Dreams have tremendous power over the human imagination. They have a long history tinged with religion, politics, and psychology. There have been arguments and theories about why we dream, what dreams mean, and whether they have meaning at all. I do not presume to tell you any of these things for certain.

A nightmare is a kind of dream, specifically about things the dreamer finds unpleasant, scary, or disturbing. What a particular nightmare may mean to a person varies with his or her life experience. They can be brought on by stress, bad food, even watching scary movies. These dreams are had by both children and adults. Children's nightmares are generally more tangibly "scary", as their experience of how to deal with different events in life are limited, so a stressful situation would be represented by a scary monster or something similar.

Night terrors are something different altogether. While still in the realm of the nightmare, the night terror distinguishes itself with the addition of a neurological component which often lingers into waking. Such things as excessive sweating, crying, yelling, kicking, shortness of breath, and dizziness are signs of night terrors, especially when they are still present after the dream has ended. Often a linked with trauma, these dreams carry on through all of adulthood if left untreated. Sleep is restless and the dreamer is often tired a good deal of time as a result.

It is not possible to pick up a book in the new age section of the bookstore and interperet all your dreams accurately. No two people will ascribe the same meaning to a teacup in a dream, nor will a dream about taking the bus be scary to every person. If you are troubled by your dreams, try picking apart the images and brainstorming what place they may have in your experience of the world. If you're willing and able, a therapist might be able to help you see patterns.