Keep a dream journal, set your intentions before bed and make sure you’re getting a full night of high-quality sleep

Lucid dreaming has fascinated people around the world for centuries. The practice of becoming aware that you’re dreaming while you’re dreaming sounds like it’s plucked straight out of a sci-fi novel. But research has discovered practical lucid dreaming techniques that may help you take control and become even more aware when you’re in a dreamlike state.

Sleep disorder specialist Alicia Roth, PhD, explains how to have a lucid dream.

6 ways to start lucid dreaming

A lot of what we know about lucid dreaming comes from people’s personal experiences. Recent studies have focused on a handful of specific methods that participants suggest work. Some of these may or may not work for you, but if you’re trying to figure out how to lucid dream, they’re a great start.

Keep a dream journal

There’s a theory that if you keep a dream journal, you can build a backlog of experiences that you then take with you into your future dreams.

When you wake up first thing in the morning, write down everything you remember from your previous dreams. Before going to sleep, review what you’ve written to get yourself into the right mindset.

“Since the beginning of civilization, we have tried to understand the utility and meanings of dreams. We know a lot more about them from a scientific standpoint, but there are still mixed theories on why we dream,” says Dr. Roth. “If your dreams are particularly interesting or disturbing, keeping a dream journal can help you track and understand your experiences and emotions regarding dreaming.”

Practice reality testing

Reality testing works to induce lucid dreaming by training your brain to be aware of your surrounding environment. One way to do this is to identify things you can see, hear, taste, touch and smell when you’re awake. By using all five of your senses, you can improve your ability to stay present and grounded. Other ways to practice reality testing include:

  • Focusing on your reflection in the mirror
  • Pushing against solid objects, like a wall, with your hands or body
  • Checking the time on a clock
  • Trying to breathe through a pinched nose

The idea is that if you practice reality testing enough while you’re awake, you’ll do it in your dreams, too. And when you notice that these tests go differently in your dreams — like you’re able to breathe when your nose is pinched or the hands on a clock spin faster than they should — you’ll become aware that you’re dreaming.

Try mnemonic induction of lucid dreams (MILD)

The MILD approach to lucid dreaming involves setting your intentions psychologically and verbally. This usually involves waking up after sleeping for several hours and recalling something specific that could only be possible in a dream state (like flying or walking through walls). The next time you’re getting ready to fall asleep, visualize returning to your dream to experience that same action again. Then, recite some version of the command, “The next time I’m dreaming, I’ll recognize I’m dreaming.” Doing this meditative practice before bed every day may help coax your brain back into a lucid dream by setting you up with familiar thoughts and feelings before you fall asleep.

Create a relaxing sleep environment

Lucid dreaming is most common during rapid eye movement (REM) sleep. REM sleep tends to occur around 90 minutes after you fall asleep, and these stages can happen for longer periods of time if your sleep goes uninterrupted.

You can increase your chances of having a lucid dream when you:

Follow the wake back to bed (WBTB) technique

Typically combined with the MILD approach, the “wake back to bed” technique involves disrupting your sleep near the end of your usual sleep cycle. After sleeping for a full night, you’ll intentionally wake up with an alarm at least one hour before your usual wake time. While awake, use the MILD approach to set your intentions before briefly falling back to sleep.

The theory is that WBTB increases the likelihood of getting in one last REM sleep before you wake up for the day — but disrupting your sleep is never really good for your overall health.

Use external stimuli

You may also use devices to deliver external stimuli to yourself while in REM sleep to help with lucid dreaming. Whether flashing lights, tones or even smells, the aim is to see if these stimuli are incorporated into your dream and whether or not they can trigger lucid dreaming.

How to know you’re lucid dreaming

Once you learn how to have a lucid dream, the experience itself can be enjoyable. You’ll know you’re having a lucid dream if:

  • You’re aware that the thoughts and images in your mind are just a dream.
  • Your dreams are vivid or imaginative.
  • You can impact how your dreams play out and manipulate the scenery, characters or environment.

Overall, lucid dreaming is a practice that can fulfill one’s curiosities. But if you find that you’re experiencing a lack of restful sleep or a hard time falling asleep, you may want to try out other techniques or simply put these attempts to rest.