The Dream Journal

Can dreams reveal how we are changing—and even anticipate what comes next? Host Katherine Bell talks with alignment coach, author, and certified trauma specialist Kelly Lydick about precognitive dreams, déjà vu, dream incubation, recurring symbols, and the relationship between dreaming life and waking life.

Kelly explains how dream patterns can reflect personal evolution, why houses, water, and color all carry meaning, and how writers can use believable dream sequences to deepen characters and foreshadow events. She also discusses drawing on dreams for creative work and shares examples from her climate crisis novel, Everything That’s Left Behind.

The conversation explores how detailed dream journaling can reveal connections over time, why precognitive dreams may be recognizable only in retrospect, and how déjà vu can feel like remembering a forgotten dream. Kelly also recounts following guidance from a dream while recovering after an emergency C-section, and we take a call from Ellen who shares a harrowing precognitive experience. Personal dream experiences are not a substitute for professional medical advice.

Dreams as mirrors of waking life

Houses, water, color, and dream symbolism

Creating believable dreams for fictional characters

Foreshadowing through a character’s dream

Using dream incubation in creative work

Dreams that unfold up to ten years later

Journaling waking life and dreams together

Recognizing precognitive dreams retrospectively

A dream that offered guidance during recovery

Kelly Lydick is an alignment coach, author, certified trauma specialist, certified Gateway Dreaming coach, and life coach. She holds an MA in writing and consciousness and has professional certifications in meditation, optimal healing environments, music therapy, and sound healing. Her books include Dream Incubation for Greater Self-Awareness and her new climate crisis novel Everything That’s Left Behind.

Learn more about Kelly at kellylydick.com. Find full-length video episodes on Spotify and the Experiential Dream Work YouTube channel. Follow and share with #TheDreamJournal and @ExperientialDreamWork.

This show, episode number 386, was recorded during a live broadcast on October 24, 2026 at KSQD.org, community radio of Santa Cruz.

Dreams and Visions: Cultivating Joyful Effort with Katherine Bell and Henry Kandel. Six monthly Wednesdays on Zoom, 7:00–8:30pm ET (4:00–5:30pm PT), starting November 11. The first session is free.

Details and register here: https://www.psychedelicyogaresearchcollective.org/dreams

SHARE A DREAM FOR THE SHOW or a question or enquire about being a guest on the podcast by emailing Katherine Bell at [email protected]. Follow on LI, IG, YT, FB, & LT @ExperientialDreamwork #thedreamjournal. To learn more or to inquire about exploring your own dreams go to ExperientialDreamwork.com. Learn more about dreaming by joining the International Association for the Study of Dreams at ASDreams.org

Video podcast available at youtube.com/@experientialdreamwork. Popular playlists: “Dream Journal shorts” and “FULL LENGTH VIDEOS”.

Here are links to some other Dream Journal episodes you might be interested in:

Precognitive Dreamwork and the Long Self with Eric Wargo

Dream Incubation for Greater Self Awareness with Kelly Lydick

Intro and outro music by Mood Science. Ambient music new every week by Rick Kleffel. Archived music can be found at Pandemiad.com. Many thanks to Rick for also engineering the show and to Erik Nelson for answering the phones.

The Dream Journal aims to:

A dream can be meaningful even if you don’t know what it means.

The Dream Journal is produced at and airs on KSQD Santa Cruz, 90.7 FM. Catch it streaming LIVE at KSQD.org 10-11am Pacific Time on Saturdays. Call or text with your dreams or questions at 831-900-5773 or email at [email protected]. Podcasts are available on all major podcast platforms the Monday following the live show. The complete KSQD Dream Journal podcast page can be found at ksqd.org/the-dream-journal/.

Thanks for being a Dream Journal listener! Available on all major podcast platforms. Rate it, review it, subscribe, and tell your friends.

Ancient Tibetan lucid-dreaming practices meet immersive VR research

Can virtual reality make the insights of Tibetan dream yoga more accessible—and potentially help people living with severe anxiety? Host Katherine Bell speaks with Dr. Michael R. Sheehy of the University of Virginia’s Contemplative Sciences Center about lucid dreaming, ancient Buddhist dream-yoga practices, and a modern immersive program designed to simulate a dreamlike world while participants are awake.

