Dream meaning
Someone having an abortion
The short answer
Dreaming of an abortion, yours or someone else's, usually reflects a decision to stop something, a loss, or grief over a path not taken. If you have lived through an abortion or pregnancy loss, such dreams are part of processing a real experience.
5.1% of people in the study had had this dream. No. 54 of the 55 typical dreams · Nielsen et al., 2003
What does a dream about “Someone having an abortion” mean?
What psychologists say
This is one of the rarest typical themes and, in the Canadian study, more common in women, though the authors flag the difference as uncertain because the theme is rare. Under the continuity hypothesis, these dreams follow real experiences, relationships and decisions. If such dreams bring distress, talking with a counsellor can help.
Nielsen et al., 2003; Walker & van der Helm, 2009
The Jungian reading
A Jungian reading treats pregnancy as something new growing in the psyche, and ending it as a choice to stop a project, relationship or direction. The feeling attached, relief or sorrow, matters most.
Jung, 1964
In history and folklore
Folk dream books rarely discussed this theme openly. Where they did, they read it as a warning of loss or the end of a plan.
How common is this dream?
5.1% of people in the study had had this dream. From a survey of 1,181 first-year university students in three Canadian cities. No. 54 of the 55 typical dreams.
Common versions of this dream
What if I've had an abortion in real life?
Dreams often revisit important experiences. If they cause distress, support is available.
What if it's someone else?
Another person's abortion may reflect their decisions affecting you, or your own feelings about endings.
What if I feel relief?
Relief can point to letting go of a burden.
Dreams that often come with it
Had this dream? Tell it to Oneiros.
Oneiros reads your own dream, not a dictionary entry: what it was about, how it felt and what it may mean for you, and it notices when it comes back.
Oneiros offers reflective readings for self-discovery and entertainment. It is not a medical or psychological service.
Sources
- Nielsen, T. A., Zadra, A. L., Simard, V., Saucier, S., Stenstrom, P., Smith, C., & Kuiken, D. (2003). The typical dreams of Canadian university students. Dreaming, 13(4), 211–235. doi:10.1023/B:DREM.0000003144.40929.0b
- Walker, M. P., & van der Helm, E. (2009). Overnight therapy? The role of sleep in emotional brain processing. Psychological Bulletin, 135(5), 731–748. doi:10.1037/a0016570
- Jung, C. G. (Ed.) (1964). Man and His Symbols. Aldus Books.