Essential Oils for Lucid Dreaming
Another way to improve your dream recall and have more vivid dreams may be through your sense of smell - using essential oils.
Some lucid dreamers claim that lucidity can be prompted by aromatherapy, by using specific scents to trigger a reaction in the brain. Indeed, essential oils are said to enhance visualizations and repel nightmares.
One particular scent, called Rose essential oil, was recommended to me by Jen at Essential Oil Goddess. A qualified practitioner of aromatherapy, Jen explained how Rose oil can assist the transition to lucid dreaming while you sleep. Rose oil has also been used in meditation for many hundreds of years.
Rose Essential Oil for Lucid Dreaming
To help induce vivid and potentially more lucid dreams using aromatherapy, Jen recommends you place one drop of Rose essential oil into the palm of your hand. Rub the oil directly onto the sole of the opposite foot three times, in a clockwise direction. Then apply the oil in the same manner to the other foot.
Why the sole of the foot? Believe it or not, the sole of your foot is actually the most permeable part of your body. This makes it easy for the tiny essential oil molecules to penetrate the skin and enter the bloodstream. Then it is only a matter of minutes before the oils are absorbed around the body.
Other Essential Oils for Lucid Dreams
There are several other recommended essential oils for lucid dreaming. You can use these on their own or mix them with Rose essential oil for vivid dreams and to encourage a restful night's sleep:
- Helichrysum Essential Oil
- Sandalwood Essential Oil
- Palo Santo Essential Oil
- Patchouli Essential Oil
Aromatherapy Scent Inhaler
Another way to induce lucid dreams with aromatherapy is with a scent inhaler containing a specific combination of pure essential oils. I have been using the Lucid Dreams Scent Inhaler with some good if slightly sporadic results.
These pure essential oils were chosen specifically to encourage vivid imagination, creative visualizations, better dream recall and self-awareness:
- Clove Essential Oil
- Mugwort Essential Oil
- Anise Essential Oil
- Clary Sage Essential Oil
Before you go to bed, close your eyes and breathe in the inhaler through your nose twice. At the same time, repeat in your mind "I will have lucid dreams tonight" and think of your lucid dream intention. I find these two methods are a good combination and can bring me to lucidity, although part of the effect is in the mental preparation and so I would stress the importance of lucid dream incubation as you go to sleep.
Final Thoughts
Your sense of smell is a powerful way to induce desired feelings and states of awareness. When I took school exams I always used to inhale Jasmine essential oil to help me relax.
So if you're looking for an alternative method to induce lucid dreams, try some of the essential oils mentioned here and remember to plant the seed of lucidity too.
About the author
Rebecca Turner is the creator of World of Lucid Dreaming where she offers valuable first-hand insights. Learn more about Rebecca. Take her home study program. Connect with her on Facebook, Twitter and the lucid dream forum.
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