Lucid dream, also known as conscious dream, is a state of dreaming where the person is aware of the dreaming process. During this dream it is possible to apply conscious control over conscious control the dream characters and environment, as well as perform otherwise physically impossible feats, like flying for example.

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 they are dreaming.

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 him/herself that they will become lucid that night. This can sometimes happen due to dream-signs or spontaneously upon remembrance. Lucid dreaming has been researched scientifically, and its existence is well established. Scientists such as Allan Hobson, with his neurophysiological approach to dream research, have helped to push the understanding of lucid dreaming into a less speculative realm.

History of Lucid Dreaming
Most ancient cultures, not just Native Canadian and Americans, but many others, also have traditional medicine men or shamans, both male and female. It is believed that the shaman knows how to walk in somebody’s dream world with intention, usually for healing, to search for “lost souls” or just for answers to questions. Others, they believe, also capable of seeking prophecy or communication from the gods.

Normal Sleep
Sleep is assumed to be a period of quiet rest from all activities of the day. It is also assumed that sleep itself is a time of other type of activities, whereby some parts of our brain are more active than during regular awakening hours. As it mentioned in the What is Sleep article on this Web site, for a healthy adult, a normal night’s sleep includes 3 to 6 cycles through the various stages of sleep, approximately 90 – 120 minutes in duration each. According to the sleep researches, the actual dreams occur during REM sleep stage. As the night’s sleep progresses, the length of time spent in REM sleep increases from approximately 10 minutes in the first cycle to 30 minutes or sometimes more, in the last cycle of our night sleep. In fact, dreaming can occur in any stage of sleep, however, actual dreams during REM sleep stages happen to be longer, more vivid and colourful. As a rule, our dreams are not related to current events in our life in anyway, unless we have specific health problems and symptoms, which might trigger corresponding dreams.

Induction methods

Many people confirm having occasional lucid dream during their lives, more often in their childhood. Sleep specialist verify the fact that children seem to have lucid dreams more easily than adults. Over many years, several techniques have been developed to arrive to a lucid dreaming state intentionally.

Watch Video:  The World of Your Dreams