Wellnes Journalism: Sweet Dreams

I’m walking through campus and an older man in a green sweater approaches me. “I have your driver’s license,” he says. This makes sense, somehow, and I respond: “That’s fine. Just turn in it to the professor after class.” I give him a friendly smile but he now resembles my high school English teacher, Mrs. Phillips.

At this point, I realize I am dreaming.

When you become aware that you are dreaming while still in the dream, you’re having what is called a lucid dream. Beyond providing a fascinating out-of-body sensation, lucid dreams are a forum for experimentation, exploration, and empowerment. Let’s say you dream that a large, hairy monster is trying to pound down your front door. If you know that you’re dreaming, you have no reason to be afraid. You have options. You can whip up a quick explosive device, or excuse yourself through a back door, or talk it into becoming a cute little puppy.

The dream world is complex, to say the least. Through dreams you experience a great many feelings and scenarios, all real aspects of some element within the psyche.

A lucid dream can begin in one of two ways. A dream-initiated lucid dream starts as a normal dream before you catch on to the fact that you’re dreaming, while a wake-initiated lucid dream occurs when you slip from a normal waking state directly into a dream state.

Either way, you can test your environment to determine whether or not you are awake. The pinch test—"Pinch me, I think I'm dreaming!"—is not actually an effective indicator of reality; a dreamed pinch will probably feel just like a real one. However, there are some tell-tale signs that expose a dream for what it is:
• Look at text or a digital watch. Remember what it says, look away, and then look back. The information will likely have changed.
• Look into a mirror (if you dare). Reflections are often blurred or distorted.
• Look at the ground beneath your feet, or at your hands. What you see may be quite different from what you’re used to…

Intrigued? Start by writing down your dreams every morning when you wake up; this will strengthen your dream recollection. Keep your eyes closed while trying to remember the dream, and then record what you remember in the present tense. Over time you can consciously develop awareness within dreams.

Flying, time-travel, magical ability—all yours with the power of lucidity!