False Awakenings

Okay, who put a "stop payment" on my reality check?

~Author unknown

What are false awakenings? They occur when you dream of waking up - but in fact are still asleep in bed. They are more likely to happen when you are excited about a big day ahead, or if you practice lucid dreaming.

Simply put, we often go on autopilot when we wake up and go about our morning routine. So it's not surprising that if you dream of waking up in the morning, your autopilot mode will switch on... and off you go!

The dream may be vivid, and you can take part in mundane activities like brushing your teeth. The dream can go on until you start your journey to work - and by this point, the more complex task of driving or checking the train times will prompt you to realize you're dreaming.

This is possibly the closest most people ever come to lucid dreams! But for them, the most likely response is to wake up and start again...

Multiple False Awakenings

The question is: when you wake up from false awakenings, are you really waking up - or are you rebooting the waking dream scenario?

Usually, if you have just had one experience, you are likely to have another. This is because your subconscious is busy planning the day ahead, or you are using lucidity techniques which bring your consciousness to the surface. Either way the conditions are ripe.

In an account of multiple false awakenings, one man reported seven dream awakenings in a row! This can be understandably frustrating - not least because you have to go through your tedious morning routine again.

The concept is taken to the extreme in the classic comedy movie Groundhog Day, where Bill Murray gets caught in a personal time warp on the worst day of his life. He wakes up on the same day again... and again...

You have probably experienced this yourself and forgotten about it - after all, they are only dreams. I often experience this 'dream within a dream' when I know something big is happening the next day. I find myself planning the details - and these play out in the dream. There is nothing spooky or strange about it. They are merely dreams about the day ahead.

The key to becoming fully lucid in a dream awakening is to perform a reality check early on. Here are some great ways to do so.

How to Turn False Awakenings
into Lucid Dreams

1. Make your alarm clock your trigger for reality checks - whenever you look at the time, ask yourself if you are dreaming. The best part about this technique is that numbers or letters are hard to read in a dream. They are prone to changing or turning into unreadable symbols after a few seconds. So if there is anything odd about your clock face, it will be obvious that you are dreaming. For free screen saver clocks for your PC, check out lucid dreaming software.

2. Look at your reflection in the mirror - since the first thing people do in the morning is go to the bathroom, this is an ideal reality check. Allow yourself a few seconds to examine your face, check that the reflection of the room is normal, and see if you can push your hand through the mirror itself. Do this before you use the toilet, as false awakenings can be responsible for bedwetting in children and adults...

3. Leave notes for yourself around your house - either prompting you to do a reality check or simply asking if you are dreaming. Put them in key places - on door handles, light switches, and banisters - to remind yourself to check if you are dreaming.

4. Test your reality as you eat breakfast - dreaming about your morning routine can easily involve eating breakfast so this is a prime time to perform a reality check. It may surprise you to suddenly taste the food you are eating as you become lucid!

5. Perform a reality check when you wake up - make lucid dreams the first thing you think about using the anchor technique. If you get used to doing reality checks when you wake up, go to bed, and stir in the night, you will put lucid dreams firmly in your subconscious and recognize false awakenings immediately.

True Lucid Dreams

As a lucid dreamer, you should be keeping a dream journal and recording your dreams on waking. Some people report writing their dreams down over and over because of multiple false awakenings! But if you are in the habit of doing reality checks first, you can immediately become lucid and guide your dream from there.

Without this lucid awareness of false awakenings, they aren't true lucid dreams. You must realize you are in a dream early on to transform your awareness and take full control. To learn more about increasing your self-awareness in a dream, see how to stay lucid.

Sleep Disorders
False Awakenings
Escaping From Nightmares
Sleep Paralysis
Sleepwalking

False Awakenings

Multiple False Awakenings

How to Turn False Awakenings into Lucid Dreams

True Lucid Dreams

How to Turn False Awakenings
into Lucid Dreams