Dreams symbols: Baths, showers, and toilets – and what they mean

The biblical and spiritual symbolism of baths, showers, toilets, and other bathroom related symbols in dreams, plus real dream examples.

I approach dream interpretation from a biblical perspective. My belief is that our dreams can come from God, and understanding them is best understood within the context of an ongoing relationship with Him.

Contents

• Introduction to bathrooms in dreams
  • Bathroom dreams and transformation
  • Bathroom dreams and repentance
  • The symbolic nature of bathroom dreams
• Dream symbol: Showers
• Dream symbol: Baths
• Dream symbol: Toilets
  • More toilet related dream symbols
  • Dreaming about wee, poo, and toilet mess
• Other bathroom related dream symbols
• Conclusion

Introduction to bathrooms in dreams

I have previously written about houses and buildings in dreams, which can represent our life and different areas of our life. I have also written about different rooms, which can also symbolise areas in our life.

Dreams about bathrooms and toilets are very common. Mostly they are about repentance, cleansing, renewal, and removing unhelpful things from our life.

Bathroom dreams and transformation

From the moment we decide to follow Jesus, we embark on a journey of transformation and renewal. The idea is that we become transformed into Christ’s image: Our old thoughts and ways are gradually cleansed/removed over time and replaced with the truth/new ways. This scripture summarises the process:

• Colossians 3:7-10, NIV Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature…You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived. But now you must also rid yourselves of all such things… since you have taken off your old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator.

The bible has a great many references to bathing and cleansing, which further illustrate this process of washing off the old thoughts and ways as part of the renewal process. Here are a few examples:

• Psalm 51:7, NIV Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.
• 2 Timothy 2:21, NIV Those who cleanse themselves… will be… holy… and prepared to do any good work.
• Hebrews 10:22, NIV Let us draw near to God with a sincere heart…having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water.
• Titus 3:5, NIV He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit.

It is the work of the Holy Spirit in each individual believer to guide us and help us be transformed over time. And if we are willing to listen and cooperate, bathroom dreams are one of the tools God can use to speak to us and help us in this process.

Bathroom dreams and repentance

I have found that bathroom dreams are mostly about repentance and renewing the mind. In fact, having diligently reviewed my own dreams for more than 15 years, I have found that bathrooms, showers, and toilets are foundational dream symbols for repentance.

But what is repentance?

The concept of repentance is often misunderstood: It conjures up an image of saying sorry and generally feeling bad about what we have done, but this is not the original biblical meaning.

The original word in the bible is metanoia, and it means to change our mind about something. It even implies a complete turnaround in thinking. One of the biggest transformation challenges is to change the way we think, and the apostle Paul called this process ‘renewing of the mind’.

• Romans 12:2, NIV Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.

Everything else flows from this – because our beliefs and mindsets determine our actions.

In other words, repentance (a shift in thinking) inevitably leads to a change in what we do. This is called the fruit of repentance. This is how God brings transformation in our life. He renews our understanding, and transformation follows. This is biblical repentance.

• Matthew 3:8, ISV Produce fruit that is consistent with repentance!

So, if we want to become more Christlike, then we must allow God to change our thinking. And bathroom dreams are very helpful because they can give us insight into where we are in this repentance process.

The symbolic nature of bathroom dreams

Often, we can feel worried or ashamed when we dream about toilet-related things – but remember that they are symbolic and are simply highlighting things in our life that need dealing with. Take a step back from the feelings associated with the images – and try and think of them as a clue or puzzle to be solved.

It is not a new thing to use toilet imagery in a shocking way to emphasise a point. In the bible, Paul uses this kind of language to talk about the old things he used to value, which now seem like poo (dung) compared to his new life in Christ:

• Philippians 3:8, NET I now regard all things as liabilities compared to the far greater value of knowing Christ… indeed, I regard them as dung!—that I may gain Christ.

