Thursday 30 March 2017

Popular Posts of the Month

I take an active interest in which 'historical' or past posts have been popular on a daily, weekly or monthly basis. This helps me see what has engaged readers, which online searches bring people to my Blog and gives me ideas to customise content for future posts. 

For this reason, I decided to do a new series of posts which highlights the popular content on my Blog - with the aim of bringing it to new readers who may not wish to search through the entire Blog to find interesting content. 

Here are the most popular posts this month (click on the title and the post will open in a new window):

This is the most popular post of all time. The most common Google search which brings readers to my Blog - and the dream theme most people ask me to interpret - is undoubtedly dreams about knives or stabbing. This is a very common recurrent dream theme for myself. This article provides some possible interpretations (from a cross-cultural perspective) of dreams about knives and stabbing. I also provide advice on how to interpret dreams using dream symbolism. 

This is a very recent dream, as you can see from the date. It was a Vivid/Pre-Lucid Dream which occurred during my most recent Dream Incubation Experiment (which is linked from the post itself).

This was another very recent dream, which was part of the same Dream Incubation Experiment. This dream featured my all-time favourite celebrity male, Ewan McGregor. 

Again, another recent Dream Incubation Experiment dream.

Snakes and serpents is another incredibly common universal dream theme and one which yields a great number of daily Google searches by people seeking interpretations. 

Another recent dream which was Pre-Lucid. This dream featured reference to dreaming and recording dreams on this very Blog, so it was quite meta!

Possible interpretations for dreams about cats.

This is a surprisingly popular/common dream theme experienced by dreamers across the world. 

A very recent dream with some sexual themes.

As with all the Dream Journal posts on this list, this was a recent dream - and again, it occurred during my Dream Incubation Experiment.

Wednesday 29 March 2017

Dream 798

'Things Like This Don't Usually Trigger Me'
Date: 27 March 2017
Time: 17:30 - 23:30 (I woke up from this dream naturally)
Type of dream: Vivid dream
Dream recall: Strong recall 

Scene 1: Unknown Location - Time Unknown
This was a very abstract scene, involving my thoughts rather than action I can describe. I could see a pile of flat, square objects which appeared to be the size of iPhones, although some were thicker. The objects were white on the top and black on the edges. They were not stacked neatly. I was considering the way they were stacked and thinking about the different thicknesses of these unidentified items. My thoughts were abstract and confused and I was almost aware that these were dream-thoughts or dream-fragments while I was on the edge of sleep, but still partially awake. I thought to myself: 'this does not make sense'. 

Scene 2: My Bedroom, Norwich - Time Unknown
My flatmate, SC came into my room - he was there to either help me with something or tell me about something. He had a mobile phone in his hand. He sat inside the duvet of my bed, while I stood by the side of it. I said: 'Be careful, I spilled coffee in the bed'. 

I was then looking at my laptop, which as it would be in real life, was on the desk chair beside my bed. The laptop screen was 'torn' - a large tear ran from the top of the screen to the bottom, separating it into 2 pieces. I was surprised to see that my laptop still worked despite this massive amount of damage, and I wondered how I would be able to get it fixed. This frustrated me. I started to clean the keyboard of the laptop with a makeup brush, then remembered that I had put aside a 'fan brush' (which I do not use for makeup) for this purpose - which was in my drawers. I am not sure I actually went to get this brush to clean the keyboard.

Scene 4: Location Unknown - Time Unknown
I was then either with - or watching (on a video?) - Youtuber Grav3yardgirl (Bunny Meyer) and her boyfriend Dogman. Bunny was wearing a cropped top, exposing her mid-section and riding on a small rocking toy while laughing (see Dream 797 - 'Playing Horses with Bunny' which actually shows a screenshot from one of her recent Youtube videos in which she is sitting on a dog-shaped children's rocking toy). The colours in this scene were very vivid and saturated - especially dominant were bright pink and orange tones. Even the skin of Bunny and Dogman looked hyper-pigmented, as if exaggerated by photo-manipulation. I was aware that she was pregnant and I was pleased for her and Dogman. I then saw them in an exterior environment - it looked like they were standing outside a building, as all I could see was a brick wall behind them. They were hugging and laughing together. 

Scene 5: A Bedroom, Location Unknown - Time Unknown
I was then in a bedroom, which in the dream was either my bedroom or the bedroom of someone I knew well. It is not a room I recall from real life. There was a large double-bed - it may have been even bigger than a double-bed (king-sized) with a shelving unit at the end. In this scene, the colours were again, were hyper-pigmented and saturated - this time orange and green colours were predominant. I think the carpet and bed covers were orange. I crawled on the floor under the bed to pick up some items - some of which looked like green scraps of crumpled polyethene bag. I am not sure what these items were, but I was performing the task quickly, because I was aware that I was under pressure from something or someone. There was another person in the room with me - I think it may have been a male dream character, but I cannot recall seeing him, as I was crawling under the bed. When I finished picking up all the green items from the floor under the bed, I then found another pile of them on the shelving unit at the end of the bed. 

Scene 6: A Lounge Area - Night
I then was in a lounge area - like a normal home, with the usual furniture, such as sofas and coffee tables. It was quite dark in the room, which indicated to me that it was night. In the room, there was a male - he was white with thick black hair and a round face and appeared to be in his 40s. He was wearing dark coloured, casual clothing - I think it was black trousers and a navy T-shirt. I was aware that he was 'evil' and a 'sex offender'. Also in the room were 2 young white females, both thin with black hair. One of them had her hair in bunches. I was aware that these girls - who were in their late teenage years or early 20s - had been abducted by the sex offender, who was going to abuse them in this home. He was just standing there, laughing while I watched the girls, one of whom was sitting on the sofa in front of the window/curtains, and the other who was sitting in an armchair by the door to the room, which was to my right side. The girls were terrified and crying. The male dream character seemed to actually like me and I got the impression that he assumed we were 'on the same side' and that I might assist him in some way. I was enraged at this and wanted to save the girls. The male dream character, while laughing, said: '1,2,3...pose!' The 2 girls then magically appeared to be in sexual poses - it was as if they didn't need to move in any way, one moment they were seated, and as soon as the word 'pose' was ordered, they appeared in the poses. I only saw the pose of the girl sitting in front of me on the sofa (because this was the direction I was looking towards). She was in the pose of an image I had designed on my laptop recently - a cartoon-like image of a woman (supposed to be a self-portrait), from behind, with her butt, wearing a small pair of bikini bottoms, on display while she bent over, hands on the floor. When I saw the female dream character adopt this pose, she appeared to be a cartoon image, almost identical to my own piece of artwork, and I could only see the butt, nothing more of the body. It almost appeared to hover/float in the air over the sofa. To me, forcing the girls to adopt sexual poses was a criminal offence against them (sexual abuse) and I ordered that the girl on the sofa come with me so that I could save her. I grabbed her hand and told the man that: 'I wasn't part of this'. The other female, on the armchair by the door refused to leave with me and her friend, so I had to leave her behind. 

