Lucid dreaming is the ability to consciously direct and control your dreams. It transforms your inner dream world into a living alternate reality - where everything you see, hear, feel, taste and even smell is as authentic as real life.

Lucidity occurs during altered states of consciousness when yourealizeyou are dreaming - and your brain switches into 'waking mode' inside the dream. In normal dreams, your self awareness is shut down. That's why they often feel fuzzy and distant. But when lucid, you become self-aware as your conscious brain wakes up during sleep!

This is a safe and natural state. It is unlike an out of body experience - because you are always asleep in bed. And if you want to, you can wake yourself up. When you become lucid, your senses become alive. You can explore the inner workings of your subconscious mind with total freedom.

Is Lucid Dreaming Scientifically Proven?

The first scientific evidence of lucid dreaming was produced by the British parapsychologist Keith Hearne. He did it by catching eye movement signals from his volunteer, Alan Worsley, in a lucid dream state in laboratory conditions. But Hearne's research slipped under the radar of the mainstream science journals, and it was Dr Stephen LaBerge at Stanford University who became famous for replicating this experiment and formally publishing his findings.

A prolific lucid dreamer himself, Stephen LaBerge founded The Lucidity Institute in 1987 to explore the question: what is lucid dreaming? His mission is to research the nature and potential of consciousness in dreams... A riddle that may one day offer considerable advances in our understanding of the human mind.

Can Anyone Learn to Lucid Dream?

Yes! I believe so. We all have dreams (whether we remember them or not) and so I think we all have the capacity to become conscious within them. Many children have reported having lucid dreams naturally, and certain medications for degenerative conditions like Parkinson's Disease can cause lucid dreams. Age or brain power is certainly not a factor.

Having a lucid dream is not actually all that hard once you tap into the right mechanism. Research shows that everyone will have at least one lucid dream in their lives, just by accident. And to have lucid dreams on demand, all you have to do is get into the habit of recognizing the dreamstate.

There are many ways you can achieve this subconscious recognition, such as:

• Meditation
• Hypnosis
• Visualizations
• Reality checks
• Dream herbs

You can practice one or all of these methods during the waking day or just before you fall asleep, in order to plant the seed of lucidity. It is up to your subconscious mind to trigger you during sleep. This subconscious programming gets easier over time.

In fact, many people are able to have their first lucid dream between three days and three weeks. With practice you will be able to induce lucid dreams on demand - and it gets easier the more you do it.

What is are The Benefits of Dream Control?

At first, many people are drawn to the idea of lucid dreaming for the escapism it offers. In your virtual reality dream world, you can realistically fly over beautiful landscapes, meet your favorite celebrity in the flesh, or become a ninja assassin. It is way more realistic than day dreaming or playing your favorite video game. It is an alternate reality world.

Once you become accustomed to the novelty value, you'll understand that lucid dreaming has many personal development applications, such as:

• Creative problem solving
• Increasing your creativity
• Facing your fears
• Improving your confidence
• Practicing new skills
• Developing your sense of self
• Exploring your own subconscious

Lucid dreaming is a powerful psychological tool and an enlightening experience. It is a wonderful life skill to develop as you attain self-awareness in the dream world...