Take Charge of Your Dreams!
Did you know that you have about 3 to 7 dreams a night? You most probably wake up without remembering any of them. But what about being aware that you’re actually dreaming? Has that ever happened to you before? If it has, then congrats! You’re part of the majority of people who have experienced lucid dreaming at least once during their lifetime!
The word “lucid” means clear, and a lucid dream is a dream during which you are completely aware of dreaming. You’re in a state where your mind is awake but your body is asleep.
Achieving lucidity in your dreams is the first step to being able to control them. Imagine transforming your dream world into an alternate reality. One where everything you see, hear, feel, smell and even taste is as authentic as real life! From flying through space to interacting with your favorite fictional characters! Really, the sky is the limit to what you can achieve in your dreams! Interested? Then continue reading on, as you are a couple of minutes away from learning the art of lucid dreaming!
Once Upon a Lucid Dream
Lucid dreaming, was scientifically proven in lab first by British parapsychologist Keith Hearne in 1975. Ever since then, it has become a trending field of interest and has even been popularized by movies like Christoper Nolan’s Inception. Nowadays, more and more research is looking into how we can trigger lucid dreaming at will and how to use this fascinating phenomenon to our advantage. According to experts, everyone has the potential to achieve lucid dreaming, but only a few are able to do so on a regular basis.
In 2017, a team of researchers led by Dr. Denholm Aspy, from the University of Adelaide in Australia, have conducted a study to find out which techniques are the most effective to achieve lucid dreaming. While more and more techniques are still being researched, the team pinned down 3 techniques so far that when combined together have the highest probability of inducing lucid dreaming.
The Art of Lucid Dreaming
The 3 combined techniques are:
- Reality Testing. This technique involves examining your surroundings several times throughout the day for anything out of the ordinary. All whilst questioning whether you’re actually awake or dreaming. For a fact, mental habits you practice during the day tend to continue in your dreams. Remember how Cobb from Inception used a spinning top to figure out if he was dreaming or not? A more practical technique is rereading written text, as text continuously shifts in dreams. Another practical one involves inhaling air with your mouth closed as you most probably have your mouth open while sleeping.
- Wake Back to Bed (WBTB). Here you should basically go to bed, set an alarm to wake up after 5 to 6 hours, stay awake anywhere between 10 minutes to an hour and then finally go back to sleep again. This technique is meant to “launch” you directly into the Rapid Eye Movement (REM) phase of sleep, during which, lucid dreaming is most likely to occur. It’s easier for you to get into REM sleep after you’ve already been asleep for a while.
- Mnemonic Induction of Lucid Dreams (MILD). Before going to bed and again after performing the Wake Back to Bed technique, you must repeat a phrase such as “next time I’m dreaming, I will remember that I’m dreaming.” This is meant to establish intention, which will make it more likely for you to achieve lucidity within your dreams.
Going Deeper into Dreamland
Another useful tip that Dr. Aspy also mentions is keeping a dream journal and getting into the habit of writing down what you can remember as soon as you wake up. “When it comes to lucid dreaming, the strongest predictor of whether you have lucid dreams or not is how good you are at remembering your ordinary dreams,” Dr. Aspy explained.
Dr. Aspy also states that practicing mindfulness and meditation during the day can also help in inducing lucid dreaming. He explained, “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.”
Once lucid, the degree to which you can actually control your dreams mainly depends on your will. If you truly and strongly will for something to happen it “will” happen, just like Neo did in the Matrix.
When Dreams and Reality Collide
The boundary between dream and reality is something that lucid dreaming seems to explore. Think of the dream world as a mental rehearsal space. One where you can improve your presentation skills, practice playing the guitar, or even revise for your big exam tomorrow!
Although all of the previous sounds great, scientists are more interested in exploring more practical applications of lucid dreaming such as therapy. Therapeutic applications of lucid dreaming might involve treating chronic nightmares especially for those suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), and treating phobias through safe confined exposure for example! Does all that sound too far-fetched? Well, only time and more research will tell!
But for the time being, if you’re serious about controlling your dreams then go ahead and start implementing these techniques right away! You’ll be well on your way to mastering the art of lucid dreaming!
