Do you dream in color or in black and white?

[ZorBrak]

I have ALWAYS dreamt in color. In fact I did not know that anyone could dream in black and white until very recently, and when I learned this I was quite suprised. Does anyone know what it means if you do/don't dream in color? Which do you dream in (I woulda posted a poll but it's acting funky and not letting me :eek: )

[Patrick Bateman]

I dream in color (at least, when I DO dream). I'm not much of a dreamer though. I daydream in color all the time, if that counts. :p

[BlueAngelGal]

I've never heard of anyone dreaming in black and white... though I suppose you might if you're colorblind.

[Calhoun07]

I never heard of anybody dreaming in black and white either. Where do people come up with that idea?? Also, while slightly on the topic, how does anybody know if dogs can only see in black and white? I don't buy that for one second. Dogs can see in color, I am sure. Maybe they can't see all the colors we can, I don't know, but in black and white only? Who thought that was true?

[Jedigreedo]

Calhoun, I think it may be nerves in the eye, maybe a dog doesn't have as many nerves in the eye that makes color form so their mind can only see images in black and white?

Anyways.. I've never head a black and white dream, they've always been in color. I would however prefer some dreams to be in black and white, since sometimes they have FUNKY looking colors.

[Jade_GL]

I most certainly dream in color, mainly because I have become really good at remembering my dreams. I remember at least two a week. I write all of them in a journal and all of them have had special notes on colors I see.

Color is important in my dreams. Vivid blues of water, green trees, even teh beige walls in the halls of most of the buildings at college. It's just something I always have done, see my dreams in color and detail.

I have never met a soul who said they dreamed in black and white, but then again, most people I talk to just remember the story, not specific colors, unless of course it matters to the story. :D

[BlueAngelGal]

There are these things called rods and cones that are in your eye, and when light hits them, it transmitts a signal to your brain that is interpretted as an image. Rods are for black and white, and cones are for color.
Dogs have no cones, so they can't see in color.

[Calhoun07]

Originally posted by BlueAngelGal
There are these things called rods and cones that are in your eye, and when light hits them, it transmitts a signal to your brain that is interpretted as an image. Rods are for black and white, and cones are for color.
Dogs have no cones, so they can't see in color.

Poor dogs.

I always wonder how they figure stuff out like that. Who is sitting around one day and decides to figure that out? Just like violin strings? Who in the world ever invented those? "Hey dried cat guts! I wonder what they would sound like if I stretched them out over this geetar and made a bow to rub on them?" Sometimes a guy has to wonder.

[Shnay]

I heard something slightly different regarding the color/black and white dream issue. What I heard is that we all dream in black and white, all the time. And that we only put colors in our dreams when we try to remember them while awake. I'm not sure I buy that (or how in the world they would figure that out) but I remember hearing that theory/rumor/fact (I'm not sure which it actually is) on a few different occassions.

I always seem to dream in color. But, then again, perhaps I'm just remembering things that way...I don't know...I'm going to sleep :D

[Daniel P]

Color.

[Calhoun07]

Originally posted by Shnay
I heard something slightly different regarding the color/black and white dream issue. What I heard is that we all dream in black and white, all the time. And that we only put colors in our dreams when we try to remember them while awake. I'm not sure I buy that (or how in the world they would figure that out) but I remember hearing that theory/rumor/fact (I'm not sure which it actually is) on a few different occassions.


I don't buy that either. Maybe some people do that, I have no idea, and some geek scientists with nothing better to do decided that an entire population must dream this way based on a few results culled from a study, who knows? I know that I dream in color.

[Outlander00]

I found this straight from The Association for the Study of Dreams (http://www.asdreams.org) (Whether or not its a real group, I have no idea):

Are dreams in color?

Most dreams are in color, although people may not be aware of it, either because they have difficulty remembering their dreams or because color is such a natural part of visual experience. People who are very aware of color while awake probably notice color more often in their dreams.

[batboy2001]

Originally posted by Calhoun07
I never heard of anybody dreaming in black and white either. Where do people come up with that idea?? Also, while slightly on the topic, how does anybody know if dogs can only see in black and white? I don't buy that for one second. Dogs can see in color, I am sure. Maybe they can't see all the colors we can, I don't know, but in black and white only? Who thought that was true? Cal, for dogs, I beleive it has to do with rods and cones in the eyes (I forget which is for black and white and which is for color) they either lack a cone or a rod... Anyway, back on topic, I have never heard of anyone dreaming in black and white.

