Lucid Dreaming: A Beginner’s Guide 245 Comments

Written by Tim Ferriss Topics: Mental Performance


John Smith making another title look like child’s play (no audio)

From 1994-1995 I had the great pleasure of training with wrestling legend John Smith, 2-time gold medalist and 4-time world champion (domestic freestyle record of 80-0; international freestyle record of 100-5).

He was famous for his low leg attacks that made even Olympic finals look like textbook demonstrations.

The problem was, of course, that I was in New Hampshire at boarding school and had never met John Smith. I only trained with him 45-60 minutes per night while I was lucid dreaming. I went on to have my best career season, which culminated with a more than 20-0 record before the national championships…

I’ve since used lucid dreaming to:

- Accelerate skill acquisition (example: yabusame)
- Reactivate “forgotten” languages in less time
- Cultivate zen-like present-state awareness and decrease needless stress

Lucid Dreaming 101

I applied to Stanford University because I wanted to refine my clinical understanding of lucid dreaming: the ability to become conscious during dreams and affect their content.

This isn’t new-age nonsense, either. It’s been tested in the strictest of lab settings.

Dr. Stephen LaBerge of Stanford was considered the world’s foremost researchers in the science and practice of lucid dreaming, and he had pioneered proving its existence. How? It turns out that eye movement, unlike the rest of the skeletal muscular system, is not inhibited by REM sleep. Subjects could memorize horizontal eye patterns (e.g. left-left-right-right-left-right-left) and repeat the patterns upon becoming lucid, which researchers could observe, all while recording brain activity with an EEG to confirm that the subjects where, in fact, in a dream state. Tibetan monks have been practicing lucid dreaming for thousands of years, but it was considered fringe speculation until it was captured in a controlled environment.

There are now dozens of studies that explore the incredibly cool world of lucid dreaming and hint at applications (search “lucid dreaming” here on PubMed).

I recently had dinner with former PayPal employee Mark Goldenson, who was a researcher in both Stephen LaBerge’s lab and Phil Zimbardo’s psychophysiology lab at Stanford, and the conversation convinced me that sharing the basics was worth a post.

For those interested in experiencing lucid dreaming, here are a few simple training methods, including:

Step 1) Develop dream recall -

Have you ever thought that you didn’t dream on given nights, or perhaps not at all? If I were to track your REM sleep, as I have mine on even “dreamless” nights, you quickly realize that this isn’t the case. Undeveloped recall is to blame.

Put a pad of paper next to your bed and record your dream immediately upon waking. Immediately means immediately. If you get dressed first, or even stare at the ceiling for a minute, dream recollection will be nil. Expect that you might not get more than a few lines for the first week or so, but also expect to get to multi-page recall ability within 2-3 weeks. This alone will make you look forward to going to bed.

Step 2) Identify dream cues and/or do reality checks -

Some people, like Mark, can use their dream log to identify common dream elements that recur from night to night. Water seems to be particularly common. These elements are then used for “reality checks”: asking yourself if you’re dreaming when you see these cues during waking hours, and then testing.

Testing entails doing something like trying to fly (not recommended) or looking at your environment for clear indications of dream state. The latter is my preference, and I typically skip the dream log and default to a few simple tests at set action (every time I check the time or walk through a door, for example).

Since working memory can only hold around 7 +/- 2 bits of information, and you are constantly creating your dreamscape in real-time, there are a few things that change if you look away and then look back at them:

a. Text (e.g., written signs)
b. Digital clocks/watches. Fascinatingly, analog clocks appear to keep accurate dream time, which, in my case, also corresponds to real time passing.
c. Complex patterns

For the last category, I like to look at wall brickwork or floor patterns, look away, and look back to see if their orientation (e.g. horizontal vs. vertical) or tile/block size has changed, asking “am I dreaming?” If there are changes, guess what? You are either on some strong hallucinogens or you are dreaming. If you’re dreaming and answer in the affirmative, it is at this point that you will become lucid.

Step 3) Induce lucidity –

MILD

There are a number of techniques that help induce lucidity. One such technique tested by LaBerge, referred to as Mnemonic-Induction of Lucid Dreaming (MILD), involved — in my case — waking up in the middle of the night, setting the intention to lucid dream for 10-15 minutes, then going back to bed. I have found this to work best when I wake 5 hours or so after going to sleep (not just to bed). Here is a longer description from LaBerge’s FAQ.

I have also found duration of sleep to be an important variable. It will often be easiest for novices to achieve lucidity if they sleep to excess — more than 9 hours (think Saturday or Sunday mornings) — and then use the snooze button to wake every 10-15 minutes for another hour. This juxtaposition of waking and sleep blurs the lines and seems to make the lucid state easier to achieve.

Ancillary Drugs

Three drugs, in my experience, also seems to assist with induction: huperzine-A (200-400 mcg), melatonin (3 mg), and nicotine (standard patch). I don’t suggest combining them.

Huperzine-A is an acetyl-cholinesterase inhibitor, tested in Chinese clinical trials for treating Alzheimer’s, and will increase the half-life of the neurotransmitter acetylcholine at the synapse. This is my preferred tool if I’m using chemical assistance. Melatonin is involved with setting circadian rhythm and its release is controlled by the pineal gland and suprachiasmatic nuclei (SCN). Dreams on melatonin tend to be more colorful and more chaotic, as is also the case with nicotine. Nicotine is my last choice, as it is addictive and can cause total insomnia if you don’t time it properly. If you happen to be quitting smoking and will be using the patch regardless, be sure to put it on immediately prior to bed so the blood nicotine levels (and stimulant effects) peak well after you’ve fallen asleep. Mistime it and you’ll be one grumpy bastard the next morning.

Step 4) Extend lucidity duration

This is where things get a little strange, or even cooler.

The first few times you achieve lucidity, you will likely be so excited that you will wake yourself up. Two effective techniques for extending lucidity are spinning (a la a piroutte in place) and looking at your hands. Both techniques, I believe, originated with Carlos Castaneda, but LaBerge was the first to test them and quantify the effectiveness of spinning vs. hand rubbing:

…the odds in favor of continuing the lucid dream were about 22 to 1 after spinning, 13 to 1 after hand rubbing (another technique designed to prevent awakening), and 1 to 2 after “going with the flow” (a “control” task). That makes the relative odds favoring spinning over going with the flow 48 to 1, and for rubbing over going with the flow, 27 to 1.

Source: Lucidity Institute

Step 5) Once you’ve flown all over and had sex with every hottie you can think of…

Try to explore memory and performance. Indulge in the flying and sex binge, as all newbies do — no reason to rush that phase, of course — but then expand your carnal horizons in other directions.

Have fun and sweet dreams…

Clip to Evernote

Posted on September 21st, 2009

Comment Rules: Remember what Fonzie was like? Cool. That's how we're gonna be -- cool. Critical is fine, but if you're rude, we'll delete your stuff. Please use your PERSONAL name or initials and not your business name and do not put your website in the comment text, as both come off like spam. Have fun and thanks for adding to the conversation! (Thanks to Brian Oberkirch for the inspiration)

245 Responses to “Lucid Dreaming: A Beginner’s Guide”

  • David Turnbull
    September 21st, 2009
    9:59 pm

    Brilliant stuff. I’ve had a few lucid dreams over the years, but often it does get to that point where I realise it’s a lucid dream so I wake up out of excitement. Will try to follow step #4 next time though.

    Reply
  • Heidi Briones
    September 21st, 2009
    10:07 pm

    Hi Tim,

    Awesome post. I’m fascinated in lucid dreaming. I’ve been doing it since I was a child and long before I even knew the term “lucid dreaming”.

    I found that I had my most lucid dreams in my teenage years and I’ve struggled to get back to that point. Do you know of any reason for this? Or do I just need to redevelop and fine tune my technique?

    Other than sex and flying (Yep, I still revisit these favorites), I often find myself creating scenarios where I can practice my Mandarin Chinese. Do you have any tips for using lucid dreaming in this way?

    Thanks for this post! Hope you have an awesome day and an even better sleep.

    Heidi

    Reply
  • Farrell
    September 21st, 2009
    10:07 pm

    Excellent post as always Tim. However, I wanted to share this quote of yours I found at http://www.bleikamp.com/projects/ that states:

    “Ben is the best designer I’ve ever working with — period. He has never been late and is often early. That is near unheard of when dealing with the rare animal that is an engineer who understands both programming and design. Ben puts both together, on time every time. Highest recommendations. — Tim Ferriss, NYT #1 best-selling author of The Four Hour Work Week

    Notice the first sentence.

    Thought you should know. Damn those typos.

    Cheers,

    Farrell

    Reply
  • @kyleschen
    September 21st, 2009
    10:13 pm

    definitely will have to try to lucid dream again. did it naturally when i was younger.

    Reply
  • Ron
    September 21st, 2009
    10:14 pm

    This sounds similar to a technique used by Napoleon Hill in “consulting” with his made up mastermind group as he went off to sleep.

    Interesting stuff. I’m definitely gonna try Steps 1 or 3 as soon as I get the chance (in a few minutes!)

    Reply
  • Ethan
    September 21st, 2009
    10:15 pm

    I like this a lot. Questions I would love to be answered in lucid dreaming 200:

    Why does spinning or looking at our hands have anything to do with extending lucidity?
    What are the best ways to learn something new (or hone our skills) while lucid dreaming?

    And I don’t think i’ve ever laughed so hard at a section title as I did at “step 5″

    Reply
  • Ken Baumann
    September 21st, 2009
    10:16 pm

    Great post, Tim. I would love to see an expansive post on lucid dreaming; more techniques, examples of industrious application, etc.

    And thanks again for blogging.

    Reply
  • Klaus Tol
    September 21st, 2009
    10:16 pm

    Hi Tim,

    Interesting post!

    I have had lucid dreams several times myself.
    It was incredible I could change what I was dreaming about, but still
    living the dream or waking up if wanted to.

    by the way…
    Your book changed my life.

    Klaus Tol

    Reply
  • Jason D-
    September 21st, 2009
    10:25 pm

    Personally I use lucid dreaming to bang ex-girlfriends but hey, to each his own ;-)

    Reply
  • Jose Castro
    September 21st, 2009
    10:37 pm

    The air in Nica must be inspiring you to write some of your best posts, either that or it’s just pure coincidence. I am totally ignorant to this concept but am rereading this. Does music have any affect on Lucid Dreaming?

    Eat some Gallo Pinto!!!!

    Jose Castro

    Reply
  • Rebecca
    September 21st, 2009
    10:52 pm

    I love lucid dreams! I found that making a habit of checking and double checking a digital watch during waking hours carried over to dreams and helped me realize I was dreaming. Monitoring light levels also helps since my dreams are only able to get so bright.

    The only downside I’ve found are the false awakenings. I don’t have them with every lucid dream (maybe only 10% of the time), but they are maddening.

    Reply
  • Mike
    September 21st, 2009
    11:11 pm

    I discovered the ability of lucid dreaming after dreaming of “events that couldn’t happen.” An example would be meeting or talking to someone I knew was dead like a relative for instance. When I was in the Army and worked to the point of exhaustion I’d lucid dream all the time. Even now, if I’m super exhausted I’ll be able to control any dreaming I may have.

    Good stuff Tim!

    Reply
  • Gordie Rogers
    September 21st, 2009
    11:15 pm

    One of the best way to be able to recall dreams is not awake naturally, not to the sound of an alarm clock. Keep your eyes closed and lie very still for a few minutes recalling the dream. Then very slowly roll onto your side and write down as much about the dream as possible.

    Reply
  • Neil
    September 21st, 2009
    11:16 pm

    Tim, thanks for posting this. Lucid Dreaming has been something that I’ve been working on for the last year.

    Is Huperzine the same as Galantamine? It’s also used in Alzheimer’s treatment too, so perhaps it’s the same thing. If so, the important thing is that you can’t use it all the time. I find that I can only use it once per week max, otherwise my body gets used to it, and it loses its effect.

    Also, I wake up and take the Galantamine about 3-4 hours after going to sleep. It takes an hour to kick in, at which time it’s at its strongest, so by the time I’m drifting back to sleep it coincides with my REM cycles and has a better effect. Taking it at the start of the night is a waste of time, since most REM and the best dreams are towards the end of the night.

    One other thing – Vitamin B6 (about 25 to 50mg) helps. It’s toxic in doses over 100mg, so it’s best not to over-do B6, and not to take it every ngiht. You can get B complex vitamins in a V8 vegetable juice drink which makes a healthy night-cap which also helps send you off to lucid land.

    The other thing about Lucid and non-Lucid dreams is that they often have the same “geography”. I often find myself driving down the same streets in some hypothetical version of a town. Drawing maps of those streets in my dream journal helps reinforce the dream imagery in my mind, which makes it easier to recognize the tell-tale imagery to help me go lucid.

    For the last couple of months I’ve been meaning to email you and ask for your thoughts on Lucid Dreaming. So I’m really glad that you wrote this article.

    Oh – one last thing. “Waking Life” is a great movie about Lucid Dreaming. A little verbose, but it has some helpful concepts and imagery. Have you seen it?

    Reply
  • Faramarz
    September 21st, 2009
    11:29 pm

    Ha Ha Ha i love how you mention sex binges because that is the very first thing that anyone thinks of when they learn about lucid dreaming. The second thing is “how realistic will the sex binges be”

    Seriously though lucid dreaming has always been an interest of mine and even though i have studied the techniques extensively i have sadly never taken it off my “some day maybe list”

    Reply
  • Tina
    September 21st, 2009
    11:29 pm

    Took a class on philosophy& neuropsychology (well actually neither really, it was one of those in-between, exploratory classes). Regardless, lucid dreaming was discussed and a method of inducing it is as follows: Write a big L and R on your left and right hands (or just any marks), and consistently throughout the day look at the marks on your hands so you develop the habit. This will apparently carry through into your dream, and when you see/realize the L and the R on your hand, you’ll realize you are in a lucid dream, and take control of your dream.

    Reply
  • T. Dunn
    September 21st, 2009
    11:35 pm

    I’ve definitely noticed more of a tendency to lucid dream when I take melatonin. (I suffer from Delayed sleep phase syndrome and the melatonin helps me sleep when nothing else does.)

    I also recommend the movie Waking Life. Fascinating concepts and beautiful to watch.

    Reply
  • Erik Åström
    September 21st, 2009
    11:37 pm

    Great post Tim, I never thought I would see you writing about Lucid Dreaming here on your blog. It was a pleasant surprise as I’ve been thinking of getting into it again.

    I was into Lucid Dreaming in the past and used to do it a lot, but over time I’ve just forgotten to write down my dreams and have a hard time recognizing the dream cues while dreaming. I still remember most of my dreams though, just woke up from one actually, I was playing golf with gnomes in the woods and there was some real funky music playing in the background. Yes, most my dreams are this weird and I can’t understand how I don’t recognize them as dreams sometimes (my life ain’t THAT crazy for me to not recognize them as dreams!).

    A tip from me is instead of writing your dreams down is recording it with your mobile phone or a dicta-phone (not that I think most people have one), it will make it that much easier to get them down when you’re sleepy and just want to go back to sleep because you can even do it while keeping your eyes closed (set the record on your phone to a quick button).

    Keep up the good work and happy dreaming!
    //Erik Åström

    Reply
  • steve
    September 21st, 2009
    11:41 pm

    tried any of the binaural frequencies?

    [affliliate site removed]. after listening to that a bit before went to sleep had the strongest lucid dreaming ever had.

    worth a mention is glasses that sense when you go to rem sleep and fire off a few leds.

    Reply
  • Ryan
    September 21st, 2009
    11:46 pm

    Reminds me of the classic song by Queensryche, Silent Lucidity that drove me to getting my commercial pilots license.

    Reply
  • Natasha
    September 22nd, 2009
    12:02 am

    I was just looking into lucid dreaming after reading your sleep post the other day. I’ve been struggling to get into a good sleep schedule in the past few weeks, since I’m studying abroad and have had the jet lag, and a new place and temperature to get used to.

    I’ve flown quite a bit in my dreams. When I was a kid, it wasn’t lucid dreaming; I was simply convinced that I could fly. Fortunately, I never jumped off high points; I would always push off from the ground, and I figured it just didn’t work sometimes. Moving into my teen years, I experienced lucid dreaming intermittently, but now I’m trying to harness it for more useful projects.

    A tip for dream recall: Before opening your eyes, try to remember 3 specific instances from your dreams. Use a mnemonic to keep them all straight. Then, even if you wait up to a half hour to write them down, you’ll remember a fair amount of the previous night’s dreams.

    Personally, I’m not interested in using drugs to induce lucidity, so I guess I’ll go the natural route and see how it goes.

    Reply
  • Torbosk
    September 22nd, 2009
    12:18 am

    Wow, what a coincidence. Since two days or so i’ve restarted my attempts at LD, and i was actually hoping to get more useful information.