The word here translated “dung” was often used in Greek as a vulgar term for fecal matter. As such it would most likely have had a certain shock value for the readers. This may well be Paul’s meaning here, especially since the context is about what the flesh produces.

Footnote to Philippians 3:8 in the New English Translation

That scripture is a great illustration of how our old thoughts and ways are constantly being removed/cleansed and replaced with the new.

The rest of this article explores the meaning of specific bathroom related dream symbols. In addition:

• Consider whether the symbol seems positive or negative in your dream and how you feel about it – as this will help you link it to real life situations
• Other dreams from around the same time may be related and could provide further insight.
• I have written a general guide for understanding dream symbols, and this article builds on that. You can find it here: 10 simple clues for understanding dream symbols.

Dream symbol: Showers

As a dream symbol, showers are like rain – in that they are jets of water showering down from above. Water is usually the Holy Spirit, and anything that comes down from above can be something being released from heaven. The bible talks about rain and showers – representing God’s living word (truth) being released or washing over us:

• Job 29:23, NIV They waited for me as for showers and drank in my words as the spring rain.
• Deuteronomy 32:2, NIV Let my teaching fall like rain and my words descend like dew, like showers on new grass, like abundant rain on tender plants.

I have found that showers in dreams are mostly about repentance (changing thinking) due to the cleansing work of the Holy Spirit and his living word (truth) flowing from within us. This is especially true if washing hair features in the dream – because hair is on the head, and the head is usually about our mind/thoughts.

• Ephesians 5:26, NLV Christ… set the church apart for Himself. He made it clean by the washing of water with the Word.

Of course, showers are man-made, and as such are not so obviously ‘heavenly’ as rain would be. So, if the shower appears in a negative dream context, such as being dirty or dingy, that might mean that what we are receiving/thinking could be coming from man rather than hearing directly from God: i.e., there could be some degree of human interference, whether from other people or from ourselves.

In addition to repentance, showers could represent any kind of cleansing and renewal work that God is doing in our life.

Real dream examples: Showers

DREAM	INTERPRETATION	NOTES
I dreamed I kept finding the shower running. I kept turning it off, but my husband would keep moving the shower head to turn it on again.	God had been changing a lot of my thinking, and I wanted the process to be over; but there was still more repentance to be done.	My husband represented Jesus in this dream. The shower would be more changing thinking, and a wordplay on head confirms this.
I dreamed I woke up and went into the bathroom for a shower. I heard my alarm going off, so I ran back out wearing a white t-shirt to turn it off before it woke anyone else. The house was quite dark and bare.	Part of me was starting to subconsciously realise what God was saying about my destiny, but a religious stronghold (false belief) was preventing me from receiving it and shifting my thinking.	Waking up the other people would be me realising the truth. White can be a religious spirit – which in this case would be resisting God’s truth about my destiny (t-shirt). The dark house was my thinking at that time without God’s light.
I dreamed I was in a house with showers everywhere plus a whirlpool bath. My husband had got there ahead of me. I hoped there was enough hot water; we should put the heater on!	I was about to go through a difficult time with some people, but God was in it; its purpose would be to get me to make a big shift in thinking that I wouldn’t otherwise make.	My husband was God again. The whirlpool was a difficult group situation I would find myself in. Hot water was about thinking getting difficult (‘heating up’ relationally).

Dream symbol: Baths

In bible times, baths and basins were the main way to wash and be cleansed, and this is reflected in bible verses about bathing:

• Leviticus 14:9, NIV They must… bathe themselves with water, and they will be clean.

But in modern times, showers are more commonly used for washing than baths – except for young children and when we need to soak (such as after exercise). In fact, baths are not as good at getting us clean, because we can end up soaking in recycled/dirty water – whether from ourselves or from other people who have used the bath before us!

In dreams, pools of water usually symbolise groups of people like churches or communities that we are part of – and that is also true for baths.

