The dream I remember most clearly was one where I was swimming underwater through my old primary school. I'm a thirty-one-year-old accountant in Kuala Lumpur, and I had this dream about two years ago, during a very stressful period at work.
In the dream, the whole school was flooded with warm, clear water, but I could breathe normally. I swam along the corridors, past my old classroom, and saw desks floating near the ceiling. My Year Two teacher, Mrs Tan, was sitting calmly at her desk marking books, completely dry, as if nothing was unusual. She looked up, smiled and said, 'You're late again,' which was strange because I was never late as a child. Then I swam out of a window into a huge blue ocean, and that's when I woke up.
When I opened my eyes, I felt oddly peaceful but also a bit confused. It took me a few seconds to remember where I was. Usually my dreams vanish within minutes, but this one stayed with me all day.
I think I still remember it because it was so vivid and because of the timing. I was working twelve-hour days on an audit and felt like I was drowning in work, so maybe the water represented that pressure. Yet in the dream I wasn't scared; I could breathe and move freely. Afterwards I took it as a small message to myself that I'd cope. My sister, who loves interpreting dreams, said Mrs Tan's comment meant I was neglecting myself, and to be fair, she might have been right.