The female - whose name I either do not recall or never knew in the dream - walked out of the house. I was surprised at how easy this had been - the male dream character had made no attempt to stop us from leaving, even though he was 'evil'. Outside, we were in a suburban residential area - which looked like a typical cul-de-sac or street of houses, some with gardens and cars parked on the drive. It was night and had been raining, so everything looked dark and wet. As we walked along, holding hands, the female started to tell me about being kidnapped by the male I had just saved her from. She was crying and I was aware that she had been previously sexually abused or raped by someone and this had made the current ordeal even more traumatic for her. I was trying to reassure her that everything would be OK now. She seemed to be embarrassed about crying and said: 'Things like this don't usually trigger me'. I thought she was putting on a brave face. 

We came to the end of the road and it now seemed to be daylight. The end of the road led out onto an intersection, which looked much more urban - or at least the buildings were now much bigger and there were traffic lights and a lot of vehicles driving on the wide road, which we were going to cross. 

This location felt familiar, but I cannot recognise it from real life. There was just a strong sense that I knew where this was and I felt slightly unhappy to be here now. There was a strong sense of déjà vu - perhaps from another dream, or perhaps from a (forgotten, but subconsciously remembered) real life experience. The whole scene appeared to be strange and disconcerting to me.

We got to the other side of the road and I saw that the male dream character was there - standing in what looked to be a glass box, raised slightly off the ground, serving as some kind of bus-stop (it wasn't clear what this little area was supposed to be). The male was reading a paperback novel, which had a black,white and grey cover, with a black rose on the front. I saw that everything was quite grey - the sky was greyish and the streets and houses were all grey-toned. It seemed that the rain was still wet on the ground and it was drizzling lightly. 

Somehow I became aware that this book, read by the male, was set in the 1920s or earlier (this was unclear even in the dream as I was trying to decide if it was the 1920s or an earlier period). The book was some kind of crime drama or detective novel and I then became aware (and surprised to find out) that we were actually in the novel itself - the location we were in was in the novel. 

From the glass bus shelter, I looked out at my location and have vivid recall of looking at the streets and buildings; the traffic and other details. I saw that there were traffic lights straight ahead of us, on the other side of the street, and the cars were modern ones. This led me to say: 'This can't be the 1920s'. The male started arguing with me, saying that it was the 1920s, but I knew that logically, if I could see these modern objects, it would be impossible. I then began to doubt that we were 'inside of' or 'part of' the novel he was reading - concluding that we were in the actual real modern world instead. I pointed out the traffic lights (which I can recall had the red light illuminated, with rain visibly blurring the colour) and cars and said: 'At best this would have to be the 1980s' (I couldn't tell the precise decade/year, but I meant that the earliest possible decade it could be, based on what I was seeing, was the 1980s, possibly much later and closer to the contemporary day). I did in fact find it frustrating and confusing that I did not know which decade we were supposed to be in. 

This scene lasted a long time and I cannot recall how it concluded.

Extra Information: 
None of note

Recurrent Dream Themes: 


Dreamsigns: 
  • The first scene was abstract dream fragments
  • I was with Bunny and Dogman - who were expectant parents
  • I saved a girl from a sex offender
  • One of the girls adopted a pose which transformed her into a strange cartoon which was the same as an image I had designed on my laptop
  • I was part of a novel set in the 1920s
  • I was unable to recognise which decade/year we were in after challenging the idea we were in the 1920s

Day Residue: 
  • I had actually spilled part of a cup of coffee I had been carrying into my own bed, on the bottom sheet
  • My last dream before this one featured Bunny. Also, on the day before this dream, I had watched a Youtube video in which Bunny showed old photographs of her from high school and referred to herself as 'Baby Buns'
  • Just before I fell asleep I had been watching Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones (2002) in which Natalie Portman as Padme Amidala wears a white cropped top in some scenes
  • I had recently been offered some glamour modelling jobs which I had applied for on the internet (hence the idea of 'posing'
  • I had designed an image of a woman (myself) bending over in a sexy pose, displaying her butt in bikini bottoms towards the viewer. I had posted this image on my Facebook, and my cousin, CAJ had commented on it (she is skilled in graphic design). My Mum and I had subsequently discussed my cousin CAJ - and her mum (my Mum;s sister; my aunt) on the day of this dream. The scene in this dream exactly replicated the image I had designed, even down to the cartoon-like style of the drawing
  • I had been discussing rape/sexual assault with a Facebook friend on the day of this dream
  • On the day of this dream, a man (who I was not interested in) had been trying to chat to me on Facebook. I was getting bored at his attempts, because he kept asking me pointless questions, such as '1982 or 1985?' and then attempted to tell me that I should be 'proud to be a child of the 1980s' - which I told him was a strange thing to say

Waking Reactions: 
This was a really weird and complex dream, which seemed to last for ages. It was extremely vivid to me and in particular, I noticed distinct colour palettes and the fact that colours were incredibly bright and saturated within the dream. Despite the themes of this dream, I found this a very enjoyable dream experience and upon waking, the recall was extremely strong - much more than usual. 

Saturday 25 March 2017

Dream 797

'Playing Horses with Bunny'
Date: 24 March 2017
Time: 21:00 - 03:30 (I woke up from this dream naturally)
Type of dream: Vivid dream
Dream recall: Strong recall 

Scene 1: An Institutional Room in a 'Children's Home' - Day
I cannot recall the very first part of this dream. My recall started from a scene in which I was in a very big, empty room which looked very institutional - like classroom from the period of 1980s/1990s (from the way the room appeared in the dream). I was with my favourite Youtuber, Grav3yardgirl (Bunny Meyer). Bunny was running around the perimeter of the room, with her hands held up in front of her (like a T-Rex), pretending to be a horse. I joined her. This was so funny to me that I could not stop laughing. It appeared that we were being filmed for a Youtube video. A male voiceover said: 'Dogman (Bunny's boyfriend) joined in, running around by himself'. 

Bunny and I then went out into a darkish corridor, where there was a single door at the end. A male social worker, dressed in a grey suit came through the door, with a child, who was approximately 8 years old. She was one of the orphans in the children's home and she was to be looked after (for the day) by Bunny and I. She was a white child, wearing a light-coloured party dress. Her brown hair was in bunches, tied with ribbons. 

Scene 2: A Fair/Festival - Day
Bunny, the orphan and I were at some kind of fair/festival or outside summer event. It was a sunny day. I have forgotten some elements of this scene, but something was handed to me (I cannot recall what, other than it was a small object) and I was unsure whether this item was age-appropriate to give to the orphan child. The item seemed to relate to 'education' or school. 

