Tactics Of A Lucid Dreamer

Wouldn?t it be nice to have a lucid dream, to be aware you are dreaming and control what happens? Of course you do, but how does one learn to do this?

So, what is so good about being a lucid dreamer? What would you gain from it? In order to understand the advantages of being aware when you are dreaming, we need to examine what regular sleep actually is.

Before we look at lucid dreaming, think about normal 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?

Normal sleep is just a method of refreshing ourselves for the busyness of the next day.However, it could be a lot more interesting if you could control the period of time in which you’re dreaming.

How would you like to control what you do while in your dream? Control the events that happen in it in any way you like. A lucid dreamer is in complete control of their dreams.They are able to enter the spiritual realm of existence far removed from what exists in the physical waking hours.

So if you want to become a lucid dreamer how do you do it? There are actually two ways. The first way is having a dream-initiated lucid dream (DILD), which is where the dreamer is in a dream and then realizes that they are, restoring their sense of consciousness within the dream.

WILD refers to a wake initiated lucid dream. You slip into a dream before you are fully asleep. Instead of going to sleep before you dream you simply enter into the dream with your mind still conscious.

So what are the actual methods used to induce these two types of lucid dream experiences?

Dream Recall

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.

The best way to practice dream recall is through keeping a dream journal. This is a tool in which you write down whatever you can remember about your dream so you can recall it in the future. Do this right after you wake up - dreams are harder to remember the longer you wait.

MILD refers to Mnemonic Induction of Lucid Dreams

This technique was developed by Dr. Stephen LaBerge, one of the lead scientists in the field of lucid dreaming. To use this method, just tell yourself about an object or element that you will remember. When you dream, there’s a good chance you’ll see this element, then realize that you’re dreaming.

Wake-Back-to-Bed (WBTB)

The process here is to go to sleep, doing nothing but setting your alarm to wake you up a few hours later (5 or 6). Once you wake up, DO NOT go back to sleep. Instead, do something else like read for a while, or think as much as you can about lucid dreaming for around an hour then go back to bed.

According to Dr. LaBerge, this technique has a success rate of about sixty percent. That’s because you’ve awakened in the middle of the sleep process, while you’re still in the middle of an REM cycle and not completely aware. It’s like telling your mind that you’re interested in lucid dreaming.

Cycle Adjustment Technique

Daniel Love came up with this way to accomplish lucid dreaming. Start getting up an hour and a half earlier. After you get used to this, go back to getting up at your usual time. Since you are used to getting up earlier but don?t have to now, your mind is still thinking you are awake, therefore you will be more likely to be aware in your dream.

WILD refers to Wake Initiation of Lucid Dreams

This method was described before. If you would like to achieve a lucid dream this way, all you have to do is to keep your mind awake while you body falls asleep. This is perhaps the most interesting way of entering a lucid dream. It is as if you are getting ready to watch a movie. You are in the real world, you sit on your couch, you turn on the TV and press play (starting to sleep), the screen is black (in the same way as when your eyes are closed), and all you have to do is wait for the movie to actually start.

You need to stay aware; it is a lot like self hypnosis. This is not a good exercise to try when you are tired as your mind may not stay as aware. Try to focus on things that require brain activity such as doing math puzzles, jogging or anything to keep your mind active. Breathe evenly and focus on relaxing every part of your body.

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.

This type of sound can alter your brain and bring you to the REM stage of sleep very quickly. This is where your lucid dreaming will occur.

Combined with the self hypnosis sessions and affirmations to prepare your subconscious mind beforehand, becoming a lucid dreamer is something that everyone can now experience!