For those who are new to this concept, lucid dreaming is the act of dreaming consciously. This episode will naturally happen during REM. According to the study, at least 55% of the world population has experienced lucid dreaming.
There has been a growing interest in this idea since it offers a lot of benefits. For instance, it helps the dreamers overcome their nightmare since they will be in control of the scenario. It can also enhance motor skills and relieve anxiety.
However, for those who can’t control their dream and will experience something strange and frightening, you might be wondering how to wake up from a lucid dream.
A Comprehensive Guide on How to Wake up From a Lucid Dream
Before we start to delve on this topic, let us first clear to you that no one can get stuck on the dreamland. Your brain will dream each night for different lengths, but eventually, you will still wake up. On average, your dream will last for 10-20 minutes.
Even on the off chance that they will become longer than usual, you will still wake up. There is no correlation between lucid dreaming and people who died from SADS (Sudden Arrhythmic Death Syndrome).
False Awakening
There are times when you are lucid dreaming, and you will think that you had awakened, but in reality, you remained asleep. Experts refer to this as a false awakening. It can be categorized into two types; the pleasant and less pleasant types of false awakening.
The pleasing kind of false awakening mostly consists of mundane activities. Basically, you will think that you are merely waking up, taking a bath, getting dressed, enjoying your breakfast, and going to work or school.
There will be a point when you notice that something is strange that will then lead to your true awakening. The less pleasant type of false awakening is a bit ominous and tense. It can be related to the apparitions and hallucinations of monsters or bad people.
Symptoms of False Awakening
A false awakening is a prevailing situation. Almost everyone will encounter this type of experience at a particular point in their life. Interestingly, it can happen repeatedly.
Another false awakening can occur after a false awakening before your real awakening actually happens. Sometimes it can be more than this.
According to specialists, false awakening is a symptom of confusion and anxiety. It can also be related to dissociation, or the out-of-body experience wherein an individual will feel separated from his body and will view the situation like the outside observer.
False awakening has also been connected to the concept of lucid dreaming wherein the dreamer might be thinking of this situation.
Wake Up from Your Lucid Dream
Some people will dream that they are trapped in their dream world. If you have experienced this, this may last for a couple of seconds, but you might feel that it is taking longer when you are dreaming. In these instances, you might want to wake up from your lucid dreaming. Here’s how.
Dream Sex
Dreaming about sex would be an excellent way to instruct your brain to wake up. Your mind will feel excited, and your brain will become overactive.
It is a sign that you will soon wake up. It can also be the best scenario for a dream since, even on the off chance that you will not wake up, you are still enjoying sex in your vision. It would be an excellent way to allow time to pass by in your dream.
Close Your Eyes
Sometimes, keeping your body relaxed and closing your eyes would be enough to wake you up from your dream. For people who are lucid dreaming, this method will be highly effective.
You are not focusing on something, so your mind will eventually wake up. This technique is also used by lucid dreamers to stop their nightmares.
Yelling
Sometimes, shouting and calling for help would be useful in waking you up from your dreams. If you noticed, this is the same scenario that you will encounter when you have sleep paralysis.
By yelling in your dream, you are helping yourself wakeup. In reality, you are not really shouting, so you don’t have to be embarrassed about doing this.
At most, you will only be whispering or moaning since you are not opening or moving your mouth in your real life. You are only using air and activating vocal cords. So how do you do this? Start thinking to yourself that you want to shout.
Your brain may refuse to follow your instruction, but you need to continue telling it that you have to shout. At this point, you can try saying something; once you manage to produce a noise, you will likely wake up.
Blinking
Aside from closing your eyes, repeatedly blinking in your dream may help you wake up. Try to blink non-stop until you can escape the dreamland.
Your eyes must be close when you blink in sleep. Once you open them, they can sooner or later open in your real life. It may require a couple of practices before you will be successful in doing this.
Jolt Yourself
This method would work well for lucid dreamers. Nonetheless, even if you have not developed your ability to dream consciously, you may still be able to wake yourself up using this technique.
Start by trying to move your body in your sleep while thinking that your body in real life will also move. To make this easier, assume a sleeping position where it would be easier for you to move your body.
Falling Asleep
For those who are conscious that they are dreaming, falling asleep on their dream can help them achieve real awakening. Perhaps the easiest way to conduct this technique is by getting your knees on the ground and while planting your face on the surface.
Spread your arms behind you, and you will wake up in a heartbeat. If there are other people in your dream, try to talk to them and tell them not to disturb you since you want to fall asleep.
Dying in Your Dream
Some people will find this scenario horrifying. However, before dying in your dream, you will find yourself awake most of the time.
If you are still in this nightmare, punching or pinching yourself would be useful in waking you up. If this kind of dream is occurring recurrently, it is time for you to seek the help of the professionals.
For lucid dreamers, there may come a time when you will not find the need to wake up yourself since you are enjoying the experience of being in total control of the scenario.
Rather than waking up due to dreaming of something scary or uncomfortable, you can actively manipulate your dream and change it into something more pleasant. That way, you will still be able to achieve a night of restful sleep.
If you are still new in using this method, instructing your mind to change the landscape and setting of the dreamland may be challenging. One effective way to dream of something more positive is to tell your mind about the things that you desire.
Try to say things that you genuinely want, and be proactive in determining the changes that you want to happen. For example, if you are dreaming that a monster is chasing you, you can change that monster into an adorable creature or make it vanished.
Will This Affect the Quality of Your Sleep?
If you can control the scenario of your dream and you can instruct your mind to wake up, it is only reasonable to think that it might affect your sleep quality.
It is also not unusual to experience false awakening when having a vivid dream or experience a vision that will be terrifying, and it will be difficult for us to go back to sleep.
It is quite apparent that lucid dreaming can be exciting and thrilling. Most people will be looking forward to their adventures while in the dreamland.
They can also be the director of the outcomes. However, it would help if you were not too involved in the directing since it can inhibit restful and relaxing sleep. Therefore, you will also not experience the full benefits of quality sleep.
Controlling the scenario in your sleep can only minimally affect the quality of your sleep. What you can do to improve it is to have a better sleeping habit.
Have a regular sleep schedule by going to bed and getting up at a particular time. You should also make sure that you have enough exercise that will help you reach a state of relaxation faster. Improve the ambiance of your room and stay away from screens that emit blue light before sleeping.
For those who do not feel bothered to wake up, they can enjoy every minute of their lucid dream. Explore the wonderful dreamland and be thrilled about the various possibilities.
You don’t necessarily have to know how to wake up from a lucid dream. There will come a time that you will forget your desire to wake up, and you will find your dream exciting. Eventually, you will wake up regularly, and you will enjoy the benefits of lucid dreaming while not affecting your sleep quality.
Thank you for taking the time to read this article !