Therefore, having a bath in dreams more commonly represents input and ministry that we are receiving from other people (such as in a church) rather than directly from God. It is important to realise this distinction between baths and showers.

Baths usually represent input and ministry we are receiving through other people, whereas showers would be the direct work of God’s Holy Spirit in our life.

In a positive dream context, baths can be good: Sometimes we just need to soak in God’s presence, and soaking in a bath in a dream could reflect that.

Plus, we sometimes need the input and ministry of other people – and God works through those people to do a transformational work in our lives, particularly when we are new Christians and when we need a healing environment to help us.

But baths can appear in dreams in a negative context too, such as being in a dingy bathroom or dirty water. This could mean that the beliefs or activity in the people/environment around us (i.e., in the bathroom or bathwater) are hindering us from realising what God wants to say or do in our life.

Real dream examples: Baths

DREAM	INTERPRETATION	NOTES
I dreamed I went to a show but couldn’t see much. I went into a bathroom to take a bath, but the water was dirty, so I came out again. I went into a different room on the left, where I could see much better.	At that time my environment was preventing me from receiving what God wanted to show me. But in the future, I would be able to make the shift and see things from God’s perspective.	The show was God ‘showing’ me something. The dirty water was false beliefs/ideas in my environment – i.e., not from God. The left-hand side is usually about the future.
I dreamed I went to my bedroom to use the shower bath. It was by a window with no curtain, and people were outside in a sunny green area; so, I sat down in the bath to wash my hair but gave up without conditioning it.	God was speaking to me, but at that time I was too comfortable in my church community (bath) to be able to hear and embrace what he was saying or to fully change my thinking.	The bedroom was about intimacy with God; hair was thinking. The green sunny area outside the window represented good times at church, so I wasn’t willing to upset things.
I dreamed about a couple: She always had music in the bath, and he would always have a shower. It was ensuite with the two areas next to each other. I had no clothes on, so got a yellow towel to wrap around myself.	This dream was revealing an internal battle going on between what God was saying to me and beliefs I had inherited from other people. At that time, I was settling for what I had been taught.	The shower was hearing from God; the bath was common beliefs. The couple was about agreement. Yellow was my mind, so that towel was the false belief I was unknowingly embracing.
I dreamed I had taken a bath upstairs at a ladies’ house. I apologised as I had left my things in the bath, like our grey bucket, so she would have to sort them out later. I woke up thinking of the grey bucket being on my head.	This dream was reflecting my confusion and lack of understanding. It was saying, ‘be at peace,’ as I would need to live with it for a while; things would become clear once I came out of that situation (bath).	The lady was reflecting me. Upstairs was about thinking, confirmed by the bucket on my head idea. Grey was uncertainty. As that time, I did not have the capacity (bucket) to receive the truth.

Dream symbol: Toilets

Toilet dreams are, by nature, messy. So, I make no apology for talking about things like faecal matter (stools/poo/poop), urine (wee) and other toilet related issues. These things do appear in dreams, and it is important to understand what they could mean.

As human beings, we tend to assume the worst – so we can tend to take dreams about toilets in a negative way, as though we are failing, dirty, or being ‘told off’. But God never condemns; he always brings hope for change. So, rather, toilet dreams are an invitation to partner with God and take ownership of our transformation journey.

Using the toilet in real life is an appropriate and normal way to get rid of unwanted stuff from our bodies, and we need to do it regularly. This is symbolically reflected in toilet dreams: We need to be constantly cleansed and renewed – and this is probably why toilet dreams are so common!

Dreaming of using the toilet

Dreaming of using the toilet, or going to the toilet, is usually about getting rid of unhelpful things in our life; this could be things like:

• Wrong ideas, and false beliefs/mindsets
• Bad habits and attitudes
• Toxic emotions
• Bitterness and unforgiveness.

These dreams could even be about deliverance.

In this type of dream, the toilet itself could represent our ability to change; but it could also be the thing that God uses to help us in the process.