Dr. Sheehy explains how dream yoga trains recognition, agency, and flexibility within dreams. He describes practices involving the dream body, conjuring and multiplying objects, transforming appearances, and integrating dream insights into waking life. The conversation then turns to the Dream Yoga Virtual Reality Program, its nonrepresentational and multisensory design, and the research hypothesis that psychological flexibility, imaginal simulation, and somatic awareness may help reduce clinical anxiety.

They also discuss early feasibility findings, the larger randomized controlled trial still awaiting analysis, shared virtual dreamscapes, and ways lucid dreamers may respond to frightening dream figures by recognizing their agency over their response.

In This Episode:

BIO: Dr. Michael R. Sheehy is Director of Research at the Contemplative Sciences Center at the University of Virginia and a scholar of Tibetan Buddhist contemplative traditions.

Research note: The feasibility findings discussed in this episode are preliminary. The larger randomized controlled trial was still underway, and its data had not yet been analyzed at the time of the interview. This conversation is educational and is not medical advice.

Keywords:

dream yoga, lucid dreaming, virtual reality therapy, anxiety research, Tibetan Buddhism, contemplative science, psychological flexibility, imaginal simulation, somatic awareness, dream research, Michael R. Sheehy, The Dream Journal

#DreamYoga #LucidDreaming #VirtualReality #AnxietyResearch #TibetanBuddhism #DreamResearch #TheDreamJournal

This show, episode number 385, was recorded during a live broadcast on October 19, 2026 at KSQD.org, community radio of Santa Cruz.

Dreams and Visions: Cultivating Joyful Effort with Katherine Bell and Henry Kandel. Six monthly Wednesdays on Zoom, 7:00–8:30pm ET (4:00–5:30pm PT), starting November 11. The first session is free.

Details and register here: https://www.psychedelicyogaresearchcollective.org/dreams

SHARE A DREAM FOR THE SHOW or a question or enquire about being a guest on the podcast by emailing Katherine Bell at [email protected]. Follow on LI, IG, YT, FB, & LT @ExperientialDreamwork #thedreamjournal.

To learn more or to inquire about exploring your own dreams go to ExperientialDreamwork.com. Learn more about dreaming by joining the International Association for the Study of Dreams at ASDreams.org

Video podcast available at youtube.com/@experientialdreamwork. Popular playlists: “Dream Journal shorts” and “FULL LENGTH VIDEOS”.

Here are links to some other Dream Journal episodes you might be interested in:

Inside the Sleeping Mind: Memory, Dream Yoga, & the Neuroscience of Sleep with Ken Paller, PhD

Anesthesia Dreams, Psychedelics, and Lasting Personal Change with Dr. Pilleriin Sikka

Intro and outro music by Mood Science. Ambient music new every week by Rick Kleffel. Archived music can be found at Pandemiad.com. Many thanks to Rick for also engineering the show and to Erik Nelson for answering the phones.

The Dream Journal aims to:

A dream can be meaningful even if you don’t know what it means.

The Dream Journal is produced at and airs on KSQD Santa Cruz, 90.7 FM. Catch it streaming LIVE at KSQD.org 10-11am Pacific Time on Saturdays. Call or text with your dreams or questions at 831-900-5773 or email at [email protected]. Podcasts are available on all major podcast platforms the Monday following the live show. The complete KSQD Dream Journal podcast page can be found at ksqd.org/the-dream-journal/.

Thanks for being a Dream Journal listener! Available on all major podcast platforms. Rate it, review it, subscribe, and tell your friends.

Can dreams under anesthesia support emotional healing and lasting psychological change? Stanford clinical research scientist Dr. Pilleriin Sikka joins host Katherine Bell on The Dream Journal to explore anesthesia dreams, nighttime dreaming, psychedelic experiences, consciousness, and mental health.

They discuss why anesthesia dreams are often calm and positive, how propofol and ketamine can produce different kinds of dream experiences, and what dreams may reveal about the brain’s ability to process emotion and transform difficult experiences.

The conversation also examines emerging research on therapeutic anesthesia dreaming, dream recall, PTSD and nightmares, mind-wandering and daydreams, and the possibility that transformative experiences share common mechanisms across sleep, anesthesia, psychedelics, meditation, and waking life.

Dr. Sikka explains a five-part protocol used to improve anesthesia-dream recall, including priming, propofol, EEG monitoring, a quiet emergence period, and immediate questioning after awakening.

