What Are Lucid Dreams?

Benefits Of Lucid Dreams

It may not seem as if lucid dreaming could do much for an individual aside from making them aware they are not in what would be considered a nightmare in real life. If scary events occur in a dream, but the affected individual is well aware they are dreaming, they do not wake up in such a startled state. Lucid dreams can provide the benefit of doing things and having experiences an individual would be unable to have in the real world. Individuals who have certain fears and phobias can control their activities during lucid dreams and utilize that to overcome their fear.

Lucid dreaming is a way for an individual to practice meditation and reflect on their true self in the absence of the distractions of the real world. Some individuals who lucid dream claim it is a way to tap into undiscovered creativity within their mind, and gives them better access to memories from their past. Some also claim lucid dreaming gives them the ability to practice spirituality while they are sleeping. While there is no significant research to support this claim, some researchers have concluded individuals who lucid dream have better mental health than those who do not.

Lucid Dream Techniques

Several different techniques have been established to help an individual be able to induce their own lucid dreaming. The wake-induced lucid dream (WILD) is a technique that involves the individual keeping their brain awake when allowing their body to fall asleep. The wake back to bed (WBTB) technique involves an individual waking themselves up in the early morning hours and then attempting to go back to bed, making an effort to lucid dream. The mnemonically induced lucid dream (MILD) technique involves an individual repeating an affirmation or mantra to themselves numerous times before going to sleep with the goal of still having it in their mind when they physically fall asleep.

The senses-induced lucid dreaming (SSILD) technique involves an individual repeating a mental cycle of awareness to themselves of what they see, hear, smell, and feel to induce a lucid dream. The all-rounder lucid dreaming technique involves the use of a combination of different methods to induce a lucid dream, including mediation, dream journaling, and reality checks. Individuals who practice lucid dreaming techniques report that different methods will work for different individuals, and not everyone is successful with the use of any single method.