I have a recurring dream that I am driving my own car (of which I am very proud) down a road that initially is empty. Then I see cars coming towards me and realize that somehow I am driving down the wrong side of the road.

The first time I had this dream I simply stopped the car and left it pointing the wrong way in the road. I meant to come back for it later. Then last night I woke up after realizing I was driving on the wrong side again.

I don't normally remember my dreams and this is my third dream about my car. In another dream I forgot where I had parked it.

What do these dreams mean? They bother me.

- Cathy, Age 41, Single, Guildford, Surrey, UK

Hi Cathy -

Cars in dreams are symbols of our selves - of the "direction we are headed" in our lives. Driving on the wrong side of the road, accordingly, represents feelings that you are headed in "the wrong direction" somewhere in your life. Because you park the car and mean to come back for it later, the dream also lets us know this is a problem that you have decided to postpone addressing and rectifying. In other words, the problem is "parked" for the moment.

Likely candidates for the metaphor expressed by the dream are a romantic relationship that you feel is unable to deliver you to your hoped-for destination (a committed relationship?), or a career path that is not fulfilling or leading where you hope to arrive.

Are you able to identify this unresolved problem in your life? Whenever we experience recurring dreams, we want to think back to the major events that were occurring in our lives when the dreams began.

Dear Dream Doctor -

Your analysis it is spot on. I am involved in a romantic relationship which is indeed headed in the wrong direction, and which, to date, I have allowed to continue. Now of course the rest is up to me, but knowing what the dream means has set my mind at rest.

Do recurring dreams always indicate that something is wrong in your life?

Hi Cathy -

Recurring dreams are not always bearers of bad news. They simply alert us to issues that are on our mind, and that are important to us. For example, in your case, you may consciously have been content to allow the "wrong direction romance" to continue a while longer (leave it parked) for a variety of reasons: convenience, not wanting to hurt your lover, fear of setting out on a new course.

The dream, however, shows that the "wrong direction" is bothering you, and wants to be resolved. In this sense, the dream's message is positive. You have a destination you want to reach (healthy, committed relationship), and you are anxious to get back on course!