Lucid dreaming is defined as a dream during which the dreamer is aware that they are dreaming. People often hear lucid dreaming and believe it means the dreamer has full or partial control of their dream. This is true, but it isn’t always true. It is very possible to have no control of a lucid dream.
Typically while sleeping we feel like we can not control them, we only realize we’ve been dreaming after waking up. But it is very possible to realize you are dreaming while in a dream. Can you remember a time waking up unexpectedly in the middle of a dream? There have been times in my sleep I remember getting an answer to a wakeful question I’ve had and being woken up right before the sentence in the dream is finished and becoming so frustrated! This was an intentional lucid dream I entered, the person who woke me did not know. Much scarier are the lucid dreams that are not intentional and that you can not control. Lucid dreaming often (for ME, I have mild narcolepsy) comes hand in hand with sleep paralysis, but not always.
So in a lucid dream we recover aspects of our consciousness and memory while in deep REM sleep, our body and our minds are asleep however we are aware that we are dreaming. With sleep paralysis you will fully awaken during REM sleep. With sleep paralysis you will be able to hear all of the noises around you, feel and sense things, however you are still also trapped in the veil of a dream. You may feel like your eyes are open and you can see around the room but you’ll notice dream type things happening in a real feeling world. I’ve had dreams in sleep paralysis where i would watch an accident slowly happen while being apart of it, but not being able to wake myself up or move my body, just a stuck feeling. I’ve had other much more disturbing dreams like this. I can’t say I've ever had a pleasant dream in paralysis. Being aware of your physical senses while sleeping is not very restful at all.
Thankfully in a lucid dream we do not have to stay aware of our physical surroundings while in the dream, we can put all of our energy into the dream! I began to learn about lucid dreams while on my search for answers with sleep paralysis. Once I learned to lucid dream the dream world was my favorite place to stay.
Lucid Dreaming typically happens during REM sleep, when one would typically experience a dream. For most these come on spontaneously, others have trained themselves to start and become better at lucid dreaming.When beginning training it’s normal to wake up as soon as you realize you’re dreaming. This happens while learning to astral project too. (astral projection and lucid dreaming are not the same experience however they share many similarities) Another day we will go over the differences and similarities. The more you practice the longer you will find yourself staying in your dream. Everyone experiences their lucid dream differently. Some people are able to control the characters, events, surrounding, ect, and others are only able to consciously control themselves within the dream. Dedication to practicing will determine how far you can go. For me, learning to lucid dream was a way of escaping my nightmares in paralysis and to get myself to consciously stay in the dream state, for others it offers its own types of therapeutic benefits, if nothing else it certainly helps open the mind to more of what the mind can actually do. Lucid dreaming can also be the beginning of learning to interpret your own dreams based on exactly what is going on in your own unique circumstance, take the quote below for an example.
“Let’s say you’re being attacked by someone in a nightmare. You could try to talk to the attacker. You could ask them ‘why are you appearing in my dreams?’ or ‘what do you need to resolve this conflict with me?'” - Dr. Denholm Aspy
Tips and Techniques for Lucid Dreaming
This is one I’ve heard several times by many people and I believe it’s probably one of the most effective methods…
Reality Checking… Get into the habit of asking yourself throughout the day if you are dreaming, whether you’re awake or not. Your brain will get used to asking itself the question and will continue to do so while you’re sleeping. You won’t have to remember to ask yourself are you asleep in your dream because you will be so used to asking yourself that you will not have to think about it. This technique relies on intention.
Here are common reality checks that people use to lucid dream:
● Mirrors. Check your reflection to see if it looks normal.
● Solid objects. Push your hand against a wall or table and see if it goes through. Some people push their fingers into their opposite palm.
● Hands. Look at your hands. Do they look normal?
● Time. If you’re dreaming, the time on a clock will constantly change. But if you’re awake, the time will barely change.
● Breathing. This popular reality check involves pinching your nose and seeing if you can breathe. If you can still breathe, you’re dreaming.
Another technique that is like Reality Checking is called…
Mnemonic induction... With this technique you would repeat to yourself before going to bed while falling asleep, what you wish to dream about. Start with “tonight I will notice that I am dreaming”. Once you begin to notice you’re dreaming then the time after you can change the phrase to something that will be more specific like “tonight I will fly in my dream” and you can continue to practice and master until you can control every aspect of your dream.
Dream Journals and Meditation
Some people who are interested in exploring their dreams with full awareness may find it useful to keep a dream journal in which they record the dreams that they have each night in as much detail as possible. Another practice that may aid lucid dreaming is meditation, or mindfulness, as it “trains” people to become more aware of themselves and their surroundings, in general. A lot of people are interested in meditation and mindfulness as a way to have lucid dreams. The idea there is that if you’re more aware during the day, you’re more likely to notice that you’re dreaming while you’re asleep.
Try the following methods to wake from a lucid dream:
● Call out for help. It’s said that yelling in your dream tells your brain it’s time to wake up. Or, if you manage to speak out loud, you might wake yourself up.
● Blink. Repeatedly blinking may help your mind get ready to wake up.
● Fall asleep in your dream. If you’re aware that you’re dreaming, go to sleep in your dream so you can wake up in real life.
● Read. Try to read a sign or book in your dream. This could activate parts of your brain that aren’t used in REM.
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