Intro
Hello TTG, i have seen alot of topics about lucid dreaming lately. So i decided to make one thread explaining everything you need to know about lucid dreaming.

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What Is Lucid Dreaming?
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A lucid dream is any dream in which one is aware that one is dreaming. The term was thought up by the Dutch psychiatrist and writer Frederik van Eeden. In a lucid dream, the dreamer can exert some degree of control over their participation within the dream or be able to manipulate their imaginary experiences in the dream environment. Lucid dreams can be realistic and vivid. Lucid dreaming has been researched scientifically, and its existence is well established.

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How Do I Lucid Dream?

Lucid dreaming takes alot of practice and sometimes (in some people) cannot be done. You will have to remain very calm and let everything in your body feel "dead" so to speak. Listening to a video on YouTube may help, but it is challenging as a beginner to start lucid dreaming.

This video may help any people that are trying to begin lucid dreaming.

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The Scientific Side of Lucid Dreaming

The first book to recognize the scientific potential of lucid dreams was Celia Green's 1968 study Lucid Dreams. Green analyzed the main characteristics of such dreams, reviewing previously published literature on the subject and incorporating new data from subjects of her own. She concluded that lucid dreams were a category of experience quite distinct from ordinary dreams.. Green was also the first to link lucid dreams to the phenomenon of false awakenings.

Philosopher Norman Malcolm's 1959 book Dreaming had argued against the possibility of checking the accuracy of dream reports. However, the realization that eye movements performed in dreams may affect the dreamer's physical eyes provided a way to prove that actions agreed upon during waking life could be recalled and performed once lucid in a dream. The first evidence of this matter was produced in the late 1970s by British parapsychologist (not sure how to spell it) Keith Hearne. A volunteer named Alan Worsley used eye movements to signal the onset of lucidity, which were recorded by a polysomnograph machine.
Hearne's results were not widely distributed. The first peer-reviewed article was published a few years later by Stephen LaBerge at Stanford University, who had independently developed a similar technique as part of his study. During the 1980s, further scientific evidence to confirm the existence of lucid dreaming was produced as lucid dreamers were able to demonstrate to researchers that they were consciously aware of being in a dream state (again, primarily using eye movement signals). Additionally, techniques were developed that have been experimentally proven to enhance the likelihood of achieving this state.

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Initiation Of Lucid Dreaming

A lucid dream can begin in one of two ways. A dream-initiated lucid dream starts as a normal dream, and the dreamer eventually concludes it is a dream. A wake-initiated lucid dream occurs when the dreamer goes from a normal waking state directly into a dream state, with no apparent lapse in consciousness (like using a youtube video etc ). The wake-initiated lucid dream occurs when the person may be trying to lucid dream or when sleeper enters REM sleep with unbroken self-awareness directly from the waking state.

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Rapid Eye Movement (REM)

When a person is dreaming, the eyes shift rapidly. Scientific research has found that these eye movements may correspond to the direction the dreamer "looks" at in the dreamscape. This has enabled trained lucid dreamers to communicate with researchers while dreaming by using eye movement signals.

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False Awakening


In a false awakening, it appears that the lucid dreamer has awoken. The room the dreamer falsely awakens in is often similar to the room he/she fell asleep in. If the person was lucid, they often believe that they are no longer dreaming and begin their morning routine. The dreamer remains naive to the dream either until they realize they haven't actually woken up or until they really do wake up.

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Nightmares and how to treat them

Some lucid dreamers tend to have nightmares while in the midst of lucid dreaming. Be careful lucid dreaming as this may happen to you. You can however help rid the nightmares by seeing a therapist, or face them until your fear is gone.

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Thanks

This thread took me a little over an hour to make, so i hope this helped some of you. I gathered as much information and experience as i could, and decided to make a topic over it.

Be careful lucid dreaming, and have fun!