In this episode

BIO: Dr. Pilleriin Sikka leads clinical trials at the Stanford University School of Medicine, with the goal of developing rapid-acting, evidence-based interventions for mental health. She uses psychology, neuroscience, and anesthesiology to study how experiences across different altered states of consciousness—including sleep, dreaming, anesthesia, and psychedelic states—shape mental health and well-being. Look for Dr Sikka on LinkedIn.

Dreams and Visions: Cultivating Joyful Effort with Katherine Bell and Henry Kandel. Six monthly Wednesdays on Zoom, 7:00–8:30pm ET (4:00–5:30pm PT), starting November 11. The first session is free.

Details and register here: https://www.psychedelicyogaresearchcollective.org/dreams

This show, episode number 384, was recorded during a live broadcast on October 10, 2026 at KSQD.org, community radio of Santa Cruz.

SHARE A DREAM FOR THE SHOW or a question or enquire about being a guest on the podcast by emailing Katherine Bell at [email protected]. Follow on LI, IG, YT, FB, & LT @ExperientialDreamwork #thedreamjournal. To learn more or to inquire about exploring your own dreams go to ExperientialDreamwork.com. Learn more about dreaming by joining the International Association for the Study of Dreams at ASDreams.org

Video podcast available at youtube.com/@experientialdreamwork. Popular playlists: “Dream Journal shorts” and “FULL LENGTH VIDEOS”.

Here are links to some other Dream Journal episodes you might be interested in:

Why We Dream: Nightmares, Sleep Science, and Healing Dreams with Karen Van Kampen

Fire Hose or Garden Hose? Psychedelics vs Dreamwork with Darren Jakubec, MD

Ketamine State Yoga with Henry Kandel

Intro and outro music by Mood Science. Ambient music new every week by Rick Kleffel. Archived music can be found at Pandemiad.com. Many thanks to Rick for also engineering the show and to Erik Nelson for answering the phones.

The Dream Journal aims to:

A dream can be meaningful even if you don’t know what it means.

The Dream Journal is produced at and airs on KSQD Santa Cruz, 90.7 FM. Catch it streaming LIVE at KSQD.org 10-11am Pacific Time on Saturdays. Call or text with your dreams or questions at 831-900-5773 or email at [email protected]. Podcasts are available on all major podcast platforms the Monday following the live show. The complete KSQD Dream Journal podcast page can be found at ksqd.org/the-dream-journal/.

Thanks for being a Dream Journal listener! Available on all major podcast platforms. Rate it, review it, subscribe, and tell your friends.

What can dreams reveal about our ancestors—and how can they fuel creativity, self-understanding, and better decisions? On this episode of The Dream Journal, host Katherine Bell talks with genealogist and historical fiction author Anna Dahlheimer Bartkowski about the powerful intersection of dreams, family history, and storytelling.

Anna shares how a childhood fascination with dreams grew alongside her passion for genealogy, eventually inspiring the Rosalind Schmidt genealogical novels and her guided journal, Dreams Remembered. The conversation explores dream incubation, recurring dream themes, ancestral and past-life possibilities, and the difference between using dreams for creative inspiration and using them for personal insight.

You’ll hear practical ideas for remembering and recording dreams, setting an intention before sleep, reviewing recurring symbols, and using the half-awake morning state to ask questions and discover fresh perspectives. Anna also explains how dreaming helped her work through a difficult opening for her novel Ancestral Shadows and how writers can “dream on” a creative block.

Anna Dahlheimer Bartkowski is a genealogist and historical fiction author whose work brings together dreams, ancestral research, and storytelling. Her books include Ancestral Shadows, Dead Reckoning, and Dreams Remembered: A Guided Dream Journal for Seekers, Writers, and Genealogists. Learn more at anabartkowski.com.

Dreams and Visions: Cultivating Joyful Effort with Katherine Bell and Henry Kandel. Six monthly Wednesdays on Zoom, 7:00–8:30pm ET (4:00–5:30pm PT), starting November 11. The first session is free.

Details and register here: https://www.psychedelicyogaresearchcollective.org/dreams

The Dream Journal is hosted by Katherine Bell of Experiential Dreamwork and broadcast from KSQD in Santa Cruz, with additional broadcasts in San Jose and Sonoma. Full-length videos of the conversation are also available on Spotify and the Experiential Dreamwork YouTube channel.

