Journey Into Lucidity

As it is commonly known, a lucid dream occurs when the individual is dreaming but has remained conscious and can take control of the dream. It is a common practice and has been used by several fields and has been used to make breakthroughs in human knowledge and technology such as Stephen King, Albert Einstein and Christopher Nolan. Thomas Edison admitted that he had received much enlightenment from lucid dreams that he intentionally tried to access his unconscious through this method, but how does one intentionally access this segment of reality?

The Counting Method

The counting method is probably the simplest and straight forward methods of accessing a lucid state, and is one technique which many recommend. The first step is to go to sleep, experience a couple of cycles of R.E.M. sleep and the wake up with an alarm after around three or four hours. Once awake, remain in a relaxed and still state and counted to 100 whilst thinking you are lucid, this creates the illusion that your brain needs to fall asleep whilst keeping your mind conscious. The straightforward method of realising if you are in a lucid state is to complete a reality check. The realisation that you are in a lucid state occurs if you cannot complete a reality check when you reach fifty whereas if you can complete a reality check then you are not in a lucid state.

Into the WILD – Wake Initiated Lucid

The wake initiated lucid dream (WILD) technique involves tricking your mind into believing it is asleep, this is known as sleep paralysis. To achieve a state of lucidity, lay in bed and focus on breathing and relaxing every muscle in your body, but make sure to remain somewhat aware of the things that occur during your body when carrying out this method. For example, your body will try to find out whether you are still awake which involves forcing a feeling that you want or need to roll over, or an itching sensation occurring. The best thing to do when these occur is to simply ignore them due to their temporary nature. While in a relaxed and focus state, utilise visualization techniques to overcome the potential wandering mind, and it is these techniques which determine whether you are in a lucid state. When you are not visualising but you can still see the images that you was previously thinking then you have crossed over into a lucid state.