Everyone eats. Everyone drinks. Everyone poops. Everyone sleeps. And everyone dreams.

And statistics and the internet tell us that many people dream about their teeth falling out.

You’ve probably had dreams about showing up to work naked or free-falling a massive drop, but many folks have experienced another sleep scenario, too: a dream about their teeth falling out. According to a 2012 study, as many as 39 percent of people have had dreams about losing teeth.

One website, DreamMoods.com, says it has to do with things like anxiety about appearance, fear of rejection, powerlessness, or even inferiority.

If you have dreams of teeth falling out, you may be…

Experiencing A Transition

Teeth first appear when you’re a baby, fall out as you get older, and then grow back again during adolescence. So, it makes sense that when we dream of our teeth, those dreams serve as a parallel to transitional phases in our lives. Your dream may be a sign you’re evolving as a person—either physically, emotionally, or both.

Lacking Self-Esteem

Many people experiencing poor oral health often feel insecure about their appearance, their ability to chew and eat, or even their ability to speak. Missing teeth dreams could also represent this anxiety. Does your self-esteem need a boost? Appreciate yourself for who you are! Take a deep breath, smile, and try these tips.

Afraid of Being A Fool

Some interpretations say dreams about losing teeth are related to feeling unprepared or worried about scenarios that would embarrass you.

Do these dreams mean your teeth are really going to fall out? Do you need to book it to the dentist before your pearly whites rot away?

Not necessarily, though an oral health conversation with a professional never hurt. If you’re due to find a dentist in your area, click here.

Some researchers set out to provide empirical evidence to the psychological reason behind this prevalent dream. What they discovered was, although stressors and psychological distress can be a cause for grinding teeth at night, there wasn’t a correlation between stress and dreaming of your teeth falling out.

However, researchers did see a relationship between “dental irritation” during sleep and teeth dreams. This means that people who awoke with “tension […] in the teeth, gums, or jaw” were more likely to have dreams about their teeth.

The study concludes that more research is needed. But, we can still wonder if these nightmare-like visions are manifestations of physical conditions like bruxism that happen simultaneously.

When it comes to our dreams, keep in mind that meaning is defined by you and your experiences. Depending on your life, the same symbol can have a different meaning to you than it does for another. Try to think of any parallels your dreams have with your real life and you just might find an explanation there.

Where does your mind go after you doze into dreamland? Share your story below!

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*Updated 2019