Join the conversation: What have you been dreaming about lately? Share the episode, leave a comment, and subscribe for more conversations about dreams, creativity, consciousness, and personal growth.

#TheDreamJournal #DreamInterpretation #DreamJournal #Genealogy #AncestralDreams #CreativeWriting #DreamRecall #DreamIncubation #HistoricalFiction #ExperientialDreamwork

This show, episode number 383, was recorded during a live broadcast on October 3, 2026 at KSQD.org, community radio of Santa Cruz.

SHARE A DREAM FOR THE SHOW or a question or enquire about being a guest on the podcast by emailing Katherine Bell at [email protected]. Follow on LI, IG, YT, FB, & LT @ExperientialDreamwork #thedreamjournal. To learn more or to inquire about exploring your own dreams go to ExperientialDreamwork.com.

Video podcast available at youtube.com/@experientialdreamwork. Popular playlists: “Dream Journal shorts” and “FULL LENGTH VIDEOS”.

Here are links to some other Dream Journal episodes you might be interested in:

Is This Yours to Carry? with Linda Schiller

A New Kind of Hero’s Journey with Donna Glee Williams

Intro and outro music by Mood Science. Ambient music new every week by Rick Kleffel. Archived music can be found at Pandemiad.com. Many thanks to Rick for also engineering the show and to Erik Nelson for answering the phones.

The Dream Journal aims to:

A dream can be meaningful even if you don’t know what it means.

The Dream Journal is produced at and airs on KSQD Santa Cruz, 90.7 FM. Catch it streaming LIVE at KSQD.org 10-11am Pacific Time on Saturdays. Call or text with your dreams or questions at 831-900-5773 or email at [email protected]. Podcasts are available on all major podcast platforms the Monday following the live show. The complete KSQD Dream Journal podcast page can be found at ksqd.org/the-dream-journal/.

Thanks for being a Dream Journal listener! Available on all major podcast platforms. Rate it, review it, subscribe, and tell your friends.

Can recurring nightmares be changed—and can better sleep support recovery from trauma?

On this episode of The Dream Journal, host Katherine Bell talks with clinical psychologist and behavioral sleep medicine specialist Dr. Courtney Worley about evidence-based treatments for nightmares, insomnia, and trauma-related sleep problems.

Dr. Worley explains how imagery rehearsal therapy (IRT) can help people rescript distressing dreams and rehearse safer, more neutral, or more pleasant alternatives while awake. She also explores exposure, relaxation, and rescripting therapy; cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia and nightmares; lucid dreaming; mindfulness; and the importance of addressing sleep apnea alongside psychological symptoms.

Throughout the conversation, she emphasizes choice, collaboration, and respect for each person’s cultural, religious, spiritual, and personal values.

Dr. Courtney Worley is double board certified in clinical psychology and behavioral sleep medicine. She is co-author of The Nightmare and Sleep Disorder Toolkit and author of the forthcoming Nightmares and Nightmare Disorders. Learn more at drcourtneyworley.com and Upward Behavioral Health.

Key takeaway: Recurring nightmares and sleep problems are treatable! Behavioral approaches can help people build a different relationship with sleep and dreaming while honoring the meaning and context of their experiences. If nightmares, insomnia, trauma symptoms, or possible sleep apnea are affecting your quality of life, consider speaking with a qualified health professional.

Topics: nightmare treatment, imagery rehearsal therapy, IRT, CBT for insomnia, CBT for nightmares, PTSD nightmares, trauma therapy, lucid dreaming, mindfulness, sleep apnea, dream rescripting, behavioral sleep medicine, The Dream Journal, Dr. Courtney Worley

This show, episode number 382, was recorded during a live broadcast on September 26, 2026 at KSQD.org, community radio of Santa Cruz.

SHARE A DREAM FOR THE SHOW or a question or enquire about being a guest on the podcast by emailing Katherine Bell at [email protected]. Follow on LI, IG, YT, FB, & LT @ExperientialDreamwork #thedreamjournal. To learn more or to inquire about exploring your own dreams go to ExperientialDreamwork.com.

Video podcast available at youtube.com/@experientialdreamwork. Popular playlists: “Dream Journal shorts” and “FULL LENGTH VIDEOS”.

