Expert finally reveals why phones never appear in our dreams — and it makes a lot of sense

Our dreams often reflect things related to our everyday thoughts and emotions, and they act as a window into our subconscious mind. But among a number of things that people dream about, smartphones are the last thing to come to mind. Even though people are glued to their screens during the day, smartphones mysteriously vanish from dreams. Dr. Sham Singh (MD), a psychiatrist at WINIT Clinic specializing in holistic mental health care, explains why smartphones rarely make it to people's dreams.

The doctor pointed out that our minds interact with technology in a way unlike most of our real-life experiences—detached, and automatic. As reported by Tyla, she stated, "The phone is a device operated on a conscious level, but it doesn't have any deeper emotional or symbolic charge; thus, it doesn't appear in our dreams. Moreover, technology develops so fast that our subconscious does not have time to include these devices into the symbolic language characteristic of dreams." The expert highlighted that phones can be distinguished from the more physical and tangible aspects of our daily lives.

Our deepest aspirations, worries, and unresolved ideas can be seen in our dreams. As a result, things that don't evoke powerful feelings tend to be ignored, which may be why smartphones aren't seen very often. According to the expert, this can be the brain's method of reminding people to concentrate on important things. Phones don’t carry the same psychological weight as several other aspects of human life. Instead, the subconscious mind reserves dreamtime for the things that stir the human soul, challenge the mind and demand the attention of people in ways a screen never could.

As reported by World Crunch, the analysis of an English-language database of nearly 16,000 dreams revealed a surprising trend. The mention of smartphones surfaced in only 2% of them. Brigitte Holzinger, a psychotherapist, and director of the Institute for Consciousness and Dream Research in Vienna, Austria, also weighed in on this intriguing discovery. The expert said, “No one has ever told me about a dream in which their smartphone played a central role." Holzinger also clarified how our emotions influence our dreams. For instance, people are more likely to see someone in their dreams if they are missing the person. Similarly, if they are disturbed by someone or something, the subconscious mind is likely to bring that concern to life while people are asleep.

Lastly, a phone doesn’t appear in dreams because it’s an indirect tool. “Everything that our smartphone triggers in us is indirect,” Holzinger said. Any feelings you have when using your phone are probably caused by the content or other users you're engaging with, not the phone itself. Holzinger added that the fact that mobile phones use the eyes, which are among our most important senses, may also be the reason why they are uncommon in dreams. While people sleep, their eyes are shut and not moving, thus the influence of the phone is not felt. The expert said, “In our dreams, we look inward. Therefore it seems we cannot scan letters with our eyes as we usually do because they appear simultaneously before our inner eye.”