    I’ve become lucid a few times in the past, my first time was actually a WILD (wake-induced lucid dream) where i “dream-sexed” one of the hottest girls i had ever met (she had a bf, so in real life she was unavailable).
    For some reason flying is really hard for me. All i can do is really high jumps. Once i was flying (take-off from a building) but i then spotted a pool and dived in. It takes a bit of motivation and effort to do it though, and the last months i was too lazy and busy with other things.

    One reality check i always do is look at my hand. In dreams it usually has 7-8 fingers (this is the case for everybody btw, for some reason hands look really distorted in dreams). This is a good introductory post, though like you said, it covers the basics. People who already did some research on it, will not find anything new.

    Reply
  • Dirk Laukens
    September 22nd, 2009
    12:49 am

    Talking to yourself in your ludic dream also works good to extend the lucidity duration. Making a piroutte never really worked for me, it makes the scene too chaotic.

    Reply
  • Hiren
    September 22nd, 2009
    12:56 am

    The late great physicist Richard Feynman has a chapter/several pages in his book – “Surely You’e Joking Mr Feynman” where he experiments with lucid dreaming and how he influences the details of what he sees and does in them.

    Reply
  • MT
    September 22nd, 2009
    12:59 am

    Hey Tim,

    Great post. Something “similar” happens to me regularly – and its actually helped me tremendously. I seem to be able to get the answers to the extremely difficult problems that I am facing while I am in the ‘twilight’ zone. Neither fast asleep, nor fully awake. Funny thing is – that these solutions never present themselves when I am fully awake, and they are always bang on target. Very very apt for the situation.

    Is there a way in which I can control this? I love the fact that this happens – but I want to be able to get to that level where I can decide when to have the answers – and when not.

    thanks,

    M

    Reply
  • Zach
    September 22nd, 2009
    1:11 am

    Can you provide a few more references (e.g. that working memory holds 7+/- 2 bits)? That would be awesome. Of course, references cost to make and readers can easily google their own – so maybe that’s why you left them out.

    Still, your blog would kick that much more @$$ if it was properly ref’d…

    Reply
  • Traian
    September 22nd, 2009
    1:27 am

    Hi Tim,

    Great post!
    I’ve read about lucid dreaming before, but no other article presented the possible mental performance applications the way you did.
    Knowing that lucid dreaming is more than a form of entertainment means a lot!
    Also I’ve never been sure whether it’s just new age nonsense or not. Now that I know it isn’t I will give it a try for sure!

    All the best,
    Traian

    Reply
  • Subd
    September 22nd, 2009
    1:35 am

    It all seems a little indulgent, but can’t argue with point 5) I think I’ll do the flying & hottie binge for a while!

    Reply
  • Deran
    September 22nd, 2009
    2:13 am

    Tim,

    You forgot to mention about the movie, Vanilla Sky. Anyone interested in lucid dreaming should watch it. Personally, Vanilla Sky is my best ever movie.

    There are also a few other lucid dreaming movies like Waking Life and Good Night (starring Penelope Cruz).

    Cheers!
    Deran

    Reply
  • Cath Duncan
    September 22nd, 2009
    2:14 am

    I find I’m able to easily get into lucid dreaming if I sleep in late, in the morning. Because I’m well-rested after a good night’s sleep, I don’t sleep heavily, and then I have very vivid recall of my dreams and then I’m often able to steer what happens in my dreams. And I’ve found that this gives me huge shifts, in that I can rehearse something I’m going to do (for example, an upcoming presentation) in my lucid dream, and then when I do it in real life, I feel totally comfortable, as though I’ve done it before, and I perform much better as a result.

    Cath

    Reply
    • Tim Ferriss
      September 22nd, 2009
      11:09 am

      Hi Cath,

      Good point. I have found this as well, and had my most extended lucid dreams at first on Saturdays and Sundays as a result.

      Best,

      Tim

      Reply
  • JT
    September 22nd, 2009
    2:33 am

    There are a few other methods of lucid dreaming. One theory right now which is relatively new and often criticized is WILD. Partially because it’s difficult to do early on, and partially because the theories for inducing a dream while awake are not proven yet.

    The theory goes: lay on your back for as long as possible. Your body will tell you to roll over or move, and even make it painful not to do so. This is simply a test. Your brain wants to be sure that you are actually asleep, and if you were mentally unconscious, you would not roll over even though there is some discomfort. If you can resist the signals your brain is telling you to roll over or change positions, you can supposedly enter a dream-like state from being awake (Wake Induced Lucid Dreaming, or WILD). This is only one technique.

    Others vary, but the key is to remain calm and allow for complete relaxation. You will go through what can be a very scary stage of hypnagogic hallucinations just before entering a full dream-like state. This happens every time you fall asleep, but you are not usually conscious to remember it. Feeling pressure on your chest, difficulty breathing, sensing the presence of something evil in the room, hearing noises, or other strange sensations can be common.

    I’m still testing these methods. I’ve found that WILD is a very difficult technique, but I’ve come pretty close several times to entering the dream-like state if I can get past the hypnagogic hallucinations.

    Reply
    • Deone
      December 17th, 2010
      11:47 pm

      Wow, That’s pretty WILD. Do you think only experienced lucid dreamers should attempt this. It sounds kind of scary!

      (I’m trying it in 15 minutes regardless)

      Reply
  • Jonas
    September 22nd, 2009
    2:35 am

    Why doesn’t this surprise me that you too have explored this ? ; )

    Was into this a few years ago, so I’m familiar with most of the techniques you mentioned.

    I will definitely try it out some more in the future for practical use.

    Thanks for an awesome post!

    Reply
  • Shane
    September 22nd, 2009
    2:52 am

    Great post!
    I’ve experimented with lucid dreaming myself, but I never really got anywhere. I guess my starting point is an unusual one: I never rememeber my dreams. For me, it is normal to have “dreamless” nights. I don’t really mind, either, but I’d like to experience lucid dreams.

    Going to sleep with the intention of dreaming and becoming lucid and then writing down anything I could remember in the morning helped me. For a while, I remembered dreams several times a week and once, I became kind of lucid (I realized I was dreaming but wasn’t in control).

    Reading this post makes me want to try again.

    Reply
  • Jonny
    September 22nd, 2009
    3:32 am

    Lol. Tim, if I didn’t admire you so much I would think you were a nutter. So far you have inspired me to quit my job and move abroad and so now I am loving life in Bangkok and now I fear you will have me having sex with Megan Foxx within the next 24 hours. Tim I salute your awesomeness.

    Reply
  • Brad
    September 22nd, 2009
    3:55 am

    Can I have a lucid dream and bitch slap Farrel

    Reply
  • David Rojas
    September 22nd, 2009
    4:17 am

    I’ve had some lucid dreams, but I haven’t mastered it yet. My main problem seems to be dream recall. Anyway, I didn’t know you were into that stuff, and you even use it to accelerate learning. I’m impressed, please write more on this subject.

    Reply
  • Laura
    September 22nd, 2009
    4:19 am

    Great post! My family has a lot of lucid dreamers. I find it very relaxing and wake up refreshed than a non-lucid dream.

    Reply
  • JamesM
    September 22nd, 2009
    4:20 am

    I’ve done plenty of lucid dreaming in the past, but have to confess to never doing anything valuable with it – just had the best dreams ever. I haven’t managed it recently though – maybe I should give it another try and see if I can actually be constructive!

    Reply
  • bluelight
    September 22nd, 2009
    4:58 am

    great to see the write up thank you. another recent article on this on lifehack.org

    http://www.lifehack.org/articles/lifestyle/7-steps-to-start-lucid-dreaming.html

    picked up also today on Mercola

    http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2009/09/22/7-Steps-to-Start-Lucid-Dreaming.aspx

    Reply
  • Benedict Westenra
    September 22nd, 2009
    5:05 am

    Love the pirouette clip! I presume you’ve seen the one of Nureyev dancing Le Corsaire?

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-0ShQFp3rEs#t=1m56s

    Reply
  • Adrian
    September 22nd, 2009
    5:11 am

    Good intro!

    I didn’t understand step 3: “how to induce” until I clicked on LaBerge’s explanation. It explains the actual words to say and what to do. Looks like this could lead to some sleepless nights until you get it down.

    Tim, I’m also curious about the line “I applied to Stanford University because I wanted to refine my clinical understanding of lucid dreaming.” Why was this included and not expounded upon? When did you apply to Stanford? Did you get in? As an academic or part of their sleep lab? Recently or long time ago?

    Controlling dreams sounds a bit double-edged. I’d need to see specific examples of its benefits before hitting the sack to try it.

    Sleep tight everyone.

    Be well,
    Adrian

    Reply
  • Boyd Smith
    September 22nd, 2009
    5:14 am

    I’m disapointed. The 4HWW is a great guide on making your dreams really happen. The ending of this blog post and seveal of the previous comments have reduced this to a forum on how to enhance your masterbation expierience. This seems to be the oppisite of going after the 10. I can tell you that the greatest joy of my life has been marrying my 10 and having 3 wonderful kids. No need to “dream” about girls any more………..

    Reply
  • ppc4
    September 22nd, 2009
    5:38 am

    Tim-

    I’ve had lucid dreams on occasion (1-4 times a year) throughout my life. Its fantastic. I’ve never “practiced”, however, so this is a great primer on something i’ve always found oddly interesting. (and SO FUN when it happened!)

    Best,

    PPC4

    Reply
  • Jim
    September 22nd, 2009
    5:50 am

    One caveat I would add is that lucid dreaming can be very tiring. After some practice I had to give it up because I was remembering 3+ dreams a night. As my dreams were fairly active I never woke refreshed in the morning.

    Also, an easy way to keep your mind alert instead of using drugs is just to drink a bottle of water right before going to sleep.

    Reply
  • Michael
    September 22nd, 2009
    5:51 am

    Whoa… sounds like a script for “Flatliners 2″. I’m gonna have to come back to this article for a re-read but I’m definitely interested in this field. Thanks for sharing.

    Mike

    Reply
  • Kayaman
    September 22nd, 2009
    6:00 am

    It took me a while to learn how to fly. Here’s a tip I found very helpful: instead of attempting propel yourself (ala superman) try to envision the surroundings moving away from you.

    Reply
  • Michael Epstein
    September 22nd, 2009
    6:23 am

    Question…. would there be a difference between a lucid dream and a “highly realistic dream where I dreamed I was having a lucid dream”? I was already wondering this when I read your post.

    Reply
  • andrea
    September 22nd, 2009
    6:29 am

    Totally interesting. Was this post brought about in any way because of the release of Jung’s “Red Book”? It should be totally fascinating to read!

    http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/20/magazine/20jung-t.html?em

    Reply
  • The Real Josh
    September 22nd, 2009
    6:49 am

    I have been fascinated by the concept of Lucid Dreaming and have always wanted to try it. Perhaps I will give it better thought and attempt.

    Reply
  • Greg
    September 22nd, 2009
    6:51 am

    I experimented with lucid dreaming in college, though could never maintain lucidity for long enough to do anything productive (spinning and looking at my hands was not helpful for me). I resigned myself to jumping out of windows and flying around until I woke up. It was fun for a while but not worth the effort invested.

    The best reality check I ever found is simply to try to breath with your mouth closed and your nostrils pinched shut. If you can still breath, you’re dreaming (breathing underwater works as well, but has other practical problems if you would like to practice while awake). This one can be done easily and very quickly, though my (sleeping) brain did once try to trick me into holding my breath. Not sure if this is a well known technique, but I did not see any mention of it in the books I was reading at the time.

    Reply
  • Matt - Zero 2 Hero
    September 22nd, 2009
    7:06 am

    I’ve had a few lucid dreams in the past. The best example I can think of is the following:

    After a bout of flying I realized that what I was experiencing was actually a dream. So I thought to myself if this is a dream then I would like a cheeseburger. I looked down and then there was a cheeseburger in my hand. I thought to myself. Cool, now I have a cheeseburger, as soon as I discovered this new power I woke up…..

    Reply
  • Justin Razmus
    September 22nd, 2009
    7:09 am

    Interesting. I have read about this before, but you always put a different spin on things and break it down better.

    Reply
  • Friggin
    September 22nd, 2009
    7:12 am

    I’ve also have found that my dream recall and lucid dreaming are highly correlated to the amount of sleep I get and the amount of stress in my life. It’s probably more the amount of sleep as more stress usually results in me getting less sleep. But when I can sleep multiple days in a row without an alarm clock to wake me up so I can choose to wake up when I want to wake up, and I have no appointments that day or feelings of haste, I usually have extremely crystal dream recall and more success entering lucidity.

    I don’t intend to spam with a link, but the link in my name on this comment has a collection of stories I gather from dreams. Haven’t been posting lately. Been too stressed :(

    Reply
  • Amanda
    September 22nd, 2009
    7:27 am

    Hi Tim,
    I have a reverse problem with lucid dreaming. I can very easily lucid dream, and realise that I am in the dream world with the simple test of “pinching myself”. But there are times where I lose control of the dream situation and cannot force myself to wake up. Almost like I have a fear of being trapped inside my dream. It then turns into sleep paralysis when I start to panic – difficulty to breathe, inability to scream, etc.

    What sort of training would I need to do to gain control?

    Reply
  • BDom
    September 22nd, 2009
    7:32 am

    Tim,

    I have always been able to control my dreams, I didn’t know that was called lucid dreaming. My dreams are always very realistic, but it seems I can always control exactly what happens. Many times I have the “ah ha” moment where in the dream I realize I am dreaming, then I do what ever I want, fly go SS like a DBZ character or what ever.

    The neatest thing I think I have done so far, was I was having a nightmare, and of course it seemed very real. When I had the “ah ha” moment and realized it was a dream instead of changing the dream, I told myself just to wake up and I did! Since then I can wake my self up during dreams… or hit snooze on the alarm and fall back into the same dream (if it was a good one)…. maybe I’m just weird.

    Thanks for the post,

    Reply
  • Ryan Smith
    September 22nd, 2009
    7:36 am

    This post reminded me of a movie I had forgotten about for a while but need to watch again. Check it out if you haven’t seen it. It is called Waking Life. Trailer link below.

    http://www.imdb.com/video/screenplay/vi2734358809/

    Reply
  • Marcie
    September 22nd, 2009
    7:37 am

    Hmmm…I’ve been doing my own ‘version’ of this for quite some time. Interestingly, I had been disturbed by a recurrence of dreams where I fall off a cliff or some other high place, and I’d startle myself awake. It just occurred to me a couple weeks ago that instead of waking out of fear, I needed to fly. In fact, I just had one of my best flying sessions yesterday, a little wobbly, but I’m still a fledgling!

    Funny how that parallels my real life. Thanks for helping me grow wings :-)

    Reply
  • Joe
    September 22nd, 2009
    7:39 am

    If you really want to take it to the next level…

    I’ve found that my lucid dreams tend to precede out-of-body experiences. Once you become aware of the fact that you are consciously alert while in a dream state, try “willing” your awareness out of yourself. You will then start to feel tingling vibrations throughout your body, and then a sudden release. But just as with lucid dreaming, you may be so excited that you will wake yourself up.

    I’ve found that lucid dreams come more easily if I fall asleep on my back. (Unfortunately, I tend to snore on my back, and my wife’s sharp pokes to my ribs usually wake me before I get a chance to enjoy them.) Depending on your body’s rhythms, you may also find a mind-afternoon nap a good time to try and fly…

    -joe

    Reply
  • Sucky
    September 22nd, 2009
    7:40 am

    Nice… I’m thinking of writing a post titled “I had sex with Blake Lively thanks to Tim Ferriss”.

    Reply
  • MattyG
    September 22nd, 2009
    8:00 am

    Tim, this is my first post, I’ve been reading the blog for a while now and I had no choice but to post a comment after this one. I always find when I have a lot of time on my hands it takes a lot of effort to fill the void. Your life is such an inspiration – and it became even more so when I re-read the foreword to HST’s Kingdom of Fear and realized who wrote it. What is it that drives you?

    Wow! I will be working LD into my life starting tonight. So much potential here…

    Reply
    • Tim Ferriss
      September 22nd, 2009
      11:02 am

      Thanks for the kind words, Matty! I’m just a normal person who happens to write of my adventures :) LD is a great tool for not only filling the void, but creating a more meaningful and productive life. I hope you enjoy it.

      All the best,

      Tim

      Reply
  • Colleen K. Peltomaa
    September 22nd, 2009
    8:01 am

    Hi, Tim, good timing. It seems that sometimes I visit “parallel universes”. The oddest one was when I found myself in the body of a woman (not on this planet even, because she was not quite “human”) who was experiencing a troubled marriage and had decided to leave the body. So I went into the body and sat across the table from her traumatized husband (she had children too) and I said to him, “I think we can work this out…” He gave me a very suspicious look and I thought it best to get out of there, and I woke up. He was humanoid but not of the Earth variety.

