THE DREAM I dreamt of feeling fear that this man(unknown) was going to fall off the edge of an extremely tall building. I felt the fight or flight response to this.

THE REALITY The dreamer had been experiencing very stressful times around her son. He is 17 and doesn't live with either parent and is now using drugs and alcohol on a daily basis with his new found friends. The dreamer feels like she has no control over what he is doing and it is painful to watch.

At first glance this dream seems to have few connections with reality. Yet there is a common theme running through here. The dreamers son is living dangerously just like the man who might fall off the building. Dreams deal with real life in very general ways. The man might fall off the building to his death whilst the son might die due to his involvement in drugs.

What about the fight or flight response? At first glance this again seems a metaphor which has little relevance to her son taking drugs. However, this probably links to the feeling "should I confront my son or simply let him get on with things?" In confronting him she is fighting him. In running away she is running away from the issue.