Scene 3: A Field of Corn/Yellow Grass - Day
I was then walking through a field of waist-height corn or yellow grass. It was a hot summer day. I approached Bunny, who was standing in the middle, in a clearing. We had a discussion, which I cannot recall, but it was friendly. I then decided to walk back across the corn/grass. Bunny told me to be careful because there were some creatures living in the corn/grass and I might stand on them. I had a vision of some bald pink baby animals, which somewhat disturbed me. I hoped that I had not stood on any of them when walking across the corn/grass to get to Bunny. I decided to 'crowd surf' or float across the top of the corn/grass and found that this was surprisingly easy to do. 

Scene 4: My Nan's House, Sheringham - Time Unknown
I was then in my Nan's house. My Mum was sitting in an armchair watching TV (at one point I looked at the TV and saw she was watching a TV show about Rolf Harris. Harris was his younger self, before the allegations/convictions for child abuse and rape. I wondered if my Mum was aware he was a sex offender). R3A was sitting at the dining table with me. We were both using our laptops. I was sitting near the living-room door and he was sitting on the other side, near the kitchen door. I could see that we were both looking at the same website - a blog which was designed in a range of bright pink colours, which belonged to a female musician. R3A was messaging her about a musical collaboration and I was just reading her blog. We had a short conversation about this female and I shut down the browser on which I had been reading her blog. 

I then saw a 'projection' of people lined up (sitting cross-legged) against the wall, under the window. It was clearly a 'projection' like a hologram, as the people shown were smaller than they would normally be, and their names were written below each one, Each person was wearing black and white clothing. The only person I recognised was AWB, and in place of her name was the word 'Insight' (which is associated with her). I was not sure if R3A had seen the projection on the wall and I asked him: 'Do you know who I really hate?' He answered: 'Yeah, Insight' to which I was surprised. I asked him how he knew this, and he said that I had told him previously and he remembered. This confused me. 

R3A then asked if he could go into the 'front room' (the second living-room where my Nan keeps her photographs and ornaments) to find some vinyl records. We both went through together to find the records. R3A then said that he wanted to go outside to smoke, and I told him that he was allowed to smoke in the house, so he did. 

There was more conversation back in the living-room. R3A asked me: 'When you saw PS did you stay up later with him than you do with me?' In the dream, this question made sense to me and I answered vaguely that I stayed up late with both of them. I knew I had 'stayed up later with PS' but was aware that R3A was hoping that I would say I stayed up later with him. I then got up from the table and walked over to R3A. I stood behind him and kissed him on the back of the neck. I was aware he was wearing a white New Era hat at this point. 

I cannot recall anything else about this dream.

Extra Information: 
None of note

Recurrent Dream Themes: 

  • R3A as a dream character

Dreamsigns: 
  • I was with Grav3yardgirl and Dogman in a children's home
  • I was able to crowd surf/float across a cornfield/grass
  • R3A was in my Nan's house
  • I saw a weird projection in the room
  • The conversation with R3A was strange 

Day Residue: 
  • I fell asleep while watching a new Grav3yardgirl video - the video was a vlog which included Bunny finding some of her childhood toys from the 1990s. At the start of the video she is shown sitting on a small rocking toy, shaped as a dog (see image, below). Dogman appears in this video and there was a scene where Bunny laughs until she has to lay on the floor, crying
  • A couple of days before this dream I had been trying to describe a photograph I had seen online - to DL. I had said it was a 'fair or festival' or 'outside summer event'
  • On the day of this dream I had seen some baby rabbits in the grass at my university campus
  • I have been in the process of setting up a new blog and was trying to select template colours which were not too pink (i.e. more peach in colour) so that it did not look 'too girly'
  • AWB is known to me because of events involving my ex-boyfriend, PS
  • On the day of this dream I had mentioned N the Dog to a Facebook friend (in the context of a conversation about dogs smiling). I had said I would look for a photograph of N, and I knew there was a large chance that PS would also be in the photos

Waking Reactions: 
This was a really weird dream and was very vivid. It was clearly influenced heavily by Day Residue. I think I may have forgotten some aspects of this dream because it was so long and complex and upon waking, I struggled to recall the way the dream scenes had started/finished and various conversations which I am aware took place. I had gone to sleep in a very negative, depressed mood and I was not in a particularly positive mood when I first woke up from this dream, although I was pleased to have something to blog about after a few days of not recalling any dreams.

If I remember anything else about this dream. I will record it below. 

Dream 796

'Jobs & Broken Phones'
Date: 22 March 2017
Time: 21:00 - 04:20 (I woke up from this dream naturally)
Type of dream: Normal dream
Dream recall: Normal recall 

Scene 1: Location Unknown - Time Unknown
My best friend from high school, SVF, was involved in some kind of scam which related to either work or education.

There were some black gloves, which has the fingertips cut out from them. 

Scene 2: An Exterior Scene - Day
I was then in an outside location - a grassy field in bright sunshine. There was a bench in the middle of the field. CEC and I were standing beside this bench, when we were approached by SW - a boy from our high school. He offered us both a job. I then saw that the bottom of my mobile phone screen was cracked, and I could almost get my finger underneath it. I was confused as to how my phone screen had broken, but I said to CEC: 'I am due to get an upgrade soon anyway'.

Scene 3: My Kitchen/Lounge, Norwich - Time Unknown
I was in my own flat, trying to decide how I could cut cheese thin enough to use it for something which required grated cheese (but in the dream I did not have a grater). I started to cut the cheese in very thin squares and laid them out on the worksurface and chopping board - there were loads, at least 20. I wondered if I had chopped up too much cheese. SC and ML came into the kitchen. They were going to make a lasagne. I started talking to ML, realising that the cheese I cut looked a little like lasagne sheets. I started to walk a short distance away and ML asked SC: 'Should be use the turmeric oil?' I felt jealous because I wanted to use turmeric oil too.

I cannot recall anything else about this dream. 

Extra Information: 
None of note

Recurrent Dream Themes: 

  • Broken mobile phone screen

Dreamsigns: 
  • I have not seen or heard from SVF in years

Day Residue: 
  • On the day of this dream I had I had posted on my Facebook profile about a job offer I received and CEC commented 
  • I had been telling R3A a story about SW the day before this dream
  • The day before this dream DL and I had been discussing mobile phone upgrades and how they were due soon for both of us
  • On the day of this dream I had eaten cheese - and cut it rather than grated it - not because I did not have a grater, but because I could not be bothered to grate it
  • I saw ML make a lasagne in my kitchen a while ago and we had a conversation about whether you should pre-soak/soften lasagne sheets before constructing the lasagne
  • I used to use a homemade turmeric oil (made from the grated root of fresh turmeric) to treat my acne (it worked). I currently have acne and had recently mentioned it to ML
  • SVF and ML both have Scottish heritage 

Waking Reactions: 
I have forgotten almost all of this dream - there seemed to be a lot more detail to it than I have been able to recall. If I remember anything else, I will record it below. 