[The Dark Knight]

Originally posted by Calhoun07
Poor dogs.

I always wonder how they figure stuff out like that. Who is sitting around one day and decides to figure that out? Just like violin strings? Who in the world ever invented those? "Hey dried cat guts! I wonder what they would sound like if I stretched them out over this geetar and made a bow to rub on them?" Sometimes a guy has to wonder. Actually, dogs can see in color, but because they have only two sets of color receptors, as opposed to the three you have, they have difficulty differentiating between certain colors. For example, they can't tell the difference between red and green, so a red ball on a grassy yard will just look like a grass-colored ball.

Also, violin strings were never made out of cat gut, they were made out of sheep intestines.

[BLACKHEART]

I remember when I made a topic like this an broached the subject of people who dream in black and white

[Romanesque]

Originally posted by The Dark Knight
Actually, dogs can see in color, but because they have only two sets of color receptors, as opposed to the three you have, they have difficulty differentiating between certain colors.Thank you, thank you, thank you! There's hope for humanity after all! Sorry, I'm just happy to see that someone actually replied with the correct answer. :D

I have to wonder how the whole "Dogs only see in B&W" thing started... My best guess: The only way to know would be to study the dog's eye, and the results of such a study would have shown that they can see color. In humans, the condition of only having two sets of color receptors is commonly known as color-blindness (blindness to a particular color), so technically, dogs are also color-blind. Color-blindness is often falsely believed to be the same as black and white vision, so maybe that's how the misconception began? ::shrug::

Moving on to the subject of the thread... I typically dream in glorious full-color, complete with depth-perception. Except when there's a good reason for things to be black and white, such as the dream taking place in a 40's film nior (with film grain, to boot!).

Some more questions related to dreaming...

Do you dream in 1st person or 3rd person?
Can you speak in your dreams?
Can you read in your dreams? (And to what extent?)
Can you smell / taste / feel things in your dreams?
Have you ever experienced pain in a dream?
Ever died in a dream?
Do you have recurring dreams that always take place in a static location? (The location always remains the same, except for minor changes one might expect to happen, were it a real place?)

--Romey

[Shnay]

Do you dream in 1st person or 3rd person?
It varies. I'd say I tend to dream in first person, though. Once in a while the dream switches between perspectives.

Can you speak in your dreams?
Usually. Sometimes I have full conversations with other characters in the dream about real serious topics.

Can you read in your dreams? (And to what extent?)
I don't remember ever reading in a dream.

Can you smell / taste / feel things in your dreams?
Not usually.

Have you ever experienced pain in a dream? Hmm...I think so, but never anything real intense. I remember once I dreamed I got punched in the stomach, and remember it hurting. When I woke up, I found I had rolled over onto my hand, and that was what was causing the pain.

Ever died in a dream?
I have, on a few occassions.

Do you have recurring dreams that always take place in a static location? (The location always remains the same, except for minor changes one might expect to happen, were it a real place?)
I used to have recurring dreams that took place in the same locations when I was younger, but don't really any more.


Good questions, Romey.

[Nightflower]

I dream in color. I really don't agree with the theory that we only add color to the dreams in our memory afterwards.

My dreams are usually in first person, but occasionally change to third person. I can't remember an occasion when I can't speak in a dream. Sometimes I can smell/taste/feel things in my dreams. I'm not sure if I ever felt pain in a dream, but I do remember dying in a lot of dreams. But I don't die in real life, or else.. something must be messed up here. O_o The dream just keeps going or changes completely.

[Jedigreedo]

Originally posted by Romey
Do you dream in 1st person or 3rd person?

They're mainly in first person but sometimes I see myself from the front as another person's perspective.

Originally posted by Romey
Can you speak in your dreams?

Yeah alot of times I do.

Originally posted by Romey
Can you read in your dreams? (And to what extent?)

