MacEwan Open Journals (MacEwan University)
Not a member yet
2252 research outputs found
Sort by
Limitations in the Utility of Lucid Dreaming and Dream Control as Techniques for Treating Nightmares
No full textIn the past several years I have been studying nightmares and in that context have examined the factors that prompt people to seek treatment for these experiences. Given that over the years, many articles in Lucidity Letter have addressed the positive and negative aspects of lucidity and dream control, I thought I would add my reflections on this issue with respect to treating nightmares
The Creative Process: Paintings Inspired from the Lucid Dream
No full textCreative endeavors often arise from seemingly ordinary everyday experiences. In my own life, my art work received a considerable boost through an initial encounter with a lucid dream which I transformed into an occasion for self-expression. This type of self-expression, which I have explored more fully in the past few years, is highlighted in the following examples
A Personal Experience in Lucid Dream Healing
No full textFirst, let me describe my own qualifications and orientation in dreamwork. I normally recall three to five dreams per night, and have over the past decade or so written down and then fairly comprehensively indexed over 5,000 of my dreams. Of these dreams I have had several hundred that I characterize as fully lucid, meaning that within the dream I had at least the same degree of consciousness and free will (the ability to make conscious decisions) as in my physical reality waking state. During these experiences I have applied many of the standard tests for "realness" that one can apply to the physical world (from pinching myself, saying my name out loud, checking my dream body sensations, self-remembering, checking for consensus with other dream persons, etc.) and in each case dream reality has passed the tests. Of course, dream reality compared to physical reality has many profoundly different attributes, and I do not in any way wish to make light of those differences. But from a phenomenological point of view, which bases itself in experience rather than in theories about experience, I have found no basis other than prejudice for assigning any less "realness" to the lifeworld of my lucid dream state than to that of my awake physical state
CODE BLUE: A New Beginning
No full textMy story begins on the warm, star-lit night of August 3, 1986—a night destined to stand alone from all the others that preceded it as suddenly it became isolated in time. The night was calm and tranquil, yet it held within it the power to change my life forever. Prior to this time, during my college years, I had begun a period of my life in which I progressively abandoned everything that had previously served to structure my life and instill it with direction and purpose. I found myself wandering aimlessly through those years as I desperately sought to regain the direction and contentment I had once known. I became more dissatisfied with my life as I drifted from one interest to another, draining the excitement and enthusiasm from each before moving on to the next. I exhausted my options one by one as I closed door after door behind me, each taking me one phase farther away from my true self. I felt lost, no longer knowing who I was or where to turn, as I prayed for an answer that would turn my life around and once again structure it with the proper meaning I was then missing
Lucid Dreams and Viewpoints in Imagery: Two Studies
No full textThere is much evidence that the same people tend to report both lucid dreams and outof-body experiences (OBEs) (Irwin & Blackmore, 1988), but there is no general accepted explanation for this association. One way of exploring this further is to see whether the same cognitive skills are associated with the two experiences. Previous studies have shown the vividness of imagery and control of imagery are not associated with lucid dreaming (Blackmore, 1982; Hearne, 1978), while recent studies show some association between having OBEs and certain visuospatial skills (Cook & Irwin, 1983)
The Problem of Induction: A Panel Discussion
No full textAll of us here are drawn together by our fascination with the lucid dream experience. We believe that it has the potential to enhance personal development and perhaps to increase our scientific understanding of dreams and consciousness. Without intentional induction procedures, lucid dreams tend to occur spontaneously but sporadically. An individual experiencing a lucid dream for the first time will often become intrigued by it, and attempt to increase the frequency of these experiences by trial and error. These hit and miss methods do not often achieve their goal consistently. If we are to make progress toward scientific and personal understanding of lucid dreams, we must first develop techniques to induce the lucid dream experience reliably. This is the most important task currently facing lucid dream research
Reply To Foulkes
No full textDavid Foulkes is quite correct in noting that when it comes to lucid dreaming we are no longer talking about sleep and dreaming in the "usual" way. Dream lucidity is a paradoxical phenomenon: to resolve the paradox requires a broadening of our understanding of the varieties of dreaming experience and a clarification of our usage of such terms as "sleep," "awareness," and "unconsciousness." For example, Foulkes asserts that "to be asleep is to be unaware and unreflective in specifiable ways." Thus he finds it problematical to hear lucidity described as "being awake and aware in your dreams." How could this be sleep
Mental Health Applications: A Panel Discussion
No full textThis panel discussion includes the following presentations:• Judith Malamud: Interaction With Inner Wisdom Figures• Jean Campbell: A Therapist Dreams With a Client• Ann Sayre Wiseman: Lucidity and the Language of Imagery• Gordon Halliday: Clinical Utility Seen in Lucid Dream Ability• Patricia Garfield: When and For Whom Is Lucidity Appropriate
From the Beginning Through Feast or Famine
No full textRemembering back as young as six or seven months of age, I was afraid to sleep—that was an, as yet, undefined state in the face of which I felt helpless with fear. Although I cannot recall even the smallest detail of those early nightmares, I do remember the fear they instilled in me. It was in response to those nightmares that I developed the "skill" of lucid dreaming. I found rocking (first on all fours, then from side to side) soon became a means to gain the control I needed. The rhythm helped me to focus thought. Thoughts, I quickly found, had considerable power. Also, I knew that I had to control the fear I felt. This rocking motion helped me to focus on other things. I remember early nightmares were more on a feeling level than a visual one
A Journal of Attempts to Induce and Work with Lucid Dreams: Can You Kill Yourself While Lucid?
No full textThe following is a narrative of my attempts to create lucid dreams and my experiments with the lucid dream state. I cite the journal notes I kept during that time period. The technique I used to induce lucid dreams was to "find my hand" (à la the technique described in Carlos Castaneda’s books). This entailed concentrating on my hand to remind myself that I was dreaming. If the image wavered or faded, I would avert my vision for a moment then concentrate on my hand again, to renew the focus