I was at Billy’s house eating everything out his refrigerator (literally out of house and home) and when I was finished, I tried to get away without my friends finding me. For some odd reason I was also trying to steal a bag of marshmellos from Billy’s house too. Then, I woke up and went back to sleep. This time I dreamt that my boyfriend and I were in my car and got stuck in a mud puddle. Does these dreams have any relation to each other; like I like Billy or something?

--SuperGirl

Dear SuperGirl-

I think you may be trying to decide between boyfriends here, and you may have a psychological attachment to food. Lets talk about food first.

In the dream it sounds like you are engaged in what is popularly known as binge eating - where you generally refrain from eating very much, but then, every once in a while, you give yourself a treat. Suddenly you decide to eat as much as you want - in fact, you over eat - which is what you were doing in this dream. The marshmellows at the end of the dream symbolize the excessive nature of the hunger. That you wanted to hide your behavior from your friends suggests your sense of shame and mixed feelings about overeating.

How does food get mixed in with dreams about boyfriends? Food is symbolically associated in our minds with sensuality and nourishment - because eating food is a sensual and nourishing act. If we crave sensuality and a supportive presence in our life - and who doesn’t? - but we don’t find these qualities in our waking relationships, then sometimes we try to find them in food. It is believed that many people who have eating disorders are trying to satisfy a type of emotional “hunger” inside them.

In this same sense then, it is possible that your dream is symbolizing your hunger for attention from Billy, who I presume is not your boyfriend at present. And I think your second dream suggests that you feel “stuck” in your relationship with your current boyfriend. These are normal feelings and situations that everyone finds him or herself in at one time or another. Given that you are aware of your feelings for each person, what you decide to do is up to you.

What advice can I give you? Your first dream indicates that your “hunger” for attention - or perhaps your relationship with food - is a bit excessive and out of control. Whenever you see your behavior represented like that in a dream, it is a caution sign to yourself that you are emotionally off balance, and that you need to regain your center so that you don’t act impulsively. This doesn’t mean you can’t be spontaneous, it’s just a warning sign that you need to stay in control of yourself. If you feel like you might have an eating disorder, talk with your friends about it, look up some good information on the internet under the keywords “eating disorders,” or stop by the school counseling office and pick up a pamphlet about eating disorders, or ask them to get you one. You’d be amazed how many of your friends are dealing with the same problem.