Halloween Haunts: When Dreams Turn Prophetic: What My Nightmares Taught Me
By KC Grifant
Throughout my life, my dreams have been vivid, inspiring and, even fairly recently, borderline prophetic.
Dreams becomes more culturally significant during the Halloween season. Samhain suggests that dreams occurring around Oct 31 are intensified and hold more meaning, as the “veil” between the real world and spirit world is thinned. Those who celebrate Dia de los Muertos hope to commune with passed loved ones during dreams. And the history of Halloween often references visions influenced by spirits. In other words, now is an ideal time to revisit your dream world.
In dreams, our primal fears are often front and center. Visions of falling, being chased or other scenarios of losing control are recurring tropes. Growing up, I often dreamt of escape situations, and of locking things quickly to prevent a horror from reaching me. Front doors. Bedroom doors. Most of all, car doors.
Fast forward decades later. While getting off the highway in the greater LA region in 2017, a driver flew into a rage at my partner, who was driving. I, heavily pregnant, sat in the passenger seat. The aggressor tailed us until we were stopped at a red light behind another car. He stormed out of his vehicle and toward us in a rage.
The scene played out both in slow motion and all too quickly.
But dreams prepared me for this very moment.
My nocturnal visions of fleeing into a car and locking the door before a Big Bad could get me came rushing back. My body reacted automatically, frantically pressing the lock and scooting away from the window in the second that the assailant closed the distance between us. He yanked at the car handle, screaming and pounding on my window. Finally, he reared back and kicked in my door, once, twice, leaving it deeply dented.
I hate to fathom what he might have done had he been able to open the door and drag my pregnant self out. Luckily, he was arrested shortly after (sitting in the back of a police vehicle to ID him was quite an experience). When I think back on that moment, I am grateful for my dreams. I believe they played some small part in conditioning the quick reaction.
Another dream that affected my life happened earlier, when I was in my last year of college and reluctantly preparing for medical school at my parents’ strong preference.
In the dream, my family was sprawled on the ground face up, all their bones broken. Their eyes tracked me silently, trying to guilt me to stay before I floated away. I landed in a college admissions hall in line behind a tour group. The guide, a perky woman with a shiny blonde ponytail facing away from me, chirped: “I think you’ll really like it here.”
She began to turn to reveal her face, continuing, “It will really open your eyes.” Yellow mucus had caked hardened layers over both of her eyes like something scarred, like dried bile, like insect waste.
I recoiled in horror before waking in a deep panic. The lingering anxiety lasted for days, until I steered my path away from the medical field and to a more creative and open-ended one in scientific research and writing.
Decades later, I remember that dream, particularly in moments when I need to be brutally honest with myself and cut through the noise.
These experiences are a reminder of how dreams—and Halloween—can be a useful exploration of our unconscious, allowing more maneuverability when exploring fears and fantasies. Both dreaming and Halloween allow us to dive into temporary realities and to try on identities far different from our operating selves, whether through masks, costumes or fantastical imaginings. Now is the time to explore the symbolic messaging to help us understand our situations better. Why does our brains choose the costumes and dreams that they do? What psychological urges are we satisfying?
Dreams can prepare, foretell, inspire. They can be our guides, tools and tormentors. And for one month a year, now more than ever is the time to think about your dreams: what they mean and how they can help. During this Halloween season, let them guide you…and dare to listen.
END
KC Grifant is an award-winning writer and editor based in Southern California who creates internationally published horror, fantasy, science fiction, and weird west stories. These include the western adventure Monster Gunslinger book series and the collections Shrouded Horror: Tales of the Uncanny and Fantastica Horrifica. Her short stories have appeared in podcasts, magazines, games, and Stoker-nominated anthologies. She is editor of several anthologies (including Dread Coast and Women of the Weird West), co-founder of the San Diego HWA chapter, co-chair of StokerCon 2024, a SFWA mentor, and co-creator of Monster Gunslingers the game. In addition to teaching writing courses and workshops, she has been on dozens of podcasts and panels to talk about creative writing and genre storytelling. In her day job, she is a multi-award-winning nonfiction writer and editor who has penned hundreds of published science articles.
Links:
Website: www.KCGrifant.com
Newsletter sign-up: http://eepurl.com/hmZGVb
Instagram: instagram.com/kcgrifant/
Facebook: facebook.com/kcgrifant
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@kcgrifant
Threads: https://www.threads.net/@kcgrifant
BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/kcgrifant.bsky.social
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/8288519.K_C_Grifant
Promo:
In an alternate version of the Old West, monsters rule the land, but one deadly duo is humanity’s last hope. While stoic Melinda and her charismatic partner Lance have battled their fair share of creatures, nothing could prepare them for an onslaught of brutal, super-intelligent gremlins hellbent on taking over. Melinda and Lance must find their weakness before the monsters destroy everything they know.
With vibes of Bonnie & Clyde, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, The Witcher, and Supernatural.
Learn more and purchase: https://scifiwri.com/melinda-west-and-the-gremlin-queen/
*This is Book 2 in a standalone, interconnected series. More about Book 1 here: https://scifiwri.com/publications/melinda-west-monster-gunslinger/
KC Grifant is giving away a free copy of Melinda West and the Gremlin Queen . Leave a comment below to be entered into a chance to win!