    That happened a second time too and I found myself in the body of a male. I checked out the face in the mirror and decided that I liked the cute smile :-), but I left that body too because I am female and I was a bit confused because I still liked men, ha! That seemed more like a parallel universe experience because I knew one of the persons from this lifetime/universe.

    Of course, I often have sleep recalls of past lives and I usually recognize them as such and that is common when someone is doing subconscious clearing work as I am at the moment. Exploring past lives is also a whole ‘nother trip :-) It’s a bit like watching a soap opera with costumes, no commercials, and you are the star actor :-) However, punching holes in the Subconscious membrane is not recommended for the kids at home — best to get some initial professional guidance. I only do it to facilitate my spiritual awakening work.

    Can one go into the past (access the akashic records) using lucid dreaming?

    I don’t know if that is called lucid dreaming or just being a “night walker” ?

    Reply
  • Kyle Parisi
    September 22nd, 2009
    8:14 am

    @Neil Waking Life is a great movie on philosophy and dreaming, directed by the prolific Richard Linklater. This movie was the first thing that introduced me to lucid dreams.

    Reply
  • Mike
    September 22nd, 2009
    8:14 am

    Hey, nice post Tim!

    One little trick I discovered that worked more reliably (for me anyway) than the MILD version is a littletwist on LaBerge’s WILD drill.

    (WILD = Will Induced Lucid Dream – instead of using mnemonics to wake up in the dream, you use willpower to hold consciousness as you drift into the state.)

    The challenge there obviously is having enough control of trance states to stay aware as you drift off… which is something this little tweak fixes.

    Simply describe aloud (albeit softly) in sensory terms what you see, feel, hear, smell and taste in your mental environment and keep this rapid flow description running as you drift smoothly into the dream.

    The description reinforces the stability and increases the intensity of the envionment which makes it much easier to concentrate.

    What’s really interesting is if you experiment meeting fellow dreamers during your dreams…

    Have fun;)
    Michael

    Reply
  • john
    September 22nd, 2009
    8:23 am

    I’ve had lucid dreams my whole life (before I knew what they were called). In the past year, by accident, I began to recognize when I would wake up in a hypnogogic state–the state between being awake and asleep. And it’s easy, for me, to go from hypnogogic to lucid dreaming. Now I have lucid dreams at least once a week and often for a few days in a row.

    Some of the “symptoms” of being in a hypnogogic state are hearing noises or voices that aren’t really there and having the rather unpleasant feeling that someone is in your room. You think you are completely awake but your mind is still partially in sleep mode.

    Once I realized this state preceeded lucid dreaming, I learned to recognize it and use it. Instead of being terrified that someone was in the room with me, I realized I was hypnogogic.

    I relax and try to feel my body falling through the bed or sometimes rotating clockwise around the bed. As soon as I feel my body moving, I know I’m almost there. In a few seconds I can stand up and I’m in full lucid dreaming mode. I usually start in my bedroom and then just imagine what ever environment I want on the other side of the door.

    I did some reading and learned that touching your “dream” body can help you stay in a lucid dream. Rubbing your hands together in the dream or rubbing your hands against your chest or legs keeps you in dream mode.

    Another thing I’ve noticed is that I have to be well rested to have a successful lucid dream. If I’ve missed too much sleep for a few days, I won’t wake up hypnogogic. Or, if I do, and I make it into the lucid dream, it’s very fuzzy. I can’t control it or hold on to it for more than a couple of minutes. If I’m well rested, I wake up hypnogogic often, and the lucid dreams I have are vivid and easier to control.

    One tip on controlling lucid dreams is to believe something is going to happen. I tried controlling them with mixed results by repeating the thought of what I wanted to happen (e.g. I’m on a beach, I’m on a beach, etc). That did not work very often. But, if I *believe* that when I open a door the beach will be on the other side, it works.

    What is really weird is that, for me, my mind takes longer to form something the more complex it is. I can watch whatever it is taking shape. If I “conjure” a specific person, they show up in front of me like hot wax or the liquid Terminator. I can watch their face slowly take shape. Maybe this will get faster with more time.

    So, those are the things I have learned about lucid dreaming. Hope it helps someone.

    Reply
  • Mr. Twenty Twenty
    September 22nd, 2009
    8:23 am

    Hi Tim,

    Great as usual.

    Every old culture that had LIFESTYLE had some kind of lucid dreaming / shamanic kind of practice.

    No surprise that you would bring it to life here, with great stories, support material, and your unique flair.

    Best,

    Mr. Twenty Twenty

    That guy who really did LEGALLY change his name to the number of perfect vision, because LIVING your vision PERFECTLY matters. Whoo yah!

    Reply
  • Nancy Lee
    September 22nd, 2009
    8:28 am

    Very exciting to read that you’re a lucid dreamer. Usually when I mention the topic, people react as if I’m nuts. Perhaps you’ll lend the skill some additional credibility.

    Conciousness being the topic this morning, I’d like to mention a short but stunning speech by Krishnamurti in a short video here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n2JISEATisI

    If the link doesn’t work, Google “Krishamurti zeitgeist addendum outtake”.

    Reply
  • Charles
    September 22nd, 2009
    8:37 am

    I found that just daydreaming could have very positive effects. It seems logical that lucid dreaming (which I admit I had never heard of before) be even more effective.

    I’ll have to give it a try, but my dreams are the stealthy type. I almost never recall them. It is going to require some serious practice.

    Thanks for that new door to open!

    Reply
  • Jennifer Flower, Ph.D
    September 22nd, 2009
    8:47 am

    Tim-

    Very interesting, useful stuff, as usual. Thanks.

    You probably already know about the perfect film about lucid dreaming – which is, of course, about a lot more than lucid dreaming – called Waking Life by Richard Linklater. He uses a surreal style – a technology that I believe is called Paintbox – which makes it feel more like an hallucination but like any real poetry or philosophy it goes straight to the heart of the dream and longing and what we can control and what we can’t.

    It’s one of my favorite movies but, well, I’m a psychoanalyst so whattayou expect?

    Reply
  • SleepWarrior
    September 22nd, 2009
    9:04 am

    I’ve been lucid dreaming regularly for about 3-4 years. They are more than worth the effort.

    There are many other drugs and supplements to assist in lucid dreaming — galantamine, piracetam, yohimbine, 5-htp, melatonin, etc (note: the nootropic piracetam would be used to improve the cholinergenic system, which would theoretically allow vivid dreams to occur more frequently).

    I wouldn’t recommend any of those drugs, per se. Galantamine in particular warrants certain caution. Personally, the simple drugs like melatonin or nicotine work sufficiently enough for me to have a LD frequency of about 2-4 a week.

    Great article

    Reply
  • Josh
    September 22nd, 2009
    9:05 am

    I want you to know that you amaze me every single time I get a blog post by you. I never knew anything about this, but I’m definitely going to start studying it some because I think it can be very powerful. Awesome man. Thanks again for the great ideas!

    Reply
  • Brian Simko
    September 22nd, 2009
    9:24 am

    Wow, what a nice surprise!

    So I understand how you use lucid dreaming for performance but you also mentioned using it to ‘Cultivate zen-like present-state awareness and decrease needless stress’, is there any particular practice you use to do this or is it just a natural by-product of the lucid dream experience itself?

    I know Tibetans and others use lucid dreaming to practice meditation, Dzogchen, Tantra, and so forth…and I am curious if you have a meditation practice or what your opinion is on that?

    Thanks for this post, you may have just re-inspired me to get into this again.
    Last night I dreamed I was hanging out with Jack Nicholson (under very strange – dream – circumstances) and we were very close friends. Also had a dream of taking a nice bath with hottie! Perhaps the time is ripe.

    Brian

    Reply
  • johnf
    September 22nd, 2009
    9:28 am

    Another good natural dream enhancer is Artemisia vulgaris (aka Mugwort). Make a strong tea out of it and drink about 15-30 minutes before sleep. It has been known to cause restless sleep as well though, so be prepared for that.

    If your picking this in your back yard (as I do), please be VERY careful that your getting the right thing.

    dream well.

    Reply
  • Melodi
    September 22nd, 2009
    9:45 am

    Thanks for posting this great read! I’m including an additional link about lucid dreaming and sleep paralysis. I dealt with this for a long time before I learned how to lucid dream. It’s not something to be afraid of, although it can be quite scary to those who do not know what they are experiencing: http://www.dreaminglucid.com/articlessleepparalysis.html

    Reply
  • » The I Love Lucidity Show - Dissociated Press
    September 22nd, 2009
    9:48 am

    [...] I forget that others have never even heard of it. Which why I was surprised to run across the post Lucid Dreaming: A Beginner’s Guide on Tim Ferriss’ blog (he’s the guy that wrote The 4-Hour Workweek) that passionately [...]

  • John B Good
    September 22nd, 2009
    9:51 am

    Hey Tim,

    Great post man! I really found the LD FAQ’s really interesting. I haven’t had the chance to experiment with controlling my lucid dreams much yet, but I’ve had several randomly. I will say that they tend to happen during daytime naps.

    Also, there is another blogger out there named Steve Pavlina. He and his wife (who has a separate blog) have numerous posts on Lucid Dreaming and Astral Projection. While their posts are very interesting and informing, they don’t quite offer guidance to tapping into this ability as you have here. I will say that a lot of Steve’s posts have been very informative and helpful in my life.

    I just started law school in August and the reason I’m so excited about this is that I really think that the exercise of writing down my dreams right after I wake up will increase my ability to memorize and apply rules to various fact situations (which is what law school exams consist of).

    Thank you so much for finding and sharing this information. I have a feeling it is going to be hugely beneficial in my life.

    John B Good

    Reply
  • NancyU
    September 22nd, 2009
    10:01 am

    3 more hints to improve lucid dreaming, especially among the 40+ crowd
    1) Get enough sleep, set aside 8 hours, ok?
    2) Exercise!
    3) Buy a new mattress if it’s more than 8 years old – you’re tossing and turning too much and interrupting dream cycles. I love my memory foam. ‘nuf said.
    4) Take krill oil. I can’t recall my dreams at all without this stuff.

    Reply
  • steve
    September 22nd, 2009
    10:30 am

    i have been a practitioner of lucid dreaming since i was 12ish? but either the journal’s where destroyed or throw-ed away recently i have made it a point not to do that anymore.

    i usually have up to 10 lucid dreams a week most are short and fuzzy but over all i love it in general.

    Reply
  • John Fotheringham
    September 22nd, 2009
    10:42 am

    Can you please share more about how you use lucid dreaming for foreign languages? Is it simply a matter of having conversations using the language during your dream?

    Also, do you think there is any problem with practicing multiple foreign languages during a given dream session or is it best to focus on one?

    Reply
  • David
    September 22nd, 2009
    10:50 am

    Thanks for the post Tim. It sounds interesting and confused me at first but I think I get what you are talking about.

    I have 2 questions (one is more of a request)

    1. Do you start dreaming and then become conscious or are you awake thinking purposefully while slipping into a sleep state?

    2. This post needs a follow up. I am sure many are curious as to your mental focus during the yabusame week (still waiting on news of your show), and are wanting to know the how-to on using lucid dreaming to accelerate skill building.

    please one more post about this applied to skill building.

    Reply
    • Tim Ferriss
      September 22nd, 2009
      10:55 am

      Hi David,

      Thanks for the comment. You start dreaming and then become conscious. I’ll see what I can do on follow-up…

      Best,

      Tim

      Reply
  • john
    September 22nd, 2009
    11:15 am

    @David,

    You can get into a lucid dream when you are awake or when you are already in a dream. A Dream-Initiated Lucid Dream is a DILD and a Wake-Initiated Lucid Dream is a WILD. Apparently WILDs are much more difficult to induce, but that is how I have lucid dreams naturally. I wake up at some point during the night and feel that I’m in that state between being awake and asleep (hypnogogia–which is also the state where sleep paralysis or “night terrors” occur). Once I know I’m in a hypnogogic state, I can consciously take myself into the dream state without ever losing conscious awareness.

    Wikipedia has a good entry on lucid dreaming that covers some of this.

    Reply
  • David Crandall
    September 22nd, 2009
    11:17 am

    I read this immediately before going to bed last night. After reading LeBerge’s FAQ (that you linked to), I decided to give it a go. I already have really good dream recall, so I just jumped right in to focusing my intent.

    I took 2 melatonin and kept repeating to myself that I would start spinning once I was in a dream. TWO LUCID DREAMS LAST NIGHT…BOOYAH!!!

    Strangely enough, I was not as interested in flying as everyone else. I played around with telekinesis in my first dream (dunno why) and thought I would try dying in my second one. The dying one was awesome: nuclear explosion…vaporized!

    Anyways, thought you might like to know that someone already had success. Thanks!

    Reply
  • Alex
    September 22nd, 2009
    11:26 am

    I, for one, am ecstatic with the anticipation of flying around and blowing stuff up in a giant robot after (ahem) *meeting* Felicia Day. God, I’m such a nerd…

    Reply
  • Paul Norwine
    September 22nd, 2009
    12:19 pm

    I’ve had lucid dreams in the past but they were never consciously induced. I had no idea there was such a following of people who not only attempt to lucid dream but, as judging from the comments here, actually are semi-successful at it.

    I’ve experimented with dream journals in the past but never last longer than a few entries. But if lucid dreaming is the end-result, I’ll give it another whirl!

    Paul

    Reply
  • Dustin
    September 22nd, 2009
    12:36 pm

    good post.

    I went to John Smith’s wrestling camp about 12 years ago..2 weeks of hell.

    In private, he asked one of the young wrestlers, “hey, what do you think about that woman over there?”. The wrestler replied, “Man, she’s hot.”. John replied, “Good…because I’ll going to marry her soon”

    Reply
  • SleepWarrior
    September 22nd, 2009
    1:14 pm

    @Paul

    Regarding dream journals, I think a lot of people give up the habit because they feel pressured to write down every detail.

    If you like writing long, elaborate paragraphs, go for it. Doesn’t work for me though.

    Instead, I just write down keywords. My entry for last night reads: tornado, storm, roof, dark, Sarah, phone, Berlin.

    I don’t keep a journal to do weird Freudian analysis, or to record weird stories that I can read several years from now. I keep a journal for one reason, and one reason only: to trick my brain into thinking dream recall is important.

    A few keywords accomplishes that goal just fine.

    Reply
    • Tim Ferriss
      September 22nd, 2009
      4:27 pm

      Good point. I agree and often do the same. This also allows me to often fill in details later, if I so decide.

      Tim

      Reply
  • brandon gilbert
    September 22nd, 2009
    2:32 pm

    wow tim…i never would have assumed that you would be into lucid dreaming as well.

    that being said, this is a really bad ass and to the point introduction to lucid dreaming. ive found myself stepping away from the practice, but this article has since inspired me w. new intentions and horizons to explore in the lucid world.

    speaking of which, have you seen waking life? if not, you MUST see it?

    i found myself, like most beginners, having sex w. every single woman that i saw in the dream world…this became a bit of a trap…

    the last time it happend i was in the middle of a good bang…next thing i knew a talking silver orb pulled me out of the dream and back into my bedroom to explain that i was wasting the ability.
    the orb then went on to explain the nature of RNA and DNA, along with a lot of other information i cant consciously recall right now.

    Reply
  • Luis
    September 22nd, 2009
    2:37 pm

    I’d recommend anyone who wants to begin experimenting with lucid dreaming to check out http://www.lucidipedia.com . It has a very methodical and practical approach to inducing lucid dreams. It worked really well for me.

    Reply
  • John Fawkes
    September 22nd, 2009
    2:40 pm

    Cool article. I’ve been practicing lucid dreaming for a little while now, but the part about drugs is new to me. I’m surprised you even tried nicotine; congrats on quitting.

    One other topic that would have been good to hit on: drugs or practices to avoid. I’ve read from multiple sources that alcohol and marijuana severely inhibit lucid dreaming. Some of those same sources also said that suddenly ceasing to use them after habitual use causes a rebound effect in which you experience especially vivid dreams for a few days. I haven’t tested any of this myself, but I’m having a keg party this weekend, so I’ll report back next week with regards to the alcohol rebound claims.

    -Fawkes

    Reply
    • Tim Ferriss
      September 22nd, 2009
      4:25 pm

      Hi John,

      Unless I’m mistaken, both alcohol and marijuana can inhibit vasopressin, which is important for short-term memory (i.e. dream recall and prospective memory), and this inhibition also partially explains excessive peeing while drinking, as vasopressin in an anti-diuretic hormone.

      Just a guess…

      Tim

      Reply
  • Neil
    September 22nd, 2009
    3:02 pm

    When Lucid Dreaming, don’t look into mirrors. If you do, be prepared for a shock. Usually your reflection is pretty grotesque, and if you’re not prepared for it, it can be pretty scarey, and cause you to wake up.

