...Hardman 11/8/2012 Psych 111 Dreaming A dream is a succession of images, sounds, ideas and emotions that we experience involuntarily while sleeping. Everyone has dreamed at least once in their life, even if they don’t remember it. As a matter of fact everyone experiences six to eight dreams per night, and out of the eight hours of sleep we’re supposed to get each night, two of them are spent dreaming. People aren’t the only animals that can dream. Actually, every mammal is known to have dreams at night, and even some birds. Dreams usually occur during the “rapid eye movement” stage of our sleep, when brain function is high, almost as high as when we’re awake. We most likely remember the dreams that we have during the REM stage because the brain is functioning at such a high rate, but we also dream during other stages of sleep. Those dreams are just harder to remember because the brain is not functioning at the level that it would be during the REM stage. As we all know, dreams can range from exciting and pleasurable, to scary and terrifying. I know that I personally have woken up terrified from a dream, and didn’t want to go back to sleep because I didn’t want to encounter what I was dreaming about again. Usually, we can’t control what we dream about. However, it is a proven fact that a person can induce lucid dreaming if they work at it. Lucid dreaming is when the person who is dreaming is aware of the fact that they are dreaming, and can therefor control their...
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...Lucid Dreaming Ayeisa Chavez SPCH 1311 MW 8:30 am Irma Garcia March 6, 2013 Imagine going to bed one night only to wake up in a whole other world where anything your heart and mind desired became reality. Flying over clouds, breathing underwater, going to any part of the world or even getting to be with that person you so much desire wasn’t impossible anymore. Well there is a way that can be done, and that’s through something called lucid dreaming. After listening to this presentation I hope you will have a better understanding of the world of lucid dreaming and how it can be done. I will begin by explaining to you in detail what it is exactly. Then, you will learn a few of the benefits gained by this experience and some dangers. Last, I will give you a few simple steps to how it can be done. Sounds exciting, doesn’t it? I know I was! As explained in an article by Rebecca Turner, Lucid dreaming is the proven ability to become aware while you’re dreaming, to consciously “wake up” inside the dream world and control your dreams. In other words, it’s being able to do as you please while you dream. Marshall Brain researched that when you sleep, your brain goes through several stages of a sleep cycle. The cycle that deals with dreams is REM or rapid eye movement which takes up 20 to 25% of sleep and your brain is basically shut off during this period of time. Your body becomes paralyzed except for the eyelids and the part of the brain that deals with logic is shut...
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...What Does it Mean to Dream? What does it mean to dream? Why do we dream? In fact, what is dreaming really? In this world, a lot of definitions and answers were formulated to solve this question. Up till now, nobody has actually defined clearly what is dreaming or why do we exactly dream. People after all have different contentions from each other and opinions can play a heavy role in determining a decision. Because of this a lot of prominent psychologists developed different definitions to the meaning of dream. Even before that, Philosophists have already pondered on such an interesting concept. Some say that dreams come from an external source, wanting to communicate with us or convey to us an important message. Others say that dreaming is related to fulfilment… meaning that a dream is essentially something you wish to happen but are either actively repressing it or subconsciously doing it to yourself. Others say that dreams are a reflection of waking life… of what we have experienced translated unto the realm of dreams. But what is dreaming really all about? Dream, otherwise known as Morpheus or Oneiros, and his willy antics extends itself to the realm he presides on. Just like the enigmatic being, the landscape is unpredictable, changing and foreign. It may be rapid in its change or it changes itself in a snail’s pace. There is no limitations to the human mind after all. Anything that can, could and couldn’t happen can be easily conceived and achieved by the mere thought...
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...tired or bored, one will eventually dream in one way or another. Lucid dreaming is a term created by Frederik van Eeden that is used to describe a dream in which one is aware that he/she is dreaming. This type of dreaming is considered by many as a higher level of consciousness. Most people do not know what lucid dreaming is and those who do rarely are aware of how to realize that they are dreaming, let alone actually manipulate their dreams. Lucid dreaming can have many benefits in one’s life, whether it’s relieving stress, learning or studying, having fun, etc. Also, there is little risk in dreaming lucidly, since dreams do not take place in the physical world. Anything that can benefit many people with little risk should be readily available and encouraged. Dreaming lucidly fits this description yet is not studied often, and on top of that, is not taken very seriously within the scientific community. Lucid dreaming should be a topic that is taught and discussed more often than is currently in everyday life. To understand lucid dreaming, one must understand the two different types of “life”. One of which is waking life, which you probably can guess, refers to one’s life while they are awake. The other of which, is dreaming life, which refers to one’s life while asleep. The special thing about lucid dreaming is that it encompasses both of these ideas into one. That is to say, that you are dreaming and consciously aware of that fact simultaneously. This all sounds simple...