Here are links to some other Dream Journal episodes you might be interested in:

Nightmares and Suicide with Dr Michael Nadorff

Intro and outro music by Mood Science. Ambient music new every week by Rick Kleffel. Archived music can be found at Pandemiad.com. Many thanks to Rick for also engineering the show and to Erik Nelson for answering the phones.

Dancing With Dreams & Nightmares | Ritual Dreamwork, Bees, Snakes, & the Dream Hive with Lana Nasser

The Dream Journal aims to:

A dream can be meaningful even if you don’t know what it means.

The Dream Journal is produced at and airs on KSQD Santa Cruz, 90.7 FM. Catch it streaming LIVE at KSQD.org 10-11am Pacific Time on Saturdays. Call or text with your dreams or questions at 831-900-5773 or email at [email protected]. Podcasts are available on all major podcast platforms the Monday following the live show. The complete KSQD Dream Journal podcast page can be found at ksqd.org/the-dream-journal/.

Thanks for being a Dream Journal listener! Available on all major podcast platforms. Rate it, review it, subscribe, and tell your friends.

What can dreams reveal about psychological growth in midlife? Jungian psychoanalyst Tony Caldwell joins host Katherine Bell on The Dream Journal to explore individuation, compensatory dreams, shadow work, initial dreams, and the tension of opposites.

Tony explains how dreams can counterbalance a one-sided conscious attitude, why individuation is an ongoing process rather than a finished state, and how holding opposing impulses can allow a new response to emerge. He also shares his own recurring water dreams—from dark, stagnant pools to clear, flowing water—and describes how dream images accompanied major shifts in analysis, training, relationships, and his move to Nashville.

This conversation offers an accessible introduction to Jungian psychology for anyone curious about dream interpretation, midlife transformation, the unconscious, psychological balance, and the role of the body, and community in personal growth.

Bio: Tony Caldwell is a Jungian psychoanalyst based in Nashville, Tennessee, with more than 25 years of experience. He is a co-founder of the Psyche and Soma Institute and a core faculty member of the Haden Institute.

Learn more: TonyCaldwell.com |  JungNashville.com | PsycheandSomaInstitute.com | HadenInstitute.org

Subscribe and share: Follow The Dream Journal and Experiential Dreamwork for more conversations about dreams, dreamwork, psychology, and personal transformation. If this episode resonates, share it with a friend who is curious about the meaning and value of dreams.

Keywords: Jungian psychology, dream interpretation, individuation, compensatory dreams, shadow work, midlife growth, unconscious mind, water dreams, initial dreams, transcendent function, Tony Caldwell, The Dream Journal

Hashtags:  #TheDreamJournal

This show, episode number 381, was recorded during a live broadcast on September 19, 2026 at KSQD.org, community radio of Santa Cruz.

SHARE A DREAM FOR THE SHOW or a question or enquire about being a guest on the podcast by emailing Katherine Bell at [email protected]. Follow on LI, IG, YT, FB, & LT @ExperientialDreamwork #thedreamjournal. To learn more or to inquire about exploring your own dreams go to ExperientialDreamwork.com.

Video podcast available at youtube.com/@experientialdreamwork. Popular playlists: “Dream Journal shorts” and “FULL LENGTH VIDEOS”.

Here are links to some other Dream Journal episodes you might be interested in:

Dreams, Jung, and Memory Reconsolidation with John Valenzuela, PhD

Quarter Life Crisis, Dreams, and Jung’s Red Book with Satya Doyle Byock

Jungian Psychology, Creativity, and the Music of the Unconscious with Dr Michael Mollura

Intro and outro music by Mood Science. Ambient music new every week by Rick Kleffel. Archived music can be found at Pandemiad.com. Many thanks to Rick for also engineering the show and to Erik Nelson for answering the phones.

The Dream Journal aims to:

A dream can be meaningful even if you don’t know what it means.

The Dream Journal is produced at and airs on KSQD Santa Cruz, 90.7 FM. Catch it streaming LIVE at KSQD.org 10-11am Pacific Time on Saturdays. Call or text with your dreams or questions at 831-900-5773 or email at [email protected]. Podcasts are available on all major podcast platforms the Monday following the live show. The complete KSQD Dream Journal podcast page can be found at ksqd.org/the-dream-journal/.

Thanks for being a Dream Journal listener! Available on all major podcast platforms. Rate it, review it, subscribe, and tell your friends.