Saturday 18 March 2017

Dream 795

'Bad Hair Dying & Dying'
Date: 17 March 2017
Time: 23:00 - 15:00 (I woke up from this dream naturally after a VERY long sleep!)
Type of dream: Vivid dream
Dream recall: Strong recall - some aspects forgotten due to length of period of sleep

Scene 1: Location Unknown - Time Unknown
I was with an unrecalled dream character. I was trying to bleach my hair so that I could apply a bright (unnatural) colour to it. I applied the bleach to my hair, but not all over - I only recall putting it on the roots of my hair and the ends and some parts of the midsection. I was looking at my hair to see if the colour lifted, and noticed that before my eyes it was turning a coppery colour. I rinsed the bleach off and saw that the very ends of my hair were peroxide blonde, which I liked. However, various parts of my hair were still black and there were also patches of bright pink and blue, which I did not want. I thought my hair looked like a mixed-up mess and wished it just had the blonde parts. I then saw myself from third-person perspective, from behind - so that I could see my hair properly. I was angry.

Scene 2: A Car - Dusk
I was in a car with R3A - who was apparently driving (or no-one was), because I was sat in the right-hand seat, but as a passenger, which leads me to the assumption that this was a left-hand drive car. It was dusk - the sky was a deepening blue shade - and we were driving through an urban city area. I was wearing a black 'tattoo choker' around my neck and I was wondering if this made me look like I had more of a double-chin than usual. I was considering taking it off, but decided that it went well with my outfit (which I cannot recall, or did not actually see in the dream). I cannot recall any conversation with R3A at all.

Scene 3: A House - Time Unknown
I was then in a house - it belonged to JML in the dream, and he was present. He was wearing a towelling dressing gown (in Yves Klein blue), white socks and Adidas slide-on sandals. There was some conversation, which I cannot specifically recall, but the tone was sexual i.e. JML was propositioning me for sex. He led me to another room in the house, which I assumed to be his bedroom. It was very messy, with clothes and books all over the floor and on every surface, other than a sofa which was against the wall. We sat on the sofa. JML started to kiss me and I knew that we were going to have sex. I put my hand inside the robe and found he was wearing underwear and I was trying to get my hand inside that so that I could play with his penis. I could not find a way to get my hand inside and JML was not assisting me, he was running his hands over my (clothed) body. I cannot recall what else happened in this scene. 

Scene 4: The Forest - Day
I found myself in a location in the forest, near my university, which is a place I had been to in real life shortly before this dream. I was wondering what to do with my life - it felt like my life was over. I cannot explain what I mean, other than I thought I had already had my chance at living a productive, enriching life and had failed, so now I was past the point of  trying. I felt like I had wasted my life and not made the most of it by my age. I felt so alone and lonely. In my mind, the only option was suicide, but recognising this option was open to me - a get-out clause - was positive and gave me hope that I would not need to continue living a boring, banal. pointless and lonely existence. I had great optimism about the prospect of ending my life now and the alternative option of continuing to live and improve my circumstances never figured in my decision-making. 

Scene 5: Location Unknown - Time Unknown
There was a scene involving family members - specifically my female cousins HM and CAJ. I cannot recall what was happening. There was something creepy or horror-like about this scene which I have also forgotten. 

I cannot recall anything else about this dream.

Extra Information: 
None of note

Recurrent Dream Themes: 


Dreamsigns: 
  • I had dyed my hair a variety of different colours
  • I saw myself in third-person perspective
  • I was involved in some kind of sexual relationship with JML

Day Residue: 
  • A few days before this dream I had been discussing hair bleaching (the difficulty in bleaching out the colour of thick, black non-Caucasian hair types) with a Facebook friend in a conversation about dying hair different colours. On the day of this dream I had mentioned this earlier conversation to DL
  • I had seen a black tattoo choker on a Grav3yardgirl Youtube video on the day before this dream
  • On the day of this dream DL had shown me a hip hop video (artist unrecalled) in which the rapper was wearing a dressing gown
  • I saw some Adidas slide-on sandals online shortly before this dream - one of my Facebook friends had posted an image and joked about people wearing them with socks and I had also seen an online advert for some, separately
  • I had been looking up the hex code for 'Yves Klein blue'
  • My previous dream involving JML - see Dream 794 - 'My Love Rival'
  • I had been walking in the forest a couple of days before this dream
  • I had been having a Facebook conversation with my cousin CAJ a couple of days before this dream

Waking Reactions: 
This was an incredibly long and complex dream which was very vivid. I have forgotten a great deal of this dream due to the fact that I had such a long sleep and I am not sure exactly when this dream took place (i.e. at what stage of my sleep cycle). It may be that I am able to recall other information about this dream, so if I subsequently remember any other details, I will record it below.

I did not wake up feeling suicidal after this dream, despite the fact that this was a theme in the dream itself. When I was experiencing suicidal ideation (in real life), it would most frequently happen upon waking, in the moments of regaining consciousness. I think my dream was reflecting on these real life memories. 

Wednesday 15 March 2017

Dream 794

'My Love Rival'
Date: 14 March 2017
Time: 05:00 - 07:30 (I woke up from this dream naturally)
Type of dream: Vivid dream
Dream recall: Strong recall

Scene 1: My Bedroom in my Nan's House, Sheringham - Night
I was in my bedroom in my Nan's house, Sheringham, accompanied by some dream characters. Some were my family members (my Mum and Nan etc) and others were friends, some from my current life and some from my high school days. I cannot specifically recall who all of the dream characters were, but where their identity was apparent to me, I will state. 

There was some kind of party or night out happening - and I was supposed to be getting ready for this, but I was stalling. I was sitting on the floor of the room, eating some coffee-flavoured cake. Dream characters, including my Mum, were trying to encourage me to get dressed and put on my makeup for the night out so that I would not be late, but I was taking an extra long time because I wanted to get 'drunk and high' before I went out. I was aware that it was already 23:00 hours, and therefore very late to be getting ready. I decided to put on my makeup - I poured liquid foundation onto a naan bread. It looked like butter. I was going to use the naan bread to apply my makeup and I wondered if I had poured out too much. 

I eventually got ready and was about to go to the party.

