Hostages

To dream that you are a hostage represents feelings about being trapped, limited, or powerless. Feelings of being a hostage of circumstances. Feeling forced to go along with other people wishes. You might also feel trapped by your own beliefs. Feeling victimized, powerless, or limited in your choices. Physical immobilization. Aspects of your personality that feel powerless to escape. Feeling that you have to give in to the demands of others. You may feel that you have to give in to the demands of others or sacrifice your own needs for the sake of other people. A dream of hostages may suggest a need to assess power dynamics and to take control of one's own life.

Positively, dreaming about hostages may reflect your ability to endure or maintain control over a difficult situation.

Negatively, dreaming about hostages may reflect feelings of being held back or trapped in a situation such as relationship, job, or other aspect of your life. Feelings of being held captive by fear, guilt, or obligation.

To dream of other people as hostages may reflect a part of yourself that is unable to be fully expressed.

To dream of taking hostages may reflect your desperation to assert yourself or force compromise. Curtailing someone else's wishes or happiness until your own wants are addressed.

Example: A woman dreamed of being held hostage and raped. In waking life she was practicing Lent sacrificing things and working on her temper. In this case the hostage symbolism may have reflected her feelings about feeling forced to go along with Lent practices while other people didn't. She may have felt it was unbearable to have to give up anything she liked for Lent.

Example 2: A man dreamed of being held hostage by the police. In waking life he was experiences lifestyle changes. In this case the hostage symbolism may have reflected his feelings about disliking his lifestyle changes which began to make him feel trapped by his circumstances keeping them.

Kidnapped

To dream of being kidnapped represents issues in your life that trap, restrict, or distract you. A problem or negative thinking pattern may be diverting your concentration or attention away from more important issues or goals. Feeling forced to do something that you don't want to do. Feeling that everything in your life is going wrong. A moment of extreme stress or pressure. A loss of control and security. Negative influences in your life that may forcing their way into your life and making you feel helpless.

Alternatively, kidnapping may reflect a situation that leaves you feeling victimized or that something's being done against your will. You may feel a loss of security. Making others do something against their will.

To dream of yourself being kidnapped represents feelings of being forced to do something you don't want to. Feeling that your happiness or sense of stability has been stolen from you.

Example: A mother dreamed of fearing that her child would be kidnapped. In waking life she feared that someone that had been mean to her child was going to permanently rob her child of inner happiness.

Example 2: A woman dreamed of being kidnapped. In waking life she felt jealous of her friend getting married. She felt that everything was going wrong in her life because she was losing her friend to someone else. The kidnapping may have reflected the how unpleasant and unusual it felt to feel stable life and friendship being taken from her.

Example 3: A man dreamed of being kidnapped, attacked, and bleeding. In waking life he felt a lot of stress from the sudden emergence of serious personal problems causing a major distraction in his life.

Example 4: A man dreamed of a seeing a kidnapper take a child, hold them hostage. and then see the child escape the kidnapper. In waking life the man began to realize that he was being abusive and controlling to women in his life. He was having issues controlling his anger and need to control people.

Example 5: A woman dreamed of seeing people being kidnapped, trying to help them, but then being kidnapped herself. In waking life she felt bad for people dealing with a problem, but then got stuck in the problem herself after she tried to help them.

Example 6: A man dreamed of his wife being kidnapped. In waking life he felt she was becoming someone he didn't like anymore. He may have felt that his wife's interests or changed personality "Kidnapped" the original person he fell in love with.

Example 7: A young woman dreamed of being kidnapped by the Phantom of the Opera. In waking life, she was obsessed with the Phantom of the Opera, trying to immerse herself in everything related to it. In this case, her kidnapping by the Phantom of the Opera may have represented her awareness of how the obsession was heavily distracting her from other areas of her life due to the extensive Phantom of the Opera material she had acquired.