L UCI D DREAM REAMI NG: AWAKE I N YOU YOUR SLEEP SL EEP? ? By Susan Bl Bl ackm ack mor e Fr om Skep kept i cal cal I nqui r er , Vol . 15 Su Summer 1991 pages pages 362362- 370 370 What hat coul coul d i t mean ean t o be be consci consci ous ous i n you yourr dr eam eams? For most of us, dreami ng i s som somet hi ng qui t e separat separat e f r om nor mal l i f e. When hen we wake ake up up f r om bei ng chased chased by a f er oci ous ous t i ger ger , or sedu seduced by a devast vast at i ngl y good ood- l ooki ooki ng Nobe obel Pri ze wi nner we r eal i ze wi t h r el i ef or di sap sappoi nt ment t hat "i t was onl onl y a dr eam. " Yet t her e ar e s ome dr eams t hat ar e not l i ke t hat . Luci d dr eams ar e dr eam eams i n whi ch you you know know at t he t i me t hat hat you ar e dr dr eam eami ng. ng. That That t hey ar ar e di f f er ent f r om ordi nary dr dr eams i s obvi obvi ous ous as as soon soon as you you have have one. one. The The exp experi eri ence ence i s s omet hi ng l i ke waki aki ng up up i n you yourr dreams. I t i s as t houg ough you you " come t o" and f i nd you you are dr eam eami ng. Luci d dr eam eams used used t o be be a t opi opi c wi t hi n psychi sychi cal r esear esear ch and and par par apsych apsychol ol ogy. ogy. Per Per hap haps t hei r i ncompr ehen ehensi si bi l i t y made ade t hem good ood cand candi dat dat es f or bei bei ng t houg ought par par anor anor mal . Mor e r ecen ecent l y, however ever , t hey hey have have beg begun un t o appe appear ar i n psychol psychol ogy ogy j our our nal nal s and and hav have e dr dr oppe opped d out out of par apsych apsychol ol ogy ogy - a goo good d exa exam mpl e of of how t he f i el d of par apsychol sychol ogy ogy shr shr i nks when any of i t s sub subj ect ect mat t er i s act act ual l y expl xpl ai ned. Luci di t y has has al so becom become somet hi ng of a New New Age f ad. ad. Ther Ther e ar e machi achi nes nes and gadg gadget et s you can can buy buy and and speci speci al cl ubs ubs you can j oi n t o l ear n how how t o i nduce l uci d dr dr eams. But t hi s commer ci al i zat i on sho shoul d not l et us l ose si ght of t he ver y r eal f asci nat i on of l uci d dr eami ng. I t f orces us us t o ask ask qu quest i ons ons abou aboutt t he nat ur e of con consci ousne sness, del i ber at e co cont r ol over ver our act i ons, and t he na nat ur e of i magi nar y worl ds. A Real eal Dr eam eam or Not ? The t er m l uci d dr eami ng was coi ned by t he Dut ch psychi psyc hi at r i st Fr eder i k van van Eed Eede en i n 19 1913. I t i s somet hi ng of of a mi snom snomer si nce i t means somet hi ng qui t e di f f er ent f r om j ust cl ear or vi vi d dr eami ng. Never ver t hel ess we ar e cer cer t ai nl y st uck wi t h i t . Van Eeden expl xpl ai ned t hat i n t hi s sor sor t of dr eam "t he r e- i nt egr at i on of t he psych sychii c f unct i ons ons i s so com compl et e t hat t he sl eeper r each eache es a st at e of per f ect awar eness an and i s ab abl e t o di r ect hi s at at t ent i on, and t o at t empt di f f er ent acts of f r ee vol i t i on. Yet t he sl eep, as I am abl e con conf i dent l y to st at e, i s u un ndi st ur bed, deep, and r ef r eshi shi ng. " Thi s i mpl i ed t hat t her e coul d be consc i ousness dur i ng sl eep, eep, a cl ai m many any psychol sychol ogi ogi st s den denii ed f or mor e t han 50 years years . Or t hodox odox sl eep r esear sear chers chers ar gued t hat l uci d dr dr eam eams coul coul d not not possi bl y be be r eal dr eams. I f t he acco accou unt s we wer e va val i d, t hen t he exp experi eri ences ces must have have occur occur r ed dur dur i ng br br i ef moment ent s of wakef akef ul ness or i n t he t r ansi t i on bet ween waki ng an and sl eepi epi ng, not i n t he ki ki nd of of deep sl eep eep i n whi ch r api api d eye eye movem ovement ent s ( REMs) and and or or di nar nar y dr eams usua sual l y occu occurr . I n ot her words, t hey cou coul d not r eal l y be be dr eams at al l .