Scene 2: The Party - Night
The party was in a house and attended by a number of real life persons - including some of my colleagues from my job at university (JML) and some girls from my high school (SRFH and KW) amongst other people known to me at various points in my life. Everyone seemed to know each other. 'No.1' was there (someone whose identity I am not even willing to hint at, although he may have been mentioned elsewhere on this Blog, using identifying initials; I do not disclose the identity of people I have actually had sexual contact with unless we were in a confirmed relationship - i.e. an ex-boyfriend). I wanted to be with 'No.1', but was also aware that BSG was present - this is a female who I had randomly seen on Facebook that day, not someone I actually know. I was not happy to see BSG, because I thought she and No.1 were together and I was jealous and annoyed. I could not get to No.1 to talk to him, despite the fact that in real life, this would be no problem and I would be able to approach him easily. 

I was anxious and fretting about the presence of my love rival. I thought I was more attractive than her (she was fatter than me, but less curvy and dressed in 'emo'-style clothing and I wondered if No.1 liked this look rather than the style of clothing I was wearing (I was wearing a white top and skirt, although I used to dress very alternatively, like BSG in the dream - and I dress very casually in real life now). BSG was wearing a black T-shirt, baggy jeans and a studded belt, with a key chain. I began questioning why BSG was at the party and was told by a dream character that she was the ex-girlfriend of No.1 - they had dated in 2014. I did some mental calculations and said: 'Well he was asking me to send him nude photographs at that time, so he was cheating on her with me'. I felt slightly vindicated - that No.1 had still wanted sexual contact with me, even when in a relationship with someone else, but also angry at the fact No.1 had not informed me that he had been in a relationship with BSG at the time, and in fact told me he 'didn't want a girlfriend'. I wondered how they had even mt each other. I kept thinking: 'He must have found me sexier than her to be asking me for nudes during their secret relationship'. I was planning to confront him about this and try to convince him that I was the person who could make him happy, but decided not to because I did not want to be rejected and I also did not want to stress him out. I continued to be annoyed at BSG's presence and the fact she seemed to know all of my friends as well as being close to No.1. 

MCL, a friend from Norwich who is at my university, sat next to me - I was sitting on a sofa, watching No.1 and BSG and a number of other dream characters who were standing a short distance away. The room had low lighting and everyone was drinking and having fun. I noticed that MCL had a lot of tattoos and wondered why I had never noticed this before. MCL was aware that I was feeling jealous about the situation and leapt forward, kissing me open-mouthed, forcing his tongue down my throat in a way which made me wretch. I am not a fan of kissing. To my knowledge I have never kissed No.1 and I did not wish for him to see me kissing another man. I said: 'This isn't what I want!' but at that moment I would do anything for No.1 to kiss me.

Scene 3: Unthank Road, Norwich - Day
I then found that myself and the party guests were on a bus on Unthank Road, Norwich - at the bus stop beside the shops on the route which heads from the city towards the University. It was a sunny day. I am not sure where we were going, but the party was continuing on the bus. I saw BSG and another male - who was apparently her new boyfriend (who I had not noticed until this moment) get off the bus. I was relieved that she was going - I thought maybe I could speak to No.1 on my own now. A moment later, BSG and her boyfriend boarded the bus again, and sat down on the seat in front of me. This really angered me! I noticed that BGS had changed in appearance and wondered how she had done this in a matter of minutes. She seemed fatter, had shorter, lighter hair and more freckles on her face. I thought she seemed even less attractive than she had before she got off the bus, and was pleased at this. I thought: 'No.1 won't fancy her looking like that'. She was still dressed in the emo-style clothing (as was her boyfriend) but she now had a backpack covered in patches, badges and keyring toys. 

I cannot recall what else happened in this dream.

Extra Information: 
None of note

Recurrent Dream Themes: 

  • My Mum and other family members as dream characters
  • Eating cake
  • A female rival
  • Unthank Road, Norwich as a dream scene location

Dreamsigns: 
  • The situation in the dream was a dreamscene - that these persons from my real life - and online life - were all known to each other and the general narrative of the dream were clear dreamsigns
  • I was going to apply makeup with a naan bread!
  • BSG changed in a matter of moments, which I actually noticed in the dream

Day Residue: 
  • I had seen a naan bread in the fridge in my house a couple of days before this dream
  • On the day of this dream I had seen an online article about food-scented makeup, which was illustrated by an image of a woman drinking foundation
  • I had seen online that one of my ex-boyfriends was to be married soon. I mentioned to ML that this ex-boyfriend had contacted me last year - which would have been during the current relationship he is now in. I also referred to how PS had contacted me while being with a new partner - so there is a theme in my life of my ex-boyfriends still wanting contact with me (and sometimes asking for sexual contact or nude photographs) while with other women - I had referred to the situation with PS in my previous dream - Dream 793 - 'Chris Morris & Ex-Boyfriends' (Lucid Dream)
  • On the day of this dream I had seen a photograph of a female (not known to me) online - who appeared in this dream
  • I had been discussing emo fashion with ML shortly before this dream
  • I like to take nude photographs of myself - it is all the better when I have a male recipient!
  • On the day of this dream I saw JML (both in person, having brief conversation with him; and posting online)
  • A few days before this dream I had an online conversation with a Facebook friend about my dislike of kissing

Waking Reactions: 
This dream was so vivid! The feelings of jealousy and annoyance were very strong here! There seems to be a lot of Day Residue influence - woven into the narrative in complex ways. I did enjoy this dream, although I did not enjoy the emotions I was experiencing during it. It confirms a lot of real life feelings I have about being single but unwilling to date random men because I (1) can't be bothered to get to know knew people; (2) am hopelessly attracted to people with whom a relationship would not be possible - I just want a regular sideman/link for sex and friendship over and above a relationship; (3) I have had disasters every time I have tried to meet 'new' men. I don't really feel jealousy towards other women nowadays - there is no need and in any event I try to avoid all pointless negative emotions by acknowledging them, analysing why I feel like that and then mentally fighting the urge to succumb to them. I want to be a robot with no emotions who can think and act rationally at all times; feeling love or negative emotions towards other people makes me feel weakened and vulnerable and I refuse to allow that to distract or unbalance me anymore. I am not pleased that I was so judgmental (and superior) with regards to another woman's physical appearance - I am also trying to work hard to not do this, even mentally, as it is an ugly trait.

Dream 793 (LUCID DREAM)

'Chris Morris & Ex-Boyfriends'
Date: 13 March 2017
Time: 23:00 - 04:45 (I woke up from this dream naturally)
Type of dream: Lucid Dream (Spontaneous DILD - Dream-Initiated Lucid Dream)
Dream recall: Strong recall

Scene 1: A Dark Room/My Bedroom - Night
I was in a dark room, which had a blueish tint to the atmosphere. I could see very little in the room at all, and was not sure of the location. Sitting on a chair (a dining chair) in the middle of the floor (which I think was wooden floorboards) was Chris Morris. I am a huge Chris Morris fan, but in the dream there was something very creepy about him and I was not enjoying being in his company. I cannot describe what precisely was so creepy, but I just wanted to get away from him. He trying to engage in some kind of interview with me, but I didn't want to answer his questions. 

