How Do You Become A Lucid Dreamer?
You have decided you want to be a lucid dreamer, otherwise known as a conscious dreamer. Knowing what you would like to do is good, the question remains on how do you accomplish this?
You also need to think about exactly why you want to become a lucid dreamer. What are the benefits of lucid dreaming? To help us find the benefits, let us first look at ‘normal’ sleep.
When you go to sleep, you get into bed, close your eyes for a certain length of time, and either dream or just see black for a few hours and then wake up! It isn’t very interesting now is it?
Average sleep has a purpose it prepares our minds and bodies to carry out the duties of the next day. However, consider the idea of managing your dreams consciously.
What if rather than being an active observer, you can be the one who can lead your dream to be whatever you want, rather than your dream leading you? This is what a lucid dreamer is; someone who is in total control of their dreams; able to explore new worlds that are not bound to the physical, societal and time-space laws of the real world.
This sounds great the only thing left is the how. You can accomplish lucid dream state in one of two ways. One, you can have a dream initiated lucid dream (DILD); this is where while dreaming you become aware of the fact that you are dreaming. In this way, you bring a level of consciousness into the dream.
The other method is by having a wake initiated lucid dream (or WILD) this is where the dreamer transitions from a state of wakefulness to lucid dreaming without a sensation of falling asleep. The dreamer simply goes straight from being awake to lucid dreaming.
So what are the actual methods used to induce these two types of lucid dream experiences?
Dream Recall
The easiest place to begin your lucid dream search is in dreams you have already had. When you can remember your dreams, you will be able to recognize when you have that dream again. Many times, we will have the same dream or part of a dream over and over.
A dream journal is perhaps the best way to learn this skill. Use this to write down every detail of your dream that you can remember immediately after you wake. If you wait., it will become increasingly difficult to recall.
Mnemonic Induction of Lucid Dreams (MILD)
This is a technique that was developed by Dr. Stephen LaBerge, one of the lead scientists studying lucid dreaming. The intent here is to simply tell yourself that you will remember something, like an object for example and then in the dream, when you see this object you will realize it is a dream.
Wake-Back-to-Bed (WBTB)
This technique is fairly simple. You set your alarm for just a few hours after you go to bed. When you wake, don’t just go back to sleep. Instead, stay awake for about an hour, then return to sleep.
According to research, this technique has about a 60% success rate. What has happened is you were awakened during an intense time of REM sleep. Your brain will not be completely aware that you are awake. Many times since REM stages tend to be longer, the episodes of lucid dreaming will be as well.
Cycle Adjustment Technique
Developed by Daniel Love, in this technique you first acclimate yourself to waking 90 minutes earlier than usual. Then alternate waking early with waking at your usual time. When you wake up at the later (regular) time, your body will begin to stir 90 minutes earlier, giving you a much better chance at achieving a state of lucid dreaming, at least during this 90 minutes.
Wake-initiation of Lucid Dreams (WILD)
As described earlier wake initiated lucid dreams are matter of keeping your mind conscious as you fall asleep. This may be the most fun way to achieve lucid dream state.Imagine if you will that, your dreams are like a movie you are planning to watch. You get comfortable, turn on the television set, (sleep), first you have a dark screen (eyes closed) and now it is a matter of getting through the previews to the movie.
There are any number of ways to keep your mind alert, count, controlled breathing techniques or concentrated relaxation are all great ways to keep the mind alert. It is a bit like hypnotizing your self. This works best if you are not exhausted, try it during an afternoon nap.
Technology has moved on in recent years, and there are various devices like dreaming masks and other scientific appliances which contain such things as strobe lights to induce lucid dreams.
Definitely the easiest and most reliable way of inducing a lucid dream however is by listening to binaural beats sound frequencies via headphones.
These work by synchronizing the two hemispheres of the brain and have the effect of almost instantaneously changing your brainwaves to the REM frequency needed for a lucid dream to occur.
With self affirmations and self hypnosis combined with binaural sound, being a lucid dreamer is a goal which anyone can reach.
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