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Scientists call them “lucid dreamers” – people who consciously experience what happens to them in their sleep. Lucid dreamers not only dream, they also know that they are dreaming. And: You can control your nightly experiences and direct them like a film. This ability is not a disease or a congenital abnormality. In principle, every person is able to learn lucid dreaming.
Lucid dreams in sleep research
Aristotle already knew that we can consciously experience images in our sleep. But his knowledge was forgotten for a long time; many even doubted that lucid dreaming was even possible. It was only in the last century that researchers began to study lucid dreaming more intensively again. In 1980, psychologists Stephen LaBerge and Keith Hearne succeeded in scientifically proving the existence of lucid dreams using EEG recordings.
Today we know that lucid dreaming takes place in the so-called REM phase , the “rapid eye movement” phase. During this time we sleep soundly, the body is as if frozen, only the eyes move rapidly back and forth. However, the brain is extremely active during this phase of sleep. A study by the University of Bonn shows that it is possible to experience this stage consciously: In the sleep laboratory, researchers were able to observe how lucid dreamers, although they were fast asleep, performed a previously agreed eye movement.
Walk through fantastic worlds
But how do you learn to experience your dreams consciously? There is no magic formula – despite intensive research. First of all, targeted, continuous exercises are important in order to be able to remember dreams at all. We usually forget our experiences just a few moments after waking up. If you write down what you dreamed in a dream diary first thing in the morning, you can stimulate your brain to store the dreams.
There are two methods to reach another state of consciousness while dreaming. Some people try to take the knowledge that a dream is about to follow from their waking state into their sleep. Others become aware while they sleep that they are dreaming. A card that says, “Am I dreaming?” can be helpful. If you keep looking at this card over several days, it will eventually appear in your dream – the lucid dream can begin.
