Escaping From Nightmares
with Lucid Dreaming
Did you know that lucid dreams are the most effective way of escaping from nightmares? Whether it is a one-off or recurring nightmare, having the ability to become conscious in a dream can free you from your personal terrors, resolve subconscious fears, and turn the nightmare into a pleasant, fantasy reality.
In this article we'll look at the meaning of nightmares, where they come from, and how to stop nightmares. The next time you suffer from a bad dream, you can knowingly smile at the bad guy and move on to your "happy place." To explore this idea further, I recommend Robert Waggoner's Gateway to the Inner Self which explains how to interact with the "awareness behind the dream."
 What Are Nightmares?
In the West, nightmares are merely considered as good dreams gone bad. We generally believe that the meaning of nightmares is to reveal our darkest inner fears in literal and symbolic forms. We all deal with them at some time in our lives, but few people consider lucid dreams for escaping from nightmares.
Most of us have had the nightmare of being chased by some evil entity; a monster, witch, demon, vampire, madman or other. According to dream analysis, this reveals our evolutionary fear of being hunted - resembling the predators from our ancient past.
The word nightmare derives from the Anglo-Saxon word mare, meaning goblin or incubus. You can see the incubus in medieval paintings as a small demon that attacks and impregnates sleeping women. The female version was known as the succubus. They can also be recurring features of sleep paralysis hallucinations.
What Causes Nightmares?
Around half of the population report occasional nightmares. Children are more prone, who understandably feel more physically and emotionally vulnerable than adults. A small, unfortunate number of people report nightmares every week.
You are more likely to suffer from nightmares when you are:
- sick, especially with fever
- stressed out
- having relationship problems
- traumatized by violence
- taking drugs or alcohol
Drinking alcohol takes its toll by suppressing REM sleep for the first few hours. By the time the alcohol wears off, you begin your REM-rebound, with vivid dreams that are more emotionally intense than usual.
Certain medications increase nightmares, such as L-dopa for Parkinson's Disease, and beta blockers for heart conditions. However they may also raise dream intensity - which can lead to more lucid dreams.
Lucid Dreams To Stop Nightmares
Since I began lucid dreaming, I've learned some excellent ways to deal with nightmares. Not just switch them off - but actually grow from the experience.
I've learned that the monsters in your nightmare can't hurt you. Yet without being lucid, you can't apply this kind of logic. So instead your reaction is to run and hide. You believe the creature has the power to harm you, and this creates anxiety.
But what if you were to realize you were dreaming, and that the source of your fear wasn't real at all? This is the obvious realization when you enter lucid dreams. The insight gives you two options for escaping from nightmares:
- Wake yourself up - this is the knee-jerk response. If you are terrified to the core and can't think clearly, a moment of lucidity gives you the ability to shout "WAKE UP" and return to consciousness.
- Face your fears - once you become fully lucid, you will realize that the evil dream character is just another part of your own psyche. This brings instant relief and the ability to question its very existence. You may decide to make friends with the creature, laugh at it, make it wither away, or otherwise prove to yourself that you are are no longer afraid.
Escaping From Nightmares
When I first used lucid dreams to stop nightmares, I simply woke myself up. It was surely the coward's way out - but it worked and that was all I needed.
In time, I learned from lucidity experts like Robert Waggoner and Stephen LaBerge that you can use lucid dreams to face your fears. They explained how you could confront your nightmare monster and ask them what they want. The best way is to openly make friends with it - or show it you love it.
In doing so, you send a clear message to your unconscious mind: "I am not afraid of this!" It's a personal triumph and creates a healthy mentality of dealing with fear. Here are a couple of examples of how I used lucid dreaming for escaping from nightmares...
Dismissing a Nightmare Creature
I am running around an old, dark house with a group of young children. I am the only adult and I feel I must protect them. We are being chased by an ugly male creature with long fingernails and gray skin. He is vampirish in appearance. Every time he catches up, he smiles at me and I feel terrified - and then another child goes missing.
I keep running away with the children. The walls keep moving, creating small hiding places for us, but I know the monster will catch up with us. Every time I think of him chasing us - he appears in the hallway. I am down to four children now; we are hiding under the bed.
Then it occurs to me that it is morning, and daylight is streaming in. I climb out and dust myself down. I remember the monster can't come out in daylight... and then... I realize I'm dreaming! It was all a bad dream!
I move into a bright room and there he is, standing awkwardly, like he is embarrassed about the whole thing. I realize I have absolutely nothing to fear - plus, I'm inside a lucid dream!
I float through the big window, laughing at him and his stupid chasing game and he looks ashamed. He doesn't even try to follow me this time. I float out into the sunlight and begin my lucid adventure. |
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Confronting a Nightmare Creature
That day, I'd been mulling over a philosophical question: is it more important to love yourself, or to be loved by someone else? The more I thought about it, the tougher it was to decide. Eventually I concluded that it was more important to love yourself, contrary to what I had thought all my life.
That night I had a violent nightmare. I was walking down a hallway with my dad when a dark pointy figure grabbed me by my ankles and flung me down the hall. My body smashed hard against the wall. The creature marched over, picked me up and did it again. I felt some pain and was terrified. But then the complete unreality hit me and I realized I was dreaming. I became lucid.
I didn't waste any time. I marched up to the silhouette man and grabbed him by the shoulders. "WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS TO ME!" I shouted. His aggression immediately turned to sadness and childish frustration. "I can't reconcile this," he said, shoving a notepad in my hands. He had scrawled the words "be loved, love yourself" - exactly as I had been mulling over that day.
At that moment I felt overwhelming sympathy for him, because he hadn't understood. I explained to him my reasoning, and that it was ok because I still wanted to be loved, but now I realized how important it was to love myself, too. He accepted my words and faded into the background. I woke up, awed that I was able to speak so clearly with my subconscious inner child. |
As soon as you're familiar with lucid dreams, you can use this mentality for escaping from nightmares or bad dream situations. It is very empowering. I have vowed to always speak to my nightmare figures in future and ask what they represent. It is such a wasted opportunity not to!
 Related articles
Sleep Disorders
False Awakenings
Escaping from Nightmares
Sleep Paralysis
Sleepwalking and Sleep Talking
Night Terrors
Lucid Nightmares
Fatal Familial Insomnia
The Man Who Never Slept
The Best Nightmare-Turned-Lucid-Dream!
Have you ever escaped from a nightmare by becoming lucid? How did it feel? Did you confront your nightmare character?
The Best Nightmare-Turned-Lucid-Dream!
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