Thi s pr esent ed a chal l enge t o l uci d dr eamer s who want ed t o convi nce peopl e t hat t hey r eal l y were awake i n t hei r dr eams. But of cour se when you ar e deep asl eep and dr eami ng you cannot shout , " Hey! Li st en t o me. I ' m dr eami ng r i ght now. " Al l t he muscl es of t he body ar e par al yzed. I t was Kei t h Hear ne ( 1978) , of t he Uni ver si t y of Hul l , who f i r st expl oi t ed t he f act t hat not al l t he muscl es ar e par al yzed. I n REM sl eep t he eyes move. So per haps a l uci d dr eamer coul d si gnal by movi ng t he eyes i n a pr edet ermi ned pat t ern. J ust over t en years ago, l uci d dr eamer Al an Worsl ey f i r st managed t hi s i s i n Hear ne' s l aborat ory. He deci ded t o move hi s eyes l ef t and r i ght ei ght t i mes i n success i on whenever he became l uci d. Usi ng a pol ygr aph, Hear ne coul d wat ch t he eye movement s f or si gn of t he speci al si gnal . He f ound i t i n t he mi dst of REM sl eep. So l uci d dr eams ar e r eal dr eams and do occur dur i ng REM sl eep. Fur t her r esearc h showed t hat Wor sl ey' s l uci d dr eams most of t en occur r ed i n t he ear l y morni ng, ar ound 6: 30 A. M. , near l y hal f an hour i nt o a REM peri od and t oward t he end of a burs t of r api d eye movement s. They usual l y l ast ed f or t wo t o f i ve mi nut es. Lat er r esear ch showed t hat t hey occur at t i mes of par t i cul ar l y hi gh arousal dur i ng REM sl eep ( Hear ne 1978) . I t i s s omet i mes s ai d t hat di scover i es i n sci ence happen when t he t i me i s r i ght f or t hem. I t was one of t hose odd t hi ngs t hat at j ust t he same t i me, but unbeknown t o Hear ne, St ephen LaBer ge, at St anf ord Uni ver si t y i n Cal i f or ni a, was t r yi ng t he same exper i ment . He t oo succeeded, but r esi st ance t o t he i dea was ver y st r ong. I n 1980, bot h Sci ence and Nat ur e rej ect ed hi s f i r st paper on t he di scover y ( LaBerge 1985) . I t was onl y l at er t hat i t became cl ear what an i mpor t ant st ep t hi s had been. An I dent i f i abl e St at e? I t woul d be especi al l y i nt er est i ng i f l uci d dr eams wer e associ at ed wi t h a uni que physi ol ogi cal st at e. I n f act t hi s has not been f ound, al t hough t hi s i s not ver y sur pr i si ng si nce t he same i s t r ue of ot her al t er ed st at es, such as out - of - body experi ences and t r ances of var i ous ki nds. However , l uci d dr eams do t end t o occur i n per i ods of hi gher cor t i cal ar ousal . Per haps a cer t ai n t hr eshol d of arousal has t o be r eached bef or e awar eness can be sust ai ned. The begi nni ng of l uci di t y ( mar ked by associ at ed wi t h pauses i n br eat hi ng, and ski n r esponse changes, but t her e al l ows t he l uci di t y to be i dent i f i ed
eye si br i ef i s no by an
gnal s, of cour se) i s changes i n hear t r at e, uni que combi nat i on t hat obser ver .
