Nightmares of Gun Jamming Up.

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It's a normal anxiety dream - like when you were a student and you dreamed that it's the final exam but you forgot to study, or things of that nature.

They're pretty normal. When I get in stressful situations with my job, I have dreams where proposals are due to clients and I've done nothing, stuff like that.

As someone said above, dreams just reflect the things you're thinking about and, particularly, worrying about in your life.
 
A poster on another board asked a very similar question a few months ago, and copy/pasted below is my response. (Very slightly edited and highlighted in bold in some relevant spots)

I am not a psychologist, but I do teach Psychology, and I know a little bit about dreaming and subconscious states. This type of dream is very common, and comes in two parts.

The first part is the "menace". The menace of the dream varies from person to person, but it always behaves the same way: It simply presents itself and attacks. The menace is usually silent (doesn't speak), because it doesn't have any actual motivation other than to 'get you'. For some people it is a dog biting them, for some it is a faceless criminal attacking, for some it is their evil stepfather. Whatever the 'menace' is, it represents very basic fear and anxiety. How the menace is manifested is relatively unimportant, because it almost always represents a feeling of fear or anxiety stemming from some uncertainty in the dreamer's waking life. This may be related to guns or personal security (as the OP alluded to) but it could just as easily stem from some other source of anxiety (work, relationships, money, etc.).

The second part of the dream is the "paralysis". The paralysis is the inability to respond effectively to the menace. Some people will dream that they need to throw a punch, but their arm won't function properly. Some people will dream that they get in their car to escape, but the car won't start. Gun owners, particularly new ones, would logically dream about a gun that won't funcion properly. As with the 'menace', the 'paralysis' almost always means one thing. The paralysis symbolizes a loss of, or lack of, control. When we feel as if we are unable to control something in our waking life, and the malfunctioning (paralyzed) tool or body part in our dreams represents our fear that we are (or will be) unable to control whatever is causing anxiety in our waking life.

Just to be evil, the subconscious will usually represent the loss of control through a malfunction of whatever our source of physical power is in real life. Paralyzed arms or legs, non-functioning guns, and (fairly commonly) the loss of one's teeth are all examples of this sort of 'malfunction dreaming'. Whatever makes you feel powerful in your waking life is what your subconscious will destroy in your dreams. It is only natural that a person who sees guns as a source of power and control will experience the malfunctioning of guns during anxiety/paralysis dreams. (I told you your subconscious was evil).

OP, I would imagine that you were pretty spot-on with your observation that this sort of dream is common among gun owners, especially new gun owners. Buying a gun means that one has accepted a broad personal responsibility with many variables which might be out of one's control. Break-ins are sudden and unpredictable, and psychologically, the purchasing of a firearm has fostered a hightened sense of responsibility for the outcome of a break-in. Yet, the fact remains that simply owning a firearm does not guarantee successful outcomes. The brain (naturally) has a difficult time contending with the cognitive dissonance that results from those competing ideas, and menace/paralysis dreams are a fairly cut-and-dry representation of the way the subconscious would contend with that sort of problem.

The best thing to do if one is suffering from these sort of dreams is to stop putting off fixing whatever the source of anxiety is. Our dreams are mostly manifestations of thoughts that we repress (or insufficiently address) in our waking lives. Participation in society often requires us to have the ability to push back uncomfortable thoughts and feelings while we are awake, but when we go to sleep, our subconscious has free reign to bring out whatever issues we've put on the backburner and throw them right in our face. If we want the dream to stop, we need to identify what troubles us and deal with it safely and constructively. Resolve the repressed thoughts, the dreams will stop.
 
I had a similar dream where I was in my room and heard some noises and when I opened my door I saw two people with their backs to the wall like they were getting ready to enter my brothers room and the bathroom with guns in hand. When I came around the corner I had a gun (and not one of the ones I actually have) and as soon as I saw them I shot and only got one shot off and they took off towards the stairs and then I woke up. I can't remember if it failed after the first shot or what exactly, but it was pretty nerve racking waking up to that.

I don't really know what it meant either. Probably because I have been thinking about guns and someone breaking into my home so much. All I know is I ended up staying up for a few hours before I went back to sleep. I agree with everyone else that says it is just you subconscious trying to tell you what you don't want to hear. Like other's have said, I would take the gun out often and shoot 50-100 rounds through it at a time and see how it does. I clean my guns every time I get done shooting them. I haven't got to shoot much this year, maybe once. The thing that sucks for me is I bought 3 new guns and haven't shot any of them and I am relying on them to defend me and my family if need be. I really need to get out and test them to see how they preform so I know what will happen if anything like that every happens. Anyway's, I hope you find what you are looking for and start feeling safer.
 
Those types of dreams are pretty common. I've been around guns all my life, but when I first made the decision to start carrying constantly for defense I had a few in which the gun wouldn't go off or didn't do any damage for whatever reason.
Usually, though, it's that I'm throwing a punch at the nameless, faceless aggressor person and though my punches are landing, they're not doing anything at all, i.e., there's no force at all behind them. From what I understand it's just subconscious anxiety over something or other. I had plenty back in college where I slept through class and had missed so many I was going to fail automatically. Dreams are fun stuff.

buckeye8's description was much better, and a very interesting and informative read. Thanks for that!
 
I think the fact that so many people are taking a highly metaphorical dream and interpreting it literally ("Buy a new gun if you don't trust your Glock!") is an interesting discussion on THEIR psychology.
 
OP- In the dream are you also naked and in front of a large crowd?
Concentrate on holding a Taurus Judge that is 100% reliable....but then of course you'll awake screaming to find it was loaded with shotshell blanks..:evil:
 
I've been having gun failure dreams since I was in grade school.