I then found myself standing in the doorway of my own bedroom, looking into the room, which was dark. There was no noticeable 'transition' between these locations. I was aware that the dining chair - with Chris Morris sat on it - was where my bed should be. I saw that his handcuffs were behind his back and he was tied/handcuffed to the chair. I was annoyed that I could not get away from him.

Scene 2: My Nan's Back Garden, Sheringham - Day
I was then in my Nan's back garden, at the top where there used to be a lilac bush. I was standing on the grass. It was a sunny day. There was an unrecalled male dream character with me - it was someone I knew from real life. I was scared because I was aware that there were 'beings' present in the garden and I was trying to warn the dream character that we might be in danger. A strange, yellow, spiky-looking alien creature - naked and about 3 feet in height - started walking silently past us down the garden path in the centre of the garden. I was terrified, but the creature did not pay us any attention. 

Scene 3: A House - Time Unknown
I was then inside a house - not a familiar one from real life, but in the dream it was inhabited by my ex-boyfriend PS and his family. I was sitting down on a sofa, while PS, his mum (CJS) and his younger sister, JGH, were present. CJS was showing us a knitted outfit she had bought for someone's baby. Suddenly N the Dog jumped up and ripped the baby's outfit with his teeth. I found this funny.

Scene 4: A Bedroom which was also a 'Business Location' - Day
I was then standing beside a desk and a window with PS in a room which appeared to be both a bedroom and also a business/commercial space, with a number of dream characters at work in the near distance. Outside the window, I could see a city environment. PS was telling me about a business venture that he was involved in with a female business partner who 'used to run a greetings card company'. PS said that his business was now successful and he and his partner had connections in America and Brazil. I wondered if he and his partner were romantically involved and I was asking if she would be jealous that we were talking. It seemed that we were catching up after a long time (we have not spoken for around a year). PS said his business partner would not be jealous. I felt that he was being slightly awkward and resistant around me and I felt uncomfortable as I wish we could be close again.

Scene 5: Garden of my Former Childhood Home, Pine Grove, Sheringham - Day
I was then in the garden of my former home in Pine Grove, Sheringham with PS and N the Dog. The garden looked a little different from how it would in real life - perhaps it was a composite with PS' garden in Edgware, where I used to live with him and his family. It was a sunny day. PS - who in real life has grown his hair long (it used to be shaved when we were dating), now had dreadlocks, held back by a pink headband. He was hanging out laundry on a circular washing line. I was appealing to PS to 'listen to my side of the story' - meaning my reasons for ending our relationship years ago (in 2012) - this being my mental health and the stress of trying to maintain a long-distance relationship when there was so much history of bad feeling and resentment between us. I wanted to make PS aware of how much I had loved him and how sorry I was for hurting him. We had continued to talk and see each other even when we were separated and PS had moved on to see other people and I was trying to remind him that he had said he never wanted to lose contact with me. 

I then became fully lucid - spontaneously, with no need to reality check. I decided to use the opportunity to speak to PS further while lucid. I was standing beside a wooden fence at the end of the garden. To maintain the stability of my lucid dream I began to rub and shake my hands - stabilisation techniques which often work well for me. I started to talk to PS about my feelings - how sorry I was and how much I had loved him. I said to him: 'We're in my lucid dream, so I know this isn't real, but I want to talk to you from my subconscious'. PS seemed to automatically accept that this was a lucid dream, and I was aware that the conversation was an excuse for me to work through unresolved issues within the dream, but I thought this was a good opportunity.

He seemed cold towards me, yet civil. I started crying, telling him how much I missed him and N the Dog. I bent down to hug N the Dog, who was stretching in a way which always used to make me laugh - with his butt in the air and his back arched. He put his paws on my shoulders to 'hug' me and I was now really crying hard. I felt desperate and so upset.

I woke up crying from this dream.

Extra Information: 
None of note

Recurrent Dream Themes: 

  • PS as a dream character

Dreamsigns: 
  • I met Chris Morris
  • The alien creature in my Nan's garden
  • I was with PS

Day Residue: 
  • On the day of this dream I had fallen asleep listening to Chris Morris radio shows on Youtube - particularly Blue Jam (BBC Radio One: 1997 - 1999) and Why Bother? (BBC Radio 3: 1994)
  • On the day of this dream, in a conversation with ML, I had described a teenage incident whereby my friend and I handcuffed an adult man (who we used visit so we could drink/smoke weed in his flat) to a chair for a joke, and I accidentally started a fire by melting lard on a shovel on a gas stove (while drunk and high)
  • On the day of this dream I had mentioned my previous relationship with PS and also talked of N the Dog. I had recalled how PS had done the majority of the household tasks when I lived with him - including the laundry
  • On the day of this dream I had been watching Jenna Marbles Youtube videos about her dogs - including one about introducing her dog to a baby
  • A short while before this dream I had been thinking about a short story I have been planning - I had previously described this story as being set in a utopian future, where society is incredibly bureaucratic - I had referred (in a conversation with DL and maybe SC) to the dystopian movie Brazil (1985)

Waking Reactions: 
This lucid dream was really horrible for me. The first part of the dream was not really a nightmare, but it was not pleasant for me to experience. The worst part was undoubtedly the lucid part though, as I was experiencing actual real life waking emotions and trying to address them with a dream character of someone in my life who I really wish I could talk to sometimes. I also really wish I could see N the Dog, I miss him so much. I woke up from this dream crying and feeling really depressed. I have been feeling in a low, unstable emotional state recently - which I have attributed to going back onto the contraceptive pill recently after a number of years of not using it. I think the change to my hormonal balance is really having a huge impact on me. I also associate N the Dog with being my main source of comfort when I was going through mental health issues during my relationship with PS. To not have him in my life is bad enough, but I think the dream really made me aware of how he had helped me through the toughest time in my life. The one positive thing about this dream is that it enabled me to discuss these issues and the way I was feeling with DL the next day, upon waking. He understood how much I missed N the Dog and reassured me that it was not weird for someone like me (who finds it hard to make emotional connections with other humans, but connects with dogs) to cope with losing a beloved pet. The dream did not resolve any of the issues with PS, but it did make me pay attention to what has been making me feel unhappy and to try and rationalise those feelings and move past them. I am aware that I am very lonely at times, having been single for over a year now.

Dream 792

'Arguments!'
Date: 12 March 2017
Time: 22:30 - 03:30 (I woke up from this dream naturally)
Type of dream: Normal dream
Dream recall: Weak recall

Scene 1: A House - Time Unknown
I was in a large mansion-type house with my Mum - we were having a shouting argument about something which I cannot recall. I cannot remember anything about this scene. 