I n t er ms of t he dr eam i t sel f , t her e ar e sever al f eat ur es t hat seem t o pr ovoke l uci di t y. Somet i mes hei ght ened anxi et y or st r ess pr ecedes i t . Mor e of t en t her e i s a ki nd of i nt el l ect ual r ecogni t i on t hat somet hi ng " dr eaml i ke" or i ncongr uous i s goi ng on ( Fox 1962; Gr een 1968; LaBer ge 1985) . I t i s c ommon t o wake f r om an or di nar y dr eam and wonder , " How on ear t h coul d I have been f ool ed i nt o t hi nki ng t hat I was r eal l y doi ng push- ups on a bl ue beach?" A l i t t l e mor e awar eness i s shown
when we r eal i ze t hi s i n t he dr eam. I f you ask your sel f , " Coul d t hi s be a dr eam?" and answer " No" ( or don' t answer at al l ) , t hi s i s cal l ed a pr e- l uci d dr eam. Fi nal l y, i f you answer "Yes", i t becomes a f ul l y l uci d dr eam. I t c oul d be t hat onc e t her e i s s uf f i c i ent c or t i c al ar o us al i t i s possi bl e t o appl y a bi t of cr i t i cal t hought ; t o r emember enough about how t he wor l d ought t o be t o r ecogni ze t he dr eam wor l d as r i di cul ous, or per haps t o r emember enough about onesel f t o know t hat t hese event s can' t be cont i nuous wi t h normal waki ng l i f e. However , t empt i ng as i t i s t o concl ude t hat t he cri t i cal i nsi ght pr oduces t he l uci di t y, we have onl y an appar ent corr el at i on and cannot deduce cause and ef f ect f r om i t . Becomi ng a Luci d Dr eamer Sur veys have show t hat about 50 per cent of peopl e ( and i n some cases mor e) have had at l east one l uci d dr eam i n t hei r l i ves. ( see, f or exampl e, Bl ackmor e 1982; Gackenbach and LaBer ge 1988; Gr een 1968. ) Of cour se sur veys are unr el i abl e i n t hat many peopl e may not under st and t he quest i on. I n par t i cul ar , i f you have never had a l uci d dr eam, i t i s easy t o mi sunder st and what i s meant by t he t er m. So overest i mat es mi ght be expect ed. Beyond t hi s, i t does not seem t hat s ur veys can f i nd out much. There ar e no ver y consi st ent di f f er ences bet ween l uci d dr eamer s and ot hers i n t er ms of age, sex, educat i on, and so on ( Gr een 1968; Gackenbach and LaBer ge 1988) . For many peopl e, havi ng l uci d dr eam i s f un, and t hey want t o l ear n how t o have mor e or t o i nduce t hem at wi l l . One f i ndi ng f r om ear l y exper i ment al work was t hat hi gh l evel s of physi cal ( and emot i onal ) act i vi t y dur i ng t he day t end t o pr ecede l uci di t y at ni ght . Waki ng dur i ng t he ni ght and car r yi ng out some ki nd of act i vi t y bef ore f al l i ng asl eep agai n can al so encour age a l uci d dr eam dur i ng t he next REM per i od and i s t he basi s of some i nduct i on t echni ques. Many met hods have been devel oped ( Gackenbach and Bosvel d 1989; Tar t 1988; Pr i ce and Cohen 1988) . They r oughl y f al l i nt o t hr ee cat egor i es. One of t he best known i s LaBer ge' s MI LD ( Mnemoni c I nduct i on of Luci d Dr eami ng) . Thi s i s done on waki ng i n t he ear l y mor ni ng f r om a dr eam. You shoul d wake up f ul l y, engage i n some act i vi t y l i ke r eadi ng or wal ki ng about , and t hen l i e down t o go t o sl eep agai n. Then you must i magi ne your sel f asl eep and dr eami ng, r ehear se t he dr eam f r om whi ch you woke, and r emi nd your sel f , " Next t i me I dr eam t hi s I want t o r emember I ' m dr eami ng. " A second appr oach i nvol ves const ant l y r emi ndi ng your sel f t o become l uci d t hr oughout t he day rat her t han t he ni ght . Thi s i s based on t he i dea t hat we spend most of our t i me i n a ki nd of waki ng daze. I f we coul d be mor e l uci d i n waki ng l i f e, per haps we coul d be mor e l uci d whi l e dr eami ng. Ger man psychol ogi st Paul Thol ey suggest s aski ng yours el f many t i mes ever y day, " Am I dr eami ng or not ?" Thi s sound easy but i s not. I t t akes a l ot of det er mi nat i on and per si st ence not t o f or get al l about i t . For t hose who do f or get , Fr ench r esearcher Cl erc s uggest s wr i t i ng a l arge " C" on your hand
