How to Lucid Dream

by Sondra C, Choicefresh, Jack Herrick (see all)


The most basic definition of lucid dreaming is "being aware you are dreaming while dreaming". Most lucid dreams are about things you want to happen. Although most people know they're lucid dreaming, you can change your dream to how you want it to be. Lucid dreams usually occur while a person is in the middle of a regular dream and suddenly realizes that she or he is asleep and must be dreaming. The person is then said to be "lucid", and may enter one of many levels of lucidity. At the lowest level, the dreamer may be dimly aware that he or she is dreaming, but not think rationally enough to realize that events/people/actions in the dream are not real/pose no threat. At the highest level, the dreamer is fully aware that she or he is asleep, and can have complete control over his or her actions in the dream. However, with low mental control your decisions could be biased not by your opinion, but by your brain. You can control your dreams using the lucid dreaming methods that follow.


edit Steps1During the day repeatedly ask 'Am I dreaming?' and perform some reality checks whenever you remember. With practice, if it happens enough, you will automatically remember it during your dreams and do it.
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2Keep a dream journal. This is perhaps the most important step towards lucid dreaming. Keep it close by your bed at night, and write in it immediately after waking. Or you can keep a recording device if you find it easier to repeat your dream out loud. This helps you recognize your common dream elements (people from your past, specific places, etc.), and also tells your brain that you are serious about remembering your dreams!3Learn the best time to have a lucid dream. By being aware of your personal sleep schedule, you can arrange your sleep pattern to help induce lucid dreams.


Studies strongly suggest that a nap a few hours after waking in the morning is the most common time to have a lucid dream.
Lucid dreams are strongly associated with REM sleep. REM sleep is more abundant just before the final awakening. This means they most commonly occur right before waking up. (Sleep-onset REM is a symptom of narcolepsy. If you have lucid dreams right after falling asleep, you may wish to consider seeking medical advice from a sleep medicine specialist. However, there are studies which show people can recall dreams after being awakened during non-REM sleep).
Dreams usually run in 60-minute (Weiten Psych book 2004) cycles during sleep. If you are working on dream recall, it may be helpful to try waking yourself up during one of these cycles (interrupted dreams are often the ones we remember).
4Try Stephen Laberge's mnemonic induction of lucid dreaming (MILD) technique.


Set your alarm clock to wake you up 4 1/2, 6, or 7 1/2 hours after falling asleep.
When you are awakened by your alarm clock, try to remember the dream as much as possible.
When you think you have remembered as much as you can, return to your place of rest, imagining that you are in your previous dream, and becoming aware that you are dreaming. Say to yourself, "I will be aware that I'm dreaming," or something similar. Do this until you think that it has "sunk in." Then go to sleep.
If random thoughts pop up when you are trying to fall asleep, repeat the imagining, self-suggestion part, and try again. Don't worry if you think it's taking a long time. The longer it takes, the more likely it will 'sink in,' and the more likely you will have a lucid dream.
5Attempt the WBTB (Wake Back To Bed) Technique. This is the most successful technique.
Fall asleep.
Set your alarm clock to 5 hours after you fall asleep.
After you wake up, stay up for an hour with your mind focused on lucidity and lucidity only.
Go back to sleep using the MILD technique.
6Try attempting the WILD (wake initiated lucid dream) technique. Basically what it means is that when you fall asleep you carry your awareness from when you were awake directly into REM sleep and you start out as a lucid dream.


The easiest way to attempt this technique is if you take an afternoon nap or you have only slept for 3-7 hours.
Try to meditate into a calm but focused state. You can try counting breaths, imaging ascending/descending stairs, dropping through the solar system, being in a quiet soundproof area, etc.
Listening to Theta binaural beats for an amount time will easily put you into a REM sleep.
See the warnings at the bottom, as these are very important.
7Another technique for overall "dream awareness" is the Diamond Method of meditation, which can shortcut the overall learning curve, of Lucid Dreaming.


