Layne Dalfen ( IPA: lˈe͡ɪn dˈalfən) (born 1952) is a

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

dream analyst,

columnist A columnist is a person who writes for publication in a series, creating an article that usually offers commentary and opinions. Column (periodical), Columns appear in newspapers, magazines and other publications, including blogs. They take the ...

educator A teacher, also called a schoolteacher or formally an educator, is a person who helps students to acquire knowledge, competence, or virtue, via the practice of teaching. ''Informally'' the role of teacher may be taken on by anyone (e.g. w ...

, and

author In legal discourse, an author is the creator of an original work that has been published, whether that work exists in written, graphic, visual, or recorded form. The act of creating such a work is referred to as authorship. Therefore, a sculpt ...

recognized for her work in the field of

dream interpretation Dream interpretation is the process of assigning meaning to dreams. In many ancient societies, such as those of Egypt and Greece, dreaming was considered a supernatural communication or a means of divine intervention, whose message could be in ...

. She is the founder of the Dream Interpretation Center in

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

and has appeared in numerous media outlets and magazines sharing insights and methods into the science and psychology of dreaming.

Early life and education

Dalfen was born in Canada. At 21 years old she had her first daughter, Tina, who was born with Down syndrome, soon after the reason for which she felt obligated to confront depression and sought professional assistance. She then met a psychiatrist who introduced her to the world of

psychotherapy Psychotherapy (also psychological therapy, talk therapy, or talking therapy) is the use of Psychology, psychological methods, particularly when based on regular Conversation, personal interaction, to help a person change behavior, increase hap ...

. Dalfen's interest with dreams began during her early experiences with Freudian analysis, where dream interpretation was well-known and widely used as a key therapeutic tool. Later, she earned a certificate in Gestalt Counseling in 1988 and then studied dreamwork at the Alfred Adler Institute working with Dr. Leo Gold in 1992.

Career

Since 1995, she has been a member of the C.G. Jung Society,"President's Notes 2010-2014"
C.G. Jung Society of Montreal. Retrieved November 23, 2024. furthering her expertise in psychological approaches to dreams. Dalfen founded the Dream Interpretation Center in Montreal in 1997, where she provides workshops, private consultations, and lectures with the aim of teaching people how to analyze their dreams from a psychological and therapeutic perspective, frequently with the maxim of "Dreaming is just thinking. There’s always a reason for today’s dream. It’s not random". She has been a lecturer at

Concordia University Concordia University () is a Public university, public English-language research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1974 following the merger of Loyola College (Montreal), Loyola College and Sir George Williams Universit ...

since 2005, teaching her approach to dream interpretation to the counseling students. Also, she has been an active member of the

International Association for the Study of Dreams The International Association for the Study of Dreams (IASD) is a multi-disciplinary (Hardcover), (Paperback) professional nonprofit organization for scientific dream research (oneirology), founded in 1983 and headquartered in the U.S. The or ...

(IASD), where she was a

board member A board of directors is a governing body that supervises the activities of a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government agency. The powers, duties, and responsibilities of a board of directors are determined by government regulations ...

between 2005 and 2009. Dalfen has also contributed as a consultant for Disney Pixar on the series ''

Dream Productions ''Dream Productions'' is an American animated television miniseries produced by Pixar Animation Studios for the streaming service Disney+. Developed and created by Mike Jones, it is set between the events of '' Inside Out'' (2015) and '' In ...

'', which explores the role of dreams in emotional and mental development. The series premiered on

Disney+ The Walt Disney Company, commonly referred to as simply Disney, is an American multinational mass media and entertainment industry, entertainment conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios (Burbank), Walt Di ...

in December 2024."Dream Productions"
Pixar. Retrieved November 23, 2024.

Methods and Approach

According to Layne, the

unconscious mind In psychoanalysis and other psychological theories, the unconscious mind (or the unconscious) is the part of the psyche that is not available to introspection. Although these processes exist beneath the surface of conscious awareness, they are t ...

is a kind of database or personal storage that holds every

memory Memory is the faculty of the mind by which data or information is encoded, stored, and retrieved when needed. It is the retention of information over time for the purpose of influencing future action. If past events could not be remembe ...

and association human beings have had throughout their lives. Because of that, Dalfen does not agree with the idea that dreams mean the same thing. In this way, each dream or unconscious mind is as unique as a fingerprint. For her, the dream is an internal

conversation Conversation is interactive communication between two or more people. The development of conversational skills and etiquette is an important part of socialization. The development of conversational skills in a new language is a frequent focus ...

that the mind is having with itself about a very specific current issue, which is generally bothering the person while he is awake. Specifically, Dalfen denominates her approach as an "easy-to-grasp method", and it has the principal objective of helping the dreamer uncover the situation about which the dream is addressing or "mirroring" through

symbol A symbol is a mark, Sign (semiotics), sign, or word that indicates, signifies, or is understood as representing an idea, physical object, object, or wikt:relationship, relationship. Symbols allow people to go beyond what is known or seen by cr ...

s. Uncovering unconscious messages is a deliberate process that starts by setting six steps: Feelings, Actions, Play on Words or Puns, Symbols, Plot and Repetition. Each of them forms a larger one that Dalfen calls "Points of Entry". The dream could bring with it different solutions and contexts that reflect reality regarding interpersonal relations and emotional reactions. In this way, they can represent a 'safe place' for the dreamer to practice responses to a given situation. Finally, the person should be able to understand the next steps, given that the significance or meaning—which inherently includes the solution—has already been revealed. This method aims to be a "

problem solving Problem solving is the process of achieving a goal by overcoming obstacles, a frequent part of most activities. Problems in need of solutions range from simple personal tasks (e.g. how to turn on an appliance) to complex issues in business an ...