( f or " consci ous" ) t o r emi nd you ( Thol ey 1983; Gackenbach and Bosvel d 1989) . Thi s ki nd of met hod i s si mi l ar t o t he age- ol d t echni que f or i ncr easi ng awar eness by medi t at i on and mi ndf ul ness . Advanced pr act i t i oner s of medi t at i on cl ai m t o mai nt ai n awar eness t hr ough a l ar ge pr opor t i on of t hei r sl eep. TM i s of t en cl ai med t o l ead t o sl eep awar eness. So per haps i t i s not surpr i si ng t hat some recent r esear ch f i nds associ at i on bet ween medi t at i on and i ncr eased l uci di t y ( Gackenbach and Bosvel d 1989) . The t hi r d and f i nal appr oach r equi r es a var i et y of gadget s. The i dea i s t o use some sort of ext er nal si gnal t o r emi nd peopl e, whi l e they ar e act ual l y i n REM sl eep, t hat t hey ar e dr eami ng. Hear ne f i r st t r i ed spr ayi ng wat er ont o sl eeper s' f aces or hands but f ound i t t oo unr el i abl e. Thi s somet i mes caused t hem t o i ncor porat e wat er i mager y i nt o t hei r dr eams, but t hey rar el y became l uci d. He event ual l y deci ded t o use a mi l d el ect r i cal shock t o t he wr i st . Hi s " dr eam machi ne" det ect s changes i n br eat hi ng r at e ( whi ch accompany t he onset of REM) and t hen aut omat i cal l y del i ver s a shock t o t he wr i st ( Hearne 1990) . Meanwhi l e, i n Cal i f orni a, LaBerge was r ej ect i ng t aped voi ces and vi br at i ons and wor ki ng i nst ead wi t h f l ashi ng l i ght s. The or i gi nal ver si on was l abor at or y based and used a per sonal comput er t o det ect t he eye movement s of REM sl eep and t o t ur n on f l ashi ng l i ght s whenever t he REMs reached a cer t ai n l evel . Event ual l y, however , al l t he ci r cui t r y was i ncor por at ed i nt o a pai r of goggl es. The i dea i s t o put t he goggl es on at ni ght , and t he l i ght s wi l l f l ash onl y when you ar e asl eep and dr eami ng. The user can even cont r ol t he l evel of eye movement s at whi ch t he l i ght s begi n t o f l ash. The newest ver si on has a chi p i ncor por at ed i nt o t he goggl es. Thi s wi l l not onl y cont r ol t he l i ght s but wi l l st or e dat a on eye- movement densi t y dur i ng t he ni ght and when and f or how l ong t he l i ght s wer e f l ashi ng, maki ng f i ne tuni ng possi bl e. At t he moment , t he f i r st users have t o j oi n i n workshops at LaBer ge' s Luci di t y I nst i t ut e and l ear n how t o adj ust t he set t i ngs, but wi t hi n a f ew mont hs he hopes t he whol e pr ocess wi l l be f ul l y aut omat ed. ( See LaBer ge' s magazi ne, Dr eamLi ght . ) LaBer ge t est ed t he ef f ect i veness of t he Dr eam Li ght on 44 subj ect s who came i nt o t he l abor at or y, most f or j ust one ni ght . Fi f t y- f i ve per cent had at l east one l uci d dr eam t hi s way. The resul t s suggest ed t hat t hi s met hod i s about as succesf ul as MI LD, but usi ng t he t wo t oget her i s t he most ef f ect i ve ( LaBer ge 1985) . Luci d Dr eams as an Exper i ment al Tool Ther e ar e a f ew peopl e who can have l uci d dr eams at wi l l . And t he i ncr ease i n i nduct i on t echni ques has pr ovi ded many mor e subj ect s who have t hem f r equent l y. Thi s has opened t he way t o usi ng l uci d dr eams t o answer some of t he most i nt er est i ng quest i ons about sl eep and dr eami ng. How l ong do dr eams t ake? I n t he l ast cent ur y, Al f r ed Maur y had a
l ong and compl i gui l l oti ne. He hi s bed had f al concl uded t hat awakeni ng.
