Have you ever started dreaming and suddenly realizes that you were in a dream? Have you ever managed to gain control over your dream? If your answer to these is 'yes', you've experienced what is called lucid dreaming.
Typically, when we dream, we are not conscious that the dream is not real. As a character from the movie Inception quite aptly puts it, "Well, dreams, they feel real while we're in them right? It's only when we wake up then we realize that something was actually strange." However, some of us are able to enter a dream and be fully aware of the fact that we are actually dreaming
In a lucid dream you’ve not woken up – in fact, you’re still sound asleep – but some part of the brain has reactivated , allowing you to experience the dream state consciously with self-reflective awareness. Once you know that you’re dreaming as you’re dreaming, you gain access to the most powerful virtual-reality generator in existence: the human mind.
For me, one of the most revolutionary aspects of lucid dreaming is that it makes sleep fun! It completely reconfigures our relationship with the third of our lives that we spend in bed. Suddenly, sleep is not just ‘wasted time’, as some people see it, but rather a potential training ground for psycho-spiritual growth.
Lucid dreaming is certainly an attractive and fascinating prospect — being able to explore our own inner worlds with full awareness that we are in a dream state is intriguing and has an almost magical flavor about it.
Like most dreams, lucid dreaming will typically occur during rapid eye movement (REM) sleep. Fo some people, it occurs spontaneously. However, others train themselves to start dreaming lucidly, to become better at it.
Most people have had a lucid dream at some point in their lives, but through the process of learning the art of lucid dreaming we can come to experience this amazing phenomenon intentionally and at will. In fact, the term ‘lucid dreaming’ is a bit of a misnomer – it should really be ‘conscious dreaming’, because it’s the aspect of conscious awareness that defines the experience, rather than its lucid clarity, but for now we’ll stick with it.
With high level lucidity comes high level clarity of mind. This means you can reflect on the fact that you’re asleep and that your body is lying in bed. You can think to yourself, Wow this is so cool, I can’t wait to tell people about this when I wake up! and you can access your waking memories and personal experience. It’s you in there, but that you is limitless. This means you can heal, meditate and learn in ways that might seem impossible in the waking state.
Techniques for lucid dreaming
There are many techniques that people who want to try and achieve lucid dreaming, or who want to perfect their lucid dreaming experiences.
One of them is called "waking back to bed," and it requires setting an alarm to wake up the sleeper after about 5 or 6 hours of going to sleep. Once awake, the person should aim to remain awake for a while, before going back to bed. This technique is supposed to immerse the sleeper immediately into REM. Finally, lucid dreaming may eventually occur through 'mnemonic induction'. This is a technique that requires intent and lots of practice.With mnemonic induction, a person must repeat to themselves, just before going to bed, a phrase such as 'tonight, I will notice that I am dreaming', so as to 'program' themselves to achieve in-dream lucidity.
Questions:
1. Have you ever experienced lucid dreaming?
2. Do you thing lucid dreaming can decrease anxiety?
3. Can you think of any possible disadvantages or sides effects of lucid dreaming?
Sources:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lucid_dream
https://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2018/10/04/lucid-dreaming-benefits-and-potential-risks.aspx
http://lucid.wikia.com/wiki/Lucid_dream
Comments
I don’t know if it will help reduce anxiety but it will certainly help to realize a few dreams possible only in dreams eg. Learn how to fly.
Disadvantage: Somebody could be frightened by the realism of dream.
Advantage: Somebody could realize more than one dream.
I have experienced that and I must say that was the worst experience in my life. When people are preparing to achieve this kind of dreaming level they probably already gain some knowledge about it, how to behave, what to do and what to think. Problem is when someone is not prepared. I wasn't and my lack of information was not good for me. After that experience I wouldn't like to experiment with dreams never again.
2. Do you thing lucid dreaming can decrease anxiety?
It can either decrease or increase it. It depeneds on a person and the dream itself.
3. Can you think of any possible disadvantages or sides effects of lucid dreaming?
I think everything depends on a person and the dream, if he or she knows how to behave in such a dream I don't see any disadvantages.
I think that lucid dreaming can make people much more happy and we need to try learn how to make this always.
I think that this type of dreaming has no disadvantages and only positive sides.
Yes, it happens to me from time to time spontaneously. I truly love the feeling when I realize I am in a dream, but unfortunately I wake up the moment I realize the fact. I've never trained myself or done whatever to indicate myself into lucid dreams.
