Lucid dreaming describes when you realize you’re in a dream as it’s unfolding. Sometimes, people can control the content of their dreams from this state of awareness.
Recently, researchers claimed that they found a way to “train” people to lucid dream by having them meditate and complete virtual-reality-augmented exercises while they were awake. Following the release of that study, Live Science asked its readers whether they would learn to lucid dream if they could.
Over 300 readers weighed in, with 77% saying “Yes, I’d want to try to control my dreams.” Additionally, 17% of respondents said “No, I already lucid dream enough without training,” 3% said “No, I don’t see the point,” and the final 3% said they weren’t sure.
In the comments, one reader shared that they’d once experimented with hypnagogic napping, a technique famously used by Thomas Edison and Salvador Dalí in which the famous luminaries would wake themselves up just as they were drifting to sleep. Edison claimed that this helped him access a creative sweet spot at the edge of sleep and wakefulness.
“When I was experimenting with the hypnagogic state (using the Edison method) I started having spontaneous lucid dreams,” the reader wrote. “I can confidently say, that there were some of the most profound experiences of my life, so the answer is definitely yes.”
Another reader reported having lucid dreams “about once or twice a year,” adding that they typically wake up shortly after realizing it’s a dream. “My most recent one was of my recently deceased wife. I became very sad when I realized she wasn’t supposed to be there,” the reader wrote. “I hugged her and told her I don’t want to be without her. She replied that I could live a long life if I took care of myself (This was a very typical response from her…lol). I feel very blessed to have had that dream.”
Other readers chimed in on Facebook. “Already have it [lucid dreaming], but if I didn’t I would certainly practice to do so,” one wrote. “Hell yes,” another said, in response to the idea of training themselves to lucid dream.
Other readers noted that they already lucid dream quite often or that they can consistently control their dreams, with one even saying that all of their dreams are lucid. Another said, “Some nights I interrupt it [my dream] like Monty Python — ‘Too silly!’ and start over.”
But while one person compared lucid dreaming to “writing and directing your own movie,” another noted that “lucid dreams can be boring, repetitive, annoying.” So while many people would practice lucid dreaming if they could, not everyone sees the appeal.
