Ah, how cute. I entered my bedroom, stepping over my dog Bina, all snuggled up under her favorite blanket. But as I continued walking through the room I spotted something that was as confusing as it was adorable. Another Bina…same dog, same blanket. Same peaceful expression as she slept there on the floor.

As I struggled to understand this strange development, this sudden appearance of a doppelganger dog, the impossibility of the situation triggered the question…am I dreaming this?

I gave myself a reality check…I focused all my attention on my hands. And as I did so, three of my fingers promptly disappeared. But rather than being horrified, I began to smile. The odd events had confirmed that I was, in fact, dreaming. And with the recognition of this fact, my ‘lucid dream’ began. The dream instantly became more intense and I knew that I would have more control over the experience. But I also knew that I was racing against time…from the moment I realized that I was dreaming, I had to fight the urge to wake up.

I want to fly.

I knew that because I was dreaming I had the ability to do things I couldn’t in the waking world. But instead of soaring through the skies I settled for floating up a few feet above the floor. I drifted face down into the living room and giggled at my reflection in the TV screen.

 According to the Lucidity Institute, the term ‘lucid dreaming’ was coined by researcher Frederik van Eeden [1]. A lucid dream occurs when the sleeper becomes aware that he or she is dreaming while the dream is still taking place. As in the dream described above, the lucid state is often triggered by a strange or unlikely event which suggests to the dreamer that the situation cannot possibly be real. Once the question is raised, the dreamer can try to confirm that they are dreaming by performing some sort of ‘reality check’, such as focusing on their hands. Often, a hand may have an odd appearance in a dream, or have more or less fingers than it should. Other times, the hand may appear normal, but the act of focusing and honing the concentration helps the dreamer to become aware of their situation. Alternative reality testing techniques include checking the reflection in a mirror or pinching some part of the body.

Once the dreamer has established that they are definitely in dreamland, the lucid dream can begin. Many people have described these dreams as being far more vivid than regular dreams. Some even relate lucid dreaming to out of body experiences or astral traveling. The mysterious feat of lucid dreaming has been researched by many and coveted by those who want more control over their dreams.

 My new novel, Lucid, explores the subject of vivid dreams and raises the question, are dreams really pure fiction…or something more than that? The story’s main character, Sloane Solomon, is plagued by terrible nightmares which she can’t seem to forget. Is her imagination just playing tricks on her, or are the horrors that her dreams seem to be trying so desperately to warn her about actually happening in real life? The answers that await this young, college student may turn out to be the most frightening nightmare of all.

1. Source: The Lucidity Institute Website, July 16 2004

http://www.lucidity.com/LucidDreamingFAQ2.html#LD