2. Do you thing lucid dreaming can decrease anxiety?
It depends on us and what mess we got in our minds, but basically I feel that lucid dreams may decrease anxiety. Simply because when everything goes under our control, we gain confidence and it is the best medicine to anxiety if you ask me.
3. Can you think of any possible disadvantages or sides effects of lucid dreaming?
A main drawback which comes to my mind right now would be an addiction. Addiction to comforting yourself in your dreams and losing control in reality. How wonderful it would be to become a fully aware dreamer on a daily basis, but how cruel it would also be to wake up and spend about 16 hours in reality, which is obviously beyond our control.
Yes. In my opinion, lucid dreaming can help you with overcoming our weaknesses. You can try things you were afraid to do in real life.
I've heard that sometimes it's hard to wake up from lucid dreams. I am not sure if it's true, but it seems to be really serious and dangerous side effect.
Yes, many times.
It's an amazing feeling when you realize that you know you're in your dream and you can control it.
2. Do you thing lucid dreaming can decrease anxiety?
In my opinion it can. You can try the things you always were scared of without any risk.
3. Can you think of any possible disadvantages or sides effects of lucid dreaming?
Yes - sleep paralysis. It happened to me many times and it's the worst thing I've ever experienced. I didn't know what it was and how to deal with it, but for now I'm just okay with that. I read about it and I'm aware of it and how to handle it.
I don't have enough experience to answer the question if lucid dreaming can decrease anxiety. Possibly yes, but I think of it as of a potent weapon. It depends on you how you would use it, so it can help or make your situation even worse.
We can have bad trips. They can be as bad as bad trips after drugs or even worse. They can extend our fears or make us fear more things or people. We can also start living on the dreams and make it a way of escaping from our problems in life and stop solving them. I believe it can become your addiction. I think in a vision that was presented in a film called Inception, it can actually work like this if we have ever found a way how to have lucid dreams using some drugs.
2. I can only imagine that it can decrease anxiety rather than increase it.
3. Not really. I can't think of any side effect of lucid dreaming beside the confusion If you had any similar experiences with it that I had.
Yes, many times I've experienced lucid dreaming... Do I recommend it? Yes and No. yes cause you can experience something unique. No cause it requires a lot of preparation to your brain and work to actually work on purpose. Aaaand some may not like it.
2. Do you thing lucid dreaming can decrease anxiety?
It may. Basicly in lucid dream you can "do everything you want". You can imagine beautiful sky with red moon and apocalypse that may unstress you xD But after few sessions of successful lucid dreaming you can be more depressed, anxious... You may even forget what is true and what's not. But those are single situations. Although may happen.
3. Can you think of any possible disadvantages or sides effects of lucid dreaming?
As above ^^
I agree with other commenters that lucid dreaming might decrease anxiety. In such dreams, people are able to try things that they were afraid of, without any real consequence.
In my opinion, lucid dreaming might be dangerous for the same reason it decreases anxiety — one might get used to doing things without consequence. I think people who have lucid dreams often, might have a problem distinguishing between reality and a dream. Much like in the movie Inception.
You can leave your body. There are several examples confirming this. This article below discusses this feature.
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/sleepless-in-america/201712/can-we-travel-out-our-bodies-when-we-sleep
Regarding disadvantages, I’ve heard that you can get sleep paralysis. It is harmless physically but plays tricks with your mind. Basically, it is the very opposite of lucid dreaming, where you are all might and powerful. In sleep paralysis you can’t move or do anything, just observe. You have visual and auditory hallucinations and most of them are not pleasant. You also constantly feel uncontrollable fear. All of it results in a night in hell instead of a pleasant pastime in heaven.
In conclusion, I think that lucid dreaming, if you get one, is just a pleasant bonus to your sleep. Just be careful and don’t slip into a nightmare.
A few time where, but it was long time ago, most of the time dream seems real to me, before moment in which I awake. Also I don't see dreams too often because I sleep a little.
2. Do you thing lucid dreaming can decrease anxiety?
Probably, lucid dreaming can help you with overcoming our fears. You can try things you were afraid to do in real life.
3. Can you think of any possible disadvantages or sides effects of lucid dreaming?
I don't know, but maybe your brain will not relax enough for a productive day, if you will control your dream. Also there is a risk of people starting muddle reality and a dream, and horrible things can happen.