What are dream herbs—and how can plant allies support dream recall, dream incubation, creativity, healing, and spiritual connection? On this episode of The Dream Journal, host Katherine Bell speaks with author, herbalist, certified hypnotherapist, dream guide, and intuitive coach Audrey Gilbert about her book Herbal Dream Magic: Spells and Rituals with Plant Allies.

Audrey explains the difference between sleep-supporting herbs and oneirogens, discusses familiar plants such as chamomile, lavender, lemon balm, rosemary, mugwort, blue lotus, skullcap, blue vervain, and ginkgo, and shares practical ways to prepare for intentional dreaming. The conversation explores nighttime rituals, setting a clear question, keeping a dream journal, building a bedside altar, reconnecting during a “dream drought,” and working with dreams during a second sleep.

In the second half, the conversation expands into collective dreaming, dreams with the land, and a striking linden-tree dream in which the name “Tilia” becomes a doorway to connection and care. Audrey also tells the story of choosing her name through a vivid tree dream and describes how science, folklore, psychology, tarot, animistic spirituality, and herbal practice come together in her work.

BIO: Audrey Gilbert is an herbalist, certified hypnotherapist, dream guide, and intuitive coach helping people cultivate healing, creativity, and spiritual connection through the wisdom of plants and dreams. Audrey weaves together science, folklore, psychology, and animistic spirituality into practices that are both practical and deeply meaningful.

Her book is Herbal Dream Magic: Spells and Rituals with Plant Allies.

Contact our guest: AudreyGilbert.com BotanicaMystica.org

This show, episode number 380, was recorded during a live broadcast on September 12, 2026 at KSQD.org, community radio of Santa Cruz.

SHARE A DREAM FOR THE SHOW or a question or enquire about being a guest on the podcast by emailing Katherine Bell at [email protected]. Follow on LI, IG, YT, FB, & LT @ExperientialDreamwork #thedreamjournal. To learn more or to inquire about exploring your own dreams go to ExperientialDreamwork.com.

Video podcast available at youtube.com/@experientialdreamwork. Popular playlists: “Dream Journal shorts” and “FULL LENGTH VIDEOS”.

Here are links to some other Dream Journal episodes you might be interested in:

The Dreaming Way with Toko-Pa Turner

Rewilding the Dream with Laura Smith-Riva

Dreaming Back to the Earth with Mary Kay Kasper

Intro and outro music by Mood Science. Ambient music new every week by Rick Kleffel. Archived music can be found at Pandemiad.com. Many thanks to Rick for also engineering the show and to Erik Nelson for answering the phones.

The Dream Journal aims to:

A dream can be meaningful even if you don’t know what it means.

The Dream Journal is produced at and airs on KSQD Santa Cruz, 90.7 FM. Catch it streaming LIVE at KSQD.org 10-11am Pacific Time on Saturdays. Call or text with your dreams or questions at 831-900-5773 or email at [email protected]. Podcasts are available on all major podcast platforms the Monday following the live show. The complete KSQD Dream Journal podcast page can be found at ksqd.org/the-dream-journal/.

Thanks for being a Dream Journal listener! Available on all major podcast platforms. Rate it, review it, subscribe, and tell your friends.

How do Jungian psychology, dream archetypes, neurobiology, and memory reconsolidation come together in dream work? In this episode of The Dream Journal, host Katherine Bell speaks with clinical psychologist Dr. John Valenzuela about dreams as meaningful experiences that help us update emotional memories, deepen self-understanding, and improve relationships.

With poignant examples from his own dream life, Dr. Valenzuela explores how dreams connect personal memory, archetypal symbolism, embodied awareness, interpersonal neurobiology, and the collective unconscious.

The conversation moves from Jung’s ideas about symbols and archetypes to modern neuroscience, polyvagal theory, emotional regulation, dream embodiment, and the possibility that dreams help us engage with relational fields beyond ordinary waking awareness.

Topics include memory reconsolidation, implicit emotional memory, dream symbols, the personal and collective unconscious, the mother and father archetypes, the psychoid field, embodied dream work, the role of the right brain, and how dreams may help us reframe old patterns and strengthen our relationships.

