Find out if you can lucid dream
The phenomenon you don't want to sleep on
A Spiritually Curious Series:
What is lucid dreaming
Common ways to lucid dream
Read these next:
The inspiration
In 2017 I signed up for a course at the California Institute of Integral Studies called “The Art and Science of Lucid Dreaming”, taught in-person by Fariba Bogzaran, Ph.D. As a world-renowned pioneer in the field of dream studies, she conducted the first scientific research on lucid dreaming and spiritual experiences at the Stanford Sleep Laboratory.
The materials and homework for this class are responsible for some of the most dizzying and spiritually awakening experiences of my life. Not bad for $234.00 USD.
Whether or not you’ve had a dream analysis book on your bedside table since you could read, or just an REM cycle, I encourage you to open your mind and expand the possibilities that go beyond your waking life.
The science
I may be an expert on traveling to other realms, but I’m a down-to-earth science girlie, too. I conducted an experiment to understand if Astrology is nature or nurture. I beg you, if you’re a neurologist, please hook my brain up to wires and tell me how I talk to dead people. And because my life is full of the mystical and inexplicable, I also experience (and therefore believe) things that we haven’t yet scientifically proven.
Luckily, the science behind lucid dreaming is proven, and it’s a sure-fire way to experience some seriously spiritually profound stuff.
Lucid dreaming occurs when we are totally asleep; we become aware that we are dreaming, and choose to influence the dream's content. You start by having awareness of being in a dream, you realize you have some degree of control over the dream, you fully understand you are dreaming, you can control your actions as if you're awake, you can manipulate your surroundings, and you can manipulate others' actions.
This phenomenon is characterized by the dreamer having clarity about their state of consciousness, freedom of choice, perception, understanding the meaning of the dream, and sometimes, a profound spiritual awakening.
Lucid dreams mimic the real thing on a neurological level. As in, our brain activity combines a sleep state with an awake state, and registers them as if we are awake and collecting a memory and actually experiencing the events we choose to dream about.
So say you dream you won an Olympic medal for the pommel horse, you can wake up with neurologically real memories that mirror the neurological memories of “The Specialist” Stephen Nedoroscik himself.
The lucid lift-off
Some of you might’ve made it this far and realized you’ve experienced lucid dreaming before. Share details with us in the comments, and see if you recognize yourself in my early experiences of lucid dreaming.
Before I studied how to lucid dream, it would usually start with a bad dream. For example, I would be running away from something scary, and I’d be met with obstacles and my impending doom. Still unaware I was dreaming, my dream would be working out options and solutions to get away. Eventually one option would occur to me that this isn’t real at all, so I can just stop the nightmare, stay asleep, and do anything I want. The dream would dissolve, and I’d be left with a calm feeling, and a blank canvas in outer space. Then I would usually choose to start flying like a bird. I would soar and travel like that for a while; it gave me such a feeling of peace and freedom.
One-third of lucid dreamers report some form of flying in their dreams, which is more common than other activities like sex, sports, and fighting.
Flying may be the first thing people do once they start to get a grasp of lucid dreaming, but there are 4 more themes and stages of dreaming to go. And they are drastically different.
These next ascensions and layers of lucid dreaming gave me a deeper understanding of myself, humanity, and the universe. The opportunities available in this unique brain-state can be transformative, profound, and healing for you, too. And we’ll get into all that next week.
Want to go deeper, faster? Work with me to talk directly to your Spirit Guides and Ancestors.
Stay curious,
Christina
P.S. I’d absolutely love to hear if you have any experience lucid dreaming! Give me all the details!