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The Life Of A Lucid Dreamer
You've heard about lucid dreaming and you're sure that it is something you want to try.
However, you are at a loss as to how one becomes a lucid dreamer.
You need to know why it is that you want to be a lucid dreamer. Are there benefits to be
gained through lucid dreaming? There are, but to understand them we should first start by
examining normal sleep.
What typically happens is you lay down, you close your eyes and you wake six to eight
hours later – you may or may not remember any dreams you gave had in this time. In and
of itself, not terribly exciting.
We need normal sleep to refresh our minds and bodies, keeping us healthy mentally and
physically. What would happen if you could control the time when you are dreaming?
What if there was a way to become a full participant in your dreams? Lead them in the
manner in which you alone determine consciously? That my friend is basically what a
lucid dreamer does. They control all aspects of their dreams, going where they will and
doing whatever they want in the confines of the dream state.
All well and good, but how exactly do you become a lucid dreamer? There are two ways
of accomplishing this goal. The first method is to have a dream-initiated lucid dream, or
DLID. This is where the dreamer becomes aware that they are in fact dreaming and
begins to take control over the dream.
A wake initiated lucid dream or WILD is a state where the person passes almost
immediately from being awake into having a dream, with no period of dreamless sleep in
between. In this way your mind will still be aware of what you are dreaming.
So, what methods can you use to induce these kinds of lucid dreaming states?
Remember your dreams.
If you're interested in lucid dreaming, dream recall is one of the most effective ways of
learning to do it. Dream recall is the ability to remember your dreams. If you remember
them, you're more likely to be able to recognize them while you're asleep. That's because
most of us have the same dreams or dream elements more than once.
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 method was developed by top lucid dreaming researcher Dr. Stephen LaBerge. The
idea is to affirm to yourself that you will remember something when you see it in a dream
– then when you do, you will realize that you are dreaming and begin to assert control
over your dream.
Wake-Back-to-Bed (WBTB)
This simple process has you taking no action except to set an alarm that will waken you
in less time than you normally sleep. For most of us about five or six hours will do it.
After the alarm awakens you do not try to fall back to sleep. For about an hour you
should read, watch TV or concentrate on lucid dreaming then go back to sleep.
This technique of learning to lucid dream has a sixty percent success rate according to
Stephen LaBerge. You have waked up during the dream cycle of your sleep which is
referred to as REM. This is like a trigger telling your mind that you want to be aware
when you are dreaming.
Cycle Adjustment Technique
This invention of Daniel Love is another way to have lucid dreams. This involves getting
up earlier. Get up an hour and a half earlier until you get used to it. After that switch back
to your regular time to get up. Keep switching back and forth. This way when you sleep
the later time period, you will be likely to lucid dream as your brain is used to awakening
earlier.
WILD refers to Wake Initiation of Lucid Dreams
Let's get back to this method which is described above. To achieve lucid dreaming, the
technique is to try to keep mentally aware even as your body relaxes into a sleep state.
Think of it this way – you are getting ready to watch a movie; your closed eyelids are like
the black screen before the movie begins and you are waiting for the trailers to roll.
You can also use this technique with tactics like counting, chanting or imagining yourself
climbing stairs as you go to sleep. This method of achieving lucid dreaming is best done
in the afternoon or other times when you are not terribly tired.
In recent years, the advance of technology has brought us new devices to help us dream
lucidly. These include strobe lights, dreaming masks, and other gadgets thought to assist
with lucid dreaming.
The best and easiest way to achieving the state of lucid dreaming is by using headphones.
You should listen to sounds that naturally alter your brainwaves, these are called binaural
beats.
The purpose is to synchronize both sides of the brain to create the REM frequency that is
required for lucid dreaming.
With a combination of self affirmations, self hypnosis and binaural sounds, being a lucid
dreamer is something anyone can do successfully.
The lucid Dreamer and Dreams |
