Dreams always set in the past

For the past few weeks I've been working on improving memory recall by keeping a dream journal. It has helped quite a bit, but it also made me realize that all of my dreams are set in the past. Specifically, in the hometown where I lived until I was 20. Everyone in my dreams--family, classmates--looks and acts like they did when I was a teenager.

It's somewhat distressing. I moved to a different city for undergraduate school for four years, then a different country for graduate school, where I've been for six years. I've been in a long-term relationship for several years. The last decade has been fairly eventful. So why does my most recent one-third of my life never enter my dreams? If anyone can provide some insight into why, it'd help put my mind at ease.

Perhaps it was a very significant time in your life. I would image most people's teenage years are. You learn a lot and have a lot of first experiences during this time, so it would make sense that a lot of important memories are pulled from this time period. Very strange of you to mention family and classmates appearing and acting as their past selves however. I must say, I do admit having similar experiences to that though I never really thought much of it. Maybe that is when your family and friends made their first lasting impressions on you and you've kept that "image" of them with you, frequently manifesting it through your dreams.

How many dreams have you recorded, though? If it hasn't been many, I would give yourself some time before you start jumping to conclusions about anything. It can't imagine ALL of your dreams take place in the past. To me, many of my dreams feel sort of timeless, in that they feel as though they don't fall in any particular time period besides the present. I have a feeling this isn't what you're getting at, however. You mean to that the simply the set and setting of your dreams are taken from long past memories and none from more recent memories.

Slightly offtopic: Do you feel déjà vu in your dream as you recall the past? If so, you could use that as a dreamsign which can help you to LD.

Anyway, dreams can recall any times in one's life. Obviously, the place where you lived for the first two decades of your life has great significance to you. Dreams often bring up memories, which could explain why you dream of the past.

Also, welcome to DreamViews, and I think that you may find better information in this subforum.