I am 28 years old and married, and am 5 months pregnant with our second child. I just had a recurring dream. (I had it only twice, but I’ve never had a repeat dream ever.)

I can’t really remember any distracting details—just the main event. In the dream my unborn child is pushing its hand out through my stomach, so that I can see it. The skin isn’t breaking. It’s more like the hand is pushing up against latex. Also, the hand is much smaller then it should be, and is pointy and veiny.

My thoughts and feeling in my dream are “how cute” and that it’s sweet and loving, but when I wake up it’s very creepy. If I only dreamt it once I would just put it behind me, but it’s been twice and I’m a little freaked out. Can you help?

—Cassie

Hi Cassie—

Your dream reflects your desire to “see” your child, and your curiosity about its development. The fact that the dream recurs simply indicates that your child is on your mind. (Naturally…) The smallness of the child, which appears to have caused you concern, is a reflection of your awareness that your baby still has several months to grow, before being delivered. Dreams commonly use small sizes to represent events that are distant into the future—that still are in their embryonic stage.

Your dream is not a sign that your child will be born prematurely, or that it is undernourished in any way. To the contrary, it is only afterward, when you are awake, that the smallness of the child concerns you and makes you feel “creepy.” (During the dream you feel only love and sweetness for your child.) The veins also are a simple reflection of your awareness—at a conscious and subconscious level—of the growth occurring inside you. Dreams often represent physical events graphically, and conceiving a child, as you are acutely aware, is a spiritual and physical event.

“Seeing” a baby through suddenly transparent skin is a common experience among pregnant mothers. What’s the meaning? You are “looking in” on a process that naturally is on your mind—and in your belly—even while you sleep!

Congratulations on your successful conception and pregnancy!