I was then getting ready to go to some kind of celebration or party which I knew was in Sheringham. I found myself eating some cake. 

I cannot recall anything else about this dream.

Extra Information: 
None of note

Recurrent Dream Themes: 

  • My Mum as a dream character

Dreamsigns: 
  • None of note

Day Residue: 
  • None of note - I cannot recognise any specific Day Residue

Waking Reactions: 
I have forgotten all of the details of this dream other than the bare bones of the narrative. I may recall other details about this dream in due course. If I remember anything else, I will record it below. . 

Saturday 11 March 2017

The Dream Revue #1 (Latest Lucid Dreaming/Dreaming News & Events from Around the World)

In this segment/series of posts, I round up the latest 'news' in dreaming and lucid dreaming from around the internet! I post links to all lucid dreaming/dreaming events (global) I can find during my own online research, but if you have an lucid dream/dream-related event you wish for me to promote, please contact me on Facebook or Twitter (click on the social media link) and I will be happy to help!

Lucid Dreaming Forum with Charlie Morley (Event)
Hello Love Studio
62 - 64 Southampton Row, Bloomsbury, Holborn, London
Sunday 12 March 2017, 19:00 - 21:00
Price: £10:00 (pre-booking via website or just turn up!)

This is a chance for experienced and novice lucid dreamers to meet up and share their experiences and ideas on lucidity, dreaming and life. Please note that this is not advertised as an instructional workshop.

Himbad Lucid Dreaming - London Solo Show (Arts & Culture/Event)
BSMT Space, 5 Stoke Newington Road, London, N16 8BH
10 March - 16 March 2017
Free Entry

This is a solo show of 24 miniature paintings by the street artist Himbad, who uses his unique 'Sprezzatura method' of secret martial arts techniques. Maintaining a mind state which enables him to access his subconscious, Himbad paints directly from the imagination, creating archetypal imagery inspired by the ancient wisdom schools, alchemy, world mythology and nature. Further information about this event can be found on the website.


Ashram de Yoga Sivananda (Event)
Ashram de Yoga Sivananda – 26 Impasse du Bignon, 45170 Neuville aux Bois, Loire Valley, Orleans, France

Healing, Sleep & Dreams (evening presentations) - 20 & 21 August 2017
Sleep & Dream Certification Course (22 hours) - 22 - 24 August 2017

For more information for this event please visit the website.

The Power of Lucid Dreaming: An Introduction to the Foundations of Lucid Dreaming & the Nocturnal Meditations with Andrew Holecek (Event)
The Garrison Institute, Garrison, New York, USA
19 October - 22 October 2017
Price: $225 ($175 reduced price until 1 June 2017)

Please see the website for full information on this event and how to book.

Princess Diana 'visits' former butler, Paul Burrell in his dreams (Celebrity News)
10 March 2017

Princess Diana's former butler, Paul Burrell has made claims that she regularly visits him in his dreams, telling him she is 'still alive'. This claim comes just days after Burrell announced he is set to marry his partner, Graham Cooper in April this year, after ending his 32 year marriage to his ex-wife. He states that he yearns for Diana to 'approve' of his new relationship, given that she was the only woman he was able to confide in regarding his secret sexual orientation. Diana would refer to her loyal employee as 'her rock' and he describes the day she tragically died, in a car crash in Paris on 31 August 1997, as 'the saddest day of his life'.

Burrell told The Mirror: 'I want Diana to say to me 'it's OK Paul, live the life you've chosen'. But she's not here, so all I have got is her in my dreams'. 

Burrell elaborated on his dream visits from Diana, revealing: 'She tells me things. It's not scary or flaky, it just happens. She comes to me on a regular basis. It just happens. We have no control over our subconscious and I go to sleep sometimes, thinking 'please don't come into my dreams', but then she appears. She's asking 'can you help me?' It's a cry for help sometimes and then at other times we're sharing fun and laughter. She'll say 'when are you going to tell them, Paul, that I'm not actually dead?'


The Dreaming - Read-along Podcast (Arts & Culture)
This is a read-along podcast for Neil Gaiman's classic comic book series, The Sandman, hosted by Joe Fulgham and Sasja Smolders, who discuss each episode, revealing a whole treasure-trove of knowledge and facts about this classic masterpiece!

To access The Dreaming podcasts, please CLICK HERE or use the URL: https://thedreaming.moteofdust.com.

Why do we dream? (Science & Technology)
Medical News Today: 23 February 2017

An article by Hannah Nichols published online here, provides a comprehensive overview on the phenomenon of dreaming and nightmares. Much of the research cited in the article has been covered elsewhere on this Blog, but of particular interest was a list of 55 ranked dream themes which are stable across different sample populations, revealed through surveys and questionnaires:
  1. School, teachers, studying
  2. Being chased or pursued
  3. Sexual experiences
  4. Falling
  5. Arriving too late
  6. A person now alive being dead
  7. Flying or soaring through the air
  8. Failing an examination
  9. Being on the verge of falling
  10. Being frozen with fright
  11. A person now dead being alive
  12. Being physically attacked
  13. Being nude
  14. Eating delicious food
  15. Swimming
  16. Being locked up
  17. Insects or spiders
  18. Being killed
  19. Your teeth falling out/losing your teeth
  20. Being tied, unable to move
  21. Being inappropriately dressed
  22. Being a child again
  23. Trying again and again to do something
  24. Being unable to find, or embarrassed about using a toilet
  25. Discovering a new room at home
  26. Having superior knowledge or mental ability
  27. Losing control of a vehicle
  28. Fire
  29. Wild, violent beasts
  30. Seeing a face very close to you
  31. Snakes
  32. Having magical powers
  33. Vividly sensing, but not necessarily seeing or hearing, a presence in the room
  34. Finding money
  35. Floods or tidal waves
  36. Killing someone
  37. Seeing yourself as dead
  38. Being half awake and paralyzed in bed
  39. Lunatics or insane people
  40. Seeing yourself in a mirror
  41. Being a member of the opposite sex
  42. Being smothered, unable to breathe
  43. Encountering god in some form
  44. Seeing a flying object crash
  45. Earthquakes
  46. Seeing an angel
  47. Creatures: part animal, part human
  48. Tornadoes or strong winds
  49. Being at a movie
  50. Seeing extra-terrestrials
  51. Traveling to another planet
  52. Being an animal
  53. Seeing a UFO
  54. Someone having an abortion
  55. Being an object
Lucid Dream (2017) (Arts & Culture)
On 22 February 2017, Lucid Dream, a Korean movie written and directed by Kim Joon-Sung was released. The movie is a science fiction thriller, starring Go Soo as Dae-Ho, an investigative journalist desperately seeking the whereabouts of his young son who was abducted 3 years prior. With the help of a detective and psychiatrist friend, Dae-Ho retraces his memory of the incident using the power of lucid dreaming. The movie is to be distributed via Netflix.