In most... I know theres been the whole thing that you can't read in a dream because reading requires the other side of your brain, but I think I know how you can read in dreams. Ok for anyone who's familiar with websites and such should be able to understand easily: Think about how when you make a website and have a specific font for something, but a person visiting the page may not have the font, so it appears on their computer as generic font. Now if you saved the text in an image form with that font, then they could see that font because it would an image, instead of being formed as just basic text on a page. In the dreams that I can read in, it's always familiar stuff I can read, like names and such, I recognize the formations and it registers in my mind, so in a sense I "read" the things but really it's just a familiar combination of shapes.

Originally posted by Romey
Can you smell / taste / feel things in your dreams?

Don't recall smelling or tasing but I know I can definitely feel stuff like if I touch someone then I can feel the body tissue as if it were real.

Originally posted by Romey
Have you ever experienced pain in a dream?

No, I've never stuck around in the dream for pain to set in. :D

Originally posted by Romey
Ever died in a dream?

No, but I have had instances where I probably would've ended up dying if I hadn't woken up right then.

Originally posted by Romey
Do you have recurring dreams that always take place in a static location? (The location always remains the same, except for minor changes one might expect to happen, were it a real place?)


Yeah I have those every now and then, sometimes they're EXACTLY the same, except just more familiar and so they don't seem as strange as they sometimes do earlier on.

[meatwad945]

i have no idea all i know is that if i could describe them people would call me insane (more than usual)

[Jade_GL]

Do you dream in 1st person or 3rd person?

Both. I dream in first person most of the time, but when something happens to me in a dream, such as I die or become incapacitated, I will switch my view of the action and be outside myself. All in the same dream. Cool huh?

Can you speak in your dreams?

Yes. I sometimes have elaborate speeches, sometimes I can't. It all depends on what is happening. But most of the time I normally talk, or at least I feel I am.

Can you read in your dreams? (And to what extent?)

Depends. One time I remember specifically being unable to because everything looked like gibberish, but I had just seen that episode of Batman where he realizes he is dreaming because he can't read, so I think that influenced it. Anyway, sometimes I do, but it's very rare for me. I rarely have a dream where reading is an action that I have to do.

Can you smell / taste / feel things in your dreams?

Yes, I have dreams where I am eating really great foods or can smell things cooking. Mainly, if I eat in dreams, I eat things like candy, cakes, or sweet food. I have no idea why, I don't particularly like it in real life. Just one of those things I guess.

Have you ever experienced pain in a dream?

Yes, I do all the time. It's very strange I admit it. I have a thing where bad things happen to me a lot in my dreams. A big problem I have is dreaming I have some sort of a medical problem, ulcer, cancer, or other ailment, and in my dreams it is "painful". I have also been attacked, shot, all kinds of good things, and usually I tell myself that it must hurt, so in my dream it does. I have no idea if it's me having a stomach ache in bed from eating too much pizza, but it does seem to happen, whether I am being affected by a real life thing or am just thinking I must be in pain.

Ever died in a dream?

All the time. I would say at least once a week. It all depends on stresss level, what I have been reading, watching or playing, etc. Again, I dream constantly of bad things happening to me, and this just fits in that category. Funny thing is, as I've gotten older, I don't just die, but I usually stay on in the dream and am able to influence things and either come back to life by being saved or by doing something myself. Heck, I have even just gotten up and said "Hey, that wasn't so bad." So I guess I'm getting better. :D

Do you have recurring dreams that always take place in a static location?

Once in a while. I tell myself that I have had the dream before, and I usually know what is going to happen. I had more of these when I was a kid. I actually had a really strange dream where I would be led into an empty tree stump by gnomes or some sort of fairies and would then be trapped in the tree stunp worl. It was all very strange and was one of the dreams that would recur the most. I think I've had it three or four times, but I stopped having it when I got out of elementary school. Maybe even sometime before that, but I can't remember.

I used to sleep walk to, and that also ended when I was in elementary school. :D

[Cogliostro]

I don't dream, now I know everyone dreams but I don't remember any of my dreams while most people atleast remember a few of the 20-100 dreams most people have a night. I remember dreaming before but that was probably over 5 years ago...

[moldorm]

Originally posted by Shnay
I heard something slightly different regarding the color/black and white dream issue. What I heard is that we all dream in black and white, all the time. And that we only put colors in our dreams when we try to remember them while awake. I'm not sure I buy that (or how in the world they would figure that out) but I remember hearing that theory/rumor/fact (I'm not sure which it actually is) on a few different occassions.