BIO: John Valenzuela is a clinical psychologist and supervisor in California and earned his PhD at Pacifica Graduate Institute. He has presented scholarly research on dreams, Jungian psychology, and memory reconsolidation at several conferences, including IASD, IAAP, and the Global Association for Interpersonal Neurobiology. His book is Dreams, Jung, and Memory Reconsolidation: Consilience with Interpersonal Neurobiology,

Contact our guest at nexusojai.com

This show, episode number 379, was broadcast on September 5, 2026 at KSQD.org, community radio of Santa Cruz. It was recorded on August 4, 2026.

SHARE A DREAM FOR THE SHOW or a question or enquire about being a guest on the podcast by emailing Katherine Bell at [email protected]. Follow on LI, IG, YT, FB, & LT @ExperientialDreamwork #thedreamjournal. To learn more or to inquire about exploring your own dreams go to ExperientialDreamwork.com.

Video podcast available at youtube.com/@experientialdreamwork. Popular playlists: “Dream Journal shorts” and “FULL LENGTH VIDEOS”.

Here are links to some other Dream Journal episodes you might be interested in:

How Dreamwork Strengthens Intuition: Lucidity, Meaning, and the Medial Archetype with Athena Laz

Anima Dreams, Personal Neurobiology, and Hispanic Identity with John Valenzuela, PhD

Intro and outro music by Mood Science. Ambient music new every week by Rick Kleffel. Archived music can be found at Pandemiad.com. Many thanks to Rick for also engineering the show and to Erik Nelson for answering the phones.

The Dream Journal aims to:

A dream can be meaningful even if you don’t know what it means.

The Dream Journal is produced at and airs on KSQD Santa Cruz, 90.7 FM. Catch it streaming LIVE at KSQD.org 10-11am Pacific Time on Saturdays. Call or text with your dreams or questions at 831-900-5773 or email at [email protected]. Podcasts are available on all major podcast platforms the Monday following the live show. The complete KSQD Dream Journal podcast page can be found at ksqd.org/the-dream-journal/.

Thanks for being a Dream Journal listener! Available on all major podcast platforms. Rate it, review it, subscribe, and tell your friends.

In this episode of The Dream Journal, host Katherine Bell speaks with psychotherapists and artists Willow Pearson Trimbach and Eva Tuschman Leonard about their book The Emotional Truth of Dreams: Learning from Dream Dialogues in Psychotherapeutic and Spiritual Practice. Together they explore how dreams reveal emotional truth, invite deep listening, and open pathways into creativity, spirituality, and relationship.

Willow and Eva describe the difference between emotional reactivity and emotional truth, the grace of dreaming, and the practice of allowing dreams to remain mysterious while continuing to unfold meaning over time. They also discuss waking dreams, nested dreams, nonduality through multiplicity, interbeing, dream dialogue, and the creative exchange between dream life and artistic practice.

The conversation also includes a listener question about dreamlike experiences during meditation and shared consciousness, leading into reflections on waking life as a dynamic dream field. This episode is for anyone interested in dreamwork, depth psychology, psychotherapy, spirituality, creativity, lucid living, and the mystery of how dreams speak to the soul.

Topics Covered:

Keywords:

BIOS:

Willow Pearson Trimbach, PsyD, LMFT, MT-BC is Professor and Director of Clinical Training in the Clinical Psychology Department at the California Institute of Integral Studies. She is a psychologist, psychotherapist, music therapist, author, singer, and songwriter. Willow’s first book, co-edited with Helen Marlo, is The Spiritual Psyche: Mysticism, Intersubjectivity and Psychoanalysis, Her most recent album, Caesura’s Cry was released in July, 2025.

Eva Tuschman Leonard is a psychotherapist, writer, and artist based in Sonoma, California, with degrees from Stanford and The Wright Institute. Influenced by over two decades of meditation practice, her integrative therapeutic style balances resilience-building tools with the exploration of existential, spiritual, and creative dimensions of life. Her first book, Bodywork, explores illness, grief and desire through her drawings and written reflections.

Guest Links:

• Eva Tuschman Leonard: Evatuschman.com

• Willow Pearson Trimbach: Drwillowpearson.com

• Music and creative work: Lionessroars.org

This show, episode number 378, was recorded during a live broadcast on August 29, 2026 at KSQD.org, community radio of Santa Cruz.

SHARE A DREAM FOR THE SHOW or a question or enquire about being a guest on the podcast by emailing Katherine Bell at [email protected]. Follow on LI, IG, YT, FB, & LT @ExperientialDreamwork #thedreamjournal. To learn more or to inquire about exploring your own dreams go to ExperientialDreamwork.com.

