Here’s What It Actually Means To Dream About Flying, From An Expert

Keeping Flying Around In Your Dreams? Here’s What It Means, According To A Dream Interpreter

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September 20, 2023

mbg Spirituality & Relationships Editor

By Sarah Regan

mbg Spirituality & Relationships Editor

Sarah Regan is a Spirituality & Relationships Editor, and a registered yoga instructor. She received her bachelor’s in broadcasting and mass communication from SUNY Oswego, and lives in Buffalo, New York.

September 20, 2023

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Dreams are chock full of symbolism, themes, and messages from our subconscious—but what does it mean if you’ve been flying in your dreams lately? We asked a dream expert, so you can unpack your flying dream and what it means about your real, waking life.

According to professional dream interpreter Lauri Loewenberg, flying dreams are really common for children, but tend to taper off as we get older. However, it’s still not unheard of to dream about flying as an adult, and Loewenberg says these dreams most often relate to feeling exhilarated or excited about something in your life.

“Perhaps we’ve reached a high goal we set for ourselves, or we’ve broken free from something that had previously been weighing us down or holding us back,” she tells mindbodygreen, adding, “When we’re feeling accomplished and powerful, these sorts of things will cause a flying dream, because it’s subconscious expression of our elation.”

And this could be reaching new heights in anything from your job, to your personal growth, to your spiritual development, Loewenberg notes.

9 interpretations for flying dreams

In many cases, a typical flying dream will relate to the aforementioned themes of feeling excited, unburdened, or reaching new heights. However, depending on the context, there are a handful of other interpretations for specific flying dream scenarios.

If you’re flying in a dream and can’t get down, Loewenberg explains that she often hears about this specific dream when someone is achieving really measurable and significant success, such as celebrity status or landing a huge promotion. In this case, she says, you might have an awareness that something could bring you down in the future, and your subconscious fears about the sustainability of your success are showing up.

It could also be that there’s a part of you that’s slightly uncomfortable with these new heights you’ve reached. After all, change is scary—even positive change—so this dream could be your subconscious saying, “We can’t go back even, if we wanted to.”

If you’re dreaming that you’re unable to keep flying, struggling to stay off the ground, and/or falling back down after taking flight, Loewenberg notes, this dream speaks to the efforts you’re making right now. Of course, since you’re having a hard time flying, there could be something in your real life that you’re having a hard time “getting off the ground,” so to speak, like a new project or goal.

Another flying dream Loewenberg has heard about from her clients is one in which you’re trying to show off the fact that you can fly. You might call down to the people below to get their attention, for example.

In this case, she says, there’s something in your real life that you feel you deserve recognition for, but you might not be getting it.

In some flying dreams, you might be zipping through the sky, and in others, you might be casually cruising. According to Loewnberg, the differences in speed can speak to differences in personality types (i.e. type-As with a sense of urgency versus the cool-calm-and-collected types).

When you’re experiencing success, depending on your personality, your flying dream might reflect brazen excitement and fast flying speeds, or a more tempered and measured approach to success, with a leisurely dream-flight to match.

If you find you only tend to fly in dreams when you’re in peril or trying to get away from something, Loewenberg says this can relate to how you’re applying your strengths in real life. “So you’re not really enjoying the flight, of course, and this is usually connected to not recognizing or utilizing your abilities in real life unless you’re really put to the test,” she says, adding, “Your strengths don’t come out unless they’re significantly challenged.”

If you’re flying in a dream over some sort of disaster, like a wildfire, stormy seas, or an earthquake, this speaks to overcoming something in your real life. According to Loewenberg, in this case, “You want to pay attention to what is below you, because that is you realizing your ability to rise above something very negative going on in your life right now.”

Most flying dreams will be solo, but Loewenberg says you could also dream that you have a flying companion, whether they’re a partner or friend in real life. These dreams are your subconscious recognizing that this person is supporting you in your goals and endeavors, or perhaps, there’s something in real life you’ve both risen above together.

According to Loewenberg, dreams about traveling in a plane, more often than not, are related to your career path, “because the plane takes off and we want our careers to take off and reach new levels.” Planes can also represent your spiritual or religious path, she adds.

Last but not least, some flying dreams night involve floating or hovering above the ground without really going anywhere. And according to Loewenberg, that could represent some sort of stagnation. “You’ve reached a higher level in some area, whether it’s a relationship or a project or spiritual growth, but now you’re kind of stagnant,” she explains.

How to work through this dream

Most flying dreams tend to be positive and have a hopeful or excited feel to them, but not always. In the case of some of the more negative or challenging flying dream scenarios, Loewenberg says the key to stop having the dream is to figure out what it represents in your real life.

“As always, pay attention to what you’re thinking and feeling within the dream, because those exact same thoughts and feelings will connect and apply to something in your real life,” she tells mindbodygreen.

Once you know what it is that’s causing you to feel stagnant, afraid, or unrecognized in your own life, then you can take steps to make some shifts it, and the dream should stop.

The takeaway

Many people believe that dreams offer a unique view into the inner workings of our minds. If flying dreams keep showing up while you snooze, get curious about those dreams and what they mean to you, so you can figure out where the real life connection lies.