According to both professional dream analyst Lauri Loewenberg and spiritual guide, psychologist, and author of The Alchemy of Your Dreams Athena Laz, the emotions a dream brings up for you can often be one of your biggest clues. “No dream symbol can offer the same meaning to every person because the dream as a whole story (not singular symbols) is what relays the guidance and message to the dreamer,” Laz explains to mbg. With that said, here are some potential interpretations for a handful of common wedding-related dreams, according to Laz and Loewenberg. “Your subconscious is putting you through a dress rehearsal with this person so you can determine if this feels right to you or not,” she explains. And as Laz notes, how it made you feel is exactly what you want to reflect on. “Were you happy or sad, relieved, in love, or terrified? The union, in this case, could be speaking to the way you feel about your relationship or how you generally feel about intimacy,” she tells mbg. “When you get this dream, it’s because your subconscious wants you to commit to some side of yourself. It’s some kind of commitment you need to make in real life,” she adds. After a dream like this, she recommends asking yourself what it is about this person you don’t like, and then, if those things are present in you. “Fierce honesty is required here because dreams like this come to alert one to behaviors, relationships, or patterns that they are often unwilling to own,” Laz says. But, she adds, the fact that this marriage is taking place in your dream is a positive sign. “It shows the dreamer that they are finally coming into contact—and perhaps even joining—previously unlikable qualities within themselves,” Laz says. According to Loewenberg, it can also mean this person has some quality or qualities that you find admirable and that you want to commit to. And of course, she adds, if you’re actually interested in this person in real life, “again, it’s your subconscious testing the waters there.” Laz notes that in general, wedding dresses in dreams symbolize a union, as well as life cycles and stages of initiation. “It shows us that a union, a marriage, an initiation is occurring for the dreamer,” she says. If you’re wearing the dress, for example, Laz says that shows you that you’re in the initiation. “If you’re about to put on the dress, you’re embarking on the initiation, or say someone rips your wedding dress—that shows the initiation has been damaged in some sense,” she adds. Laz suggests, for example, asking questions like, “Who (or what) was I marrying in the dream and how did it make me feel?” or, “Am I finally able to reconcile two seemingly opposite or conflicting aspects of myself or my behavior?” She adds that from a psychological point of view, recurring dreams invite us to look at repetitive patterns, beliefs, emotions, or relationships that we are replaying in our waking lives. And according to Loewenberg, these dreams can also give us clues about what we need to commit to. “More than anything, wedding dreams are about the need to commit to something and stick to it in real life,” she says. Oh and just as an FYI, if you’re currently engaged and keep dreaming about your wedding, Loewenberg says it’s extremely normal and no cause for alarm. “Don’t let the dreams freak you out. Focus on what’s important right now as you plan that wedding journey,” she says.
