Researchers from the International Lucid Dream Induction Study (ILDIS) noted that the success of one technique, known as mnemonic induction of lucid dreams (MILD), depended on participants falling back to sleep quickly after using it.Īccording to the study, participants’ sleep quality was superior on nights when they successfully induced dreams compared with nights when they failed to induce dreams. Because the study relied on self-reporting, more research is recommended.Īnother 2020 study didn’t find a direct link between lucid dreaming frequency and sleep disturbance, but it suggested particular induction methods and sleep conditions may negatively affect sleep. Young people are more likely to spontaneously have lucid dreams.ĭoes lucid dreaming help you sleep better? The science is mixed.Ī 2020 study partially confirmed a connection between lucid dream induction and sleep fragmentation, or shifts to lighter sleep stages or wakefulness.Not everyone lucid dreams, but about half of all people have had one lucid dream in their life.It’s considered a hybrid sleep-wake state.Scientists have confirmed that lucid dreaming is a real phenomenon.Lucid dreaming contrasts with typical dreams, which play out as if behind a thick wall, one that separates the dreamer from waking consciousness. Increased connectivity during lucid dreaming allows dreamers to access memories from waking life - and sometimes even control their actions within the dream world. These areas, which coordinate information from the thalamus, limbic, auditory and visual systems, normally stop working during sleep. About 20 percent of people experience lucid dreaming monthly, and a small percentage experience lucid dreams several times per week.Ībout half of all people have had one lucid dream in their lifetime.Ī 2018 study showed that frequent lucid dreamers have increased resting-state communication between the frontopolar cortex (FPC) and temporoparietal junction (TPJ) areas of the brain. Lucid dreaming isn’t a natural occurrence for everyone.Ī 2012 study of 793 participants suggested that young people are more likely to lucid dream spontaneously than those with fully mature brains. More recently, researchers use electroencephalograms (EEGS) to track lucid dreaming activity in the prefrontal cortex, a part of the brain involved in complex behaviors and personality development.Īccording to a 2009 study, researchers consider lucid dreaming a hybrid sleep-wake state, mostly taking place in the final stage of a typical sleep cycle during rapid eye movement (REM) sleep. They based their findings on study participants’ reports of their dreams. It was confirmed by scientists in a 1981 study to be a real phenomenon. Philosophers have been referencing lucid dreaming for thousands of years. To answer that question, it’s important to first understand what lucid dreaming is. Could this practice be a healthy way to confront the psyche, or is it treading into dangerous territory? What’s more, scientists are increasingly making a connection between lucid dreaming and mental health. He sees a renewed interest in lucid dreaming, speculating that it “may be a function of people working remotely having more time to sleep.” Lucid dream researcher, author, and educator Daniel Love says the pandemic has led to a new “influx of dream explorers.”Īuthor and lucid dream researcher Robert Waggoner agrees.

These fictional approaches suggest that lucid dreaming can be a lot of things: exciting, pathological, even healing. Her husband’s lover, Louise, uses lucid dreaming to safely confront nightmares. In the movie, the main character Adele uses lucid dreaming to explore an obsession with her cheating husband. If you’ve watched “Behind Her Eyes” on Netflix, you might be intrigued with lucid dreaming, the phenomenon of being aware that you’re dreaming while asleep. highland/departments-centers/neurosurgery/spine-care/spine-fracture.Share on Pinterest Hayden Williams/Stocksy United diseases-conditions/scoliosis/symptoms-causes/syc-20350716 diseases-conditions/herniated-disk/symptoms-causes/syc-20354095 diseases-conditions/heart-attack/symptoms-causes/syc-20373106 my./health/diseases/10265-back-strains-and-sprains You can learn more about how we ensure our content is accurate and current by reading our editorial policy. Healthline has strict sourcing guidelines and relies on peer-reviewed studies, academic research institutions, and medical associations.

Lucid dreams meaning