I have found that, in my dreams, using the toilet is nearly always about repentance (shifting thinking). In a toilet setting, this would be about getting rid of wrong ideas/beliefs, as opposed to taking a shower – which is more about receiving the truth from the Holy Spirit.

Toilet dreams are often about repentance (getting rid of wrong thinking).

More toilet related dream symbols

Dreams about looking for a toilet/restroom or needing the toilet are very common. These are alerting us that there is something in our life that God wants to cleanse, heal, free, or deliver us from. These dreams can draw us into conversation with him and prepare our hearts for what he wants to say and do in us.

Dreaming of being unable to find a toilet usually means that we are not yet in a place where we can deal with the issue that the dream is about. Maybe we can’t yet make the shift in thinking, or we are not currently in the right environment for it to happen.  The dream context will provide clues about these things and about how we should respond. Maybe we need to be patient and wait for the right help or timing. Or maybe we need to stop and seek God about what he wants to show us!

• Dreaming of a blocked toilet, a broken toilet, or a toilet that won’t flush, suggests that there is something blocking the renewal process. As above, the dream context is important to determine how to respond.
• A toilet in our house is probably about our own repentance/transformation process.
• An ensuite toilet, i.e., one attached to a bedroom, is most likely about transformation resulting directly from our relationship with God, i.e., from the Holy Spirit within us. That’s because bedrooms are often about intimacy with God.
• An outside toilet might be about outside help (i.e. from other people). This could be positive or negative.

A room such as a toilet block/bathroom/restroom would more likely be about our environment – and in a toilet dream this would alert us to whether our current situation is helpful to the transformation process or not. If positive, this room could be what we need (like a ministry or healing community) to help us change.

• A dirty or dingy toilet block would be a similar meaning to taking a bath in dirty water: Our current environment is not conducive to change; maybe our wrong beliefs, attitudes, etc., are reflected in those around us.

Dreaming about wee, poo, and toilet mess

In the bible, faecal matter/stools and urine carry the sense of something foul and unpleasant. So, in a dream, these would symbolise things of the flesh (human nature) that have come out of us – like wrong ideas, words, attitudes, or actions – that are not godly.

Sometimes going to the toilet can be inappropriate and it makes an unwanted mess. This can be reflected in dreams:

• Maybe we have done a wee or poo in an inappropriate place. This would suggest that our words or actions have caused problems for ourselves or for other people, i.e., we have ‘made a mess’. As always, look at the context of the dream to discern what our response should be. Do we need to help ‘clear up the mess’, for example by saying sorry or taking some other action? Or do we need to seek God about why this happened? Remember that other people in dreams can also reflect ourselves.
• Maybe we are finding a mess that someone else has made, such as in a bathroom or restroom area. This might mean that someone else has made a problem that we need to sort out, or the problem is in our environment. Or maybe we have been hurt, or inherited unhelpful ideas from other people. Again, consider the whole dream message plus other dreams for how to respond. Maybe we need to forgive people, go through a healing process, or move on from a situation.

Eating our own poo is also more common in dreams than we might think! Although we might feel revolted, step back and think about the symbolism: We are probably feeding our own negative thoughts or behaviour! Or it could be about reaping the consequences of our own faulty ideas.

• 2 Kings 18:27, NIV “The people… will have to eat their own excrement and drink their own urine.”

Not all dreams like this are negative. A friend of mine once dreamed she had done a poo on the bathmat, and other people could see it – but it seemed OK! It turned out to be an encouragement to be open and not try to hide her struggles (poo). That week she was leading a group, and her honesty (inspired by the dream) helped another person in the group.

