Understanding Dreams in Clinical Practice

Dreams work on the emotional raw material of our life experience and an ability to work with them is an essential tool for the counsellor, psychotherapist and analyst. This book is the fifth in the series of SAP monographs that aim to provide a practical guide to core concepts and concerns in clinical practice. The book offers a simple, effective and practical method of exploring, understanding and working with dreams which illuminates the rich layers of their symbolic meaning. It outlines and explores the core theoretical models relating to dreams Jungian, Freudian and postKleinian as well as the findings from dream research laboratories and neuroscience. It charts and engages with the longrunning disputes and conflicts within and between these fields. The contemporary model outlined focuses on the network of associations related to the dream image and narrative, and unpacks the multiple layers and levels of symbolic meaning. This model is particularly helpful in showing how dreams can illuminate early patterns of relating that can otherwise be especially difficult to access. The book offers a comprehensive guide to the subject of dreaming and will be of interest to both trainees and experienced practitioners.

Marcus West is a Jungian analyst and professional member of the Society of Analytical Psychology. He works in private practice in Sussex.