It’s estimated that more than half of adults have at least once experienced lucid dreaming – defined by the Sleep Foundation as being aware a dream is taking place while not leaving the dream state – with almost a quarter able to do it monthly.
Some, like Westport local Peter Maich, are almost able to do it at will – proven by his 20-plus notebooks filled with texts and sketches about his slumbering adventures.
“I turn 64 this year, and it all started with nightmares when I was eight or nine years old,” he tells Verve. “That’s a pretty common story for proficient lucid dreamers.”
As his childhood progressed, Peter realised he’d become angry during those nightmares and able to, for example, “turn the tables” and chase someone who’d previously been pursuing him: “It was the first spark of realising, ‘Hey, I’m dreaming.’ And I took control.” Peter even credits his sleep skills with steering him away from substance abuse as a teenager: “The drug experiences my friends talked about were nothing compared to my dreams! I never felt the need to indulge.”
However, it wasn’t until Peter was in his 40s that he felt comfortable enough to disclose his abilities. “My mum knew I had nightmares, but they were just something you dealt with,” he says. “It wasn’t until I got onto Google that I discovered that lucid dreaming was an actual thing.”
Now, with an estimated 5,000 lucid dreams to his name, Peter is a regular presenter at the International Association for the Study of Dreams in the USA.
HISTORY OF LUCIDITY
Lucid dream-like states have been discussed in many ancient texts, with references in Buddhist, Hindu, and Abrahamic manuscripts promoting the practice as a form of meditation, a way of communicating with God, or a glimpse into the afterlife. Around 330 BC, Ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle wrote about lucid dreaming in On Dreams.
But it wasn’t until 1913 that the term ‘lucid dream’ was first coined, by Dutch psychiatrist Frederik Willems van Eeden who described the phenomenon as “a state of perfect awareness” that allows the sleeper to “attempt different acts of free volition”.
Mary Arnold-Foster’s 1921 book Studies in Dreams was one of the earliest English language publications about lucid dreaming which recounts, among other tales, the author’s ability to soar while sleeping (“a slight paddling motion by my hands increases the pace of the flight…”) and sees her put forth an argument for people possessing “dual consciousnesses”. But it was Christopher Nolan’s smash hit 2010 movie Inception that truly inserted the concept of lucid dreaming into the global consciousness. For those that have been living – or sleeping – under a rock for the past decade or so, the film centres around a group of thieves who enter people’s dreams, via their own, in order to steal subliminal secrets. A fascinating idea, though surely far-fetched?
Perhaps not.
Studies around such heightened states of awareness are key to answering the “fundamental questions about the nature of human consciousness”.
An international study published by Current Biology in 2021 found that folk were able to receive and process complex external information whilst asleep. Researchers asked 158 questions – including maths problems – to lucid dreamers who responded via signalling through facial movements. Their answers were correct 18.6% of the time and incorrect only 3.2%, with the remaining questions receiving no response. Lead study author Karen Konkoly believes such techniques could help treat the likes of trauma, anxiety, and depression.
Science writer David Robson says that studies around such heightened states of awareness are key to answering the “fundamental questions about the nature of human consciousness”.
“I’m not particularly religious, and I don’t like the word ‘spiritual’, but the dreams can be quite profound,” says Peter. “You start to lose your sense of self, and the dreams take on their own form of life, of energy. It becomes what I call a ‘pure experience’.”
SLEEPING SCIENCE
Some research has shown benefits to include the treatment of nightmares and the overcoming of fears, while other studies have concluded lucid dreaming could have a detrimental impact on mental health, interfering with sleep patterns and blurring reality and fantasy.
“There’s a misunderstanding that lucid dreamers can control a dream, but that’s not true,” says Peter. “You can control certain aspects of a dream, but you can’t control it overall.”
I ask Peter about his emotional state while dreaming.
“The overriding feeling is one of warmth,” he says. “There is synergy between the inner and outer minds, they communicate. There is a positivity that feeds into my daily life and allows me to be more accepting of what’s going on around me.”
Much about lucid dreaming is still unknown, but the brain’s prefrontal cortex is believed to be most likely responsible for the phenomenon, having been observed to be nearly as active while lucid dreamers are asleep as it is when they’re awake. Studies have also shown that lucid dreaming only occurs during REM – the fourth and final stage of the sleep cycle – while regular dreaming can take place during other stages of snoozing.
Certain drugs and substances – such as the alkaloid galantamine, which is used to treat early Alzheimer’s – have been shown to induce lucid dreaming. For one study, volunteers were given placebos or differing doses of galantamine before going to sleep. Fourteen percent of those taking the placebo experienced lucid dreaming compared with 27% of those who’d taken the 4mg dose of galantamine, and 42% for those who’d taken the 8mg dose.
“I’d estimate that 10% of my lucid dreams have been induced by supplements,” says Peter. “The supplements are a great aid, but they’re not a magic totem, they’ll simply increase the probability.”
Peter says that other effective methods include visualisation, meditation, and adopting good sleep habits. “Those diaries are really useful too,” he adds. “Sketching and writing, recalling those dreams, it almost primes you, sets your mind up for a high chance of becoming lucid later. It’s mind-blowing, that virtual playground that’s basically unlimited.”
DON’T DREAM IT’S OVER
Picasso famously said that every child is an artist, the problem is how to remain an artist when grown up. A similar sentiment could be applied to lucid dreaming, with several studies showing lucid dreaming rates higher among the young, with rates decreasing with the onset of adulthood.
“You’d be surprised when talking with children if you ask them if they’ve had any good dreams lately,” says Peter. “Children are very curious and emotional, and they dream like crazy. I think it’s an incredibly valuable exercise for parents and children to just talk about dreams over the breakfast table. It’s where you see your hopes and your values. The subconscious is so important.”
Following a “good night’s dream”, Peter feels “open to possibilities”.
“I don’t believe in God or anything like that, but I feel there’s something bigger behind it all,” he adds. “Either another part of ourselves that we connect to, or something beyond that. I don’t know. But what I do know is that there is a great sense of peace and calmness around it.”