I always seem to dream in color. But, then again, perhaps I'm just remembering things that way...I don't know...I'm going to sleep :D

I heard that too, and I decided to disprove it. One night, while I was asleep, and I realized that I was dreaming, I created a number of colored objects on a table, things like red cones and blue cubes. I picked up each object, and noted the color, and the fact that I was dreaming at the time when I noted the color, and was not adding in the color after I woke up.

Then I tried walking up the wall, and twisted the room up :( then woke up.

[moldorm]

Some more questions related to dreaming...

Do you dream in 1st person or 3rd person?
Both. I had one dream that was is first person, but switched it into a 3rd person edit mode.

Can you speak in your dreams?
All the time.

Can you read in your dreams? (And to what extent?)
Yes, in books, Internet, etc. I never can read the same thing twice

Can you smell / taste / feel things in your dreams?
Yes, Yes, and Yes. Usually unplesent things.

Have you ever experienced pain in a dream?
Yes.

Ever died in a dream?
Yes, just did a few days ago.

Do you have recurring dreams that always take place in a static location? (The location always remains the same, except for minor changes one might expect to happen, were it a real place?)
Sort of. Certain locations show up often, with weird changes. One common thing is for a few sets of stairs to show up in the middle of my college which are not there in real life, or the Computer Science building is 100 stories tall. My grandma's house is often in dreams, but with more rooms, or a mirror image of it.

[Calhoun07]

Do you dream in 1st person or 3rd person?

Both, but usually 1st. One vivid dream I had in the third person, I dreamt I watched the life of this woman from her early adulthood well into her early senior years, a long dream that played out more like a movie to me than anything else.

Can you speak in your dreams?

Frequently

Can you read in your dreams? (And to what extent?)

I have. I once dreamt I made a comic book in my dream where it read one story when you read it normally, then if you read it in reverse, it was a different story. I've also gotten ideas for poems and songs and comics from my dreams where I've read the ideas in my dream.

Can you smell / taste / feel things in your dreams?

From time to time, but more frequently I can feel things. When I was a kid, I had this real vivid dream where I smelt something awful, I can't even tell you what it was, it is a smell that I have never smelt a day in my life. In my dream, the mobile home my family was living in at the time was surrounded by a thick, pea green fog, and that's the most I can remember of the imagery, but this smell the fog carried was so pugnent, so repulsive, so unlike anything I can connect it to in my waking day. I know if I ever smelled that smell again, I'd recoginize it.

And I have tasted in my dreams too, usually when I go to bed hungry or thirsty and I dream of eating or drinking something.

Have you ever experienced pain in a dream?

Yes, when I was a kid and I dreamt I was hit in the head with a hammer and I woke up and felt a bit of pain in my head where I got hit in my dream.

Ever died in a dream?

I've dreamt I was near death before, and I have dreamt of my own birth before too.

Do you have recurring dreams that always take place in a static location? (The location always remains the same, except for minor changes one might expect to happen, were it a real place?)

Yes, I have had dreams in the past (tho not in recent memory) where I would be looking out my apartment window and my car would be nowhere to be seen in my parking lot. Somebody had taken it, and I never knew who, and the car would always turn back up later on but parked in a different place than where I left it.

[Romanesque]

Originally posted by moldorm
I heard that too, and I decided to disprove it. One night, while I was asleep, and I realized that I was dreaming, I created a number of colored objects on a table, things like red cones and blue cubes. I picked up each object, and noted the color, and the fact that I was dreaming at the time when I noted the color, and was not adding in the color after I woke up.I remember another good proof against the absurd "All dreams are B&W" theory... The gist of it was that normal human experience would have little to no knowledge of B&W imagery, thus making naturally occuring B&W dreams an impossibility, unless everyone's dreaming in near-total darkness, which really makes little sense since you'd barely be able to see anything that way. Additionally, it seems before B&W television, talk of dreams being in anything but color was relatively unheard of. (I guess static monochrome photography was too boring to dream about, before tv. :D)

EDIT: Not that it's impossible to dream of things outside normal sensory experience, but it's not *that* common, would be unrelated to anything in reality, and would be impossible for anyone to describe.

