Dreams are a fascinating thing.
Every night, we close our eyes and experience what seems to be a new world, in which we are able to do things such as speak with deceased family members, go on dates with a longtime crush or maybe even have supernatural powers. As pleasing as these dreams may be, they always end the same: we wake up.
Often the timing of when we wake up from an intense dream leads us to be left in suspense, leaving a person with unanswered questions, frustration, and often the popular question of what if I slept for just a while longer?
Because humans generally dream around 4 to 6 times per night, it is considered unlikely that one could simply "pick up from where they left off" when going to sleep and repeating a dream. However, with lucid dreaming, one could completely alter their view of what it truly means to be asleep.
According to WikiHow, lucid dreaming is the awareness that you are sleeping. There are two types of lucid dreams: "dream-initiated" lucid dreams, and "wake-initiated" lucid dreams. With "dream-initiated" lucid dreaming, you are already asleep and experiencing a dream when you realize that you're dreaming, while with "wake-initiated" you go from being awake to being asleep, with no change in consciousness and knowledge of being asleep, which is why it's the most difficult.
While lucid dreams tend to be more intense then regular dreams, the idea of being able to control your "dreaming state" and its surroundings seems to interest many individuals. Because of this, there have been proven effective methods in order to increase your chances of experiencing dream lucidity:
1. Increase dream recall.
Try to remember at least one dream every night, by doing things such as keeping a journal or focusing hard right after waking up. By increasing your recalling of dreams, you are training yourself for the basics of lucid dreaming.
2. Wake up after 4.5 to 6 hours of sleep, then wake up again.
By doing this, you are more likely to fall into a lucid dream because while your brain is active, your body is ready for more sleep.
3. Reality check.
Try asking yourself a few times a day, "Am I awake"? Doing this often can induce a lucid dream, as following the habit of a reality check could transfer on to your dreams as well.
There are countless ways to improve chances of experiencing dream lucidity. Many of these methods may or may not be effective for every individual; however, it doesn't hurt to try. After all, who wouldn't like to say that they were able to control their dreams at least once?
