
Let’s say you and your best friend both had dreams that you were pregnant. Yes, on the surface you both had “the same dream” — but there’s a high chance the dream had completely different meanings for each of you. “Although our human experiences have many universal qualities, dream images are often quite particular to the person dreaming them and there is no ‘one size fits all,’” says Dr. Leslie Ellis, Ph.D., RCC, author, and instructor specializing in teaching mental-health professionals how to work with dreams in their practice. That said, Dr. Ellis notes, “Certain obvious metaphors are worth exploring to see if they fit for the dreamer.”
What’s going on in the world at large when you have your dream is one factor that can color its meaning. Dr. Ellis says, “Dreams of pregnancy in 2024 could mean something different than they did in past times — although we rarely dream directly of life events, the Zeitgeist of the times does find its way into our dreams as well as our emotional responses to it.” Layne Dalfen, founder of the Dream Interpretation Center, lecturer at Concordia University, and author of the Have a Great Dream books, further explains, “With this being an election year, coupled with some of the recent difficult waking situations in the world, many people ‘feel the weight,’ which in itself may trigger a pregnancy dream.”
The ever-looming threats on our reproductive rights could also be sparking pregnancy dreams. Autumn Fourkiller, the mystic and writer behind the Dream Interpretation for Dummies newsletter, tells the Cut the 2022 overturning of Roe v. Wade may have resulted in an uptick of pregnancy dreams. “Historically, pregnancy could be a life-threatening event, and one that women had much less control over,” adds Dr. Ellis. “In 2024, in the U.S. at least, there is movement to restrict women’s control over their pregnancies that is a step backward for women’s rights — and if this development is highly charged for someone, their dreams might reflect this in pregnancy dreams that depict lack of agency, for example.”
Generally speaking, pregnancy dreams rarely have anything to do with pregnancy at all. “Dreams typically do not express things literally, so a dream of pregnancy isn’t likely to be about a literal pregnancy or the prediction that you might become pregnant,” says Dr. Ellis. “As a metaphor, pregnancy has some obvious connotations — most often it might be symbolic of a creative work in progress, something waiting to emerge. And then the feeling, tone, or details surrounding the pregnancy could be applied to this creative work.”
Dalfen says all dreams are actually “related to a specific waking situation you thought about or something that happened to you the day before you had the dream.” She explains, “when I hear a pregnancy dream I will typically begin by asking the dreamer questions related to something ‘new’ that may be coming into their life: a new job or relationship. It can even be a new attitude or a new idea! The important thing is it’s something the dreamer is ‘carrying.’ Dreaming you are pregnant during a time of transition is a great metaphor for ‘birthing’ yourself to whatever new phase is ahead.”
Lauri Loewenberg, a professional dream analyst and author, shares a similar take. “Pregnancy dreams are typically connected to something else in your life that is in a growing and development phase,” says Loewenberg. “Plans that are in the works, or maybe a degree that’s in the works, that will, when it comes to fruition, result in a new life for you.” For her part, Fourkiller shares, “More generally, it is common to have pregnancy dreams when working on a big project, when in an especially creative mood, or when feeling overwhelmed.”
Loewenberg says pregnancy dreams are ways for your subconscious to communicate feelings that are harder to unpack in the waking world. “When you’re within the dream and your subconscious is in control, you’re being forced to focus on things that you might be ignoring or turning a blind eye to or not acknowledging. So the dream gives us a better understanding of our current situation by presenting it to us in a different light.”
Continue reading for our experts’ interpretations of various dreams about being pregnant and how they might relate to what’s happening in your life when you’re awake.
1.
If you dream that you just conceived …
“No matter where you are within [your dream] pregnancy it will directly reflect where you are as far as some kind of new growing and developing thing in your life,” Loewenberg says. “So if you’re at the point where you’re just peeing on the stick, then something is just beginning.”
2.
If you dream that you’re in the third trimester …
Loewenberg says the gestation of the pregnancy in your dream is directly related to the progress of your goal or project. “If you’re at the third trimester then you’re about to come to the end of this road, and whatever it is you’ve been working on is about to come to fruition.”
