If youve ever been aware that you were dreaming before waking from a dream, youve experienced whats known as a lucid dream.
Some dreamers can control the events of a dream, but this is not required for lucid dreams.What makes a dream lucid is the awareness of dreaming.
The term lucid dream was first used in an article
Lucid dreaming is an essential element of Tibetan Buddhist dream yoga, as well as the ancient Hindu practice of yogic sleep. Both practices encourage the control of dreams as a pathway to enlightenment. Dream-related yoga may encourage lucid dreamers to alter the size of objects in their dreams and to remove fear by touching fire or other potentially threatening substances.
Notice: While the content of Sleepopolis may be informative, it should not be considered medical advice. It should not replace professional medical advice. You should consult your healthcare provider immediately if you suspect you might have a sleep disorder or other medical condition.
Lucid
Easily understood, clear, transparent.
What Is Lucid Dreaming?
In normal dreams, consciousness, control, and self-awareness are typically absent.Lucid dreams are when consciousness and dreaming intersect, creating a unique sense of awareness in sleep.. This awareness may allow the dreamer to direct events, perform impossible physical feats such as flying, and control the actions of characters.
Lucid dreams were the subject of much speculation and debate until 1978, when sleep studies began to prove their existence. Sleep researcher Keith Hearne realized that, like other types of dreams,Lucid dreaming is more common during REM sleep. Though most of the bodys muscles are paralyzed during REM sleep, the eyes are not.
One of Hearnes‘ subjects was able, in lucid dreams, to move his eyes eight times consecutively. This allowed him to communicate his awareness of the dream. His signals during dreaming tended to occur early in the morning toward the end of a stage of REM sleep.
Later studies proved thatLucid dreaming is often experienced during times of high arousal or brainwave activity., in the outer layer of the brain. The dorsolateral cortex is where dreaming can be recognized. This area houses working memory, planning and abstract reasoning.
Arousal in the brain tends to occur during times of transition from one sleep stage to another, for instance, from non-REM sleep to REM sleep, or REM sleep to the wake state. Increases or decreases in heart rate and breathing may indicate changes in sleep and wake state.
Lucid dreams often include elements of vivid dreams that occurred during REM sleep when activity in the brain closely resembles the state of wakefulness. It’s essentially a mix of REM and waking consciousness.
FAQ
Does lucid dreaming have the same meaning as dream control?
Though similar, lucid dreaming and dream control are different. Lucid dreaming is the awareness of dreaming, though it may involve little to no control over dream events and characters. You can practice dream control by practicing lucid dreaming while you are awake and trying to direct what happens through conscious intention.
Why Does Lucid Dreaming Happen?
Though it may not be possible to understand exactly why lucid dreams occur, some research reveals that dreams of this type may be associated with times of stress and anxiety, as well as with particular personality types. Lucid dreamers may have higher self-assessments and be more likely to believe they can influence events.
Gamma wave activity in the brain appears to be a strong trigger of lucid dreaming. In a German study, 27 people who had never experienced lucid dreaming received a weak electrical current to the frontal lobe of the brain during REM sleep. The gamma frequency stimulated lucid dreams in 77% of the volunteers. However, the alpha, beta and delta brain wave frequencies didn’t produce this effect. The study involved no electrical current to other volunteers, and none of them reported having lucid dreams.
Gamma waves may trigger lucid dreaming due to their connection with consciousness and memory during the wake state. These brain waves, which aren’t normally visible during REM sleep and the fastest of the five on brain scans, are not usually seen. Gamma waves are known for their consistent, tight pattern on EEG. Gamma waves are often associated with high-level information processing and insight.
Studies of Zen Buddhist monks have shown that gamma waves increase and synchronize during meditation, particularly among monks who are long-term practitioners of meditation. Gamma waves appear to modulate perception and consciousness, and may be controllable through long-term training.