cat ed dr eam t hat l ed t o hi s bei ng beheaded by a woke up ter r i f i ed, and f ound t hat t he headboar d of l en on hi s neck. From t hi s, t he st or y goes, he t he whol e dr eam had been cr eat ed i n t he moment of
Thi s i dea seems t o have got i nt o popul ar f ol kl or e but was ver y har d t o t est . Resear cher s woke dr eamer s at var i ous st ages of t hei r REM peri od and f ound t hat t hose who had been l onger i n REM cl ai med l onger dr eams. However , accur at e t i mi ng became possi bl e onl y when l uci d dr eamers coul d send " mar ker s" f r om t he dr eam s t at e. LaBer ge asked hi s subj ect s t o si gnal when t hey became l uci d and t hen count a t en- second per i od and si gnal agai n. Thei r aver age i nt er val was 13 seconds, t he same as t hey gave when awake. Luci d dreamer s, l i ke Al an Wor sl ey, have al so been abl e t o gi ve accur at e est i mat es of t he l engt h of whol e dr eams or dr eam segment s ( Schat zman, Wor sl ey, and Fenwi ck 1988) . Dr eam Act i ons As we wat ch sl eepi ng ani mal s i t i s of t en t empt i ng t o concl ude t hat t hey ar e movi ng t hei r eyes i n r esponse t o wat chi ng a dr eam, or t wi t chi ng t hei r l egs as t hey dr eam of chasi ng pr ey. But do physi cal movement s act ual l y r el at e t o t he dr eam event s? Ear l y sl eep r esear cher s occassi onal l y r eport ed exampl es l i ke a l ong ser i es of l ef t - r i ght eye movement s when a dr eamer had been dr eami ng of wat chi ng a pi ng- pong game, but t hey coul d do no mor e t han wai t unt i l t he r i ght sor t of dr eam came al ong. Luci d dr eami ng made pr oper exper i ment at i on possi bl e, f or t he subj ect s coul d be asked t o per f or m a whol e range of t asks i n thei r dr eams. I n one exper i ment wi t h r esear cher s Mor t on Schat zman and Pet er Fenwi ck, i n London, Wors l ey pl anned t o dr aw l ar ge t r i angl es and t o si gnal wi t h f l i cks of hi s eyes ever y t i me he di d so. Whi l e he dr eamed, t he el ect r omyogr am, r ecor di ng smal l muscl e movement s, showed not onl y t he eye si gnal s but spi kes of el ect r i cal act i vi t y i n t he r i ght f or ear m j ust af t er war d. Thi s showed t hat t he prepl anned act i ons i n t he dr eam pr oduced cor r espondi ng muscl e movement s ( Schat zman, Wor sl ey, and Fenwi ck 1988) . Fur t her exper i ment s, wi t h Wor sl ey ki cki ng dr eam obj ect s, wr i t i ng wi t h umbr el l as, and snappi ng hi s f i nger s, al l conf i r med t hat t he muscl es of t he body show smal l movement s cor r espondi ng t o t he body' s act i ons i n t he dr eam. The quest i on about eye movement s was al so answer ed. The eyes do t r ack dream obj ect s. Wor sl ey coul d even produce sl ow scanni ng movement s, whi ch ar e very di f f i cul t t o produce i n t he absence of a " r eal " s t i mul us ( Schat zman, Wor sl ey, and Fenwi ck 1988) . LaBer ge was especi al l y i nt er est ed i n br eat hi ng dur i ng dr eams. Thi s st emmed f r om hi s exper i ences at age f i ve when he had dr eamed of bei ng an under sea pi r at e who coul d st ay under wat er f or ver y l ong per i ods wi t hout dr owni ng. Thi r t y year s l at er he want ed t o f i nd out whet her dr eamers hol di ng t hei r br eat h i n dr eams do so