    Reply
  • Alex Zilo
    September 22nd, 2009
    3:18 pm

    Tim,
    Thank you for another great post. I have been waiting for you to do a post on lucid dreaming since I first saw you mention it. I was particularly curious as to how you developed the skill.
    I developed Narcolepsy when I was an adolescent, one of the symptoms being excessive REM cycles, sometimes lasting for hours. This lead to me having incredibly and sometimes terrifyingly vivid dreams. Before I knew what Lucid Dreaming was, I developed the skill to cope with the often unpleasant dreams I would have. Over the course of about a year, I developed Incredible control over my dreams, to the point where I could fall asleep and begin Lucid Dreaming immediately (being Narcoleptic and all). During a few years in my early teens when my narcolepsy was still undiagnosed and untreated, I kept a continuing story line throughout my dreams, something of a Greek epic. I have now been having Lucid Dreams almost every night for over ten years. I figured I would try and give some pointers and answer some peoples questions from my own experience.

    Tips
    1: Have a Home Base – Try to begin every dream from the same local. You do not have to physically be there, but it helps if you start within your dream from a familiar place. I found my bed at home to be the most natural. It really helps with the progression into a Lucid Dream.

    2: Stay as neutral as you can – Try to keep your heart rate normal and breathing consistent one you enter a Lucid state. I find the faster my heart beats and the harder I breath the fuzzier the dream get until I eventually wake up. This is hard in the beginning when you are indulging in Tim’s step 5, but believe me, you can do both.

    3: Play the TV or Music softly in the background – This is applies more once you get the hang of Lucid dreaming. Playing a TV show or movie in the background will help give your mind a setting to project, especially if it is a show you are familiar with. It also has the added advantage of helping in the learning of fun dream skills. I use to watch adult swim on Cartoon Network and one of the first things I learned to do in my dreams was the Kamehameha from Dragon Ball Z.

    4: To use Lucid Dreaming to aid in skill learning, try to have that skill be the last thing you actively think about before going to bed – It doesn’t have to be the last thing you do, but it should be the last thing you really concentrate on. I have used Lucid dreaming to help learn guitar, practice Kata, and improve my marksmanship.

    Those are the best tips I can think of for now. I will chime in later if I can think of anything else.

    Reply
  • ben
    September 22nd, 2009
    3:21 pm

    Flying and banging every girl in sight isn’t the only superpower available while lucid dreaming. While I’m dreaming, I’m still involved in the “storyline” of the original unintentional dream, except that since I know I’m dreaming, I know I have whatever powers I can muster from my imagination.

    Sometimes I’ll be in fights in dreams, and I’ll channel lighting bolts or fireballs through my fists at my enemies. That’s always fun. I usually also have telekinetic powers.

    Flying is a given. By the way, for those who aren’t regular lucid dreamers who sometimes dream of falling, make yourself stay awake for when you hit the ground. (most people wake up before hitting ground). You’ll be surprised…one of two things always happens to me…1) I bounce back up very high and start flying, 2) I land on the ground and the dream switches gears.

    I had some interest experiences trying to achieve an “out of body experience” back in my more experimental college days, but ultimately I decided it was probably just a more vivid LD. For those interested, I think the author’s name is Robert Monroe who did a lot of research on OBEs.

    Reply
  • Yumi
    September 22nd, 2009
    3:44 pm

    Mr. Ferris,

    I am only on page 22 of your book and already run around with this bracelet (that I had to change from right to left within seconds, my friend thinks it’s fashion and looks really cool) and watch myself preparing a dream diary and reading up on lucid dreaming! Fun!!!!!!!!
    I expect myself to take off any time .

    You have to try a good German Riesling, they are amazing this year.

    Reply
  • Travis
    September 22nd, 2009
    4:38 pm

    Ben, good mention of Robert Monroe. My mother has done a lot of stuff at the Monroe Institute and keeps trying to get my brother and I to attend but we’re constantly doing something else and haven’t bothered making the time. The binaural music/frequencies that Steve mentioned above are used heavily there to induce lucid dreaming and OBEs (secondhand info from Mom) so I’m thinking there’s definitely something to that.

    From my [limited] understanding, lucid dreaming is really just the tip of the iceberg in terms of what we can accomplish with our minds. I’ve seen some firsthand results of TMI’s MC² course and it’s very cool stuff with energy manipulation and psychokinesis.

    Reply
  • Zach Katkin
    September 22nd, 2009
    4:54 pm

    Fantastic article. Your stuff is all over the place, but it is incredibly interesting and well written/planned out and the timeliness is fantastic. I was just talking to my friend about a lucid dream I had with him. We were heading to school and he was concerned with something and I looked over and said “don’t worry about… you’re not real, we’re in a dream.”

    I have had lucid dreams 3 times in my life. Each time I was able to keep it going by literally forcing myself asleep (during times I started to slip). At these times (when I was beginning to wake up) it felt like I was just on the line between asleep and awake and if I concentrated I was able to stay in the dream. Should I have another lucid dream, and start to slip I will try your suggestions.

    I have also been able to continue a lucid dream after waking up (to urinate) by keeping the memory alive and completely visualized in my head (not turning on any lights and generally doing nothing except what is necessary).

    I hope your suggestions don’t work too well and we all end up just sleeping all day, in order to fornicate and fly in our dreams.

    Reply
  • Benedict Westenra
    September 22nd, 2009
    5:44 pm

    A few musical dream experiences:

    Recently I was working on a song arrangement and dreamed up a new harmonization that would go under the melody. On waking I tried it out and it sounded great (it’s still in the arrangement). The significance of this didn’t strike me until later in the day, at which point I emailed some friends: “I CAN WORK IN MY SLEEP!”. 4-Hour Workweek eat your heart out, I’m aiming for 0.

    It shouldn’t have surprised me, though, since I once dreamed I was in a World War II film as a kid and wrote down the soundtrack on waking up. It was better than most of the stuff I wrote when I was awake, and I don’t think it was plagiarized as I’ve never heard anything similar since. (Paul McCartney supposedly wrote “Yesterday” the same way.)

    I find if I’m falling asleep while listening to music the music starts making sense to me in the same way that English does, only much more so. For instance, at college I was dozing off during a string quartet recital and thought that there were four people holding a debate on stage. I look forward to experimenting with lucid dreaming and music!

    Reply
  • Tyson Clarke
    September 22nd, 2009
    7:58 pm

    Don’t wanna get all loony on you guys – but the intelligence associated with the crown chakra, or what the Maya call eagle energy is paramount in dreams and dream manipulation. You can open it up by doing some guided imagery meditation as well.

    Tim, I’m sure you know – but this aussie who has taught me a lot about financial education – Jamie McIntyre – has a whole heap of 4HWW in it about building internet businesses. In his original book – “What I wish I learned at school” he talks about a Dream Day – where you write out a perfect set of circumstances about a particular day in the future. I’m very disciplined about writing this out at least once a day – then I drop it for a month or so to see what it does. Do you (or anyone else) reckon this would get in the way of my lucid dreams? Since I’m writing a hypothetical circumstance as a conscious effort? I can’t remember the last time I had a lucid dream.

    Be careful investigating dreaming too deeply y’all. It can really turn the volume down on the physical world if you let it.

    Peace. T

    Reply
  • Eric D
    September 22nd, 2009
    9:45 pm

    Hi Tim,

    Do you have any thoughts about (or experience with) the plant Calea zacatechichi?

    It is said to be smoked and/or taken as a tea by the Chontal Indians in Oaxaca, Mexico for divination and dream induction. I’ve read that expected results are mild euphoria, mental clarity, increased imagery (with eyes closed), and vivid dreams. Since it is not a controlled substance I’m tempted to buy some seeds and give it a go in my garden.

    Thanks for another informative post.

    - Eric D

    Reply
  • Matt
    September 22nd, 2009
    10:26 pm

    Tim,

    Thanks for the post. I’m a keen reader . I generally get your stuff and with this article, perhaps more than others, you’ve aroused my curiosity.

    However, with this article I feel you’ve assumed a bit too much knowledge about lucid dreaming. Could you provide a bit more detail please?

    A bit more of an introduction and a few more explanations of what it is would be good. A couple of good links in the intro would probably suffice.

    I guess because I don’t know anything about lucid dreaming I was left wondering why do steps 1 and 2? Again a couple of links to more explanations would be good if you have the time.

    Thanks

    Reply
  • Eric D
    September 22nd, 2009
    10:36 pm

    “Unless I’m mistaken, both alcohol and marijuana can inhibit vasopressin, which is important for short-term memory (i.e. dream recall and prospective memory)”

    In regard to this, I thought I’d also mention that researchers have demonstrated that THC ingestion decreases SWS and REM sleep, and has sometimes been found to eliminate REM sleep altogether in rats, rabbits, and cats.

    Since REM sleep is the time the brain consolidates important short-term memories into long-term memory, the combination of inhibited vasopressin and inhibited REM sleep could prove disastrous to the brain of a chronic chronic smoker!

    - Eric D (sorry for the double-post)

    Reply
  • Andres
    September 22nd, 2009
    10:45 pm

    Great Post!

    I’ve heard about it, first time with Carlos Castaneda and I tried for a while. It’s very hard and I can remember only on lucid dream when I was able to open the doors of every locked car I found (I was doing that to see if I am dreaming) But you need to have great ambition, otherwise you’ll give up or forget to try after a while…

    I’ll be trying again I think ;)

    Best regards

    Reply
  • Elliot
    September 22nd, 2009
    10:53 pm

    Tim,
    Interesting article. Have you ever watched the film Waking Life? It is about this kid who keeps waking up from one dream and going to the next. He has trouble figuring out whether he is dreaming or awake, but he keeps having these interesting conversations.

    I have been becoming more interested in dreaming. For the longest time, I thought I didn’t dream. But as you stated in your article, I never took the time to remember them. I would immediately get up and forget it. For the last few months I have been remembering my dreams and I have been getting some interesting stuff. Now I will have to add lucid dreaming to it.

    Reply
  • Rissa
    September 22nd, 2009
    11:00 pm

    I really appreciated this post. I think it may help with my middle of the night waking up type insomnia.

    Bravo.

    Reply
  • Joseph B.
    September 22nd, 2009
    11:14 pm

    Tim, do you think that while in a LD you can tap into a “universal knowledge bank” and learn things that you can bring into your *conscious* life? (that you didn’t already know.) So an extreme example would be, could you learn a language without being taught it in your conscious life?

    I believe we, theoretically, should be able to tap in to this knowledge bank *while conscious* and/or through meditation; but i can’t prove it.

    I also often wonder to myself whether i could turn myself into a doctor while LD and “heal” my current body from cancer or acne or warts or….

    OMG, can humans evolve to live our lives *in between* lucid dreams and consciousness? Something in the middle so that we don’t have to go back and forth between the two? Is this the 4th dimension?

    I think too much….

    P.S. I never realized what I sometimes did had a name! Wow, i’m not the only one! (@ BDom, ESPECIALLY you!!)

    Reply
  • Chris Comella
    September 23rd, 2009
    2:58 am

    Fascinating, I thought everyone had lucid dreams.

    Reply
  • Jordan Laubaugh
    September 23rd, 2009
    3:16 am

    Tim,

    Sweet post and it came at a really cool time for me. The past week (before reading this post) I was noticing myself having more vivid dreams (not lucid). I attributed it to some mental imagery practices I was doing right before bed.

    Basically, the practice was 30 minutes of using my creative imagination to picture myself interacting in real life experiences as I would like myself to act, looking how I would like to look, being how I would like to be. It truly works amazingly.

    But what I found was when I would do the exercise right before bed and fall asleep while i was doing it. I would have these extremely vivid dreams. They were almost never related to the mental practice I was doing (that I could tell). But they were powerful man. I woke up out of breath scared shitless several times because of some creepy, vivid dream I was having.

    Lucid dreams sound like what I was doing only more fun. I’m gonna take this post to heart and see if I can make my dreams a bit more productive.

    One last note on the mental imaging. In my opinion it is sort of like lucid dreaming while you are awake. But the mental pictures are a lot less clear and distraction is a lot more prevalent. So lucid would definitely be the way to go. I have never, to my knowledge, reached a level of consciousness in a dream. I’m excited to see how this works.

    Thanks for a sweet post dude,

    Jordan

    Reply
  • James
    September 23rd, 2009
    3:49 am

    Kia Ora Tim,

    Just wondering if you had been to Steve Pavlina’s website and read his post on polyphasic sleep and its effect of increasing the occurance of lucid dreams. Anyway keep up the good work!

    James

    Reply
  • Shane
    September 23rd, 2009
    4:46 am

    @sleepwarrior: Thanks for that tip. This was one of the issues I had: I tried to write down every detail but had trouble doing so in the drowsy, just-after-waking-up state I was in. I’ll try just jotting down keywords and see if that helps me.

    Reply
  • oskarbravo
    September 23rd, 2009
    4:58 am

    I’m interested to know how frequent (or even attempts at) lucid dreaming can affect your mental state during waking hours. My understanding was that the unconscious part of sleep was necessary to recharge and stay focused during day to day life.

    Reply
  • Steve B
    September 23rd, 2009
    7:42 am

    Like many others who have already commented, I found Richard Linklater’s _Waking Life_ a fascinating film that is in many ways a 90min tutorial on lucide dreaming. Here’s the wikipedia entry on the film:
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waking_life

    Reply
  • Dynasty
    September 23rd, 2009
    9:50 am

    Buenos Dias :-)

    I dig this holistic approach. Good old Melatonin…

    Interesting how REM is helpful for psychotherapy techniques as well. For example, EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization Process- Therapy) is used to relieve emotional distress.

    Anyway, live it up. Thanks for the post.

    Reply
  • confused...
    September 23rd, 2009
    10:28 am

    So, this is interesting, but two questions came pretty quickly to mind while I was reading this.

    First: If working memory can only hold 7 +/- 2 bits of information, and you are constantly creating your dreamscape in real-time, how are you able to remember that things changed when you looked away and looked back? If you see some text in a dream, then look back and it’s different, how do you know it’s different? If your brain is creating new patterns on the fly, won’t you just think the new pattern is the same as the old pattern, given that you’d have no working memory of the old pattern?

    Second: It would seem to be that there’s a difference between *knowing* that you’re dreaming, and being able to *control* the flow of events within the dream. I’d like to hear more from those experienced in LD if they were able to control their environment right away, or if that’s a learned skill, like LD itself.

    Thanks.

    Reply
  • Stacy
    September 23rd, 2009
    10:30 am

    I’ve always been interested in Lucid dreams and exploring what I could do with them. Mostly, I like to use them to connect with my higher self and answer life questions that have me stumped. You can get some great insights from thinking about a question before bed with the intent of having it answered in a lucid dream.

    I also find the MILD technique works the best for me.

    Tim, I’ve always thought you were a cool guy, but I’m finding you even cooler now!

    Reply
  • David Norcott
    September 23rd, 2009
    10:31 am

    Tim,

    It’s interesting that you mentioned using LD to achieve a zen-like state of mind. My initial thought when reading this is that this flies in the face of the “live in the moment” aspect of zen. If you think to yourself “am I dreaming?” every time you walk through a door or check your watch, isn’t that kind of a mental burden? During your waking life you will be constantly second-guessing and questioning the world around you. That doesn’t sound like a peaceful mind to me.

    That being said, I think that LD is super interesting and I plan to try out your method. =)

    Reply
  • Wesley Craig Green
    September 23rd, 2009
    11:04 am

    I feel like a doofus saying this but I always assumed my lucid dreams were just regular dreams made more surreal due to being in a deep sleep.

    While reading the post, I did remember some dreams where I could control what happened to a certain extent, and some of these dreams did take place in similar locations.

    So I’m going to take your advice / tips and try to induce these lucid dreams because they can be pretty entertaining. That is as long as it doesn’t crossover into Dreamscape territory, that is. If I happen to see Dennis Quaid, then I know I’ve gone too far!

    Reply
  • Kathy
    September 23rd, 2009
    11:26 am

    Crazy that you would post this just a few days after the concept came onto my radar and I determined I should investigate a little more. But I am curious what suggestions you have for someone who “doesn’t dream”. I know, I know.. I’ve been told that everyone does, but I never recall anything. Its not just that I can’t remember them, I can’t even recall the sensation of having dreamed.

    Reply
  • Ricky
    September 23rd, 2009
    12:05 pm

    hmm… would lucid dreaming be as beneficial as visualization? I know that visualization actually helps you in pretty much any field. How does LD compare?
    Do you transfer your real life skills in lucid dreams? e.g. if you don’t know how to play golf, would you also be a bad player in your lucid dream?

    Reply
  • Laurie
    September 23rd, 2009
    12:19 pm

    Far out! Very cool post with great tips. Thanks Tim.

    Reply
  • Eric
    September 23rd, 2009
    1:05 pm

    I’ve used this technique successfully, except I’ve never referred to it as lucid dreaming. To me it was creative visualization.

