Start your own dream journey with The Academy of Dreams.
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Welcome to Art of Dreaming CoursesThe Academy of Dreams introduces you to the many perspectives of a ‘dream’. And in doing so looks at how we answer the question ‘what is a dream?‘, using a range of explanations from physiological to psychological to mystical. Through our dream training courses, dream groups and dreaming ebooks, we explain each of the different dream perspectives and how they can be used to help you understand your dreams.
About Us
Hello, my name is Debbie Winterbourne and welcome to The Academy of Dreams.
My passion for exploring the nature of dreaming and reality has been a life-long journey. The Academy of Dreams is the culmination of my life’s work to date, with the aim of introducing those equally passionate in learning about dreams to the Art of Dreaming, through regular training courses, workshops, dream groups and e-books on the many different aspects and perspectives of a dream.
My Dream Journey
My dream journey started as a teenager, when I found that whilst dreaming I was able to somehow recognise the fact that I was dreaming. Fascinated by this, I started reading the literature and philosophy of the dream world, trying to find out more about this mysterious phenomenon. Eventually I discovered I was lucid dreaming.
I began to explore the concept of lucid dreaming further, learning various tools and techniques to become more proficient at inducing these dreams. Over the years, I learned how to control the dream environment and then later, to let go of control and simply explore the dream world before me with curiosity and openness. in 2000, I spent a year in the USA learning more about lucid dreaming. I was able to partake in sleep and dreaming experiments in a university science laboratory. At the same time, I studied and obtained a degree in psychology. These studies encouraged my interest in ‘perception’ and I realised that the psychology of how humans perceive the world was controversial and unclear with many competing theories. I mused upon how we might ‘perceive’ phenomena in the dream world. It amazed me that even without the active engagement of the five physical senses, imagery could appear so life-like in the dream. Where did we get these ‘dream senses’ from?
These questions led me on to a study of ‘reality’. What do we mean when we speak of something being ‘real’? Are our dreams just as real as the waking world? If they are, why do we tend to give primacy to the material world? Some of the world’s greatest philosophers have attempted to answer these profound questions. I soon realised that I needed to embark on a study of metaphysics and spirituality. I signed up for a Masters degree in Mysticism and Religious Experience and began a study of the different religions and spiritual ideas through the ages. I specialised in the area of ‘dreaming’ and wrote my Masters dissertation around the meaning and concept of the ‘dream’.
In 2003, I realised that there was another part of the dream puzzle that I needed to understand; that of psychotherapy. I embarked on a five year training course to obtain a Masters degree in Gestalt psychotherapy, which enabled me to understand the dream from a psychological angle. I understood that we often dream in metaphors and by deciphering these metaphors we can begin to understand the subconscious messages we are being sent about our situation in the waking world.
More recently, I have been fascinated with the study of Tibetan Dream Yoga and Quantum Physics. The more I reflect on the dream world, the less sure I am of anything!
Thus I have travelled a long journey through several different disciplines in order to found the Academy of Dreams. I now teach regular dreaming courses, which incorporate many of the different perspectives of the dream that I have reflected on and studied over the years.
Deborah Winterbourne LLB, LLM, BSc, MA.
Service Categories
Counselling, Psychotherapy
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