By its very nature, dreamwork is deeply transformative. Dreams are our psyche's way of showing us what is missing from our conscious personalities, whether it be an aspect of ourselves that we have “disowned” and need to reintegrate, or whether it be the truth about what is happening in a life situation that we find ourselves in.  

“Dreamwork” is another word for “dream analysis” or “dream interpretation.” I prefer not to use the term “interpretation” because it can be misleading. As a dreamworker, I don't simply tell you what your dreams mean. Dreamwork is a collaborative process between the dreamworker (me) and you the dreamer.

Often, when the subject of dream analysis comes up with people, I get a common response: "I almost never remember my dreams." Some people even go so far as to say that they don't dream. People only say this because they aren't remembering their dreams, not because they don't have dreams. Everybody dreams. Just because people don't remember their dreams, doesn't mean that they don't have them. 

Even though the “shadow” might seem like it describes a comic book super-villain, it is actually a legitimate psychological term. The “shadow” refers to a phenomenon that is very psychologically real—something that we all frequently deal with. It is through our shadow that we first make our way into our unconscious, or deeper self. This pattern is seen time and time again in movies, where the protagonist (the hero) encounters the antagonist (the shadow), leading to a spiraling decent into the world of the unconscious psyche, usually leading to the heart of the hero's complex. If it is an epic tale, the hero usually overcomes the complex. If it is a tragedy, the complex overcomes the hero. 

Archetypal dreams refer to dreams that have content that comes from beyond our individual psyches. For some people, this is a difficult concept to swallow, especially when a person has a more materialistic perspective on what the human being is. However, in depth psychology, it is generally accepted that human beings have a personal psyche (or mind) that is rooted in the larger, collective psyche. This is often referred to as "the collective unconscious". It is "unconscious" because, for the most part, it exists beyond people's conscious awareness. The collective unconscious holds the archetypes, mythological patterns, and the sources of religious symbols that manifest in human culture. Sometimes these symbols, archetypes, or mythological patterns will burst forth into our dreams, often when we really need some help from something greater than ourselves, when we need a profound transformation in our lives. 

Different branches of psychology involve very different implicit or explicit worldviews. For example, neuropsychology tends to view psychological disturbances more through a materialistic lens, with causes attributed to chemical imbalances in the brain. Jungian psychology (also called analytical psychology), as well as depth psychology, can be considered to be on the opposite end of the spectrum, involving concepts like the “archetypes” and the “soul” that are non-quantifiable and nonphysical in origin.