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...scientist wonder the same thing. The sci-fi adventure hit movie,INCEPTION has sparked massive new interest in the concept of lucid dreaming. Lucidity means becoming conscious and self-aware in your dreams, turning the dreamscape into a vivid virtual reality where everything you see, hear, feel, taste and even smell will be just as authentic real life. Tibetan monks have used dream control for more than a thousand years in a philosophy called Dream Yoga. However the modern term ‘lucid dreaming’ was not coined until the 20th century by the Dutch psychiatrist Frederik Van Eeden, meaning ‘mental clarity in dreams’ . The concept of lucid dreams were popularized by Celia Green in the 1960 s. She was the first to point out the link that false awakenings make way to lucid dreams. False awakenings are essentially ultra vivid dreams in which you are convinced you have woken up in physical reality. Yet many such awakenings go unrecognized assumed to be waking reality as they involve things one does everyday on autopilot such as getting up, having breakfast, getting dressed and heading out for work. It thus reveals the remarkable capacity of the human brain to emulate reality. But in normal dreams our self-awareness is shut down. That’s why we often feel fuzzy and distant. Lucidity occurs during altered states of consciousness when you realize you are dreaming and your brain switches into waking mode inside the dream. This is a safe and natural state. It is not a literal out of body experience...
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...With lucid dreaming becoming more popular, experienced lucid dreamers are getting out from the underground and speak to there non-practicing mates about abilities to control the dream. Often, to their surprise, my dreaming mates realise, that their friends, who never thought about lucid dreaming, lucid dream all the time. Or, at least they say so. I personally met quite a few people who claim to always know they're dreaming. For many, it seems to be the natural ability - they've known they dream since they were kids, and there's nothing magical or surprising to them. Nothing special, at all. So, what is lucidity all about? Speaking to these "natural lucid dreamers", i've asked them, what they normally do when they realise they're in a dream. I've heard two answers most often: "I wake up" (or sometimes, "I get so excited that i wake up"); "I find a hot lady/guy and ..." Is this lucid? I don't really think so. It has some degree of lucidity, although it's really far from what i'm looking for. In these dreams, people don't have much of control to their dreams - they are like occasional sparks of consciousness - and then they either wake up, or follow the first natural instinct "I'm dreaming and i can do whatever i like". For me, when i become lucid, the first thing i do is reality check (step 1). The checks i use most often follow: Look at my hands and try to compare them with the image of my "real" hands; Jump in attempt to fly; Look at the watch or switch...
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...Lucid Dreaming – A Guide to Controlling your Dreams Introduction Going to bed for eight hours a day means we spend a third of our lives sleeping. For the average life expectancy in Ireland, that’s over 25 years in total. How often do you have a dream? Most people couldn’t say. Dreams are forgotten within minutes of waking up unless they make an active effort to remember and even then it’s difficult. Surprisingly, the average person has between three and five per night spending around a quarter of their time sleeping in a dream. This would be around six and a half years spent just dreaming. Why not use it for something better? Dreaming Dreams are described as: “successions of images, ideas, emotions, and sensations that occur usually involuntarily in the mind during certain stages of sleep.” Dreams mainly happen during the rapid-eye movement (REM) stage of sleep, where brain...
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...What if you could conquer your fears, phobias, overcome mental blocks, and release chronic pain or stress while you were sleeping? With lucid dreaming, it's a possibility. Charlie Morley, teacher of the Tibetan Buddhist practice of dream yoga, has experienced the power of the dream state in healing. He teaches lucid dreaming to numerous people suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder—including ex-soldiers, victims of terrorist attacks, and those who experienced abuse during childhood—as a means to not only cure nightmares, but he says "to open people up to view their nightmares as a call for help rather than an attack from the unconscious." A lot of our fears, traumas, and the shadow aspects of psyche that we have unconsciously rejected...
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...Lucid Dreaming A lucid dream is scientifically defined as one in which the subject is aware that they are in a dream. Lucid dreaming is only experienced in a deep sleep. However, it is a deep sleep that also keeps your mind very active and awake. The dreamer is expected to have a dream over which he or she has complete control. For instance, Lucid Dreaming allows the dreamer to do anything they want. Whether they want to fly, throw fire, or have sex with a stranger, the dreamers mind can create it and act it out as if it were real life ("The Definition of Lucid Dream."). Lucid dreaming can also include interesting conditions such as mutual dreaming. Mutual dreaming is an exercise of the mind at rest that is a branch of lucid dreaming. Mutual dreaming occurs when two dreamers meet up and plan it out in the real world. They agree on a place to meet while in the dream and plan a time to do it. If they are able to...