Gamma Wave
A pattern of brain waves or neural oscillation in humans with a frequency between 25 Hz and 100 Hz.
False Awakenings
False awakenings are different from lucid dreams because the dreamer believes they have woken up and are living their normal waking lives, but in reality they are still sleeping. False awakenings may be associated with sleep fragmentation, as well as the overlapping of the sleep and wake states. Fragmentation can be caused by a sleep disorder like sleep apnea, restless legs syndrome, and/or other disturbances to sleep such noise or light.
False awakenings seem to be remembered more frequently than typical dreams, and occur just before awakening for the day.
False awakenings appear to be associated with lucid dreaming. Though little research exists about false awakenings, one survey of lucid dreamers revealed that 75% had experienced a false awakening in the last thirty days.
Deirdre Barrett, a Harvard psychologist, studied 200 dreams and found that false awakenings were more common before, during, and after lucid dreams. Because a false awakening is a dream and not bound by narrative limits, more than one false awakening may occur within a false awakening dream.This is called a double dream, or a dream within a dream.
Similar to the false awakening is the continuum dream. In a continuum dream, the dreamer believes they are still awake and that dream events are occurring during the waking state, when they are occurring during sleep. Because continuum dreams tend to happen during the first stage of sleep when muscles are not paralyzed as they are during REM, the dreamer may respond to certain parts of the dream by moving or speaking.
Lucid Dreaming Can Be Used As Therapy
Lucid dreaming may be beneficial as a type of therapy, for nightmares in particular.Some studies have shown that using lucid dreams along with guided imagery and relaxation techniques can lead to a significant reduction in the frequency of nightmares.
In these studies, lucid dreaming was induced through the practice of certain awareness techniques, such as questioning the dream while it was in progress, and attempting to recognize the frightening elements of the dream as a nightmare instead of reality. Participants were taught to modify disturbing dreams and their endings.
Most study participants reported improvements in recurrent nightmares, and some reported improved sleep overall. While some participants could not have lucid dreams, others reported an improvement in their recurrent nightmares. This could support the theory that some people can reduce the intensity and frequency of nightmares by simply focusing on their control.
FAQ
Is lucid dreaming possible to cause sleep paralysis?
Sleep paralysis is when the mind wakes up during REM sleep but the muscles are still paralysed by neurotransmitters, which prevent dreams from being fulfilled.Lucid dreaming is a state of consciousness that occurs during REM sleep. A lucid dreamer might also experience a brief episode sleep paralysis.
Learning To Experience Lucid Dreams
It may be possible to practice lucid dreaming through a series of techniques, including:
- Dreams are what you try to remember
- Performing frequent reality checks during wakefulness so that such checks become second nature and occur even while asleep
- Keep a dream journal
- Adhering to a regular sleep schedule to encourage regular REM sleep
- Rehearse your dreams and other dream events while you are awake
Lucid dreaming may also be triggered by practicing MILD, or the Mnemonic Induction of Lucid Dream approach. The University of Adelaide in Australia has published a study that outlines the practice.
- Set an alarm for five hours after going to bed. People usually dream within two to three hours of waking up. Setting an alarm for five hours into the sleep cycle will increase the odds of waking in the midst of dreaming
- Try to remember what you dreamed about before the alarm went off. If thats not possible, recall a dream you had recently
- Keep lying down and repeat the phrase: Next time I dream, I will remember that Im dreaming. Visualize yourself in the dream that you just remembered. Visualize yourself as you recall your dream.
- Continue the affirmation while you go to bed.
Last Word From Sleepopolis
Although lucid dreams might sound like fiction, studies and reports by lucid dreamers prove that they are real. These dreams provide a glimpse into the world between consciousness, REM sleep, and awareness.
Lucid dreams can provide a sense of control over the mind in a time where consciousness and awareness are often absent. The more we understand about lucid dreaming, the better we may understand the connection between the waking and sleeping psyche, and the more accessible our deepest reveries may become.
