Why do we dream of being naked?

Have you ever dreamt you were naked? Not tucked into bed slumbering naked but in a public space with other people who are fully clothed. Well, you are not alone! Whether you’ve forgotten to put on pants or you’re only wearing your birthday suit it turns out it’s a fairly common dream scenario.

You might be naked in front of a crowd, confronted by someone while naked with nowhere to hide, or you may be in a familiar setting but something is missing … yep your clothes. 

Dream analysis isn’t a new idea, philosophers Plato and Aristotle, and psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud, are credited with putting forward the theory that dreams are a way for us to act out our unconscious desires in a safe setting. In fact Jung devised a system for dream interpretation which to this day is used as a clinical treatment. 

Many people don’t believe that our dreams, or dreaming of being naked, means anything at all. But neuroscientists and psychologists are convinced that even our wildest dreams perform an important function in maintaining our mental and emotional health. And most psychologists agree it doesn’t symbolise a literal desire to be naked in public. 

But if being naked in a team meeting isn’t an interaction you feel you need to work through (although there was that Zoom meeting during lockdown ….) then what could it all mean?

Some possible reasons for your naked dreams could be: 

• Clothes can represent protection, so dreaming you’re naked could indicate vulnerability or that you’ve been stripped of your defences, leaving you feeling naked and exposed. 
• Being naked could point to your own insecurities where all eyes are on you, and being naked magnifies those feelings. 
• Naked dreams could also be about being caught off guard or being unprepared in some aspect of your life.
• Perhaps the dream is expressing you are anxious about feeling inferior or having secrets which could be revealed if your exterior persona is stripped away. 
• However being naked is very liberating so you could just be indulging in your carefree existence, proud of your nakedness and of who you are.
• The dream could also be a representation of a breakthrough you’ve made in your waking life where you have been covering up or hiding something and you’re loving the new naked you. 

It’s interesting to note that in my experience no one else in my dreams seems to notice I’m sans clothes and it’s another common aspect. Dream tracker Lauri Loewenberg told MindBodyGreen that “this dream could be the subconscious trying to show you that whatever is causing you to feel vulnerable, exposed, embarrassed, or judged isn't a huge deal. You're the only one giving it energy, and no one else is giving it a second thought."

Naked dreams are not classed as a “sex dream” as there is typically no sexualisation, you’re just naked in an environment or with people where you would normally be fully clothed. 

After researching this article we do wonder if nudists dream of being clothed!!!

What’s your strangest non-sexual naked dream. We’d love you to share.