Is lucid dreaming addictive? I really want to have lucid dreams but I read that lucid dreaming is really addictive and this worries me. Would you compare this need to taking drugs? How do you keep control over it?
Rebecca says: Let me start out by explaining the literal definition of addiction: the condition of being abnormally dependent on some habit or substance. When you withdraw from the substance or habit, you get cravings and, in severe addiction, physical withdrawal pain.
This is not the case with lucid dreaming. Sure, it is a lot of fun and people want to do it, just like people want to go dancing or rock climbing or play the guitar. It can become an important part of your life like any other pastime. But, unlike the common focus of addictions like drugs or alcohol, there is no psychological nor physiological addictive need to lucid dream.
And how could there be? You dream for 100 minutes per night, and I guarantee that won't all be spent lucid dreaming (unless you have a rare condition of permanent lucidity, which develops in childhood). Even highly experienced lucid dreamers admit they don't lucid dream every night. So I ask: how can we become addicted to something so elusive as to be unavailable for 95% of our conscious daily existence?
I have read in the media that "lucid dreaming is addictive" but this is a poor use of language. They are trying to say that it's highly enjoyable and you'll want to do it more... not that you won't be able to live a normal existence without frequent injections of its chemical or mental stimulus.
A lot has happened in the last 5 months. But how did we go from business as usual to changing the face of the entire lucid dreaming supplements industry? It’s a story that I think will interest you – and you might even learn a thing or two in the process. When I was first taken on-board as Chief Lucidity Officer in 2016, one of the first things I was tasked with was taking a good look at our operations and giving things a bit of an overhaul.
Want to become a skilled and knowledgeable Lucid Dreamer by taking a Mindful approach? Awaken the potentials of your mind and integrate with your dreams through the guided meditations in this truly awesome app. Lucid Dreaming and Mindfulness actually share the same origin.
To lucid dream, I recommend being able to remember at least one vivid dream per night. That will boost your self awareness in dreams (making lucidity more likely) and also means you can actually remember your lucid dreams. Which is nice. Here are four detailed tips on how to remember your dreams more frequently. And if you don't think you dream at all - trust me, you almost certainly do. It takes an extraordinarily rare sleep disorder to deprive someone of dream sleep.
Years ago, before I had my first lucid dream, I had a very specific idea about what a lucid dream would feel like. I thought it would be intense and magical and a little bit spooky. This turned out to be a pretty accurate representation. Becoming aware in the dreamstate is like entering another world. One where physical laws can be manipulated (there is no spoon, Neo) and your fantasies can come true in an instant. There's definitely something magical about that - and it's as if the lucid dream world is a living, breathing organism that can react to your very thoughts.
Experts agree that everyone is capable of having lucid dreams. Dreaming itself is a normal function of the mind. We all dream every night, even if we don't remember. And we all achieve conscious awareness while awake every single day. So what does it mean to combine these states? Why, the amazing ability to have conscious - or lucid - dreams. Sounds simple, doesn't it? So why do I keep hearing from people who say they can't achieve their first lucid dream?
It is estimated that these wise and wily Indians have been using mugwort in their healing and ritual practices for 13,000 years, where it is known as the ‘dream sage’. They use the herb to promote good dreams, which they consider an essential aspect of normal human functioning! But that’s not all...