    I meditated to a state where I could feel my body, but I knew I wasn’t awake and I knew I wasn’t sleeping. I was able to dream for longer and longer periods as I became comfortable with remaining in this suspended state.

    I found the most success before I went to sleep because I felt there would be an additional positive affect on me at a subconscious level when I later went to sleep.

    However, I only used this technique to help solve big “brick wall” issues that I didn’t know how to get around. I never thought of using this as a technique to train with a mentor. For me it really opens up the possibilities of what this technique can be used for.

    Thanks for the inspiration!

    Reply
  • steve
    September 23rd, 2009
    1:11 pm

    a few things i have found usefully for dream recall, ludcid dreaming and just sleep in general.

    1. when dreaming anything is possible so you can hold your nose, look at your hands, try reading a book i will talk about each one.

    a. in the dream world as far as i know you dont have a pyhsical body so stop breath can only happen if you think it.

    b. for some reason looking at your hands is almost impossible i think that because your natural form is a ball of energy. which is kind of odd it seems must ghost sighting are balls of energy.

    c. reading a book same deal since the dream world is a different form than from the real world you can not read most things those that you can read seem to stem from your memory.

    as for dream recall and a journal for me it seems best to keep it short. something like if the dream is you running through the city being chased by a dragon i would put down dragon, chased, city. now if i need more information to improve dream recall i would add more.

    as for what i have done in dreams so far is flying, sex, confronting anything that im afraid of.

    what im working on is more control for longer time, improve workout etc, accelerate skills and improve myself through dreams.

    Reply
  • Keith
    September 23rd, 2009
    3:29 pm

    To test myself, I look around with my eyes closed. If I can see the room perfectly, I know what is happening.

    Reply
  • John
    September 23rd, 2009
    4:09 pm

    I have won 3 Stanley cups in my dreams that I made happen. One time I owed someone a lot of money. I had a dream that I pay him back it seemed so real, I was happy. Then when I woke up, and realize it was just a dream. But then, I got some unexpected money a couple of days later and pay him back. Was that my dream telling me this was going to happen?

    Reply
  • anomynous
    September 23rd, 2009
    6:46 pm

    @steve

    That i-dose site is pretty funny. It’s an affiliate program for a site that advertises their bi-neural beats as “Digital Drugs” in addition to offering “The highest quality exotic bud, mood enhancement pills, and legal hashish”.

    Reply
  • Abbie
    September 23rd, 2009
    7:02 pm

    Can anyone comment on one’s ability to have lucid dreams if one has untreated sleep apnea?

    Reply
  • Jonny G.
    September 23rd, 2009
    8:49 pm

    Hey Tim,

    I’ve been reading your blog for quite some time now and this is my first post. I tinkered with lucid dreaming during my teens. My recall skyrocketed after keeping a journal, but upon discovering the MILD method and thinking that it was the only way to achieve lucidity (by waking up in the middle of the night), I got discouraged.

    This post has really piqued my curiosity again, especially after reading about using the MILD technique on lazy weekend… never thought to do that. Thanks for the inspiration! -Jon

    Reply
  • Manan
    September 23rd, 2009
    11:51 pm

    @Tim and all :

    You guys MUST check out on Astral Projection. Its unbelievable!

    Reply
  • Justin B
    September 24th, 2009
    12:13 am

    A note about staying Lucid:

    I and a lot of others in lucid dreaming online communities have experienced limitations with both the hand rubbing technique and spinning. In my experience (and a number of others’) a FAR SUPERIOR WAY to remain lucid is to immediately drop to the ground once you feel the dream begin to fade, and start to crawl and feel your surroundings i.e. the carpet, or grass etc. Focus intently on the tactile sensation, even if your vision of the dream has faded completely, you should still be able to do this. After doing this for some time once you feel stable again, if you have lost your visuals you can “open” your eyes back into the dream world.

    Hope this helps someone trying!

    Reply
  • Clare Green
    September 24th, 2009
    3:36 am

    Hay Tim.

    Find I am able to wake myself up from nightmares at will (which is useful !) but not dreams. I work with leaders in business and privately using shamanic healing, NLP, coaching and my own energy techniques, but lucid dreaming alludes me so far. Why does it work for me only when I am in danger in dreams? I have some pretty wild and powerful energy techniques that I would love to share with you. I will try your media email address tomorrow.

    Clare x

    Reply
  • Alf
    September 24th, 2009
    5:12 am

    An AMAZING story on dream recall:

    You actually store vivid memories of MANY/MOST/ALL dreams that you have, without knowing it!

    I don’t remember many of my dreams – perhaps one every week or two, but one morning, about 15 years ago, I woke up and was able to remember the dream that I had just had. It was about being at the beach and I was able to recall great detail. As I was lying in bed thinking about the dream I suddenly remembered ANOTHER dream that I had about water, again in great detail – (skin diving off some rocks). Thinking about that dream triggered memory of YET ANOTHER water dream (running in a race along some cliffs at the beach, waves crashing on the sand), and then another (swimming under a huge wharf and to some boats) and another, and so on!

    I had never known about these dreams before. Being so weird (I was hyper exitced at the occurance) I grabbed a pen and paper and started writing them down (note that I’ve never kept a dream diary).

    In total I was able to recall SIXTEEN !!! separate water dreams, all in GREAT DETAIL, over a 20 minute period. Whilst I couldn’t tell exactly when I’d dreamed them I knew they were separate dreams, over a long period of time. It has never happened to me again but I would love to find out how to trigger it.

    Since that experience of recalling all the dreams in detail and writing them down I still, 15 years later, have absolutely vivid recall of them – better than most events that have occured in my life. I’m sitting here now picturing the exact scenes, feelings, events of some of them. I could draw these better than just about any memory that I try to picture in my head. It’s like they are permanently burned in my brain now.

    So some how, some where, you’re storing dreams away in your memory, in more detail than events that occur in your waking hours, without realising it. The key is finding out how to recall them!

    Cheers,
    Alf

    Reply
  • Joe
    September 24th, 2009
    5:30 am

    This is a really great tool. People talk about visualisation being important if you want to achieve goals… well this enables you to literally live your dreams. There is no better method of visualisation. It is also a lot of fun and after some time when you can do it while sleeping, it doesn’t take any time out of your day.

    Its good some more mainstream people are finally talking about this, not just crazy new agers.

    Reply
  • zach even - esh
    September 24th, 2009
    5:59 am

    Tim – hey bruddah, great Blog, wish it was around back when I was in high school :)

    I coulda used these tips to get my head straight as a wrestler, b/c no matter how hard I trained, mentally I had a very tough time envisioning my success or pulling out of road bumps.

    Ironically, I trained w/John twice at his intensive camp of 7 days. The summer of 1990 and the summer of 1992.

    Also, I have been working w/The Blair Academy Wrestling team lately, NEVER have I seen such a thing: a full room,, every single kid with 100% dedication, intensity, commitment and amazing listening skills and eye contact.

    It’s amazing what it does for a young kid when he is surrounded by other highly motivated and highly successful peers, just like people like us engage in masterminding for business, I just witnessed the wrestling mastermind.

    Thanks for all you do bro!

    BTW, a waaaaay back you posted a few quotes which I hung up in my office:

    “Is it a life or death situation?No”

    “Be Creative. Start Scaring Yourself”

    “Explore the Unthinkable”

    “Don’t let the fear of striking out hold you back.”

    Well, I’ve been rdng them a lot, and engraining them in my head got me feeling pretty damn good and were a part of what helped me leave my full time job behind and pursue my business full time.

    Thank you bruddah!

    Peace!

    –Z–

    Reply
  • Mark McLemore
    September 24th, 2009
    6:39 am

    Step 5 – The real reason men want to harness lucid dreaming–but won’t admit.

    I want to practice piano in my dreams. Seriously.

    Mark

    Reply
  • Alex
    September 24th, 2009
    7:29 am

    Haven’t achieved lucidity yet, but my dream recall went from lines to half a page in one day. This IS fun. Especially since my morning scrawlings are so funny to look at later.

    Reply
  • Pete
    September 24th, 2009
    7:34 am

    Hey Tim -

    You mind sharing with my where you ordered the Calea zacatechichi from that was recommended by the poster above? Googling brings up a number of sources, but I thought you might have known about/been able to find a legitimate seller.

    Thanks!

    Reply
  • Darya
    September 24th, 2009
    8:05 am

    What an awesome post out of left field. I usually have crazy dreams. More often then not I’m some kind of super hero who can shoot lightning from my knuckles or fly or become invisible. The rest of the time I’m saving people from sharks and volcanoes (with regular human powers). What would the dreaming world do without me? I don’t know.

    I think I’ll start documenting my dreams just in case I ever decide to get into the comic book field.

    Thanks for the tips.

    Reply
  • mike
    September 24th, 2009
    9:19 am

    I talked with a friend about it, and he’s had lucid dreams and we agreed to a “meeting place” if we ever go lucid and we were going to experiment and see if we can send each other messages in the dream world to see if the other person actually is aware of it. (string theory, universal consciouness, entanglement theories and other stuff interests us and we want to see if we can “share” dreams)

    Another thought I had…
    Everything in the dream world represents something, usually entirely different in the waking world. My theory is, to do “reverse dream analysis” and then to dream about something that represents success and acheivement in a certain area, and then go lucid and create that dream.

    For example, dreammoods.com says that
    “To dream that you receive a bouquet of damask rose foretells that you will find a faithful and true lover. ”
    If that’s what you want, make it a dream, and set an alarm every 10 minutes, and continue to dream that dream over and over again…
    I’m curious as if anyone has tried this, I have been having a few lucid dream but havn’t been able to stay lucid long enough.

    Reply
  • Coop
    September 24th, 2009
    11:46 am

    Do you talk in your dreams? Cause my wife’s going to be pissed when she hears me having dream sex with her sister…

    Reply
    • Tim Ferriss
      September 24th, 2009
      3:59 pm

      OMFG…. buahahahaha! I’d test out singing while lucid before going after the sister, in that case.

      Reply
  • mike
    September 24th, 2009
    12:46 pm

    also, a warning to those trying to lucid dream to manifest something, a dream can actually bring you something else entirely. If you dream about gambling and winning, it might just signal to your subconscious that you are taking too many risks, and you will actually be more hesistant in risk taking, rather than actually winning something in real life. A dream about money might instead result in increasing power rather than wealth.

    I do think there are certain experiences that are good, such as muscle memory from dreaming about competeting and winning certain events, but be aware of what you are lucidly choosing to signal to your mind. Also, the feelings you associate with that dream are equally important. If you dream about success while still holding the feeling of lack of success, your success will feel bittersweet, and you will win, but not enjoy it. I used to dream of winning state championship in football when I was not in the right mindstate. As a result when I actually saw our team win, all I could think of how football was over and how I was sad about the loss and it felt very similar. The results in life aren’t usually what you’re really after, it’s the feelings that you THINK those results will give you. Work on the feeling and emotion of success as much as you focus on the visualizations and dreaming of success, and I imagine it will help

    Reply
  • bob
    September 24th, 2009
    12:57 pm

    dream recall is something that I actually just started experiencing the last couple days. I went to bed earlier. I think it has everything to do with the cycle of sleep and the natural rythems of sleep. I use an alarm at the same time. I think if you try alternating your sleep and going to bed 30 minutes later or earlier every night until you remember will also help. Good practice anyways to monitor how alert and awake you feel throughout the day…
    I read that sleep deprivation is also likely to eventually induce more vivid dreams when you finally do get sleep.

    polyphasic sleep is another interesting subject and is basically training the body to go into REM sleep instantly and sleeping for 30 minute segments throughout the day, this will probably result in more memorable dreams as 90% of the sleep will be in dream state, and you have less to remember at a single time.

    Reply
  • Darrin Schenck
    September 24th, 2009
    3:00 pm

    Tim,

    One again…great stuff! I have been a huge fan of Carlos Castaneda and have practiced lucid dreaming and seeing my hands in my dreams for a long time now. I had gotten out of practice but am glad to get a reminder and will get back at it.

    Thanks for the info and keep up the good work!

    Reply
  • Eric Siegfried
    September 24th, 2009
    3:30 pm

    For the last 10 years (random tip from a hippie friend of mine) I’ve used clary sage oil to help increase lucidity. Put half a drop in each nostril, and for some reason it improves the quality of my REM. You can find the essential oil for 10$ or less, and I’ve had the same bottle for about It might be the scent that lightens the sleep a bit.

    Reply
  • Marko
    September 24th, 2009
    11:33 pm

    Still finding what could work consistently to Me on step 4… anyway

    Wow
    what a great post and comments

    Thank too much Tim, Ladies & Guys, comrades of “waking life club” haha, for the many Tips about summarize the LD report, related drugs, sleep hours etc etc

    Reply
  • Dirk Laukens
    September 24th, 2009
    11:54 pm

    The best technique to prolonge lucidity is depending on what type of person you are;

    *Visual person: the looking at hands technique works best.
    *Auditory person: talking to yourself works best.
    *Tactile person: the piroutte or crawling on the ground technique work best.

    Reply
  • Torbosk
    September 25th, 2009
    2:31 am

    Another thing i found usefull is to do a reality check upon awakening. I usually try to look at my hand. If i can’t see it, or if i have 8 fingers i know what’s up. Especially when you start getting lucid now and then people start having more “false awakenings”, where they “wake up” in a dream.

    Sadly i stopped my lucid adventures due to sleep problems/back pain.
    Now it’s been a week since i restarted my efforts to become lucid, but no success so far…

    @Coop
    That sounds familiar , the first time i was having “dreamsex” i actually woke myself up because i thought my housemates would hear me. Maybe you can tell your sister-in-law in your dream that you have to make love quietly because your wife is sleeping next to you in real life haha. (Or you can got to a hotelroom where you can commit “dream-adultery”.

    My gf once woke me up because i was laughing so hard, it was scaring her.

    Reply
  • Stu
    September 25th, 2009
    3:29 am

    Those interested in lucid dreaming and general altered state of consciousness stuff should check out Head Trip by Jeff Warren. Read a great review here: http://www.bookslut.com/features/2008_06_012943.php

    Reply
  • Steve B
    September 25th, 2009
    11:43 am

    My copy of John Zorn’s just-released _Arcana IV: Musicians on Music_ arrived yesterday afternoon, and Chapter 6, “The Introvert Endureth” by Toby Driver contains a great discussion on lucid dreaming.

    http://www.amazon.com/Arcana-IV-Musicians-John-Zorn/dp/0978833783/

    Reply
  • Jack Perdue
    September 25th, 2009
    12:00 pm

    My wife and I both had drank a cup of Sleepy Time Tea with valerian to assist with sleep. Amazingly the we both woke the next morning after a night of what we called “wild dreams” but lucid is a good term for it.

    Also, I was wondering how you find Huperzine-A. Melatonin is readily available but the other I’m not sure.

    Reply
  • Victor
    September 25th, 2009
    2:45 pm

    I used to lucid dream naturally frequently. The looking at numbers and clocks trick did it for me once I learn how to make it happen more often.

    I also frequently went into “astral projection”. I didn’t call it that at the time. I didn’t know what it was. But it is intense and related to lucid dreaming. I don’t believe I am actually out-of-body as some people do, but it does appear as though I can see the environment around me even though I’m asleep. And it also seems like I am going to die. I learned to not be as scared during it and go with it, but it is very, very intense.

    And, no, none of it was drug induce for the record. All of this is very real and definitely worth exploring.

    Reply
  • Dan
    September 25th, 2009
    2:51 pm

    I think the descriptions of the methods — not just in your article, but in many articles about lucid dreaming — create a chicken and the egg feeling for not-yet-lucid-dreamers i.e., “How am I supposed to control my dream so I can perform a technique that triggers the dream-controlling state if I’m not already in control of my dream in the first place?”

    I thought about it for a while and I think I get it — keep a dream journal so you can start to see patterns of anomalies (weird hands, digital clock craziness, flying) that frequently occur in your dreams. Then when you’re dreaming, it’s not that you’re initiating say, a look at your hands, but instead sometimes you’ll happen to see your hands, notice they’re weird, and then grab control of your dream.

    If so, this resolves some of my further questions like, “Well why don’t these people lucid dream EVERY night and without drug assistance if it’s as easy as looking at your hands or a clock in a dream?” It’s because sometimes the recognizable anomalies just don’t happen in the dream.

    Am I totally off-base or is this one of those things where it just has to happen before I completely understand it?

    Reply
  • Knut Graf
    September 25th, 2009
    4:52 pm

    I used to lucid dream when I had apnea. After an attack, I’d try to move, but I as aware that I could only move my (closed) eyes. I would struggle to wake up, and then, after waking up, find myself actually still dreaming. I found that I could flip a light switch to tell if I was awake or not – in a dream, the switch didn’t work.

