1. Start a dream journal
The key to becoming lucid is dream recollection and consistent thought about your dreams. Keeping a dream journal accomplishes both of these things. A dream journal can be as simple as a spiral notebook or as personalized as a leather bound journal. The purpose is the same regardless. Store your journal and a pen somewhere very close to where you sleep each night. As soon as you wake up, initiate dream recall. Write down everything you remember about your dreams as quickly as possible. The more details the better! On top of doing this every time you wake up, actually read your own journal entries and reflect on every dream you’ve had.
2. Perform reality checks during the day
Physics tend to get fuzzy in dreams, not excluding lucid dreaming. Reality checks help us perceive whether or not we are dreaming. Start this process by using simple reality checks in your waking life. Flip the light switch on and off a few times when you enter a room. While you do this be consciously aware and note in your mind what you are doing and that you are awake. Find a couple of reality checks that are natural to you, that way when you do finally become lucid in your dreaming you can easily validate this to yourself. My personal favorite reality check it to look at my feet recognize that I am grounded by gravity. When I am having a lucid dream I can distinguish this because I’m easily able to hover a few inches off the ground. Perform at least ten reality checks a day if you want to quickly become lucid at night.
3. Meditate at least two times a day
It’s very important to have a clear head when you go to sleep, especially when making attempts at lucid dreaming for the first time. Meditation is something that promotes a healthy mindset all around. Mental well-being should be a priority for everyone, as it transcends into other avenues of life, including how you dream. Meditate once at any comfortable point in your day and then again half an hour before you go to sleep. This method of meditation should give you plenty of time to be reflective on your day and compose yourself before your lucid dreaming adventures.
4. Take supplements that aid in lucid dreaming
Although this step isn’t completely necessary to your success, taking dream enhancing supplements can significantly boost your level of deep sleep also known as Rapid Eye Movement (REM) sleep. This is the state of sleep where you are most likely to dream. The healthier you are in general, the healthier your dream cycles. Make sure to start by taking a daily multivitamin and add in extra magnesium, choline, and fish oil, which all support healthy brain function. Melatonin is also a natural and effective sleep aid. As always, if you have any health problems or take any medication, check with your doctor before you start taking new supplements.
5. Mnemonic Induction of Lucid Dreams (MILD)
Most people remember someone telling them to ‘count sheep’ to shut off your brain and fall asleep. Although it seems a little silly this approach actually works. Mnemonic Induction of Lucid Dreams or MILD is a process or repetition. MILD is an exercise that is rehearsed, either out loud or silently in your head, right before you drift off to sleep. Repeat a phrase like “I will dream tonight, and I will be aware that I am dreaming,” over and over again until you drift off. Be sure to come up with your own mnemonic phrase related to the one above. The more you can relate to your rehearsal, the more powerful it will be.
6. Spend an hour or more a day researching lucid dreaming
There are many free resources available online related to lucid dreaming. Devote a minimum of an hour a day to self educating yourself on the subject. Control Your Dreams by Tom Stafford is an in depth and name your own price ebook with a vast amount of relevant information. The website World of Lucid Dreaming is another great resource. Remember to never get frustrated if you don’t have a lucid dream as quickly as you’d like to. If you follow all of these guidelines there is a good chance you will be able to dream lucidly, but there is no guarantee. Like most things in life, the more dedication and effort you put into this, the more likely you are to become lucid during your dreams.
