Scientists are continually searching for the perfect lucid dreaming technique. A recent experiment was conducted by authors from the USA and Canada, led by Norah Wolk and including renowned researchers like Karen Konkoly, Michelle Carr, Ken Paller, and Remington Mallett.
The authors recruited five participants with varying levels of experience with lucid dreaming practices. The procedure was as follows:
1. Participants arrived at the laboratory an hour before bedtime. After being instructed on how to signal with their eyes (using left-right movements) that they had achieved awareness, they went to sleep.
2. After they had been sleeping for 4–5 hours, participants were awakened and seated at a computer. For 10 minutes, they were required to monitor their breathing as follows: On the first eight inhalations, they pressed the left arrow key; on the ninth inhalation, they pressed the right arrow key, and if they lost count, they pressed the spacebar. Music played in the background during this exercise.
3. Participants were then sent back to sleep. As soon as the equipment detected a participant was in the rapid eye movement (REM) phase, a sound signal (a fragment from the melody played during the breathing exercise) was emitted. This was done until the participant demonstrated awareness or the REM phase ended.
4. If the individual confirmed their awareness using the pre-determined eye movements, they were awakened, and a report was compiled.
Two of the five participants successfully completed the experimental task. The authors acknowledge that the sample size is small and that, of course, this was a pilot study. However, they believe the results are promising.
What technique did you use to achieve lucid dreaming for the first time?
The article was published in October 2024 in the International Journal of Dream Research.
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