    This was years ago – time to try again.

    Reply
  • Robert Beverly
    September 25th, 2009
    9:21 pm

    Tim, thanks for the interesting resources. My library on the topic of lucid dreams is skewed toward metaphysical and occultist authors (with the exception of CG Jung, who has the uncommon ability to straddle worlds and come off as credible from both perspectives), and I hadn’t yet found a good starting point for a modern empirical view on the topic. It’s nice to know I can come back here when I start that little adventure.

    Reply
  • Pete
    September 25th, 2009
    9:38 pm

    Tim,

    How long do your lucid dreams go for? I had my first one the other night after reading some stuff online. Pretty cool. Turned a nightmare around in my favour! Of course I got excited so it only lasted about 20 seconds.

    Pete.

    Reply
  • Gabriel
    September 26th, 2009
    7:49 am

    Some of Y’all might enjoy, The History of Last Night’s Dream.

    http://www.amazon.com/History-Last-Nights-Dream-Discovering/dp/0060575832

    Reply
  • Ben Long
    September 26th, 2009
    11:06 am

    Great post Tim. I was recently in San Jose, CA sleeping on a friends couch. At approx 8am there were jackhammers drilling into the street 30 ft away. I just accepted this sound and was able to go right back to sleep – It then became machine guns in a weird dream. very strange – wish I could do this all the time.

    Reply
  • Robert Beverly
    September 26th, 2009
    1:24 pm

    If you’re still in China, mugwort (Artemesia vulgaris) is supposed to promote lucid dreaming, and it’s easy to find there. It should be the same herb they use for moxibustion… the TCM clinics around me use it, and my understanding is it’s the same herb. I tried it, but it had no noticeable effect on me (well it’s a good source of vitamin C at least). I’m interested in finding out how well melatonin works.

    Reply
  • Marco
    September 26th, 2009
    3:03 pm

    Very interesting, thanks! I had some experience with lucid dreaming years ago and you just motivated me to try it again.

    Reply
  • Win
    September 27th, 2009
    5:33 am

    I have always had lucid dreams, at least as far back as 5(oddly it was something to do with Micheal Jackson’s thriller video), then again I guess it would have something to do with my personality flaws where I tend to overanalyze and like having control. I mostly used it when I was really young to stop having nightmares whenever they would come up. Through most of middle and highschool my dreams were really boring and mostly would be a normal day which the first few times was a bit hard to seperate from reality, then finally one day I had a dream about being a guide in some mounatinous warzone and then woke myself up diving off my bed and landing stacked up on top of myself holding my entire body up via my arms and forehead. That kind of made me realize without having to guess when I was dreaming.

    My only problem is that Ive been doing this unintentionally for as long as I can remember.

    Reply
  • Darren
    September 27th, 2009
    4:47 pm

    Tim, be sure to update us when you try the Calea Zacatechichi, I just ordered some myself.

    Reply
  • Matthew
    September 27th, 2009
    8:22 pm

    I sometimes remember my dreams, and rarely am able to control things to some degree. Unlike a lot of posters I don’t think I am going to put any effort into lucid dreaming; my conscious works hard enough while I am awake so it seems like my unconscious self ought to get a shot at night time since I trust it to do fine ;) I would be open to hearing more about concrete results that Tim or others have experienced.

    Flying and sex with strangers/acquaintances … meh. (off topic I don’t personally know of any lover that would be turned-on about conscious-unconscious sex with a third part LOL. An interesting post topic might be 10th dan monogamy and drugs to enhance same ;->)

    I definitely agree that your unconscious is very useful and intriguing. Thomas Jefferson apparently said “Never go to sleep without a request to your subconscious.” Being able to visualize a skill is critical to being able to perform it eventually.

    This brings to mind ironically an early season of ultimate fighting that I checked out from the video store. There was one set of pre-fight interviews where this guy said he was a big fan of visualization had been hypnotized and visualized winning the whole fight like 17 times. As I remember in like the first round this fat bstrd penned the hypnosis guy into the corner between the ground and the chain link – using his giant beer belly – and beat the stuffing out of him until the ref called it. Anywho… I actually don’t watch that stuff very often these days as it is a challenge to find enough yin in my life to balance that out ;)

    Question: I am very interested in people’s experiences of weird looking hands, grotesque reflections and the sense of evil in the room. Are there any theories about why this occurs and how common it is? I happen to believe in a parallel spiritual world, maybe some people tie that in?

    Reply
  • Matthew
    September 27th, 2009
    9:07 pm

    I forgot to ask: does the related LD literature include any mention of psychosis risk (culture-bound or otherwise)?

    Reply
  • Jay
    September 27th, 2009
    10:25 pm

    Tim – I read lots of LaBerge in ’94 also. I had just graduated college and was back living with my parents while job hunting for the summer . After practicing some of techniques I learned I managed to quickly fill a 100 + page journal within a few weeks of my first lucid dream (slept late on lots of mornings which rally helped). It came so naturally after a short time that I had to actually wean myself off the experience which became a nightly occurrence. Don’t under estimate he addictive quality of this state – a side effect in my opinion. Love your blog. Top quality stuff with few disappointing posts. – Jay

    Reply
  • Paul
    September 28th, 2009
    11:08 am

    I’ve been doing this for quite some time now, what is strange though is that I seem to have some sort of ESP in my dreams.. as in, I will have a dream and write down immense details, from meeting strangers and exact conversations.. and then later on, I will meet those strangers in real life and already know all about them.. it’s pretty freaky at times.

    - paul

    Reply
  • Shawn
    September 28th, 2009
    11:11 am

    I have found that “looking at your hands”, is a great way to show yourself that you are lucid dreaming. I’ve been lucid dreaming consciously for 20 years and this has been the easiest trigger to awareness. Just think about this before you go to sleep and it will usually work.

    Reply
  • Claudia Galeazzi
    September 28th, 2009
    12:03 pm

    Hey, Tim.

    Great task. We can generate so much good and creative energy out of lucid dreams.
    Not so sure now where the borderline to meditation is.
    Had my lessons on sleepscience in the early 90ies.

    I am a musicagent and also an energy runner.
    No,not running fast …. running energy.
    That also can take me into a state of lucid dream or altered awareness.
    And no drugs at all.

    Am living in Jamaica – still no drugs at all.
    Presently in Germany – need more sun….

    Would love to understand how I sometimes ‘work’ in my dreams, all kind of missions, simply more real than ‘normal’ dreams.
    These are so real and catching that I even have physical pains or other effects.
    But then have no impact on their contents.

    My longest experience of altered awareness switching to lucid dreams and back was on a relaxed Sunday morning and it really lasted 6 (!) hours.
    On and off, but never back to ‘normal’.

    Tim, am glad you are there and ignite so many people.
    Good energy always comes around.

    Thank you.

    Claudia

    Reply
  • Kevin
    September 28th, 2009
    12:52 pm

    Nice article.

    I used to do this a lot when I was a kid and in my teens, though did not know it had a name. Never had a need to journal, but see there is value in it. So going to have to try.

    Yeah the flying always got me, sometimes fell off buildings, shake the bed, hehe. Freaked my wife out once.

    I found that room temperature affected this also. For me if I am tired but ever so uncomfortable I affect my ability to be lucid.

    Reply
  • Jamie
    September 29th, 2009
    7:53 am

    Tim,

    cool post, I had some knowledge of Lucid dreaming before, but using it for cognitive and memory purposes is a great idea. Since reading your post I have been subconsciously more observant (and better able to remember) my dreams and am better able to achieve the lucid dream (I don’t even try or care, its just happening now).

    However, I get put off by lucid dreams for the reason that more time spent in REM sleep (when we dream) is less time spent in slow wave (delta) sleep, which is where we do the most restoration.

    [Note: I am not experienced in this, someone please confirm]

    Reply
  • my1ambition
    September 29th, 2009
    7:54 am

    Hey Tim,

    I have lucid dreaming all the time. Yet when it comes to teaching myself stuff, I’m not sure if I’m getting it all right. For example: sometimes I’ll wake up and know exactly what time it is, and sometimes I’m off by hours.

    How do you teach yourself right?

    Thanks, Lev

    Reply
  • Zoe Cacavas
    September 30th, 2009
    10:07 am

    After viewing all comments i am compelled to share my “dreaming experiences ” and am anxious for any replies..advice. I am seeing a DR tomorrow as it is getting worse. Since 70′s ..been a fan of Carlos Castaneda..grapped Art of Dreaming when my experiences started….on a regular basis 1 yr ago then I got cancer in Feb..they stopped..they’re back. In my dreams I consciously DON’T WANT TO WAKE UP..i almost have 2 lives…the dream one is more desirable and I fear they’ll find me one day drooling in a coma but i’ll be LIVIN THE GOOD LIFE on the other side!! I always sleep in the buff,,,when I wake up i am completely dressed in the clothes i had on in the other side…..I am conscious of the fact that i’m dreaming and can wake up then go back to same dream. Any words of wisdom??? P/S. They’re not “”FLASHBACKS”

    Reply
  • Yavor
    October 1st, 2009
    1:37 am

    I used to have this dream in which I knew I was dreaming but couldn’t wake up. I would wake up in a bed in some room, but it was’t exactly MY room. So I would try again and again. Very frustrating.

    another time I had a dream in which I knew I was dreaming. So what I did was I got down on the ground and closed my eyes (in my dream) and tried to wake up. And this time it worked.

    Reply
  • Jay
    October 1st, 2009
    3:07 am

    Even though this is a good introductory post to lucid dreaming and it creates “awareness” of the phenomen to your readers. But for those that already heard of it there isn’t much new stuff i feel, besides the supplements (and i’d prefer to learn the skill without them).

    I’d be interested if you tried other techniques/hacks (like WILD) or what you think of them, or if you have any personal preferences. (Besides the supplements.)
    I’ve had LD’s in the past. Now i’ve been trying to get them for two weeks or so to no avail, which is getting a bit frustrating. But i’m in it for the long haul, so no biggy, but still it would be nice to see progress.

    Reply
  • Lucid Dreaming and The Live Edge
    October 1st, 2009
    9:28 am

    [...] generally.  But since a thread on lucid dreaming is live right now on Tim Ferriss’ blog, how to lucid dream, take a look at it now and [...]

  • Robert Beverly
    October 1st, 2009
    6:33 pm

    What interesting comments. Tim, you’ve created a place where people reveal a lot about themselves.

    If you want to go on an interesting tangent, I know a trick you might find useful. You might have heard of a ‘dream garden,’ which is a stable place you create in your mind and reinforce through visualization. Stable here means it is essentially the same whenever you ‘visit’ through meditation or lucid dreaming.

    Now you might ask, what’s the use of a ‘place’ that isn’t physical. One use is that you can combine the technique with the method of loci, which was used by the Greeks to remember speeches and such while walking down the same path many times and touching the same objects while they talked. You’re capitalizing on the mind’s visual associative capacity to recall words, emotions, emphases, or anything else.

    Take that one step further. Walk through a ‘garden’ and talk to an imaginary person. Hold onto your sanity here ;) Tell the person about a set of insights you’ve had that you don’t want to forget. Perhaps you realized for the 3rd time that you made a relationship mistake that you said you would never make again, and this time you want the principals you learned to stick. Or whatever. Tell your imaginary person about it while walking the same path, and let them respond (you made ‘them’ up, but you might find they have surprising insights because they’re not inhibited by being ‘you’).

    Now, the next time, walk a little further. Ask your imaginary person to explain the insight instead of the other way around. Discuss how it might apply to seemingly unrelated situations – a business relationship rather than a love relationship, perhaps. In this way you can build threads of insight that are persistent, and are (at least for some people) less taxing than just churning the problem over in your mind. You might find that you arrive at more advanced insights in shorter time, and are able to continue their development in a structured way. If it helps you find ‘the meaning of life,’ (Tim, I hope you crack a smile at that phrase), more’s the better.

    Incidentally, I have a note to Matthew a few posts up, since at one time I had dreams similar to his description. I think they were exam-related anxiety, as they tended to pop up around college exam time, but no matter. Here’s my thought: If a spirit world or alternate dimension is parallel to our own, and it happens to be filled with ‘evil,’ there’s good news. Parallel lines are those which never cross, no matter how far they travel in any direction.

    Reply
  • Jeremy
    October 2nd, 2009
    5:35 am

    Great intro to lucid dreaming. I’ve been using it for about 8 or 9 years now. For me, one of the keys to lucid dreaming is to be very relaxed before falling asleep. Things like eating my evening meal early and taking some light yoga-like exercise before bed also help a lot.

    Reply
  • Joe
    October 2nd, 2009
    6:24 am

    This is a great technique I will be trying soon! I am currently at work and very tired to I might fall asleep and try it out at my desk!

    Reply
  • Jay
    October 3rd, 2009
    9:30 am

    Maybe i was complaining too soon. Yesterday (after a bit less than two weeks) i had a LD again (flying, shooting fireballs), it was a MILD where i realised the string of spinach which was stuck between my teeth couldn’t be a meter long.

    I’m also reading Laberge’s book (Exploring the World of Lucid Dreaming) which has a lot of techniques. Thanks for the tip robert. I’ll try the “dream garden” approach in the future for sure once i improve a bit.

    To the guy who asked wether the RC was the chicken or the egg: It can be both. Chicken case: If you practice your RC during the day a lot, it will “transfer” to your dreams. Meaning you will do the RC during the dream, then you will see that you’re dreaming. Egg case: if you have the sneaky suspicion that your dog shouldn’t be having a conversation in spanish with your mother, you can do a RC to make sure for 100% you’re dreaming.

    Reply
  • Josh
    October 4th, 2009
    3:18 pm

    Fascinating Tim! I think MT had the best comment in using this to solve very complex problems and using the subconscious to answer them spot on. I will definitely be investing some time for that (and the other, less productive benefits, too).

    Reply
  • John Fawkes
    October 4th, 2009
    4:54 pm

    Okay, here are the results from my experiement. Last week I drank a couple of beers every week night, drank heavily Saturday night, then stopped drinking altogether from Sunday until this Thursday night. I took 3 mg melatonin every night, which I have been doing for years for insomnia.

    Dream recall was low Friday night and virtually nil Saturday night. It was about back to normal Sunday night (probably still had some of the byproducts of alcohol breakdown in my system). Monday night dream recall was far higher than is normal for me, and I had a brief flash of lucidity but couldn’t hold onto it. Tuesday dream recall went down a bit, but was still a bit higher than normal. I was back to baseline levels on Wednesday, and stopped the experiment on Thursday.

    So, alcohol does inhibit dream recall, and quitting int does give you a rebound effect for 2-3 days. “But John” you ask, “How is this useful if it means we have to go through cycles of heavy drinking?” Well, there is another popular cyclical diet out there, and it happens to be totally compatible with this technique. Ladies and gentlemen, I give you…the Cyclical Alcoholic Diet! (TM)

    Sunday afternoon through Friday morning are spent on a super-low-carb diet, allowing you to burn fat and slim down. Friday night through Saturday night (and possibly Sunday morning if you are hung over) are your carb-up phase. In this phase, drink a ton of beer, and eat just enough food to let you drink more beer.

    After you stop drinking on Sunday, Sunday, Monday and Tuesday nights are spend reaping the rewards of all your hard work, having sex with your favorite Spice Girl and asking advice from Mister T. Alternatively, Saturday night can be spent in jail, reflecting on what you’ve learned, staying awake all night to facilitate dreaming on Sunday night, and networking with other “entepreneurs.” The carb-up phase is also highly conducive to telling yuor boss to take this job and shove it, instantly reducing your Lifestyle Quotient to somewhere around zero.

    Incidentally, I was at a charity fundraiser Friday night and won a dreamcatcher in the raffle. Coincidence? Well yeah, probably, but it’s pretty cool. Hanging that up today, and my huperzine should be here tomorrow. Happy dreaming!

    Reply
  • New Life Experiments For October : Gal Josefsberg
    October 4th, 2009
    5:37 pm

    [...] too much of a skeptic to really try something without any kind of science behind it.  Then I read an interesting piece from Tim Ferris about his experiences with lucid dreaming.  That piece linked to some interesting studies and, the more I read, the more I learned.  Seems [...]

  • Jeff Nabers
    October 4th, 2009
    5:49 pm

    Tim,

    While you’re experimenting with that one plant from Oaxaca (suggested in comments above), you should also check out Salvia Divinorum (sp?). Also not a controlled substance, but I’ve read all of Castaneda’s books, and am convinced that this particular plant is an integral part of Castaneda’s experiences. ;-)

    Reply
  • alexis
    October 5th, 2009
    8:53 am

    the tibetans have refined lucid dreaming practices over 1200 years. they have the most advanced shit i’ve seen. check out: http://www.amazon.com/Tibetan-Yogas-Dream-Sleep/dp/1559391014

    Reply
  • DeyIrfan
    October 5th, 2009
    7:17 pm

    I read Martha Beck’s writings and she gave an interesting view regarding dreams. She also believed that dreams can show us our current state of life that we are having.