When one meditates, try to visualize your life, both awake and dream-life as facets on a diamond. Some choose to call this "diamond" the Universe, others God, and even "your Spirit." The point here is to begin to recognize that life is happening all at once. It is only our "Perception" that arranges our dramas into linear or "timed" order. So just as a diamond just is, each facet if viewed as an individual experience, still is going on at the same time the "Dream Body" experiences as well. This method is also known by Remote Viewers. Remember it is just a slight shift in awareness that this exercise calls for.
8Immerse yourself in the subject of lucid dreaming. For example, you can look on lucid dreaming websites, watch movies with lucid dreaming (eg. Waking Life, Vanilla sky, Inception), read books about it, etc...9Try marking an "A" (which stands for "awake") on your palm. Every time you notice the "A" during your waking hours challenge whether you are awake or asleep. Eventually you may see the "A" in your sleep and become lucid.10 What time is it?Get into the habit of doing reality checks. Do at least three reality checks every time something seems out of the ordinary, strongly frustrating, or nonsensical, and that habit will carry on into your dreams. In a dream, these will tell you that you are sleeping, allowing you to become lucid. In order to remember to do reality checks in dreams, you need to establish a habit of doing reality checks in real life. One way to do a reality check is to look for "dream signs" (elements that frequently occur during your dreams, look for these in your dream journal), or things that would not normally exist in real life, and then conduct the reality checks. When these actions become habit, a person will begin to do them in her or his dreams, and can come to the conclusion that he/she is dreaming. Frequently doing reality checks can stabilize dreams. This is also known as DILD (Dream Induced Lucid Dreams). Some tactics include:
Looking at a digital clock to see if it stays constant;
Looking at a body of text, looking away, and then looking back to see if it has changed;
Flipping a light switch;
Looking in a mirror (your image will most often appear blurry or not appear at all in a dream). However, your figure can be horribly disfigured in a mirror, frightening you into nightmare or a dream.
Pinching your nose closed and trying to breathe;
Glancing at your hands, and asking yourself, "am I dreaming?" (when dreaming, you will most often see greater or fewer than five fingers on your hand);
jumping in the air; you are usually able to fly during dreams
Poking yourself; when dreaming, your "flesh" might be more elastic than in real life; a common reality check is pushing your finger through the palm of your hand;
Pinch/poke your arm. In a dream, you shouldn't be able to feel your pinch/bite. However, this may not work since in a dream, actions can still have affects on your body.
Try leaning against a wall. In dreams, you will often fall through walls.
11Prolong lucid dreams by spinning your body in the dream (suspected of prolonging REM), and rubbing your hands (prevents you from feeling the sensation of lying in bed). Take care while spinning. Remind yourself even as you spin that you are dreaming, as you will find yourself in a completely different location when you stop spinning and may lose lucidity otherwise. If you feel a dream 'shakes' or is about to fade out, look down to the ground and visualize your surroundings, reminding yourself you are dreaming.12Be Pro-active about your dream. Have a goal in mind and try to accomplish it.13Listen to Binaural Beats. Binaural Beats are often used to induce lucid dreams, and many assure this method dramatically improves success rate. Theoretically, listening to Binaural Beats lowers brain frequencies, triggering different effects such as relaxation and dream induction. Look for Theta binaural beats, as they use the same brainwave frequency used in dreams. You may also want to listen to Alpha and Delta binaural beats as they help you relax and fall into non-REM sleep.14"'Look through previous dreams in your Dream Journal"'. if you start to notice paterns in your dreams, you will notice dream-signs, or certain things that continue to reapear in your dreams. this may be as basic as all dreams are in your backyard, or all your dreams have fans in them. get into the habit of doing dream checks every time you see your dream sign, and eventually you'll see your dream sign IN a dream, do a check and realize you're dreaming.
edit Modified Look at Hand MethodA Modified Version of Castaneda's "Looking At Your Hands".

1As you prepare for sleep each night, sit in your bed and take a minute to relax. Softly look at the palms of your hands and repeat to yourself, "Tonight while I dream, I will see my hands and realize I'm dreaming."2Continue to repeat this affirmation, "Tonight while I dream, I will see my hands and realize I'm dreaming," as you look at your hands.3After five minutes, or once you feel too tired or sleepy, turn off the light and go to sleep.4When you wake during the night, gently recall your last dream. If you did not see your hands, remind yourself of your intent to see your hands in the next dream.5With consistent practice of this affirmation each night before sleep, you will suddenly see your hands pop up in front of you when dreaming, and consciously realize, "My hands!" This is a dream.