Losing Teeth

Over the course of the last couple of weeks, sleep has rarely come without the vivid backdrop of a disturbing recurring dream. At some point on the midnight dreary, my teeth drop out of my head. The pearly whites take a pass on being plastered to my head and, to my horror, slide out three and four at a time. It's not spontaneous dental hydroplosion (there's an obscure reference), but a disturbing large-scale loss of dentistry; I am left holding patches of porcelain.

A couple of websites have insight into my plight, none of them are flattering:

1) "Waking Dream" Sometimes teeth fall out, sometimes they are simply missing, sometimes they crumble away. Whichever way they make their exit, the dreamer is left with not only a gap in her smile, but a hole in her heart when she awakens. I do have a hole in my heart when I wake up...

2) "Personal Appearance Anxiety" One theory is that dreams about your teeth reflect your anxiety about your appearance and how others perceive you. Is this saying I am a pretty boy? Is that news?

3) "Fear of Embarrassment or Failure" Another rationalization for these falling teeth dream may be rooted in your fear of being embarrassed or making a fool of yourself in some specific situation. These dreams are an over-exaggeration of your worries and anxiety I think I have embarrassed myself enough to be over that.

4) "Feelings of Inferiority or Powerlessness" Perhaps you are having difficulties expressing yourself or getting your point across. You feel frustrated when your voice is not being heard. You may be experiencing feelings of inferiority and a lack of self-confidence in some situation or relationship in your life. Is my little man's disease coming to light?

5) "Menopause" In the latest research, it has been shown that women in menopause have frequent dreams about teeth. This may be related to getting older and/or feeling unattractive and less feminine. Oh my.