    In her book Steering by Starlight, she also advised us to record our dreams. And all the things that we see are symbolisms of things that are of great importance in our life. And a way to decipher those symbols is to actually put ourselves in the position of those symbols.

    Let’s say you dreamt of a bear, and don’t know what it means. Then, take a quiet time and really imagine that you ARE the bear, looking at yourself in your dream. She even advised us to act like the symbols itself, in this case, possibly growling and stand in all fours. Eventually you will know what it represents in your life. It always works for me.

    What’s interesting is that the same symbols can mean differently to everyone. A bear can represent a scary situation or anxiety, or it might represent a person in the dreamer’s life, or it can symbolyze inner strength; it differs from person to person. That’s why I believe only you can interpret your own dream.

    Once I had a dream about my friend who I wasn’t really close to. I didn’t even think about her all the time, but here I am dreaming about her. So I imagined myself as her in my dream and realized that she represented my mom (whom I’ve been missing at that time) since they both have the same traits.

    I hope this helps you guys.

    Reply
  • dude
    October 5th, 2009
    9:37 pm

    Tim,
    Quick question. After reading the post I started writing my dreams down and it worked right away: I do remember my dreams and have 5-7 dreams a night, but I noticed that I sleep a lot worse and sometimes can’t sleep for a while after writing down my dream. Is that normal and is it initial or permanent reaction, because if it is it boils down to the choice of better sleep vs. remembering my dreams. Anything I can do to improve my sleep while still remembering my dreams?
    Thank you in advance,
    Ildar

    Reply
  • Hermann
    October 7th, 2009
    4:09 pm

    I used to be able to do this but only when I did my “power nap” of 20-25 mins in the afternoon Time would pass by so slowly though. Things would happen that would fill up two days while I slept only 20mins. It took me a long time not to get too excited when I realized I was dreaming to prevent waking up. But it was worth it, it was incredibly realistic no matter what I did and flying was a lot of fun.

    Reply
  • Fred
    October 9th, 2009
    7:25 pm

    Tim, I’ve been facinated by lucidity since childhood. I have lucid dreams often. My research led me to Valerian Root. Not sure if you’ve tried it, but it produces INTENSE lucidity. It’s what witches from the days of the druids took and that’s where the idea of flying witches came from. Also, it’s funny you bring this up now, because during this time of year is when I have more than normal. Close to and right after Halloween. A word of caution, if you decide to take it, be prepared for a mild nightmare. Not the kind that scares you. It’s strange, they are vivid but then the nightmare part goes away and your left with just the lucid dream. You may or may not have a nightmare but you will become lucid and you will be able to fly easier than normal.

    Reply
  • Vlad D
    October 11th, 2009
    11:27 am

    Awesome post. I’ve heard of lucid dreaming before. Never got around to trying it out though. Will def. give this a shot during the next few weeks.

    Cheers!

    Reply
  • Mike
    October 12th, 2009
    1:31 pm

    As an older guy (50) who most often has dreamless nights. I recall a few years ago when I had back surgery. I spent one night in the hospital attached to a morphine drip. It was a very minor patient controlled dosage. I administered the minimum and for the next 3 nights had VERY lucid dreams.
    Just FYI.
    Kids, don’t try this at home.

    Reply
  • Joe Boots
    October 13th, 2009
    6:14 am

    Thanks for shedding some light on this subject. It usually does get thrown into the New Age Mumbo Jumbo woodpile.

    Reply
  • Melissa McCune
    October 13th, 2009
    8:38 pm

    Tim,

    I started logging my dreams a couple of weeks ago. The remembering part has always been easy for me, so I finally gained control of a few dreams this week. However, I was far too conscious that I was dreaming to really enjoy it. hehe :) Does this go away after you get better at lucid dreaming or is it just part of the fact that it is still only a dream?

    Melissa McCune

    Reply
  • Chris Claxton
    October 14th, 2009
    5:57 pm

    Hey Tim, another great post!

    I’ve found pretty good success with lucid dreaming when combining it with self hypnosis. I do a self hypnosis session before sleep to instruct my mind to dream vivid and lucid dreams (sometimes with suggestions on a specific topic, sometimes not) and also instruct it to remember the dreams. I find that the notebook by my bed is still helpful…I get more out of it that way.

    May be I’ll get some free business consulting out of you in a dream…”mastermind principle” so to speak!

    BTW, I tried “the Dreaming Herb” in tea form…wow, it tasted horrible and didn’t notice any effect on dreaming. It was a fun experiment though.

    Any way thanks again and keep bringing the cool!

    Chris

    Reply
  • Ewan Sinclair
    October 15th, 2009
    1:33 pm

    Feeling a bit left out with all these LC success stories. I’d previously heard interesting things about LC and wanted to experiment with it a few years ago. While I could tell myself to remember my dreams OK doing so effed up my circadian rhythms so much I had to give up trying. Maybe I’m missing an important step in the pre-talk, self programming stage.

    Perhaps someone else has tried other methods of self-hypnosis (since that’s basically what we’re discussing)? I’ve been using binaural beats and the Mindspa machine to achieve, what I take to be, deep relaxation/meditative states. I’ve also started to experiment with autogenic training. Anyone do something similar?

    Reply
  • Ryan Hurd
    October 19th, 2009
    9:45 pm

    Tim, nice to see you turn your sights towards LDing! as a lucid dream researcher, I have gotten used to sub-par intro articles in the press — but am happy to say yours is right on.

    You nailed it — lucid dreaming is learnable, can be tuned towards whatever your passion in life may be, and can also be a gateway into transcendental states of consciousness. kudos!

    Reply
  • Leszek Cyfer
    October 21st, 2009
    1:46 pm

    I found that raised Lucidity in dreams follow closely raised lucidity in waking life. The best examples are when I travel somewhere I’ve never been before. I need to be conscious most of the time, because I don’t want to be hit by a car etc. I tend to have a lot of LDs in first week of being someplace new.

    I incorporated it into normal life in such a way that I was trying to everyday go to work, and especially from work by a different route. I was tumbling a coin on a fork in the road. This way I had to be conscious and not routine driven.

    There’s also a walking technique I incorporated into those walks – on safe portions of the passage I delicately unfocused my eyes to get separate vision from each eye, and even slowly rotated my head from left to right and back – sweeping the path before me and flooding my mind with the unfocused, changing vision.

    I also made an instrument I called waking castet, which consist of a pair of three fingersize bamboo sticks connected by a soft wire put through a hole drilled close to one of the stick’s ends ( like this: |_|_| |_|_| ). You put the sticks between four fingers (the small to pointing one), and close hand into a fist – wired part inside, free ends sticking out like a castet. Closing fist harder causes you to feel pain in your fingers. This pain has a strange ability to shut down your thoughts.

    Wearing walking castet, together with flooding my vision while walking is an extraordinary experience. I stopped unfocusing when I had to cross the street or where the terrain was rough. I noticed that I started to find insane amounts of coins, sometimes even paper money on this walks – they were just “popping” into my eyes in places where I had to stop unfocusing my eyes (like stopping before a street and waiting for lights to change). I was sometimes finding 5 zlotys (Polish money) in various coins during a walk. Also I found myself extremely fluid and focused at the same time in my work and back at home. I was “flying” through assignments, finishing them in a lightning fast way – it is the best tool against procrastination I ever found :)

    And of course I was having a lot of LDs – I found myself in dream, walking the paths I walked that day.

    Reply
  • dude
    October 22nd, 2009
    12:53 pm

    Leszek,
    That’s pretty sweet. Did you come up with these ideas yourself or do you have some books you can recommend?

    Reply
  • Olga Kostrova
    October 22nd, 2009
    7:37 pm

    Tim, It was great meeting you today at the conference.
    So, we’ve discussed photo reading techniques and I understand that you are skeptical about it. Well, I am still a believer… i juyst need to find the one that works :-) From everything I’ve searched this one looks the most credible (see videos):
    http://ideamamaadnetwork.com/blog/2009/09/30/how-to-board-directors-meeting-management-press-conference-investor-technology-mind-mastery/
    As I’ve mentioned, I’ve been practicing some technique that I’ve came up with, but I definitely thing that I am missing something. I want to find out what Richard’s methodology is about as he claims that it works.

    Also would be interested in your thoughts on this one:
    http://ideamamaadnetwork.com/blog/2009/08/16/corporate-world-marketers-future-nanotech-nanotechnology-digital-products-business-strategy-compute/

    Cheers!

    Reply
  • Leszek Cyfer
    October 23rd, 2009
    6:48 am

    dude,

    Well, I tried to implement things from Carlos Castaneda books. Like finding my hands in a dream – it’s my standard procedure in Lucid Dreams – every time I look at my hands my dream solidifies, becomes real.

    As for the castet – somewhere in the books it was mentioned to use fingersized quartz crystals as the best, but that any hard, fingersized objects will do – so I used bamboo sticks as extremely cheap and easy to cut and drill.

    And right way to walk comes from Castaneda as well – as a matter of fact in one of books he claims that according to Don Juan this was the most important technique he was given to practice. As explained, this walking with unfocused eyes overfloods our mind with the number of details and – overwhelmed – it has to stop to name the things that surrounds us. Naming the things is a process through which our mind insulates us from the world – each time you see something new, the brain has got to name it. Then next time you see something similar, brain fires up past visions of that thing, virtually cutting you off from directly experiencing it – you look through “maya” – a courtain on which brain displays you movies from the past. That’s what Jesus meant when he spoke about being like a child – being like a child that sees everything for the first time and doesn’t have any associations with the past that could cloud his vision.

    I cannot overemphasize the right walking enough. When you see the world as it is instead as your brain displays it for you, you know that the world is a mystery.

    Reply
  • Leszek Cyfer
    October 23rd, 2009
    6:51 am

    I forgot to mention I’ve been practising Tai-Chi movements in my LDs :)

    dude,

    Well, I tried to implement things from Carlos Castaneda books. Like finding my hands in a dream – it’s my standard procedure in Lucid Dreams – every time I look at my hands my dream solidifies, becomes real.

    As for the castet – somewhere in the books it was mentioned to use fingersized quartz crystals as the best, but that any hard, fingersized objects will do – so I used bamboo sticks as extremely cheap and easy to cut and drill.

    And right way to walk comes from Castaneda as well – as a matter of fact in one of books he claims that according to Don Juan this was the most important technique he was given to practice. As explained, this walking with unfocused eyes overfloods our mind with the number of details and – overwhelmed – it has to stop to name the things that surrounds us. Naming the things is a process through which our mind insulates us from the world – each time you see something new, the brain has got to name it. Then next time you see something similar, brain fires up past visions of that thing, virtually cutting you off from directly experiencing it – you look through “maya” – a courtain on which brain displays you movies from the past. That’s what Jesus meant when he spoke about being like a child – being like a child that sees everything for the first time and doesn’t have any associations with the past that could cloud his vision.

    I cannot overemphasize the right walking enough. When you see the world as it is instead as your brain displays it for you, you know that the world is a mystery.

    Reply
  • Nina
    October 24th, 2009
    2:05 am

    When I was 18 I used to do something similar, but for writing poetry. I had tried for a few months to write, but I was failing and impatient. So I realized that I wrote my best stuff right after awakening. I read about brain waves and about some American genius holding a rock over a tin bucket to fall asleep but promptly awake (by dropping the rock), to reap the benefits of original ideas.

    So I lied in my bed, closing my eyes and emptying my mind. Sooner or later, I would notice that my body was paralyzed, and usually I would panick. But sometimes I didn’t, and then I very carefully “stepped” out of my body. I took a big risk and opened the window and jumped out. Soon I was flying to London :)

    I have tried to recapture these experiments but it is more difficult now, although I am only 21.

    Reply
  • Jay
    October 24th, 2009
    4:07 am

    That’s a cool tip, leszek.

    The last weeks i had some success. This morning i had a string of lucid dreams where i had pretty good control and lucidity using wake-back to bed.

    @Ewan: I have the same problem. That’s why on weekdays i just focus on dream recall in the morning. Before going to sleep, imprint in your mind to recall your dream and to remember that you are lucid during your dream.
    If you wake up during the night just return to sleep immediately, only in the morning write in your dream journal.

    On free days where i want to practise more, i wake up at 4 o clock, write in my dream journal. Then i imprint in my mind to get lucid, and eg this morning i had a string of dreams where i got lucid (mostly false awakenings). A couple of times i woke up, jotted my dream down, and then tried to get a lucid dream again.

    It is however a process which takes time and energy to get good at it.

    Reply
  • G.E.A
    October 24th, 2009
    6:33 pm

    Its a wonderful thing when science can confirm under controlled conditions something which many claim exists. Even better when such knowledge, can lead to an erotic encounter while flying through the grand canyon without the use of a plane. lol

    Reply
  • Rich Smith
    October 24th, 2009
    7:37 pm

    I’ve experienced lucid dreams for quite some time, not realizing what it was, that I could induce them, and that I could actually control what was going on within them.

    One memory of mine that really stands out and made me realize as I was reading this article that I have, in fact, had lucid dreams before was one morning, (just before I woke up) I realized that anything I thought about, I dreamt about. Whatever came to my mind simply came true. No matter how outrageous or impossible it is in real-life. I began to think all sorts of crazy things in my dream, and no matter what it was, it just happened. It came true. I’ve had no explanation for it until now.

    That said, that was the best night of sleep in my entire life, but thanks to this article I hope to recreate that very very soon.

    Reply
  • dude
    October 26th, 2009
    10:25 pm

    Leszek,
    Great tips: thank you! Which book by Castaneda should I concentrate on? He has quite a few :) Although your tips give me something to practice with already.
    Thanks again

    Reply
  • Leszek Cyfer
    October 27th, 2009
    6:33 am

    dude,
    Well, it’s hard to point out a book – I’d read all, but you can start with the road to Ixtlan and Art of Dreaming. There is also Tensegrity – sth like Tai-chi but with intention of gaining power – it’s described in Magical Steps, and there are workshops of it – though I never trained it so it’s hard to say – nonetheless it is a practical use of Castaneda knowledge.

    And in the meantime keep walking :D

    Reply
  • dude
    October 27th, 2009
    10:15 am

    Thank you Leszek!

    Reply
  • Aki
    November 16th, 2009
    1:53 am

    Great post on an interesting subject.

    On an unrelated, oddball note: ever tried to create a psi-ball?
    http://www.wikihow.com/Make-a-Psi-Ball

    Best
    Aki

    Reply
  • Katya
    November 18th, 2009
    11:23 pm

    Thanks for the post,

    I had good bit of those lucid dreams – nice. But often it did get to the point of *out of body experience*. Feeling enormous speed and vibration – scary staff, so I’d always try to wake myself up.

    Reply
  • Richard Shelmerdine
    December 18th, 2009
    7:35 am

    I’ve had lucid dreams. They’re absolutely insane. I usually get them after meditating before sleep though more than any other time. It’s hard to stay in one longer than a few seconds at first.

    Reply
  • AC
    January 28th, 2010
    10:18 pm

    Alright so I bought your book a few weeks ago. Still reading through it–great stuff. I have been meaning to visit the blog but never made the effort.

    Then I go searching for Vibram FiveFingers shoes and end up here to watch your video review–total coincidence. Then I see a post on the FoodScanner which I was just looking for the other day as I move from a cutting phase to bulk up time–thanks for the reco.

    Then I see this post about Lucid Dreaming which I was really into (having read LaBerge around 2005) and I had to post something!

    You really have a lock on your audience! You talk about the New Rich a lot. I am starting to think there is a New Geek group forming. Active, athletic, business-oriented, socially capable people that aren’t afraid to geek it out.

    But I digress…my main point is this is probably the best blog I have ever run across and it’s great to see how many other people embrace the New Geek philosophy.

    Subscribing now…

    Reply
  • Nathan Robertson
    February 21st, 2010
    1:10 pm

    Tim,

    I sat next to Dan Gable at the Iowa High School Wrestling Tournament Finals last night. I figured you would appreciate that!

    Been slow going on the blog lately, I’m looking forward to some new posts!

    Take care,

    Nathan

    Reply
  • Gustavo Ramirez
    February 25th, 2010
    4:54 pm

    Hey Tim, what book would you recommend for those of us who are wanting to explore with lucid dreaming?

    Reply
  • Ryan
    February 26th, 2010
    11:38 am

    I’m not sure what Tim has read, but the classic intro to lucid dreaming is anything by Stephen LaBerge, who is the psychophysiologist who confirmed lucid dreaming as a state of consciousness in the sleep lab. He’s got a “concise guide to LDing” that comes with a CD.

