Why am I dreaming of being pregnant when I'm not?

Those pregnancy and baby bump dreams that you’ve been having? No, they don't automatically mean you are pregnant — but they are signaling something.

As a professional dream analyst and the author of “The Alchemy of Your Dreams,” I help people come to insights about recurrent patterns and symbols that pop up in their dreams, like giving birth and being pregnant.

Dreams about pregnancy can have various interpretations depending on the context and personal experiences for the dreamer.

Here are a few possible meanings.

What does a pregnancy dream mean when you are not pregnant?

This is a call to focus on creativity, new beginnings, and moving through transitions of life stages.

Generally, dreaming about pregnancy when you’re not actually pregnant could reflect personal growth, transformation, or the anticipation of a significant life change or event that is on the horizon.

Pregnancy dreams can also symbolize a desire for new beginnings, creativity, or the development of a significant and meaningful idea in your waking life.

It’s also important to consider the specific details and emotions within the dream to gain a more accurate understanding of its meaning for you personally. Where you happy or sad to find out you were pregnant in the dream? Or where you just going through the motions?

How you feel in a dream can offer great insight into how you actually feel on a deeper more significant level.

What does a positive pregnancy test dream mean?

Overall, dreaming about a positive pregnancy is generally seen as a positive sign of fertility and transformation — unless you were devastated in the dream to discover that you were pregnant.

In that case, the dream may be telling you that you feel very unprepared for a new situation that is "gestating" in your life. Like a mother who gestates her baby in the womb, the dreamer is dreaming of a positive pregnancy test but at a time where they feel unprepared to bring forth a "child" into the world.

On the other hand, if you were happy to find out about the pregnancy in the dream then it could indicate that you are in a fertile and productive phase, ready to nurture and bring something new into the world. It can also symbolize the desire for emotional fulfillment and the anticipation of a new chapter in your life.

Lastly, this type of dream could also simply be alerting the dreamer to the fact that they could actually be pregnant in waking life, and so they should check that out if they think that could be the case!

Are your dreams actually different when you are pregnant?

Many women tell me that their dreams are far more vivid and clear when they are pregnant. But it is very much a person-to-person experience in this case.

What does it mean to give birth in a dream?

A dream like this may suggest that you are in the process (or about to) give birth to something that will bring "new life" into your world. It could be a business idea, work inspiration or simply a new way of thinking.

As with any birth, the dream also alerts you to the fact that you will likely have to physically "push" in order to see the baby (the new project) come through into the world. In other words, you may have to put a substantial amount of effort into your new project to birth it into the world.

As you are also birthing a baby — the dream alerts you to the fact that this new ‘thing’ in your life is at its early stages, or its infancy. You need to tend and lovingly care for it in order for it to survive and thrive. Tend to your new way of life, and you will see it flourish.

Alternatively, this kind of dream may also simply alert the dreamer to a deep inner desire to actually have a child, and to take the step into parenthood. Self-awareness and reflection on the dreamer’s part here will help to illuminate the dream meaning even further.

This article was originally published on TODAY.com