How can I pretend that I don't see
What you hide so carelessly?
I saw her bleed
You heard me breathe
So I froze inside myself
And turned away
I must be dreaming

We all live
We all die
That does not begin to justify you

It's not what it seems
Not what you think
No I must be dreaming
It's only in my mind
Not in real life
No I must be dreaming

Help you know I've got to tell someone
Tell them what I know you've done
I fear you but spoken fears can come true

We all live
We all die
That does not begin to justify you

It's not what it seems
Not what you think
No I must be dreaming
It's only in my mind
Not in real life
No I must be dreaming

Not what it seems
Not what you think
I must be dreaming

Just in my mind
Not in real life
I must be dreaming



Lyrics submitted by Happy_Bunny


I Must Be Dreaming song meanings
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55 Comments

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  • 0
    General Comment:But, it also sounds like it could be about cutting...so I'm not really sure. Because I do sort of agree with Xx.emoeclipse.xX
    Flag xXLaceyHelpsSaveLivesXxon February 25, 2010   Link
  • 0
    My Interpretation:To me, this song is about sexual or physical abuse. For those who are lucky enough to not know, you bleed when you're raped, and of course, you bleed when you're beaten. Yeah.
    So in my opinion this song is about the author witnessing some sort of abuse (physical or sexual). She sees what is happening, and all of a sudden, the abuser hears her breathing. Fearing for her own safety, she turns away. The abuser hides the abuse carelessly, perhaps by not bothering to hide the blood or hide the wounds created. She never thought the abuser would do this, because she may know him/her very well. She freaks out, "no, I must be dreaming! it's not what it seems!"
    Flag xXLaceyHelpsSaveLivesXxon February 25, 2010   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:i love this song . this is my own explanation of the song :
    it revolves 3 people: someone being hurt or hit - the one who is hurting her(the guilty one) , and another who saw the whole thing (the witness and also who is singing this song).
    "How can I pretend that I don't see"
    "What you hide so carelessly?"
    "I saw her bleed"
    "You heard me breathe"
    "So I froze inside myself"
    "And turned away"
    "I must be dreaming"
    i think she saw a person hurting or hitting somebody (his wife or girlfriend) , and he is not trying to keep it a secret , i mean he hits her in public (what you hide so carelessly).

    "We all live"
    "We all die"
    "That does not begin to justify you"
    maybe he tries justify himself by saying that's life and we all live and die but she(the witness) is telling him that what he says will not clear his name and he is still guilty.

    "It's not what it seems"
    "Not what you think"
    "No I must be dreaming"
    "It's only in my mind"
    "Not in real life"
    "No I must be dreaming"
    this suggests that the witness is rejecting the whole idea and convincing herself that what she saw was not real , maybe because she loved the one doing this(maybe it was her father who she saw hitting my mother)

    "Help you know I've got to tell someone"
    "Tell them what I know you've done"
    "I fear you but spoken fears can come true"
    she has to get it off her chest and tell anybody of what she saw , but she is afraid of the guilty one (maybe her father)and afraid of admitting her fear cuz maybe he'll hit her too.
    Flag nelpyon September 29, 2009   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:ok so is like she had witnessed a murder or something like that, "we all live we all die but that does not begin to justify you" is like he is not guilty of killing but he know she had seen him killing , i dont know is strange
    Flag Guaschitaon April 20, 2009   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:I definitely think this is about seeing a friend cut, though the murder is a good argument. It might just be me, cutting is a big part of my life.

    Anyway I think its about cutting mainly cuz of the first and fourth verses.

    "How can I pretend that I don't see
    What you hide so carelessly?
    I saw her bleed
    You heard me breathe
    So I froze inside myself
    And turned away
    I must be dreaming"

    I think she saw her friend cutting, from the first line. Im pretty secretive but my other friends are pretty careless with showing their scars. For the second line, personally I think if it was a murder and the murderer heard her breathe, she wouldnt survive to say the next line.

    For the fourth verse,
    "Help you know I've got to tell someone
    Tell them what I know you've done
    I fear you but spoken fears can come true"
    Thats pretty strong on the cutting side. Like the last line, "i fear you but spoken fears can come true" someone kind of said this but kinda differently, i think it means that she fears the cutter, cuz she is unsure of what the cutter has the guts to do, like would she kill herself? its the first thing people ask me. And then but spoken fears can come true, I think it means that if she tells, her fears of the cutter being suicidal might be true, and she'd cause the cutter's death.

    The rest is just, I think, her talking to herself and internally trying to argue out reality from dreams.
    Flag Xx.emoeclipse.xXon July 04, 2008   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:britty chan is right- everytime i hear this song it seems like she is witnessing some sort of crime... and she is freaking out and isnt sure if what she is seeing is really true... but for some reason it also reminds me of my favourite book and gives me a calm feeling... weird... great song
    Flag XxEv.fanaticxXon September 18, 2007   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:I agree with Time Imperfect- it fits perfectly- I went thriugh this I had 2 friends who cut themselves- and I found out about both on the same day, and then I spent a LONG time trying to figure out what to think- I HAD to tell someone but I couldn't for some reason I can't figure out. Since then when I meet someone one of the first things I have to find out without asking them is if they cut themselves Im kinda paranoid about that now... Great i have a friend Michelle who I thought did... now I can't sleep after reading that... but yeah I think that could be it even though its probably about her sister
    Flag XFalenbatXon August 26, 2007   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:well i when i first herd it i automaticly thought that she's singing about a murder but you know it dint hav to be a real life murder she could of watch TV nd thought why people are killing each other nd why wittnesses dont come forward or tell truth as seen in most crime shows ie - Law &order, CSI, NICIS true documenties on murders.
    it also sounds like she is singing through the wittesses eyes you know when u here on TV oh so nd so didnt come forward and all it kinda shows what the wittness to the murder is feeling or thinging
    Flag lover*not*fighteron August 03, 2007   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:I really like this song, at first i thought it was about someone cutting. But now i do think its about a murder like other people said.
    Flag candy.cloudson July 20, 2007   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:i honestly believe that this song is about one of her friends cutting themselves. just the way the lyrics are phrased. that's the only thing that makes sense to me. i can kinda see how it could mean someone witnessing a murder. but i don't think that's what it's about. i think it's about a friend that cuts
    Flag MeetMeInWonderlandon June 24, 2007   Link

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