Had a strange dream?

The significance of dreams varies across cultures, yet the desire to talk about them — whether it be out of curiosity, concern, amusement, or simply the search for meaning — is universal.
                                                   

It’s no surprise then that online dream-sharing communities sprang to life as soon as technology allowed, first appearing in the late 1980s in the form of regional Bulletin Board services before evolving into their current incarnations. Now, those looking to articulate their nocturnal visions can sign on to stand-alone social media platforms and message boards as well as pre-existing platforms like Reddit, Google groups, and Facebook to interact with other dreamers.

The board has over 40,000 subscribers, so the odds are in a poster’s favor that someone will have had a similar dream. The downside of having a forum of this size is that not everyone’s there to lend an empathetic ear. DeBord notes that some users are just there for their own entertainment while others perpetuate unfounded assertions, such as that dreams all come true.

One of the most popular forums is DreamsCloud, a social media platform devoted to dream sharing and interpretation. Available in English, Spanish, and Portuguese, the website has received over $7 million in investor funding and has over 450,000 active participants, according to Jean-Marc Emden, the platform’s CEO. The platform enables them to post dreams with cover photos, discuss, and rate them based on their emotional response.

The most common dreams tend to be about sex, cheating, death, flying or falling, being naked in public, not being able to find a classroom, snakes, and being chased or chasing someone. Popular posts can rack up tens of thousands of views, which also indicates the importance of good storytelling in dream discussion.

The site’s users are eager to turn to others to gain understanding of their dreams, whether they’re searching for theories, a narrative to latch onto, or even reassurance that they’re not experiencing anything out of the norm. “When talking about dreams, every opinion is important, you don’t have to be a dream expert or a psychoanalyst,” DreamsCloud user Bruno Dante in an email.