--Romey

[Romanesque]

Having already answered the B&W dreaming question, I guess I'll answer my own additional inqueries...

Do you dream in 1st person or 3rd person?

Sometimes one, sometimes the other, sometimes both at the same time...

Can you speak in your dreams?

Very very rarely, almost never. Usually, if I am communicating with someone in a dream, it's more like telepathy than speach.

Can you read in your dreams? (And to what extent?)

I've read entire books in dreams before, and I found that if I flipped back to pages I've already read, the text remained unchanged... A few of the things I've read (particularly poetry), I've been able to write down upon waking.

Edit: (Random Ponderings) This is one thing where I have to wonder how it's possible. Unless one is truly gifted, being able compose an entire block of flawless prose or poetry with no forethought is practically impossible. Yet, the unconscious seems able to handle it well enough... is it possible that such text has been pre-composed in the subconscious? And if such is true, what if you were to sit down and write something into a dream?

Can you smell / taste / feel things in your dreams?

All of the above, but mostly touch. The texture of random things is often a significant point in a lot of dreams I've had.

Have you ever experienced pain in a dream?

More often than I'd like... and I mean paaaaaiiin. Mutilation, evisceration, masceration, you name it, I've endured it.

Ever died in a dream?

A few times... even when pain wasn't involved, it was still quite a frightening thing...

Do you have recurring dreams that always take place in a static location? (The location always remains the same, except for minor changes one might expect to happen, were it a real place?)

Often enough that some of the locations might as well be real places in other alternate worlds. ;-)

Romey
--Any care to contribute more questions?

[Jade_GL]

Romey- Sounds like we have some things in common. I experience a lot of starnge things in my dreams which lead to pain. In fact, just the other night (this morning actually) I had a dream where someone attacked me with a huge drill! Sorry if that makes any sick, I just thought I would tell you how much I can relate to your answers on pain and death.

I think I'm very strange when it comes to dreaming, but I am perfectly fine with everything in my life, school, and otherwise. I just have a lot of scary dreams. I actually read something about how nightmares in adults are rare and that it's actually a syndrome.

Here a quote I just found.

Nightmare Disorder. Frightening dreams that tend to recur frequently and awaken a person from his/her sleep may lead to nightmare disorder. These dreams usually contain terrorizing or threatening content. Usually, the person can recall the nightmare in detail. When the person awakens, he/she is full of anxiety and usually finds it very difficult to return to sleep. Children frequently complain of nightmares, but they almost always outgrow them.

Drom - http://www.athealth.com/Consumer/disorders/Sleep.html

I don't know if I myself believe it's some sort of problem or psychological thing though. It hasn't affected me that much, just woken me up and acared me at least once a week. I don't know, asking about pain and death in dreams just reminded me of a book I read where this was an explaination. Still I don't know if I by it.

Anyway, sorry for getting off topic, but that was just something I have been thinking about ever since I grew up and continued to have strange dreams.

I always liked talking about common dreams, Like....

Dreamed of missing an appointment?

Dreamed of losing your teeth?

Dreamed of being chased?

Dreamed of finding money?

Dreamed of being nude in a public place, like school?

There are tons more but I lost my dream book that listed a set of common dreams that people tend to dream of. They're themes that most people will dream of, or so the book said.

So, what do you think and have you had any themes like this occur? I just have always thought this kind of stuff was interesting. And I always wondered why people will jave similar dreams sometimes.

[Romanesque]

Originally posted by Jade_GL
Romey- Sounds like we have some things in common. I experience a lot of starnge things in my dreams which lead to pain. In fact, just the other night (this morning actually) I had a dream where someone attacked me with a huge drill!Oooh, drills. While that might sound strange to some, it doesn't sound too far from what I'm used to. Heck, half the stuff I remember tends to be too bizzare to put into words... I think you'll understand what I mean, complex stuff at work.I think I'm very strange when it comes to dreaming, but I am perfectly fine with everything in my life, school, and otherwise. I just have a lot of scary dreams. I actually read something about how nightmares in adults are rare and that it's actually a syndrome.Within my family, at least, I tend to be pretty strange in the dream department as well. My father doesn't believe half the stuff I dream is even possible to dream of -- he happens to be one of those who only remembers dreams in B&W, if he remembers anything at all. I've long since given up mentioning any dreams to him.