Dalfen adds, “Since ultimately we are always hoping to uncover solutions that appear in a dream, perhaps this is the good place to ask yourself if this dream is providing a rehearsal for you to say good-bye to a waking situation you’ve been carrying and are ready to let go of.”
3.
If you dream of having morning sickness …
While morning sickness can be a natural part of pregnancy, Loewenberg says its presence in a pregnancy dream might indicate emotional unease about something in your life that’s growing. “Something in this process of whatever you’re working on, it could even be relationship, something about it doesn’t feel right to you. So you would need to ask yourself, okay, is this just a natural process of this project, this relationship, this degree, whatever it is, or is this something unnecessarily making me feel awkward or wrong. Is there some kind of unhealthy aspect of this that I need to look at and correct?”
For her part, Dalfen encourages you to look specifically at the action of vomiting and what it may symbolize in your waking life. “Perhaps this is a dream set to encourage you to ‘come out’ with whatever it is that’s got you feeling uneasy. Since throwing up happens from your mouth, I’d be asking the dreamer if she’s feeling some words that need to come out,” she explains. “Especially because so many of us have difficulty saying what needs to be said, morning sickness in a dream can be a wonderful solution!”
4.
If you dream you’re pregnant with twins or triplets …
“Maybe you’ve got two things on the burner, or maybe there’s several aspects to this one thing,” Loewenberg explains. “And so it may feel like you’re juggling a lot of things and your subconscious is relaying it to you in the form of multiple fetuses.”
5.
If you dream you give birth, but misplace your baby and lose it …
“That would indicate that this could be a warning from her subconscious that something she’s been working on — perhaps she’s allowed to get lost in the shuffle of life,” Loewenberg says. “Don’t lose sight of this thing because it is something that you grew and labored over. You know, and don’t belittle its significance. Don’t lose sight of it.”
6.
If you dream that you’re pregnant with a non-human baby …
Loewenberg shares, “That would indicate that this new development in your life is something that seems foreign to you. It’s not something you’ve encountered before. It feels alien, doesn’t feel familiar to us. So it would be a message from your subconscious that you’d need to familiarize yourself with this new situation.”
Fourkiller adds that these sorts of dreams have been gaining traction in her inbox as of late. “Typically, the inhuman baby is a frightening monster, a beast that has to be tamed,” she says. “I see this as a representation of the dark spaces inside of all of us, the things we like to hide. Though as my boyfriend Carl Jung once said: ‘The shadow is ninety percent pure gold.’”
Dalfen elaborates on this Jungian quote, explaining, “Whatever image in a dream makes you feel the most uncomfortable is precisely the aspect of the dream you will want to lean into. What character traits does the image bring to mind? So if, for example, you are a very timid person, but during this week you need your voice, dreaming of some part of yourself you consider ‘inhuman’ might be precisely the character trait you want to adopt in your current waking circumstance. The images we choose are never random. Hence: The shadow is the solution … and it’s a good and positive sign you are carrying it.”
Alternatively, Fourkiller notes, “If the inhuman baby is silly, say like a burrito or a rainbow Beanie Baby you ruined by taking it out of its glass case (sorry, Mom), I suggest tapping into the ridiculousness of life, of all its tiny humors. Let yourself relax, loosen your grip on sensibility, or you may just have to put 20 burrito–Beanie Baby children through college.”
7.
If you dream your ex got you pregnant …
“Dreaming of the ex is, I would almost say, equally as common as the pregnancy dream because they’re reported to me all the time,” says Loewenberg. “So that being said, if you dream your ex got you pregnant, that’s a very good indication that you’ve learned an awful lot from that relationship. In a sense, that relationship has allowed you to give birth to a new part of yourself. The pregnancy would represent all this new knowledge and wisdom that is growing and developing within you, thanks to that ex.”
8.
If you dream that you go into labor but can’t feel pain …
“When that’s the case and you don’t feel the labor and there’s no pain, it’s like one of those sayings: don’t sweat it, piece of cake,” Loewenberg says. Despite the well-documented reality that labor can be incredibly painful, it’s actually pretty common to dream about a painless labor. “Your subconscious is telling you don’t worry, this isn’t going to be painful in any way. Just finish this project, finish this degree, just get it done.”
