You tell me that, 40 years ago, you became pregnant by the man you loved. He then revealed that he was married, and abandoned you. You decided to have the baby, but were forced to endure the crushing weight of people’s disapproval that you had become a single mother. Since then, you have married and had other children, but you say you never really recovered from having your trust betrayed and that you still have no self-confidence. Attitudes to single parenthood have changed dramatically since the days when they conspired to oppress you. Now your oppressor lies deep within, personified by the Nazis. They represent ruthless and tyrannical forces that are robbing you of your freedom to be yourself.

Dreams about being chased almost always imply that we need to turn and confront our pursuers. Your dream is therefore urging you to face up to the enemy within. I suspect this takes the form of a harsh inner critic who judges you just as you were once judged by others. You can therefore never really relax and feel at peace with yourself. By running from this inner tyrant, you are allowing it to have power over you and to undermine your self-esteem. But it can only do so for as long as you believe that you cannot, or dare not, resist it.