I've had my own share of recurring nightmares after childhood. Not terribly often, but they happen. Too dark and personal to say much more about, though... Again, if you've had them, you have some idea what it's like.I don't know if I myself believe it's some sort of problem or psychological thing though. It hasn't affected me that much, just woken me up and acared me at least once a week. I don't know, asking about pain and death in dreams just reminded me of a book I read where this was an explaination. Still I don't know if I by it.Dream research and theory is still much too primitive to be relied upon, IMO. There are always wild exceptions and total contradictions to every "rule". Maybe a few more years of research will turn up something viable, but I doubt it. Unless the nightmares ever do become a nuisance to your waking life, the best option is to do your own research, and see what (non drastic) measures work for you.

In my own experience, the best cure for such nightmares is to find resolution within the dream, whether that resolution be logical or simply wacky. If you can remember the nightmare well enough, try to think of a good way out while awake. Keep reminding yourself of the happy ending whenever you think about the nightmare. Once you actually dream of a good ending, that should be the end of the nightmare. It's worked for me. Won't be any good if you keep coming up with new nightmares, but I'm afraid I can't help you there.

On a side note, there are a few medications and physical conditions that can cause recurring nightmares. It's fairly rare, but if you're in good health, it's nothing to worry about.I always liked talking about common dreams, Like...

Dreamed of losing your teeth?
Dreamed of being chased?

So, what do you think and have you had any themes like this occur? I just have always thought this kind of stuff was interesting. And I always wondered why people will jave similar dreams sometimes.I just learned that "losing your teeth" was a common dream today, while searching for stuff. I did not know that! I've dreamed about such fairly often, but probably not for the same reason as most people... why do I say that? My own tooth loss dreams didn't begin until all my front teeth were knocked loose after an incident with a faulty bike and an upright lead pipe, cemented into the road. I'll give you three guesses as to what happened when the bike and the pipe met. =x

The other odd thing is that in every dream where I've lost my teeth, I always found relief that a new set was growing in. (Odd fact: Though it didn't happen to me, losing the 2nd set of canine teeth and growing a 3rd set isn't uncommon in my family.)

And the ubiquitous chase dream... not to mention the ever popular subset, being chased by a T-Rex. Or the T-Rex outside the window, dating back long before the Jurassic Park sequal. I haven't had any of those in a while, I don't think. Quite thankfully, too. ;-)

Romey
--No dreams for me tonight, I've got a darn English paper to finish. Oofah.

[Outlander00]

Do you dream in 1st person or 3rd person?

Either or, depending on type of dream it is. Most times its 1st person.

Can you speak in your dreams?

Yes

Can you read in your dreams? (And to what extent?)

When it comes up, yes I can and it ranges.

Can you smell / taste / feel things in your dreams?

Feel yes... The others no.

Have you ever experienced pain in a dream?
Yes

Ever died in a dream?
Yes and everytime it happens Im snapped awake.

Do you have recurring dreams that always take place in a static location? (The location always remains the same, except for minor changes one might expect to happen, were it a real place?)

Yes a few times.

[Nightflower]

It's so weird... I dream of loose or lost teeth fairly often!

[ButteredToast]

Originally posted by Nightflower
It's so weird... I dream of loose or lost teeth fairly often!

NightFlower, according to those who study and try to interpret dreams, dreams about losing teeth are coming from embarassment or potentially embarassing situations. It's also been said that dreams about losing teeth means you have something bothering you that you need to get off your chest. It's a pretty common dream (I've had them myself on occasion) and can be disturbing sometimes...

As for me, I don't really remember colors when trying to recall a dream. It's almost like I'm dreaming "blind." I get impressions of my surroundings, but it's more like sensing touch, taste, smell and sound. It's very hard for me to visualize dreams in terms of sight.

[panther3751]

I dream in color, but I found that this was "abnormal" only recently. Psychology teachers tell me that most people dream in black and white, and IF there is color, it is significant.

However, I rarely dream about real people. . . . and if I do, it rarely is a happy dream, and quite often it is a nightmare (where those people get hurt). :: shrugs ::