The healing power of lucid dreaming (Science & Technology)
New Scientist: 15 February 2017

An article published online by New Scientist has highlighted the ways in which lucid dreams may be triggered to enable them to be utilised in psychotherapy. 

The article states that new. consistent methods for inducing lucid dreams are being developed and new scientific innovations are enabling researchers to communicate with lucid dreamers during the dream state, which could lead to therapeutic benefits - people receiving treatment within their dreams.

Neuroscience has allowed sleep and dream researchers to confirm that brain activity occurring during the phenomenon of lucid dreaming displays similarities with higher cognitive functions associated with waking states, such as memory, behavioural control, planning and logic. 

Dreams have often been the focus of psychological therapy and it is well-established that recurrent nightmares can be symptomatic of anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder and other mental health conditions. Therapy which encourages clients to discuss dreams can provide what Michelle Carr describes as 'an insulated way' to address traumatic subjects and themes. Attempts to 'rewrite' these can help overcome phobias or grief using a strategy known as 'imagery rehearsal therapy' in which the client will rehearse the challenging dream scenarios and confront their nightmares with the aim of changing the outcome. 

Previous research by Doll, Gittler & Holzinger ('Dreaming, lucid dreaming & personality' (2009) 2(2) International Journal of Dream Research 52) found that lucid dreamers are better equipped at dealing with trauma and tend to experience fewer mental health problems than non-lucid dreamers. Research by Soffer-Dudek, Wertheim & Shahar ('Lucid dreaming & resilience in the face of exposure to terrorism' (2011) 24(1) Journal of Traumatic Stress 125), found that while the female participants in this study who had been exposed to the greatest levels of violence displayed the highest levels of distress, this was significantly lower in those who were able to lucid dream. 

Ursula Voss states that lucid dreamers often wake with feelings of euphoria and accomplishment and are shown to be more effective at avoiding nightmares due to their enhanced control over their dreams. In a study conducted with colleagues at the JW Goethe University, Frankfurt, Voss was able to develop a technique for inducing lucid dreams - transcranial alternating current stimulation - whereby a low electrical current (gamma wave length) is applied to the frontal cortex of the brain during REM sleep. Results showed that this was successful on 2/3 occasions. 

More recent research by Holzinger, Klosch & Saletu of the Institute for Consciousness and Dream Research in Vienna ('Studies with lucid dreaming as add-on therapy to Gestalt therapy' (2015) 131(6) Acta Neurologica Scandinavica 355) has found evidence that lucid dreaming can assist in increasing the effectiveness of therapy for nightmares. Holzinger found that clients were able to stop fearing sleep and start to enjoy their dreams. One subject claimed that when they realised they were in a nightmare, they were able to return to an earlier point in their dream, before the threat materialised, and continue their dream in a different direction. This brings a sense of power and control which is at stark contrast with the typical feelings of helplessness and vulnerability experienced in nightmares. 


Chloe Blanchette-Carriere of the Dream and Nightmare Laboratory in Montreal, Canada, is interested in developing therapies which would trigger lucid dreaming instead of relying on clients having to learn techniques of self-induction; early preliminary studies have shown promising results. The next step is communicating with the lucid dreamer while they are within the lucid dream state, in order to provide 'external support'. It is possible for dreams to incorporate external stimuli from the physical world (such as noise or smells) into the dream content, so it is hoped that techniques enabling researchers to send messages to lucid dreamers will improve the therapeutic potential of lucid dreaming. 

Kristoffer Appel, a sleep and dream researcher at the Osnabruck University in Germany conducted a study in which he recruited experienced lucid dreamers and monitored their brain activity and eye movements during sleep. Appel instructed his subjects to communicate the fact that they were experiencing a lucid dream by moving their eyes in a left-right pattern which had been pre-agreed before sleep. Once he received this cue he attempted to 'send messages' to the lucid dreamers using audio tones and flashing lights. Out of the 10 subjects, 7 reported the sounds and lights being incorporated into their dream content. In some instances the stimuli were interpreted as occurrences within the dream narrative, whilst in others, the dreamer was aware that the stimuli was a message from the external world. Appel wanted to take this further and communicate in more complex ways with lucid dreamers and so requested that the subjects learn basic Morse code for numbers so that he was able to use a series of audio tones to send simple arithmetic problems to the lucid dreamers, who were instructed to 'answer' using pre-agreed eye signals. At least 3 of the subjects received the messages and were able to provide correct answers.

Reliance on eye signals limits the extent of information which can be communicate by lucid dreamers, so Remington Mallett, a researcher at the University of Missouri, St Louis, attempted to use a brain-computer interface which enables the brain to 'talk' directly with a computer. Mallett recruited 2 self-taught lucid dreamers to test the technology, using a headset known as an 'Emotiv Epoc' which is able to map brain activity and then uses these signals to direct different desired outcomes on the computer, for example, moving a virtual objects, such as a cursor. The subjects were first taught how to use the software when in waking state and this was practiced until they were able to attain a 75% success rate, after which the experiment was repeated during sleep. The subjects used eye movements to signal the fact they were lucid; one stated that during his dream he imagined a ninja character moving a block forward, an imaginary action which was replicated on the external computer screen.

Mallett describes this process as being like 'a Jedi mindtrick'. This research allows for the objective observation of a cognitive task. Mallett claims that '[i]t's the first step toward being able to convey the content of dreams to the outside world, in real time'.

This approach could assist in teaching people to use prosthetic limbs or an exoskeleton designed for those with lower-body paralysis. This has been pioneered by the Walk Again Project, an international collaboration which is led by Miguel Nicolelis at Duke University, Durham, North Carolina. Patients first learn to control an avatar using virtual reality before transferring these skills to send motor signals (from the brain) to an exoskeleton. Harnessing the skills of lucid dreaming would enable patients to exercise their 'mental muscles' every night within the dream world, which would speed their waking ability to control the exoskeleton. 

Lucid dreaming is also a potential means of utilising creativity - many of us find inspiration or ideas in our dreams which assist or enrich our waking lives. New gadgets, such as the headset used in Mallett's research, could eventually allow us to record material from our lucid dreams. Appel is currently designing a sleep mask which will allow dreamers to use Morse code eye signalling to send messages, in addition to a project based on text messaging using eye signals to control keys. Other promising devices include the Aurora Dreamband and the iBand+, both of which are small headbands using EEG and other biosensors to detect when the sleeper is experiencing REM sleep, triggering LED signals to 'wake' them up and induce lucidity. These devices are paired with an app which tracks sleep patterns and sounds an alarm to wake the user up at the optimal point in their sleep cycle.