“Conversely, sometimes a dream is here to point us to ‘what’s missing’ in the dream,” Dalfen adds. “Perhaps this dream is calling your attention to some hurt you are feeling but not discussing. In analyzing a dream when you find the specific subject you were discussing with yourself, it is a miraculous mirror, every single time. Once you are able to name the specific waking situation you’re dealing with, it will become obvious to you if this dream is a case of you encouraging you to not to worry, or to shine a light on your under-reaction. You’ll know. The dreamer always does!”
9.
When you dream you’re in pain during labor …
“Here’s the thing about physical pain in a dream: When you feel pain in a dream, it’s most often connected to emotional pain in real life,” Loewenberg says. “So this could be telling you that this is beginning to emotionally drain you, but then again, it’s also at the very end of your pregnancy. So you know, you just keep pushing. You’re almost there.”
10.
If you dream about having an ugly baby …
While babies are all beautiful in their own way, you may find yourself in a dream where you’re pregnant with, or give birth to, a not-so-cute baby. Loewenberg says this type of dream can indicate that there is a new element to your life that you’re displeased about. “Your subconscious is saying, There’s an unpleasant situation that has developed in your life, but you have brought it upon yourself. You’re the one that gave birth to this.”
11.
If you dream that you give birth out of your head or another unusual body part …
You may think dreaming of having a baby through your hands might be completely random, but Loewenberg says those small details can help you unlock meaning from your dream. “You need to pay close attention to which part of your body the baby comes out of, because your subconscious chose that part for a reason. Then ask yourself, What typically is this body part used for? The head is used for thinking and ideas. And so [that] dream is all about giving birth to a new way of thinking.”
12.
If you dream about having an abortion …
“Dreaming you had an abortion could either be a reliving of a past event or a sign that it’s time to give up the ghost, so to speak,” explains Fourkiller. “Perhaps you’ve recently decided to quit something or to move onto a new venture. Perhaps you, for the first time, are exercising your autonomy! A dream about abortion to me revolves completely around choice.”
Ellis more generally adds, “If the pregnancy in the dream is a metaphor for some kind of creative project, dreams of specific challenges could be pointing to what may be hampering the process. For example, premature birth, miscarriage, unwanted pregnancy, abortion, knowledge that the baby is unwell … all of these situations can be metaphors for ways the creative process is faltering, and they may also be pointing toward a solution. Abortion, for example, could symbolize ending a process that isn’t wanted or viable.”
13.
If you dream about miscarrying …
Whereas Fourkiller believes abortion dreams are all about “exercising choice,” she says “a dream about a miscarriage is about grieving the loss of something, whether that be a decision you didn’t want to make or something that was out of your hands. You lost something, and it is okay to grieve it however you see fit.”
The takeaway: Ultimately, your dreams (pregnancy-related or not) are an insight to things you’ve been thinking about or dealing with in recent memory. “Whatever goes on in your dream tonight is usually connected to something that happens today,” Loewenberg says. “So when you wake up in the morning, and you’re looking at your dream, and you’re examining it, the best thing to do is to compare everything in the dream to what happened yesterday, compare the emotions in your dream to how you were feeling yesterday.”
Ellis suggests getting curious with yourself. “A simple question to ask if you have a dream about pregnancy: Is there something in your life that is in a gestation period or wanting to be born? I like to work with dreams in an experiential way, so I might ask the dreamer to sense directly into the pregnancy (assuming they are the pregnant one in the dream): How far along are we? Is there something needed or something the unborn wants you to know? What or who is being gestated? It is surprising how often the dream images themselves will give an answer, and often something new or unexpected emerges from this kind of inquiry.”
According to Fourkiller, one of the best ways to truly understand your dreams is to log them in a journal. “I’m a big advocate for the dreaded dream journal, even if it’s just a couple lines hastily typed into the Notes app. Given enough time, you’ll be able to recognize patterns in your dreamland.” She urges you to go easy on yourself in this process. “Don’t judge your dreams too harshly, especially if they are weird and feel incongruous. Letting them be is also letting yourself be, exactly as you are.”