    I also recommend Robert Waggoner’s “LDing: gateway to the inner self,” which also discusses the out-of-body experience connection, as well as pitfalls and stages to learning how to lucid dream. Waggoner has a sort of Jungian bent, meaning that he interprets dream figures to often be representations of the ego, and other “self-like” constellations.

    Reply
  • Aftar
    March 14th, 2010
    9:39 am

    I tried to do this last night and it the first time in a long time that I can remember my dreams…but I have a question how realistic are these dreams

    Reply
  • Simon Cleveland
    May 3rd, 2010
    8:39 am

    Tim,

    Good stuff! I’ve tried LaBerge’s book techniques and also a number of other techniques, described in books by Robert Monroe or Sylvan Muldoon. They’ve all worked for me.

    Have you tried Remote Viewing (see Joseph McMoneagle’s and David Morehouse’s books) and if so what’s your take on it?

    Simon Cleveland

    Reply
  • Ben Porter
    May 12th, 2010
    1:37 pm

    I lucid dreamed most nights for years, but between my party years in New York and laziness have fallen dreadfully out of practice. I really need to start again.

    I found in the early stages of learning that two very useful tactics to induce it were

    a)to absolutely commit to writing my dream down first thing, which seemed to work as a sort of autosuggestive trigger. Notably, it seemed not to work if it was a half-assed commitment.

    b)to fall asleep while performing rhythmic breathing and body awareness meditation. Vivid mediation imagery would often dovetail seamlessly into dreams with no discernible border.

    On the waking world front, I had the great pleasure of attending Oklahoma State wrestling camp in the summer of ’99 with John Smith heading things and the varsity team as counselors. Even with how many on the team were 4x state high school champions, NCAA champions and the like, it was John that stood head and shoulders above the pack. I recall one camper who outweighed John by 25lbs and was 18 years his junior, and had just one a state championship wrestling with him during takedown drills. Not only could the kid not even come close to talking him down, but Smith was so fast that half the time the kid grabbed air instead of leg and was left sprawled out on the mat and looking foolish. Truly a sight to behold.

    Perhaps I’ll take a trip back to camp tonight and see what I can learn…

    Reply
  • dude
    May 21st, 2010
    10:17 am

    Here is an answer to my own question from Laberge’s Exploring the World of Lucid dreaming:
    Q. Won’t all these efforts and exercises for becoming lu-cid lead to loss of sleep ? And won’t I feel more tired
    after being awake in my dreams? Is it worth sacrificing my alertness in the daytime just to have more lucid
    dreams ?
    A. Dreaming lucidly is usually just as restful as dreaming nonlucidly. Since lucid dreams tend to be positive expe-
    riences, you may actually feel invigorated after them. How tired you feel after a dream depends on what you did
    in the dream—if you battled endlessly and nonlucidly with frustrating situations, you probably will feel more
    tired than if you realized in the dream that it was a dream and that none of your mundane concerns were relevant.
    You should work on learning lucid dreaming when you have time and energy to devote to the task. The exercises
    for increasing dream recall and inducing lucid dreams probably will require that you spend more time awake
    during the night than usual, and possibly that you sleep longer hours. If you are too busy to allot more time to
    sleeping or to sacrifice any of the little sleep you are getting, it’s probably not a good idea for you to work on
    lucid dreaming right now. Doing so will add to your cur-rent stress, and you probably won’t get very good results.
    Lucid dreaming, at least at first, requires good sleep and mental energy for concentration. Once you learn the
    techniques, you should be able to get to a point at which you can have lucid dreams any time you wish just by
    reminding yourself that you can do so.

    Reply
  • Nicolet Carson
    May 22nd, 2010
    3:33 pm

    I actually didnt know that I was lucid dreaming until about a year ago, I would usually call what I was doing, “narrarating” my dreams. Like an author who writes a book. I can say that the predestination technique works, where you tell yourself to lucid dream for 10 to 15 minutes, But in my case I only needed to say what I wanted to accomplish before bed. I watched the show Man vs Wild on the discovery channel and afterward I wished earlier that day that I could travel through the wilderness with Bear Grylls and then I thought it one more time, having no clue that I would dream about it. Well when I did go to sleep sure enough I saw Bear Grylls and we were headed to an island and needed one of those small planes to get there and I visualised the plane on the river and the dock and there were even two passengers happily waiting to travel with me. Well, somehow, a hurricane started and the storm was going to destroy everything. At this point Bear Grylls dissappeared and the two people who were with me were left, one of the women looked at me with such fear in her eyes that I thought she was real, but then I felt like I had a responsibilty to help them and then I remembered that I conjured this up, so as the wooden dock was destroyed I looked at her and said “There’s nothing to worry about, because your just a figment of my imagination” and then an angry howl went off inside my head and the storm of grey proceeded to engulf my conciousness and so I said “and then the plane came down and rescued them, carrying them away..” I’ll stop there because it gets more interesting but thats how it goes, maybe if you not only think about it but perform some physical action like touching an object that has to do with it or watching a show, for instance it will better solidify your lucid dreaming.

    Reply
  • Michelangelo Bucci
    May 27th, 2010
    2:55 am

    I just stumbled on this article on dreams control and video-games:

    http://www.livescience.com/culture/video-games-control-dreams-100525.html

    I was wondering whether somebody can find some cool ways of experimenting with it…

    Reply
  • Allan
    June 9th, 2010
    10:15 pm

    I realize that the post is quite old, but I thought I’d add a short comment since I have some experience in the matter.

    When I was in elementary school, I tended to be a bit scared of the dark. I’d always have a tape playing (usually Roger Whittaker whistles or the like) and I’d tuck myself in really well. I mean, I’d do my best to pull the edges of the blanket in under myself all around, so nothing could get in. I often thought I saw spiders crawling across the floor of my room at night, and occasionally I know I did :)

    Anyway, I also recall being in the bathtub downstairs, and I was ABSOLUTELY convinced that a vampire had knocked a hole in the ceiling and come through in bat form, then hid somewhere in the house. I think I fell asleep in the bath.

    For some reason, dreams usually tended toward the disturbing, at least the ones I remembered. I still recall some of the weird ones, like reaching up to pick an apple and, as I picked it, I grew to about 1000 pounds. Another was chasing a creature(?) that later reminded me of Chucky, which would fly around the room on a balloon string.

    I think the discomforting dreams and the tendency to smother myself combined somewhat to give me quite a good handle on lucid dreams for a long time. I got in the habit of biting my tongue or finger, just hard enough to leave an impression. If it didn’t hurt or if it felt like I bit deeply but didn’t, I was dreaming. I was too young for the amorous binges, but I did enjoy flying and was glad to avoid nightmares. I remember one in particular in which several doors in the house were filled with static, like a television screen. When I asked my step-mother why, she said ‘because your’e dreaming, if you go through, you’ll wake up.’ So I goofed off until I was ready to wake up, then POOF! it worked.

    The odd thing is: it left me afraid I was dreaming, when I was actually awake. I was constantly checking to be sure I wasn’t dreaming. I did often get a false-wake, so I’d often be frightened by something unnatural happening while I thought I was fully aware. Even now, knowing what I do as an adult, I’m still feeling an odd apprehension writing about this.

    My most recent lucid dreaming episode, I only remember because of the shock I took to go lucid. I recall sitting on the toilet (I think I was just sitting on the lid, I don’t recall) and the mirror was directly across from me. My reflection was standing. Both my dream-self and my reflection screamed rather emphatically, you can imagine that seeing a wrong reflection would be fairly disturbing. It kicked me into a lucid dream, but I honestly don’t know what happened after that. I may have awakened shortly thereafter.

    I believe that my dreams seem rather vivid, but interestingly enough, I cannot “visualize” things in a waking state. I can imagine them using words, but when I try to ‘draw a picture’ in my mind, I get only the barest sketch. I’d love to have some dream-lovin’ :p

    Reply
  • Quazi
    June 21st, 2010
    11:50 pm

    I’m very interested in lucid dreaming and found this website after I had a session of it and was utterly confused how it came about. I hadn’t realized but I had used the MILD method almost flawlessly. The weird thing? I started it after falling asleep to the end of Vanilla Sky. Thanks for the tips! I would also like to see a more in depth piece on Lucid Dreaming.
    Quazi

    Reply
  • steve
    July 3rd, 2010
    4:09 pm

    woah great site, it’s just made me dig out my copy of Vanilla Sky!!

    Reply
  • Alexander
    July 11th, 2010
    9:38 pm

    Great! I’ve had a couple of lucid dreams myself but still training myself to have them by will. I’ve read the book of Stephen LaBerge and even bought the novadreamer years ago. I paid $800 dollars for it but in the end it didn’t worked for me. I then got involved with the books of castaneda and read the art of dreaming. That time I could remember all my dreams. After practicing the techniques that he describes I finally got a hang of it. He’s talking about the seven gates of dreaming. I’d like to know what your thoughts are regarding those seven gates?

    Reply
  • Carl Rowe
    July 26th, 2010
    4:43 pm

    I can add that vivid dreaming comes about with increased levels of melatonin- and that psychoactive drugs like marijuana and LSD are known to increase melatonin levels.
    Melatonin is produced in the pineal gland near the mid-brain in response to signals from special receptors in the retina-which detect the absence of light-or night-time and turn on melatonin production via the pathway tryptophan to serotonin to melatonin.
    Melatonin is broken down in stomach acid and is very poorly absorbed across the intestinal lumen.

    Reply
  • lisa
    August 9th, 2010
    3:26 am

    It’s too early to be up, and I might have a million typos, but while all is fresh in my mind, I have to pound this post out.

    Tim, I realize you probably won’t get this post, personally, but since you’ve studied the subject.

    I’ve been lucid dreaming since age 7 ish, about the time I felt “fully conscious” … so I’m experienced, and I can tell when it’ll happen. I usually pick flying b/c it’s incredibly fun… but tonight I dreamed that way most of the night, and it went to a new level. I got to try on, and live it being in another body. A kind of reincarnation. AMAZING.

    I’ve been keeping track, and noticing what I do in a day b/f lucid dreaming, and diving far deeper into it than I would ever admit, except the subject is out there, so it takes the teeth out of it. (I thought everyone dreamed this way. THen I couldn’t meet almost anyone would did. So, I started keeping quiet about it. It’s been so incredible, I thought I was either going mentally ill, or dying slowly. I’m a very reasonable person, but highly creative, so I don’t find too many like me. I haven’t seen or operated for “a box” most of my life.)

    I am so fascinated by your study of this and techniques (which worked really well for me btw) that I wanted to attempt to contact you (or your fans, or both), and start a conversation to go to collaborate in the whole bit– “work” collectively and dive in further.

    I’m a writer, (with a blog and a regular column in a local publication, and a few writing credits under my belt.) I’d like to start a book project with who ever is willing.

    (If any of you are, please FB friend me, but referring to this specific message/post) I’m Lisa Colon DeLay, so we can start chatting, etc. I’ve just started a learning group page. do a search.)

    Thank you for bring the topic to the fore, Tim.
    Cheers.

    Reply
  • Eddie
    August 18th, 2010
    12:25 pm

    This post is so relevant to the movie Inception

    Reply
  • I love lucid dreaming
    August 26th, 2010
    6:56 am

    briliant stuff!
    a couple of times I was in lucid dreaming.
    It was fantastic to fly!

    I read that in a dream sky is very beautiful and different, so next time i’m going to remember to look at it

    Reply
  • Colin
    August 31st, 2010
    3:33 pm

    I’ve been lucid dreaming sporadically for many years and I am a long-time member of one of the internet’s main lucid dreaming websites.

    It floors me that the skill of lucid dreaming, in my opinion one of the most amazing a person can possibly learn, has still not reached the main stream yet. You’d think the prospect of doing literally anything with no consequences would stir the interest of millions. I can’t help but wonder if this stems from a lack of imagination.

    Reply
  • Christopher
    September 5th, 2010
    11:23 pm

    I get a buzz every time I read another blog post about lucid dreaming and realize how many more people are discovering it. I’ve been doing it for years. It’s one of those things that you really can’t appreciate fully until you’ve experienced it for yourself.

    Reply
  • Joe
    September 13th, 2010
    2:30 pm

    I have always wondered about using lucid dreaming for getting better at certain skills. I hope to practice my guitar in the lucid dream state one of these days. I think Paul McCartney heard the melody to “Yesterday” in a dream.

    Reply
  • Deepak
    September 25th, 2010
    11:53 am

    Hey Tim, Awesome post. I was so psyched after reading this, I went and attended a meetup group on dreaming here in NY the same day. It was a great experience.

    Btw LaBerge’s FAQ talks about a device called NovaDreamer. Have you used it ? Any idea if it’s any good?

    Reply
  • Pete
    October 23rd, 2010
    12:45 pm

    Hi Tim and the world
    Wow! I mean WOOW!!
    Gotta try this!!
    I’ve just made o quick-to-do list and some questions popped-up. Wouldn’t it be cool to ‘get jiggy’ with some 2-d (anime) characters or some other ones (Jill Valentine (Grrr!) anyone ;)? Sounds Really interesting, I’ll check back on you later :D. Wouldn’t it be cool to talk to Mona Lisa too and find what’s the buzz about (I’m not your average art connoisseur … heck I’m not at all)?
    Would any of you be jealous if your mate got funky with some other person than you (came to my mind after reading one comment)?
    I’ve had some LD-like experiences but it’s all foggy and cloudy, and yes, usually what I dream b4 I wake up remains in my memory.
    A state close to what was described as neither awake nor asleep can be attained with some sleep depravation (such as all-night pc games :D). In that state I observed that my mind is extremely agile when dealing (modifying, adding, creating something – new that kind of thing) with non-logic stuff like music, pictures, shapes. A real fountain for the artists among (and inside of) us.
    I love this post Tim. Will start tonight :)

    Love you all

    Reply
    • Pete
      October 24th, 2010
      5:10 am

      First night report: WOW! Noted like 4 main (longer) dreams and a lot of shorter ones. I didn’t realize I dream so much at night!
      The first goal was attained: dream recalling is almost (95%) there.
      Work will continue.
      Thank you everyone for tips, tricks and a big hug to ol’ Timmie.

      Reply
  • Dan Owen
    October 30th, 2010
    6:27 pm

    Vitamin D behaves so inside the body that it is classified as any hormone. It is needed for an important task often known as the mineral homeostasis that deals with the regulation of the gene expression as well as that of cellular difference. The Vitamin D will be the only known substance which stimulates the procedure of absorption of calcium plus the phosphorus present in food on the small intestine, especially from the jejunum region, and also enhances the kidney’s capacity in the actual re-absorption of calcium along with phosphorus, which makes it important to maintain the concentration of these minerals in the process of blood and bone mineralization. Therefore, it is mandatory for all to have sufficient Vitamin D levels inside their body.

    Reply
  • Andy
    November 7th, 2010
    3:58 pm

    Hello Tim.

    I’ve been reading your stuff for a little over a year. I’ve seen your blog posts about lucid dreaming and changing the quality of your dreams by using supplements such as caffeine and nicotine.

    I’ve been living in France for a couple of years. Last night we had some friends visiting from Belgium so we went to a Savoyard restaurant.

    I was reading the menu and a fondue with “trumpets of death” mushrooms caught my eye so my wife and I ordered it. She helped our friends eat their raclette so I ate most of the fondue.

    When I went to sleep, I had very intense vivid dreams.

    I was watching one of your “Random Episodes” awhile ago and you mentioned that you might be going to Paris. I would strongly suggest that if you do come over here that you either order a fondue that has these mushrooms or you specifically request an omelet with these mushrooms to eat before you go to bed.

    I’d appreciate it if you let me know how it goes.

    Also, if you are coming to the Geneva region for anything I’d like to hear about it… I live just over the border.

    Andy

    Reply
  • Mark Kelly
    November 17th, 2010
    6:24 pm

    Step #6

    Write down the dates in your dream journal. Every night recall the dreamscape you visited twenty nights previous. Go to bed with this dreamscape in your mind and you are likely to find yourself there again. Every twentieth night!

    The Mayan calendar uses a 13:20 system. Everyday has a ‘tone’ for a total of twenty. Shamans in Mexico have used this sustem for thousands of years.

    See you in dream time…

    Reply
  • Sophie Benshitta Maven
    December 16th, 2010
    8:49 pm

    This is a very interesting direction to go for me. I am a mindset and consciousness specialist and coach, and I am noticing, that when a client’s or my consciousness is at an all time high, it is easier to cause lucid dreaming. If I understand it correctly, you call lucid dreaming where the dreamer retains their capacity to direct their dream, instead of just being a hapless victim of it, good or bad dream, anything that you aren’t causing you are a victim of.

    I am working on a project of teaching and exploring the idea of getting unstuck, and all my current lucid dreams are taking me into situations where getting stuck with a situation or mood is predictable, and I play and replay the situations with different unstucking moves, it is amazing.

    I really appreciate the insight, without this article I would not have been quite aware of what’s happening. Thank you.

    Reply

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