physi cal l y as wel l . The answer was yes. He and ot her l uci d dr eamers wer e abl e t o si gnal f r om t he dr eam and t hen hol d t hei r br eat h. They coul d al so br eat he rapi dl y i n t hei r dr eams, as r eveal ed on t he moni t or s. St udyi ng br eat hi ng dur i ng dr eamed speech, he f ound t hat t he pers on begi ns t o br eat he out at t he st art of an ut t erance j ust as i n r eal speech ( LaBerge and Dement 1982a) . Hemi spher i c Di f f er ences I t i s known t hat t he l ef t and ri ght hemi spher es are act i vat ed di f f er ent l y dur i ng di f f er ent ki nds of t asks. For exampl e, si ngi ng uses t he r i ght hemi sphere mor e, whi l e count i ng and ot her , mor e anal yt i cal t asks use t he l ef t hemi spher e more. By usi ng l uci d dreams, LaBerge was abl e t o f i nd out whet her t he same i s t r ue i n dr eami ng. I n one dr eam he f ound hi msel f f l yi ng over a f i el d. ( Fl yi ng i s commonl y associ at ed wi t h l uci d dr eami ng. ) He si gnal ed wi t h hi s eyes and began t o si ng " Row, r ow, r ow your boat . . . . " He t hen made anot her si gnal and count ed sl owl y t o t en bef ore si gnal i ng agai n. The br ai nwave r ecor ds showed j ust t he same pat t er ns of act i vat i on t hat you woul d expect i f he had done t hese t asks whi l e awake ( LaBer ge and Dement 1982b) . Dr eam Sex Al t hough i t i s not of t en asked exper i ment al l y, I am sur e pl ent y of peopl e have wondered what i s happeni ng i n t hei r bodi es whi l e t hey have t hei r most er ot i c dr eams. LaBerge t est ed a woman who coul d dr eam l uci dl y at wi l l and coul d di r ect her dr eams t o cr eat e t he sexual exper i ences she want ed. ( What a ski l l ! ) Usi ng appr opr i at e physi ol ogi cal r ecor di ng, he was abl e t o show t hat her dr eam or gasms wer e mat ched by t r ue or gasms ( LaBer ge, Gr eenl eaf , and Kedzi er ski 1983) . Experi ment s l i ke t hese show t hat t here i s a cl ose cor r espondence bet ween act i ons of t he dr eamer and, i f not r eal movement s, at l east el et r i cal r esponses. Thi s put s l uci d dr eami ng somewher e bet ween r eal act i ons, i n whi ch muscl es wor k t o move t he body, and waki ng i mager y, i n whi ch t hey ar e rar el y i nvol ved at al l . So what exact l y i s t he st at us of t he dr eam wor l d? The Nat ur e of t he Dr eam Wor l d I t i s t empt i ng t o t hi nk t hat t he r eal wor l d and t he worl d of dreams ar e t ot al l y separat e. Some of t he exper i ment s al r eady ment i oned show t hat t her e i s no absol ut e di vi di ng l i ne. Ther e are al so pl ent y of st or i es t hat show t he penet r abi l i t y of t he boundar y. Al an Wor sl ey descr i bes one exper i ment i n whi ch hi s t ask was t o gi ve hi msel f a pr ear r anged number of smal l el ect r i c shocks by means of a machi ne measur i ng hi s eye movement s. He went t o sl eep and began dr eami ng t hat i t was r ai ni ng and he was i n a sl eepi ng bag by a f ence wi t h gat e i n i t . He began t o wonder whet her he was
dreami ng and t hought i t woul d be cheat i ng t o act i vat e t he shocks i f he was awake. Then, whi l e maki ng t he si gnal s, he wor r i ed about t he machi ne, f or i t was out t her e wi t h hi m i n t he r ai n and mi ght get wet ( Schat zman, Wor sl ey, and Fenwi ck 1988) . Thi s ki nd of i nt er f er ence i s amusi ng, but t her e ar e dr eams of conf usi on t hat are not . The most common and di st i nct ar e cal l ed f al se awakeni ngs. You dr eam of waki ng up but i n f act , of cour se, are st i l l asl eep. Van Eeden ( 1913) cal l ed t hese "wr ong waki ng up" and descr i bed t hem as " demoni acal , uncanny, and very vi vi d and br i ght , wi t h . . . a st r ong di abol i cal l i ght . " The Fr ench zool ogi st Yves Del age, wr i t i ng i n 1919, descr i bed how he had hear d a knock at hi s door and a f r i end cal l i ng f or hi s hel p. He j umped out of bed, went t o wash qui ckl y wi t h col d wat er , and when t hat woke hi m up he r eal i zed he had been dr eami ng. The sequence r epeat ed f our t i mes bef or e he f i nal l y act ual l y woke up - st i l l i n bed. A st udent of mi ne descr i bed her i nf ur i at i ng r ecur r ent dr eam of get t i ng up, cl eani ng her t eet h, get t i ng dr essed, and t hen cycl i ng al l t he way t o t he medi cal school at t he