Again, this is closely related to similar themes found in dreams about death and dying.
While many of us prefer not to discuss death and dying, the action is inevitable in the human experience on a very real scale and even symbolically.
When you move on to a new phase in your life, quite literally an old version of yourself dies.
This means that when you have dreams of a killer, death, or dying, you could be resistant to the fact that you may have to let some traits, habits, or older versions of yourself go and let a new you emerge.
Overwhelm and Confusion
These types of dreams are extremely emotionally charged.
Most of us know that killing someone is bad, illegal, and just morally unacceptable not only by society but by our own moral standpoints.
If you’re dreaming of instances where you are violating your own moral views, this could mean that you are confused about where you stand.
There is also the consideration that you may be facing a decision that doesn’t feel good no matter what choice you make.
You may feel conflicted or avoid deciding because neither option feels good and you may have to “sacrifice” someone or something in order to move forward.
If you’re not comfortable dealing with conflict in a healthy way, you may also experience a frightening dream like this, highlighting your inability to confront someone or something.
Still Not Sleeping Well? Get Help If You Need It!
The dream realm can be frightening because it is so unknown.
The more that you become comfortable diving deeper into the meanings of your dreams, you will begin to hold less and less fear.
However, if you’re truly frightened about what you’re seeing in your dreams, you can always reach out to a professional for help.
This is especially true if you continue to have dream experiences about violence or dreams that cause you to feel unsettled, depressed, saddened, or fearful that you may take harmful actions to yourself or others in your waking life.
Sometimes, finding the right professional support can help you remove some of those unconscious fears and emotional blockages that could be interrupting your sleep.