Three Easy Steps To Lucidity
1. Write a dream journal
This is the first and most important step to lucidity as it will improve your dream memory and help you discover your personal dream signs. Write in your dream journal every morning, as soon as you wake up, so you remember as much as possible.
It's common not to remember much to begin with but try to write down any details at all, even it is just the overall emotion or feeling from the dream. You will soon find your dream memory starts to improve.
If you don't have a diary you could write up your dreams using an app such as 'Awoken'. This is a free lucid dreaming app with a feature that allows you to record your dreams and keep them locked away from prying eyes! (I am not affiliated with this app in any way, I just use it myself and find it very useful).
2. Work out your dream signs
Once you have been writing a journal for at least a few weeks you will start to notice patterns or themes of things that regularly pop up in your dreams. For example you may find you often have dreams where your teeth are falling out or you are falling. It could be certain people that always pop up in your dreams but you no longer see in real life, it could be certain places, animals, abilities, or even intense emotions. Anything that pops up in your dreams regularly for you are important to make a note of. These are known as your dream signs and are very important in the next step.
To give you some examples, some of my personal dream signs are: seeing scary dogs, seeing friends I haven't seen since school or being back at school, seeing relatives that have passed on in real life, feeling very confused or lost, feeling like I am missing something, finding something very weird or odd, being in an elevator (usually not working properly) and finding hidden rooms!
3. Perform reality checks
Whenever you see one of your dream signs you MUST PERFORM A REALITY CHECK. It's very important to do this every single time regardless of how awake you may, or may not, feel. You can also add in reality checks at any time you find yourself thinking about lucid dreaming - the more checks you do the better! Aim for a minimum of 10 a day. Really ask yourself, 'Could I be dreaming?' as you perform one and DO NOT move on unless you are 100% convinced either way.
Take it seriously because how you react in the waking world is the same as how you will react when your dreaming. For examples of some good reality checks click here.
For some reality checks, you may find that they are not likely to come up very often in real life (if at all). For example you may keep seeing someone in your dreams that has passed away in real life. In this case, you can do a reality check whenever you see something that reminds you of them such as a photo. Or if you see a certain celebrity in your dreams, you can do a reality check whenever you see them on TV or in a magazine, or whenever you hear someone mention there name.
And that's it! Once you have successfully followed the Three Easy Steps To Lucidity for a couple of weeks or so, then you will find yourself doing a reality check when you are dreaming and BINGO! You will be aware and conscious inside a dream. Welcome to the world of lucid dreaming!
How To Have Lucid Dreams More Regularly
Following the above three step technique will get you lucid eventually, but if you want to speed things up a bit try these bonus tips as well:
- Mnemonic Induction - AKA The Mild Technique. This is where you remind yourself before falling asleep that you want to lucid dream. The more effort you put into this the better. So you could simply repeat to yourself, 'Tonight I will know that I am dreaming.' But, if you also VISUALISE and rehearse a dream in your mind too, it will be even more powerful. Do this before drifting off before sleep and anytime you wake up in the night. This one is super easy and highly effective so it's definitely worth giving this one a try.
- Guided hypnosis - try listening to my free lucid dreaming hypnosis audio before bed each night you want to lucid dream. As you drift into deep relaxation, you will be open to suggestions in the audio which are designed to encourage lucid dreaming and improve your dream memory.
- Meditate - research has found that people who meditate tend to lucid dream more often and have better dream recall. With so many other amazing benefits as well, I highly recommend adding meditation to your daily routine. Meditation is so important that I will be adding a whole page dedicated to this very soon.
- Herbal blends, vitamins, and supplements - there are literally hundreds to choose from here. The most interesting ones to look at include Calea Zacatechichi, Silene Capensis, Mugwort, Vitamin B, Huperzine-A, Galantamine and Choline. Always do plenty of research before trying any new herb or supplement. Remember, no pill or product can guarantee you have a lucid dream but can help increase your chances when combined with other lucid dreaming techniques.
- Make your bedroom REM friendly! Lucid dreams happen during REM sleep so I strongly advise you to make your bedroom as REM friendly as possible. Make sure your room is cool, clean and uncluttered. Try to keep your room completely dark at night by using black out blinds or curtains and, if there are any issues with noise, try some ear plugs or a white noise machine.
- Get inspired - watching lucid dream inspired films, reading books or browsing stories online about lucid dreaming will all help to make sure the subject is fresh in your mind, and increase the chances of you having a lucid dream for yourself!
- After writing up your dreams in your dream journal, look back over the details and see if there is anything you could have done better.
How can I make my lucid dreams last longer?
So you have successfully hacked into your own mind! You are inside of a dream... looking at a whole world created entirely by you! Naturally you will find this super exciting and you may find it hard not to get distracted by things. But you need to follow a few rules otherwise you will either wake up sooner than you would like or forget you are dreaming and everything will just revert into a regular dream. Here are some great tips to stay lucid for longer:
- Remind yourself regularly that you are dreaming! This one is super important! Every few minutes (or as often as possible) just say out loud, 'I am dreaming' and this will dramatically extend the length of your lucid dream.
- Remember to stay calm because when you become over excited it can wake you up. Just take some deep breaths and observe your dreamscape.
- Rubbing your hands together works well to bring clarity to your lucid dream and keep you lucid for longer. Try to do this every few minutes or as often as possible.
- Remember you are the boss! If you would like more clarity, just ask the dream for it and you will get it! Try shouting up to the dream, "Clarity now!" and watch as the dream magically turns into crystal clear clarity in front of your very eyes!
- Engage as many senses as possible as it keeps you grounded in the lucid dream. As you look around make sure to feel everything, run your hands under some water, place your feet on the grass, listen to what's going on around you, smell the air, and definitely try any food you see... it can taste even better than in real life!
So now you know how to become lucid and stay lucid for as long as possible, all that is left is for you to decide what you want to do in your lucid dreams and where you want to go! Check out this article for plenty of exciting ideas to get you started!
Remember... there is always a chance you could be dreaming! Try a reality check now!
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