Real dream examples: Toilets

DREAM	INTERPRETATION	NOTES
I dreamed that before going home I tried to go to the toilet, but a man was working in there. He was blocking the door so I couldn’t go to the toilet, and he wouldn’t move.	This dream was alerting me that there was a false idea preventing me from realising my true destiny. At that time I wasn’t able to make the thinking shift so I would need to be patient.	Going home was about finding my true calling/destiny. A man can represent an way of thinking or belief.
I dreamed a little girl climbed on a white garden table, and did a poo through the hole where the umbrella normally goes. Afterwards I was trying to clear it up as it was smelly.	I had just realised the flaw (hole) in my thinking, which was causing me to keep looking for courses that might help me all the time. This dream confirmed that I had discerned correctly and didn’t need them.	The girl reflected me. The missing umbrella was the courses and the table their associated course communities. Smell indicated discernment.
I dreamed I sat on a wooden /slatted chair and weed through the holes to the area below. I was very embarrassed. I went to change and find the real toilet.	At that time I thought I’d done something badly wrong and kept apologising and was seeking God about it. This dream alerted me that my thinking was off; I had actually done the right thing!	Wood indicated God was not in my feeling that I was wrong, and the chair was not a real toilet. The real toilet (shift) was realising that God was in what had happened.

Other bathroom related dream symbols

Many functions are carried out in a bathroom, mostly connected to washing and cleansing. Here are some examples.

Take note of which part of the body is involved or being washed in the dream, as this will help determine the meaning.

Brushing our teeth: Teeth in dreams are usually about our ability to process ideas, so brushing teeth would be about repentance and getting our thoughts/understanding right.

Brushing or washing our hair: Hair related dreams are usually about our thoughts, understanding, and repentance (changing thinking).

Periods and menstruation: This is similar to going to the toilet and could be indicating we need to get rid of some old thinking, in order to prepare for the new things (new cycle, etc.) that God wants to show us.

Washing our hands: Hands in dreams can be about work, ministry, serving, and relationships with other people. In particular, hands can generally represent our actions – so washing hands can be about general cleansing, forgiveness, and innocence/purity. Washing our hands of something is also a phrase that means taking no responsibility.

• Psalm 26:6, NIV I wash my hands in innocence, and go about your altar, Lord,
• Matthew 27:24, NIV Pilate… took water and washed his hands in front of the crowd. “I am innocent of this man’s blood,” he said. “It is your responsibility!”
• James 4:8, NIV Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.

Washing our feet: Feet are also about what we do and the things we walk in. Dirty feet can be about unhelpful things (ideas, hurts, etc.) that we have picked up along the way that need cleansing/removing. Feet can also be about foundations, such as underlying beliefs that might need to be changed.

• John 13:10, NIV Jesus answered, “Those who have had a bath need only to wash their feet; their whole body is clean.”

Conclusion

We have seen how toilets, showers, and bathrooms in dreams are generally about cleansing, renewal, and repentance (changing our thinking). This is all part of the transformation process that is a normal part of the Christian life: We get rid of the old thoughts and ways and receive the new.

• Showers are usually about cleansing, repentance, renewal, and receiving direct input/truth from the Holy Spirit.
• Baths can also be about cleansing, repentance, and renewal; but the bath typically reflects our environment and other people, rather than direct input from the Holy Spirit.
• Toilets in dreams are usually about repentance and getting rid of the old/unwanted things such as false beliefs, bad habits and attitudes, hurts, unforgiveness, and toxic emotions. They can also be about deliverance.

Here are a few closing thoughts:

• Toilets, baths, and showers in dreams could represent any number of things. The above ideas should give you a good starting point. 
• I believe only God can tell us what these symbols mean in a specific dream, so you could try asking Him!
• Consider the atmosphere and context of the dream to see whether the symbol is being used in a positive or negative sense.
• In addition to the meanings that I have shared, remember that it could mean something personal or culturally significant to you, that isn’t mentioned here.

God can speak through real-life situations too, particularly when they are unusual or impact us in some way – such as a blocked toilet or renovating our bathroom. The meaning would be the same as if they were in a dream – so pay attention to those things.

And finally… have fun exploring the bathroom-related symbols in your dreams!