In the first one I ever had, the Colt Police Positive I was shooting at somebody literally fell apart in pieces in my hand. It didn't explode. It just fell apart.

I had one last night.

I've been shooting since 1976 and have complete confidence in the revolvers and semi-autos I carry.

Sometimes a dream is just a dream.
 
^That reminds me:
I stand amid the roar
Of a surf-tormented shore,
And I hold within my hand
Grains of the golden sand
How few! yet how they creep
Through my fingers to the deep,
While I weep - while I weep!
O God! can I not grasp
Them with a tighter clasp?
O God! can I not save
One from the pitiless wave?
Is all that we see or seem
But a dream within a dream?
--Edgar Allan Poe

Dreams or nightmares are often about death, loss, powerlessness in the face of inevitable doom, a trusted axis losing its center, etc.

As a friend of mine told me, if you know someone too darned cheerful, loan them a copy of Harlan Ellison's "Deathbird Stories".
 
Best ideas I've seen here are to simply keep shooting it to show yourself that it's reliable. And to practice clearing jams so that you know what to do if it happens during the unthinkable.
 
I've had dreams where I was running in slow motion and couldn't get away from a pack of dogs that was coming after me. It wasn't a sign that there was anything wrong with my legs in real life.

As others have said, I think the problem here is a general anxiety issue, not a gun-specific issue. It may be worth doing something before bed to de-stress. Writing in a journal, praying, yoga, chamomile tea...whatever works for you.
 
There was a spell in my life where I was constantly have weird dreams so I bought a book about dreams and dream symbolism. It fully supports what Buckeye8 said. In your case, it's not really that you fear the glock malfunctioning, it's just a symbol for other things in your life, unresolved issues.
 
If I may suggest, picking a day to go to the range, the night before, load your magazines, but slip some snap-caps in randomly. The snap caps will simulate a failure, run through tap/rack drill, and reengage. It may not help with particular gun confidence or deeper emotional issues, but it can help you reaffirm that you can handle such a crisis. I believe that a firearm is a VERY USEFUL tool, and YOU are the weapon. What ever path you choose, good luck.
 
About a week ago, I dreamt that my AK would not fire. When the hammer dropped and the gun did not fire (I was certain there was a round in the chamber) I was shocked. Then I realized I had no clue where I was or what I was doing. Then I woke up and laughed. I have total confidence in my AK and I think my dream was just nonsense.

Your dream doesn't mean anything until you give it meaning. If it was a result from or a reason for your reliability concerns with your weapon, or some feeling of powerlessness, you should simply address that issue and sleep easy. Go fire 500 rounds with no malfunction or find something that you know will. That would be cheaper and more fun than hiring a shrink.
 
Don't know, but in my dreams, i can always see the round fire, and I can see the whole path of the bullet until it eventually falls to the ground, and i see it fall to the ground, see the whole thing. Its pretty cool
 
In my dreams it's usually bad ammo. I'll dump an entire mag into the bad guy, but the ammo doesn't have enough gunpowder and he just wades straight through my fire. Personally, I just blamed playing too many video games where it takes multiple mags to kill some of the virtual bad guys :D :rolleyes: :D
 
Yeah i used to have those dreams occasionally. It wasn't usually malfunctions though, it was an incredibly stiff trigger, like think 100 lbs of force required to shoot, and then when it did fire, the bullets were totally ineffective. Ever since I upgraded my everyday carry to a .50AE Desert Eagle with aftermarket hair trigger, I haven't had these dreams anymore. (Just kidding of course.)

buckeye8, spot on and thanks for the great post!

I haven't been logging in as much lately but when I do I am always treated to such excellent posts.
 
A dream is just a dream. I wouldn't read too much into it. My guns regularly won't fire in dreams anyways. Generally the trigger won't ever pull or I'm searching around for ammo and either can't find any or keep finding ammo that won't fit the gun I have. Its just because my mind is confused while I'm dreaming.

"Interpreting dreams" is mostly a Freudian thing and most of his ideas have been rejected by modern psychology.
 
And I thought my dreams of falling off a cliff while in my underwear at high school were weird. :)

I've never had one about gun malfunctions in a self defense situation, but I've had many of them where I'll either get in a fight or be running away from someone. When I'm fighting, without fail my punches are really, really slow. When I'm running, I can't run, which isn't that different from real life. But in the dreams, I really, really can't run. My legs are moving, but I'm only moving about as fast as very fast snail. It's disconcerting.

The worst dreams are the ones where I dream an entire week of work. When I wake up the next day my week is completely thrown off. I won't know what day it is for the rest of the week until Sunday. Church resets it for me. It's really weird.

I agree with the others in that you need to put some serious range rounds in with it to convince yourself of the gun's function. Just be careful. Glocks are known to explode. At least that's what I read on the internet. :evil:

Matt
 
I think that is common in dreams. For me if in a fight I cant hit hard, if in a car it has very little power when flooring it, etc... However I can fly and it feels so real its like I know how it feels when I wake up. Dreams are weird. Shoot the gun until confident and forget about it.
 
You rolled a car and you're dreaming about your gun jamming in a gunfight?

You need a little better perspective on the relative risk of the dangers in your life.

The dream of your gun not working was your subconscious trying to tell you that whether the gun works or not is really irrelevant compared to the other thing (rolled car) that just happened! You need to worry about why you were in a car that rolled (bad driver, mechanical failure, stupid friends, etc) and not about whether your gun works or not.
 
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