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...genders and whether they’ve experienced lucid dream and how long their lucid dream lasted. “Dream – A series of thoughts, visions, or feelings that happen during sleep” in terms of Merriam-Webster. Everyone knows the common types of dreaming, daydreaming, normal dreaming, lucid dreaming, false awakening, and nightmare. Which all could consist of variety of subjects, emotions, and unimaginable situations. Daydreaming is your memories or thoughts taking over while you partially awake. Normal dreaming is counting sheep that’s as basic as it going to get. False awakening, is you think you’re in class and you have to present a topic unprepared then you remember you’re still sleeping. of...
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...During REM sleep dreams can be characterized as being nonsensical, bizarre, and the individual is left unaware that they are dreaming. Certain neural patterns describe this state, such as, the deactivation of the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex. Contrastly, lucid dreaming describes a state of sleep where the individual is aware that they are dreaming. Lucid dreaming can also be characterized by increase of 40-Hz wave activity and coherence in the frontal region of the brain. It is interesting to note that lucid dreamers are able to communicate their state by eye movements that can be tracked by an electrooculogram. Apart from the awesome idea of being aware that one is dream, lucid dreaming also have some benefits, such as, treating nightmares. In order to understand the neural changes in lucid dreaming and examine its neural correlates EEG and fMRI techniques were used in this study to compare lucid vs non-lucid REM sleep....
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...Lucid dreaming is a popular topic in world of dreaming. According to Fast Company, “Lucid dreaming is the art of becoming conscious within your dreams”. Everything the brain experiences during dreams can seem as authentic as reality whether is smell, hearing, or touch. However it is very important to be able to tell the difference between reality and dreaming. Everyone has the potential to control their dreams, but it is a skill that needs to be learned. Researchers still are not sure what happens inside the brain as lucid dreaming happens although, through tests they have found out it seems to be “a hybrid state between REM sleep and being awake” (fastcompany.com). From thorough research it has been discovered that lucid dreaming can improve your waking life or reality also. An fMRI imagery has revealed, being in a lucid dream state is a “little different than being full awake in the real world”. Research done by Michael...
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...Humans spend about a third of their lives sleeping. This means for thousands and thousands of hours people are away from the world of consciousness. But what if you go to bed each night and have complete control over your dreams? Most lucid dreamers are architects of their dream, where they can star and direct their dreams. So what is lucid dreaming? How can lucid dreaming change your life? Lucid dream is a dream where you are aware that you are dreaming. Once you are aware of your state, you start controlling the course of your dream. For several centuries, lucid dreaming is an accepted practice of the Buddhist culture. It is only recently that science and western culture has recognized this practice. Studies by neuropsychologists Martin Dresler and Ursula Voss have shown that brain activity during lucid dreaming is similar to Rapid Eye Movement Sleep. However, it is distinct from being awake or non-lucid state, which suggests that something unique and different is going on....
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... it is not. It has been studied that dreams, while rare, can also occur in nREM sleep; they are often short and involve thought from everyday life when compared to REM dreams using a bizarreness scale. While there is much evidence supporting that dreams happen during REM sleep, there is no definite conclusion yet that REM correlates with dreaming....
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...mysterious, but understanding the meaning of our dreams can be downright baffling. The content of our dreams can shift suddenly, feature bizarre elements or frighten us with terrifying imagery. The fact that dreams can be so rich and compelling is what causes many to believe that there must be some meaning to our dreams. Why do we dream? Some researchers suggest that dreams serve no real purpose, while others believe that dreaming is essential to mental, emotional and physical well-being. Although there is not much agreement on why we dream there are some interesting theories around. One possibility is that our minds are running us through the worst-case scenario during sleep. Disaster preparation you could say. For example if a new mother was to dream of losing her baby she is rehearsing what it would feel like for that to actually happen. So our dreams are just fire drills? Another possibility is that dreaming is actually aiding learning. Some researchers have found that performance on physical tasks is actually enhanced by dreaming about it. Whatever the reason for why we dream it has been proven through therapy that dreams can reveal certain aspects of ourselves that we were not aware were there. Dreams are also thought to help people find solutions to problems. Despite this, dream interpretation has becoming increasingly popular. While research has not demonstrated a purpose for dreams, many experts believe that dreams do have meaning....
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