t op of a l ong hi l l , wher e she f i nal l y woul d r eal i ze t hat she had dr eamed i t al l , was l at e f or l ect ur es, and woul d have t o do i t al l over agai n f or r eal . The one posi t i ve benef i t of f al se awakeni ngs i s t hat t hey can somet i mes be used t o i nduce out - of - body- exper i ences ( OBEs) . I ndeed, Ol i ver Fox ( 1962) r ecommends t hi s as a met hod f or achi evi ng t he OBE. For many peopl e OBEs and l uci d dr eams ar e pr acti cal l y i ndi st i ngui shabl e. I f you dr eam of l eavi ng your body, t he experi ence i s much t he same. Al so r ecent r esearch suggest s t hat t he same peopl e t end t o have bot h l uci d dr eams and OBEs ( Bl ackmor e 1988, I r wi n 1988) . Al l of t hese experi ences have somet hi ng i n common. I n al l of t hem t he "r eal " wol r d has been r epl aced by some ki nd of i magi nar y r epl i ca. Cel i a Gr een, of t he I nst i t ut e of Psychophysi cal Resear ch at Oxf or d, r ef er s t o al l such st at es as "met achor i c exper i ences. " J ayne Gackenbach, a psychol ogi st f r om t he Uni ver si t y of Al ber t a, Canada, r el at es t hese exper i ences t o UFO- abduct i on st or i es and near - deat h- exper i ences ( NDEs) . The UFO abduct i ons ar e t he most bi zar r e but ar e si mi l ar i n t hat t hey t oo i nvol ve t he r epl acement of t he per cei ved wor l d by a hal l uci nat ory repl i ca. Ther e i s an i mpor t ant di f f er ence bet ween l uci d dr eams and t hese ot her st at es. I n t he l uci d dr eam one has i nsi ght i nt o t he st at e ( i n f act t hat def i nes i t ) . I n f al se awakeni ng, one does not ( agai n by def i ni t i on) . I n t ypi cal OBEs, peopl e t hi nk they have r eal l y l ef t t hei r bodi es. I n UFO "abducti ons" t hey bel i eve t he l i t t l e green men are " r eal l y t her e"; and i n NDEs, t hey ar e convi nced t hey are r ushi ng down a r eal t unnel t owar d a real l i ght and i nt o t he next wor l d. I t i s onl y i n t he l uci d dr eam t hat one r eal i zes i t i s a dr eam. I have of t en wondered whet her i nsi ght i nt o t hese ot her experi ences i s possi bl e and what t he consequences mi ght be. So f ar I don' t have any answer s.
Waki ng Up The oddest t hi ng about l uci d dr eams - and, t o many peopl e who have t hem, t he most compel l i ng - i s how i t f eel s when you wake up. Upon waki ng up f r om a nor mal dream, you usual l y t hi nk, " Oh, t hat was onl y a dr eam. " Waki ng up f r om a l uci d dr eam i s more cont i nuous. I t f eel s more r eal , i t f eel s as t hough you wer e consci ous i n t he dream. Why i s t hi s? I t hi nk t he r eason can be f ound by l ooki ng at t he ment al model s t he br ai n const r uct s i n waki ng, i n ordi nar y dreami ng, and i n l uci d dr eams. I have pr evi ousl y ar gued t hat what seems r eal i s t he most st abl e ment al model i n t he system at any t i me. I n waki ng l i f e, t hi s i s al most al ways t he i nput - dr i ven model , t he one t hat i s bui l t up f r om t he sensor y i nput . I t i s f i r ml y l i nked t o t he body i mage t o make a st abl e model of " me, her e, now. " I t i s easy t o deci de t hat t hi s r epr esent s "r eal i t y" whi l e al l t he ot her model s bei ng used at t he same t i me ar e " j ust i magi nat i on" ( Bl ackmor e 1988) . Now consi der an or di nar y dr eam. I n t hat case t her e ar e l ot s of model s bei ng bui l t but no i nput - dr i ven model . I n addi t i on t her e i s no adequat e sel f - model or body i mage. There i s j ust not enough access t o memory t o const r uct i t . Thi s means, i f my hypot hesi s i s r i ght , t hat what ever model i s most st abl e at any t i me wi l l seem r eal . But t her e i s no recogni zabl e sel f t o whom i t seems r eal . Ther e wi l l j ust be a ser i es of compet i