Moonbeams and Eco-Dreams: Breast Cancer Warning Dreams: Interview with Rocio & Her Mother

This interview with Rocio Aguirre and her mother, Amparo, is the last in my Breast Cancer Warning Dreams interview series. Myself and the others profiled in this series were part of a study featuring women who were diagnosed with breast cancer in dreams and then in real life. Amparo does not speak English so her daughter Rocio acts as translator. Some of Rocio's own dreams leading up to her mother's diagnosis are featured at the end.

M&E

Can you tell us about yourself? Your life now.

Rocio

My mom (her name is Amparo) lives in Ibague, Colombia where she has lived almost all her life. She has 2 daughters who live in a different city. She is a retired woman who spends most of her time doing exercise, reading and participating in social and family events. She is very interested in activities that nurture her physically, mentally and spirituality. She also loves to sing (she was a professional singer) and continues doing so for fun from time to time at social or family events.

M&E
Can you set the stage of your life at the time of this dream that suggested you had breast cancer? Were dreams about health issues common for you or did this come out of left field?

Rocio

She was going through grief. My dad had died in an accident 2 years ago which was very shocking for everyone since it was a sudden death. She was still very affected and had not fully recovered from this lost. We had moved her from her 35-year house where she lived with my father to a smaller but more comfortable apartment. At the same time, she was learning to be more independent and making her own decisions. She was going through the beginning of a totally new stage in her life.

My mom had always received information through dreams but this dream came out of left field. It was the first time she had a dream so shocking about what seemed something serious affecting her health. She had this dream about 3 months before the cancer diagnosis on June 1st, 2012.

“I am in my apartment lying down on my bed. Suddenly I notice that there is a lot of blood coming out of my breast (both) as if they were hurt. My breast is naked. I see the blood running down my skin. I feel anguish and concerned. I am so terrified that I awaken.”

Once awakened, she had the same feelings (fearful, anguish and concerned). She had a hunch that her oldest daughter (me) could be in danger because the doctors had discovered a cyst in her daughter's breast. She thought the dream was warning her about it. She never imagined it was about herself.

M&E

How did the dream unfold? Did it move you to seek screening right away or did you wait?

Rocio

My mom told me the dream and I encouraged her to go see the doctor ASAP. I had a hunch. She did not do the screening immediately but a couple of months later.

M&E
What was the outcome of your screening?

Rocio:

She had cancer in her left breast that could be treated with mastectomy alone and a drug for 5 years (to prevent further cancer diagnosis).

M&E
Did you tell your physician or his/her staff about the dream? If so, how did they respond?

Rocio

No, she did not. Generally, doctors are skeptics so she did not want to tell the dream.

M&E
Do you believe your dream and subsequent actions you took as a result saved your life? If so, how?

Rocio

Yes, for both of us because the cancer was discovered on time. She did not have to go through aggressive treatments. It was ok only with a mastectomy but she did not have to receive radiotherapy or chemotherapy for example.

M&E

How did you come to be included in Dr. Burk's study?

Rocio

I was participating in the PsyberDreaming Conference organized by the IASD (International Association for the Study of Dreams) in September or October 2013. Dr. Burk was a presenting about this topic and asked for volunteers for his research on warning dreams and breast cancer. I told my mom about it and she was interested to talk about her story. I translated the information.

M&E

Is there anything else you would like to share with our readers about your experience?

Rocio

Make of your dreams a valuable resource of inner wisdom. So, write them down, pay attention to them and learn to interpret the symbols that come through them. They are simply extraordinary to guide you in all areas of your life!

I have been very left brain so connecting with my intuition in waking state was difficult. It started with my dreams when my conscious mind could not filter the information. As I learned to trust, I could get a huge support from that inner guidance. I believe that we need to become acquainted with different ways of knowing and being in the world and dreams are a great way to do it. We need an approach that embraces diversity and an integrative thinking that encourages us to change our fragmented worldview for a wider perspective. We are part of a bigger, more interrelated whole.

Returning to my dreams and my mom. My dreams started more than a year before my mom was diagnosed with cancer (same happened with my father's death: I began dreaming about his death more than a year before he had the accident).

Rocio's Dreams

Feb 16, 2011 - Is my mom sick?

I'm in an unknown place with many people. Some people are sitting while others are lying on the floor. Somebody is sick…I think is my mom. I see hospital stuff, devices. Someone is giving orders.

Feb 21, 2011 – Exposed breast

I’m getting in line at a hotel counter. I see my friend Adri who is next to me. She is wearing a black transparent and short dress. Suddenly I realize I’m staring at her breast. She notices it. I feel embarrassed and try to explain that what I’m looking at is that she didn’t put on a bras and everything is exposed.

Sep 1, 2011 – The bag with medical stuff

I’m in a house with several rooms. I’m in one of the rooms. My auntie Orlanda is there with me and gives me a bag with medical stuff (shots and rubber bands) that my cousin (who is a doctor) sent to me. I know I don’t need it now but I should keep it for a future use.

During the same night I had another dream: someone very close to me is sick but I can’t remember who she is.

Sep 14, 2011 – The intubation

I’m in a house. I think I had been at the hospital. I feel something on my back. I pull it…It’s a long and thin tube coming out of my back. I’m scared! What’s that? Now I notice all the tubes that come out of my body and I know I was intubated …for oxygen? My parents are with me. I should call the health insurance to ask them to remove those tubes from my body. Would that be painful? I wonder. My doctor cousin is by my side but she can’t do it. I go to a room where the procedure can be done…I ring a bell. A doctor assistant appears and takes me to a little room to change my clothes. I see 2 doctors relaxing on a table.

This reminds me of the drainage tubes my mom had when she had the mastectomy in August 2012. Two medical specialists took care of the surgery: an oncologist and a plastic surgeon.

Oct 11, 2011 – The stain of blood

There is a blood stain on a body’s woman. It seems it’s coming out of her breast.

About Rocio:

"I have been working in the corporate world within the learning industry for more than 20 years. Some years ago I felt a strong calling to serve others and so, I embarked on a journey of self-discovery and healing that led me to pursue a new career that brought more meaning to my life. Today I am a certified professional coach, have an M.A. in transpersonal Psychology and have studied a variety of healing modalities such as mindfulness, art therapy, EFT, and Dreamwork. My new career is related to help people who don’t have clarity of their path and talents and feel lost or stuck, to be the leaders of their lives, access their inner wisdom to tap into their greatness, be aware of their deepest desires, have full, authentic and meaningful lives and so recover a sense of balance and wholeness while sharing confidently their gifts with the world. In short, I support people in living purposeful and fulfilled lives."

Other Interviews In This Series

Paulette Wyssbrod-Goltz

Diane Long

My Story