" tool.

Media and Publications

Dalfen has been dedicated as much to writing as to being a columnist on several media. She authors the ''Understanding Dreams'' blog on the specialized platform ''

Psychology Today ''Psychology Today'' is an American media organization with a focus on psychology and human behavior. The publication began as a bimonthly magazine, which first appeared in 1967. The print magazine's reported circulation is 275,000 as of 2023. ...

'', offering readers tools and advice to "decode" (as she denominates it), and understand the significance of their dreams, she emphasizes the premise that every dream holds a subjective and personal meaning, in her articles she discusses various topics and affairs related to the importance of general dream themes applied to specific contexts, such as dreams about teeth falling out or being attacked by a criminal, she then deduces possible meanings and variables depending on the personal situations, e. g. an internal conflict or doubts about the future. She is also known as the "Dream Catcher" columnist for ''

Oprah Daily ''O, The Oprah Magazine'', also known simply as ''O'', is an American monthly magazine founded by talk show host Oprah Winfrey and Hearst Communications. In 2021, Winfrey and Hearst rebranded it as ''Oprah Daily''. Overview It was first pub ...

'', where she shares insights into dream analysis and its practical applications. In this column she focuses on more specific types of dreams and the possible messages that those images and signals from

might be sending to individuals, highlighting benefits they can bring to daily life Prominent works of her career as an article writer include ''Problem Solving While You Sleep'', and ''Sexual Dreams,'' both published in the magazine Body and Soul in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. Dalfen has written two books in the ''Have a Great Dream'' series, which focus on teaching readers how to explore their dreams as a path to self-discovery and problem-solving. Among these works are found: * ''Dreams Do Come True'', 2002 * ''La solution est dans vos rêves'' * ''Have A Great Dream, Book 1;The Overview'', 2018, by Dream Interpretation Center * ''Have A Great Dream, Book 2;A Deeper Discussion'', 2019, by Dream Interpretation Center Her media presence includes over 250 radio and television appearances on major networks in Canada and U.S. such as

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS (an abbreviation of its original name, Columbia Broadcasting System), is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainme ...

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Broadcasting * Aliw Broadcasting Corporation, Philippine broadcast company * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial American ...

, WGN, Body and Soul,

Canadian Living ''Canadian Living'' is a monthly Canadian lifestyle magazine, which publishes articles relating to food, fashion, crafts, and health and family advice. History and profile The magazine was created by Clem Compton-Smith and his business partner, ...

, Women's Voices, Inner Self, Ghost Village,

Vice A vice is a practice, behaviour, Habit (psychology), habit or item generally considered morally wrong in the associated society. In more minor usage, vice can refer to a fault, a negative character trait, a defect, an infirmity, or a bad or unhe ...

, and

FOX Foxes are small-to-medium-sized omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull; upright, triangular ears; a pointed, slightly upturned snout; and a long, bushy tail ("brush"). Twelve species ...

affiliates, such as Good Day New York or Morning News in Chicago as well as frequent guest spots on

Coast to Coast AM ''Coast to Coast AM'' is an American late-night radio talk show that deals with a variety of topics. Most frequently the topics relate to either the paranormal or conspiracy theories. It was hosted by creator Art Bell from its inception in 198 ...

, where she discusses her work and experience with dream interpretation. She has also appeared as guest on programs like

CJAD CJAD (800 AM) is a commercial radio station operating in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The station has an English language news/talk radio format and identifies itself on-air as ''CJAD 800''. Owned and operated by Bell Media, it has a daytime power ...

in her home-town Montreal, additionally in another major radio services as Bitboard.com, Launch Radio, and MegaPrep, recently, she appeared on ''The Kate Dalley Show'' on January 26, 2024. On television, she appeared on ''CBS Mornings Plus'' in

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

, on December 17, 2024, for CBSTV. Her presence stands out on the documentary series ''Seeing 911, a skeptic’s journey into a very real prophecy'' through Elevator Films for

Vision TV VisionTV is a Television in Canada, Canadian English language Category A services, Category A specialty channel that broadcasts multi-faith, multicultural, and general entertainment programming aimed at the 45 and over demographic. VisionTV is ...

in 2009, in

Discovery Life Discovery Life is an American cable television network owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. Launched on February 1, 2011 as Discovery Fit & Health, it was the result of the merger of the Discovery Health Channel and FitTV, following the former's ...

Channel's ''Health On The Line'', on CITY TV's ''Breakfast Television'', and CTV's ''Three Takes''. Dalfen participated in ''The Age of E'' series on Wisdom TV, also was featured in a documentary titled, ''Dream Symbols:How To Work With Them'' for DREAMTIME for the

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...

channel.

References

External links