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Why we're having more vivid dreams in lockdown

Photo credit: Jason Hetherington/trunkarchive
Photo credit: Jason Hetherington/trunkarchive

From Red Online

If you've noticed that you're having more vivid or memorable dreams in lockdown then you're not alone.

Theresa Cheung, author of The Dream Dictionary from A to Z told Cosmopolitan UK that vivid dreams are common right now 'because our sleep schedule has either been interrupted by the lock down or we are having more sleep than usual.'

She added: 'Both sleep disruption and longer sleep time increase the likelihood of having more REM stage sleep, which is the sleep stage where most dreaming happens.'

Vivid and memorable dreams are actually a sign of lucid dreaming – a sleep technique that could make you more positive, productive and happier in the long run, if you can keep it up. And it turns out that you can encourage your brain to lucid dream more often as journalist Daisy Buchanan found out when she embarked on a lucid dreaming course to help soothe her anxiety...

There is nothing more boring than other people's dreams. So I'll try to be concise when I tell you that one of my earliest memories is a of a dream I had when I was three years old.

I was in a fire engine, wearing yellow wellies and a coat over my nightie. I spoke to the firemen (yes, I was boringly gender-biased as an infant). Although I didn't know it I was having a lucid dream.

What is lucid dreaming?

A lucid dream is an experience in which you are aware that the dream is happening and can control your actions within it.

Lucid dreaming is becoming increasingly popular in the wellness community. Why? Because it can make you more productive, more positive and can even help to manage mental health.

Tree Carr, a mystic and dreaming guide who runs dream workshops from Malibu to Margate, explains. 'Lucid dreaming can be very beneficial for people with anxiety or phobias.'

As someone who struggles with an anxiety disorder this sounds very appealing. I decided to try Charlie Morley's online Awake Academy lucid dreaming video course.

Here are a few things I learned about lucid dreaming along the way...

How to teach yourself to lucid dream

Start a dream journal

Charlie explains that most of us will typically have four to five dream periods a night, and it’s key to keep a journal, where we write down as much detail as we can.

I’m a bit concerned mine will end up as a series of humiliating scribbled notes, like ‘OLD SCHOOL+ NO PANTS?’ Still, Charlie says that he once worked with an older man who insisted that he never dreamed, but simply keeping a journal was enough to trigger his memory. He said, ‘I’ve been dreaming for 62 years, I just didn’t care to notice!’

Just remember, it’s not enough to write ‘dreamed I was on holiday’ in your journal – try to describe any vivid images, sounds and smells that you associate with the dream. It’s okay if it doesn’t make sense – it’s only for you.

Photo credit: Unsplash
Photo credit: Unsplash

Decide on a dream before you go to sleep

Charlie is very confident that lucid dreaming is the way to deal with past traumas and bad experiences, because we're engaging with the parts of the brain we can't access when we're conscious, and all the wisdom we've ever accumulated.

Tree agrees: ‘Learning to control your nightmares, face them and change the outcome of the dream can give the dreamer quite a bit of healing.’

Lucid dreaming is all about being in control, so start by thinking about what you’d like to happen when you go to sleep. Stefan Zugor of the How To Lucid bootcamp says, ‘You need to prepare your mind for the experience, and invite it in.’

Fill your day with reality checks

Think of these as moments of mindfulness, where you anchor yourself in the present and remind yourself that you’re fully awake.

If you get into the habit of doing this, you’ll bring the practise into your dreams, and you’ll be able to know you’re dreaming, while staying asleep.

Don't become too goal orientated

Frustratingly, you can’t have a lucid dream unless you’re fully relaxed, and if you’re worried about achieving the dream, you’ll stop yourself from having the experience.

Even if you don’t have a lucid dream for weeks, practising the techniques should significantly improve the quality of your sleep.

Put down your phone

If you use a light-emitting device before bed, you’re limiting your body’s ability to produce melatonin, a chemical that’s needed for deep and restful sleep.

You can’t have a lucid dream if you’re not sleeping deeply enough.

A longer version of this article originally appeared in the August 2018 issue of Red.

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