Video podcast available at youtube.com/@experientialdreamwork. Popular playlists: “Dream Journal shorts” and “FULL LENGTH VIDEOS”.

Here are links to some other Dream Journal episodes you might be interested in:

Jungian Psychology, Creativity, and the Music of the Unconscious with Dr Michael Mollura

Putting the Psyche back in Psychology with Jungian Eva Rider

Intro and outro music by Mood Science. Ambient music new every week by Rick Kleffel. Archived music can be found at Pandemiad.com. Many thanks to Rick for also engineering the show and to Erik Nelson for answering the phones.

The Dream Journal aims to:

A dream can be meaningful even if you don’t know what it means.

The Dream Journal is produced at and airs on KSQD Santa Cruz, 90.7 FM. Catch it streaming LIVE at KSQD.org 10-11am Pacific Time on Saturdays. Call or text with your dreams or questions at 831-900-5773 or email at [email protected]. Podcasts are available on all major podcast platforms the Monday following the live show. The complete KSQD Dream Journal podcast page can be found at ksqd.org/the-dream-journal/.

Thanks for being a Dream Journal listener! Available on all major podcast platforms. Rate it, review it, subscribe, and tell your friends.

In this episode of The Dream Journal, host Katherine Bell speaks with physician-turned-psychotherapist, teacher, and writer Dr. Keren Vishny about dreams as a place we can return to again and again. Together they explore how dreamwork can deepen presence, support emotional awareness, and help us stay with difficult experiences rather than avoiding them or rushing to interpret them.

Dr. Vishny shares how dreams invite us into relationship—with ourselves, with others, and with the living images of the dream world. The conversation touches on Natural Dreamwork, Body Soul Rhythms, the difference between experiencing and interpreting dreams, and the importance of slowing down to notice sensory details, feelings, and the “layers” a dream can reveal over time.

Topics include dream sharing, relational presence, grief dreams, suffering versus trauma, recurring nightmares, dream re-entry, and how dreams can help us meet pain with curiosity, tenderness, and agency. Keren also discusses why dreams do not have to be “solved” to be meaningful—and how returning to a dream can open new possibilities for healing and self-understanding.

Guest: Dr. Keren Vishny — physician, psychotherapist, teacher, and writer. Keren will be teaching a six-session experiential class in Natural Dreamwork on Thursdays starting October 22. Learn more at kerenvishny.com, kerenvishny.substack.com, and thenaturaldream.com.

Keywords: dreams, dreamwork, Natural Dreamwork, experiential dreamwork, dream interpretation, dream sharing, presence, trauma, suffering, grief dreams, recurring nightmares, Keren Vishny, The Dream Journal.

This show, episode number 377, was recorded during a live broadcast on August 22, 2026 at KSQD.org, community radio of Santa Cruz.

SHARE A DREAM FOR THE SHOW or a question or enquire about being a guest on the podcast by emailing Katherine Bell at [email protected]. Follow on LI, IG, YT, FB, & LT @ExperientialDreamwork #thedreamjournal. To learn more or to inquire about exploring your own dreams go to ExperientialDreamwork.com.

Video podcast available at youtube.com/@experientialdreamwork. Popular playlists: “Dream Journal shorts” and “FULL LENGTH VIDEOS”.

Here are links to some other Dream Journal episodes you might be interested in:

Imagination, Dreamwork, and the Sacred Encounter with Rodger Kamenetz

Healing Relationships One Dream at a Time with Dr. Keren Vishny

Intro and outro music by Mood Science. Ambient music new every week by Rick Kleffel. Archived music can be found at Pandemiad.com. Many thanks to Rick for also engineering the show and to Erik Nelson for answering the phones.

The Dream Journal aims to:

A dream can be meaningful even if you don’t know what it means.

The Dream Journal is produced at and airs on KSQD Santa Cruz, 90.7 FM. Catch it streaming LIVE at KSQD.org 10-11am Pacific Time on Saturdays. Call or text with your dreams or questions at 831-900-5773 or email at [email protected]. Podcasts are available on all major podcast platforms the Monday following the live show. The complete KSQD Dream Journal podcast page can be found at ksqd.org/the-dream-journal/.

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