In order to uncover how your dream relates to your waking life, Dalfen suggests using her “six points of entry” method. Here, you decode the dream through one or more of the following:
- Feelings: Write down how you felt throughout your pregnancy dream alongside what happened, then ask yourself, “Did a recent event or problem in my life trigger the same feelings?”
- Symbols: Reading through your write-up of the pregnancy dream, circle any symbols you notice (objects, animals, people, etc.). Don’t try too hard to make meaning out of the symbols, but just write a few words that come to mind when you think of each.
- Play on words and puns: Say your pregnancy dream out loud and pay attention to the words you use. Do you notice any key phrases popping up? For instance, did you say you were carrying a baby? Do you feel like you’re carrying anything in your waking life?
- Action: Okay, so you’re pregnant. But what are you actually doing in the dream? What are the other characters in the dream doing? Write it all out alongside any associations or comments you have about each action, then ask yourself if you think you’re doing the same thing in a recent situation in your waking life.
- Plot: Think of it like English class — what’s the story behind the story in your pregnancy dream?
- Repetition: When you decode the different symbols in your pregnancy dream, do you notice any repetitive meanings?
Not sure where to begin with that list? Dalfen says to start by unpacking your feelings in the dream. “Ask yourself how you felt inside the dream,” she says. “Then ask yourself what recent event in your life is making you feel the same way.”
If you want to delve more deeply, she recommends looking into the action. “How are you behaving or responding in the dream story? Is your reaction a typical response for you? To go deeper, you might ask yourself, ‘Where did my response originate?’ Think back and see if you can come up with a story from your youth that reminds you of your response in your dream story. The thing about our habitual, knee-jerk responses to waking situations is how, amazingly, once you connect to [the origin of the action] an unavoidable shift happens. Exploring a dream from a deeper perspective is where long-term change is set in motion. It’s exactly like saying, ‘Once you know something, you can never go back to not knowing.’”
When it comes to pregnancy dreams in particular — don’t freak out! — Fourkiller also urges you to consider whether there’s any chance you might actually be pregnant. “If the answer is a big ‘yes,’ not just a ‘well, maybe’ … a pregnancy test might not be amiss. I’m not here to be a fearmonger! Just trust your gut. Sometimes your subconscious knows before you do.” If the answer is “no,” she suggests a different course of action. “Ask yourself what you want to shepherd into the world, what you are already shepherding. Is it fulfilling to you? Are you burdened by it? You don’t always have to raise something up until it can stand on its own two feet, but if you really want it, if it really resounds with you, maybe you should!”
Our Experts:
- Lauri Quinn Loewenberg is a certified dream analyst and author of three books on the subject, most recently Dream On It: Unlock Your Dreams Change Your Life. She has appeared on The View, Good Morning America, and The Katie Couric Show, and is a recurring guest on The Today Show. She has also been featured as an expert in Harper’s Bazaar, The New Yorker, Glamour, and more.
- Autumn Fourkiller is the writer and mystic behind the newsletter Dream Interpretation for Dummies, “where Dear Abby meets Native Americana.” In addition to the Cut, her work and interpretations can be found in Longreads and Atlas Obscura. She was a 2023 Periplus Fellow and a 2022 Ann Friedman Weekly Fellow and Tin House Summer Scholar. She is currently at work on a novel.
- Leslie Ellis is an author and online instructor specializing in teaching mental-health professionals how to work with dreams in their practice. She is also a specialist in working with nightmares related to trauma.
- Layne Dalfen founded the Dream Interpretation Center in 1997. She has been teaching dream analysis to the counseling students at Concordia University in Montreal since 2004. Author of Have a Great Dream Book 1; The Overview and Book 2; A Deeper Discussion, Dalfen is also well-known for her column at Psychology Today, “Understanding Dreams,” and regarded among Oprah Daily Insiders as the Dream Catcher. Dalfen offers her Dreaminar for corporations and parties and recently launched her course Problem Solving in Your Sleep.
More Dreams Deciphered
- What Does It Mean If You’re Dreaming About Work?
- What Is Lucid Dreaming, and How Do I Do It?
- Why Is Sleep Paralysis So Terrifying?