Lucid Dream

A lucid dream is a dream in which the sleeper is aware that he or she is dreaming. When the dreamer is lucid, he or she can actively participate in and often manipulate the imaginary experiences in the dream environment. Lucid dreams can seem extremely real and vivid depending on a person's level of self-awareness during the lucid dream.

A lucid dream can begin in one of three ways. A dream-initiated lucid dream (DILD) starts as a normal dream, and the dreamer eventually concludes that he or she is dreaming, while a wake-initiated lucid dream (WILD) occurs when the dreamer goes from a normal waking state directly into a dream state with no apparent lapse in consciousness. A mnemonic-initiated lucid dream (MILD) can happen when the dreamer intentionally affirms to himself or herself that he or she will become lucid during the upcoming sleep. Reaching lucidity can sometimes occur due to dream-signs or spontaneously upon remembrance.

Lucid Dreaming

Consider this: if the average person spends 8 hours a day sleeping, and lives an average life of about 75 years, then he or she has slept nearly 25 years of her life away. Can we get more out of all those years than just rest? With lucid dreaming that's a very real possibility, but before being able to control your dreams you have to be able to recognize that you are dreaming. Once you are aware you are dreaming you can alter your dreams and dictate what happens: you can do anything you've ever wanted, go anywhere you've ever desired!

Lucid dreaming can be a lot of fun, but there are also many practical reasons to experiment with lucidity. You can use components of lucid dreaming to aid in dream recall, to provide you an opportunity to deeply explore your dreams or even your own personality. Have you ever gone to bed right after performing a difficult task for the first time and found you are still thinking about that task, even in your sleep? Our dreams can be a key part of how we learn. Imagine if you could actively direct that learning.