ng model s comi ng and goi ng. I s t hi s what dr eami ng f eel s l i ke? Fi nal l y, we know f r om r esear ch t hat i n t he l uci d dr eam t her e i s hi gher ar ousal . Per haps t hi s i s suf f i ci ent t o const r uct a bet t er model of sel f . I t i s one t hat i ncl udes such i mpor t ant f act s as t hat you have gone t o sl eep, t hat you i nt ended t o si gnal wi t h your eyes, and so on. I t i s al so more si mi l ar t o t he nor mal waki ng sel f t han t hose f l eet i ng const r uct i ons of t he or di nar y dr eam. Thi s, I suggest , i s what makes t he dr eam seem mor e r eal on waki ng up. Because t he you who r emember s t he dr eam i s mor e si mi l ar t o t he you i n t he dr eam. I ndeed, because t her e was a bet t er model of you, you wer e mor e consci ous. I f t hi s i s r i ght , i t means t hat l uci d dr eams ar e pot ent i al l y even more i nt er est i ng t han we t hought . As wel l as pr ovi di ng i nsi ght i nt o t he nat ur e of sl eep and dreams, t hey may gi ve cl ues t o t he nat ur e of consci ousness i t sel f . Ref er ences Bl ackmor e, S. J . 1982. Beyond t he Body. London: Hei nemann. --------1988. A Theor y of l uci d dr eams and OBEs. In Consci ous Mi nd, Sl eepi ng Br ai n, 373- 387, ed. J . Gackenbach and S. LaBer ge. New Yor k: Pl enum. Del age, Y. 1919. Le Reve. Par i s: Les Presses Uni ver si t ai r es de Fr ance. Fox, O. 1962. Ast r al Proj ect i on. New Yor k: Uni ver si t y Books. Gackenbach, J . , and J . Bosvel d. 1989. Cont r ol Your Dr eams. New Yor k: Har per & Row. Gackenbach, J . , and S. LaBerge, eds. 1988. Consci ous Mi nd,
Sl eepi ng Br ai n. New Yor k: Pl enum. Gr een, C. E. 1968. Luci d Dr eams. London: Hami sh Hami l t on. Hear ne, K. 1978. Luci d Dr eams: An El ect r ophysi ol ogi cal and Psychol ogi cal St udy. Unpubl i shed Ph. D. t hes i s , Uni ver s i t y of Hul l . - - - - - - - - - 1990. The Dr eam Machi ne. Nor t hant s: Aquar i an. I r wi n, H. J . 1988. Out - of - body exper i ences and dr eam l uci di t y: Empi r i cal per spect i ves. I n Consci ous Mi nd, Sl eepi ng Br ai n, 353- 371, ed. J . Gackenbach and S. LaBer ge. New Yor k: Pl enum. LaBerge, S. 1985. Luci d Dr eami ng. Los Angel es: Tar cher . LaBerge, S. and W. Dement . 1982a. Vol unt ary cont r ol of r espi r at i on dur i ng REM sl eep. Sl eep Resear ch, 11: 107. - - - - - - - - - 1982b. Lat er al i zat i on of al pha acti vi t y f or dr eamed si ngi ng and count i ng dur i ng REM sl eep. Psychophysi ol ogy, 19: 331- 332. LaBer ge, S. , W. Gr eenl eaf , and B. Ker zi er ski . 1983. Physi ol ogi cal r esponses t o dreamed sexual acti vi t y dur i ng l uci d REM sl eep. Psychophysi ol ogy, 20: 454- 455. Pr i ce, R. F. , and D. B. Cohen. 1988. Luci d dr eam i nduct i on: An empi r i cal eval uat i on. I n Consci ous Mi nd, Sl eepi ng Br ai n, 105- 134, ed. J . Gackenbach and S. LaBer ge. New Yor k: Pl enum. Schat zman, M. , A. Wor sl ey, and P. Fenwi ck. 1988. Cor r espondence dur i ng l uci d dr eams bet ween dr eamed and act ual event s. I n Consci ous Mi nd, Sl eepi ng Br ai n, 155- 179, ed. J . Gackenbach and S. LaBer ge. New Yor k: Pl enum. Tar t , C. 1988. Fr om spont aneous event t o l uci di t y: A r evi ew of at t empt s t o consci ousl y cont r ol noct ur nal dr eami ng. I n Consci ous Mi nd, Sl eepi ng Br ai n, 67- 103, ed. J Gackenbach and S. LaBer ge. New Yor k: Pl enum. Thol ey, P. 1983. Techni ques f or cont r ol l i ng and mani pul at i ng l uci d dr eams. Per cept ual and Mot or Ski l l s, 57: 79- 90. Van Eeden, F. 1913. A st udy of dr eams. Pr oceedi ngs of t he Soci et y f or Psychi cal Resear ch, 26: 431- 461. Susan J . Bl ackmor e i s wi t h t he Perc ept ual Syst ems Research Cent r e, Depar t ment of Psychol ogy, Uni ver si t y of Br i st ol , and t he School of Soci al Sci ences, Uni ver si t y of Bat h.
