All of us today have become a slave to the technology which was invented by humans to save human efforts and time. But the reality is vice-versa. We happen to spend most of our day on technological gadgets or around it. See for yourself and take a look around. You’re reading this on a smartphone, tablet or on a personal computer. Probably there’s another smartphone in your pocket, right. We’re all surrounded by technology which has become a necessity of life and is evolving with every second. Each technological advancement can be a debate with its pros and cons but that is not what this article is about.

Being a college goer or a working professional, most of us share the same routine. Waking up with the third or fourth alarm ring, rushing to the office or college, completing assignments, eating lunch, attending meetings, giving presentations and whatnot. And once you’re done with the tedious day, the traffic sucks up what all is left in us. Reaching home, complaining about your boss, eating dinner and lastly, Netflix. By the time you finish your favourite movie or sitcom, it already late you start cursing the next day. What most of us fail to achieve is a minimum of 6 hours of tight sleep, which is so much common among this generation. Lack of sleep affects how we look, perform and behave during the entire course of the day.

During that little window of sleep, our body undergoes numerous changes. These changes include dropping of body temperature, slower breathing, relaxation of muscles, growth, and repair of tissues, restoration of energy, the release of hormones, etc. The other critical thing we do while sleeping is to do dream. Have you ever wondered what is a dream? Why do we dream? Does a dream have a purpose? Why can’t we remember the majority of them? Why do we have nightmares? Why do we happen to see people in dreams whom we haven’t actually seen in our real lives?

If you go by the bookish language, a dream is a sequence of memories, images, emotions, ideas, and sensations that occur involuntarily during various stages of sleep. Science and technology have helped us in comprehending of dreams. Over the years, scientists have come up with numerous theories as to why do we dream. Different people lead to different opinions. According to scientists, we dream because it is a result of other biological processes and has no direct function. Some say dreaming serves the fundamental purpose of sleeping, or it is a form of consciousness that joins past, present and the future. But what is the purpose of dreaming? After going through studies and various theories, we can say that the purpose of dreaming is to help us collect crucial memories, moments and all the big & small things that you’ve learned, unlearn non-important things and comprehend feelings & thoughts.

Today, when you woke up in the morning, honestly tell if you remember the dream you saw last night. Most of you won’t. Even if there are some of you blokes who are pretty confident about it, can you remember the last seven dreams? A bit harsh, right. Well, that’s not your fault. Nor this defines the quality of sleep you had. The reason why we forget our dreams is not exactly identified by the scientists, however, there are few theories and researches that can be looked upon. Usually, dreams fade once you wake up just like a text written on a foggy mirror. One of the possibilities is that the neurochemical in our brain are way different than what it is when you’re awake and hence they don’t permit memories to combine. Another possibility is that we don’t really pay attention to dreams during sleep.

Nightmares, what causes them? Nightmare is just the bad dreams that you experience. These are common among young kids. Nightmares are basically intensely realistic and disturbing dreams that tend to wake you up from a deep tight sleep. The nightmares often set your heart pounding from danger, fear, and threat. There are various reasons that can cause a nightmare in adults. The common examples are depression, anxiety and post-stress disorders.

Now coming back to the heading of this article, Lucid Dreams. Have you heard of this term before? No? Yes? Maybe from a friend of yours who’s into science. Let us put this way. Have you ever been able to gain control over your dream in a way that you’re able to control the characters and whatever that is going on? If yes, then you’ve experienced lucid dreaming. A lucid dream is a dream where a person is aware that he/she is dreaming. Its is not recorded as to how many people experience lucid dreams but it seems to be quite common. So, what does lucid dreaming really feel like? Most people usually experience it during the early morning hours. The degree to control and dominate the dreams also varies to a great extent from person to person. For example, a person who had a bad day going to sleep in a bad mood could control the dream negatively. Doesn’t lucid dreams sound like the immersive experience of virtual reality? Let us take a look at the benefits and risks of lucid dreaming:

Benefits:

• You will remember the dream even after waking up.
• Realistic feeling.
• Lucid dreaming is fun. It can provide you with a space to talk to yourself with no judgements involved.
• You control the dream. As simple as that. Now imagine how much fun that can be.
• It lets you open your mind to opportunities that are usually blocked by real-world fears.
• Clearer than normal dreams.

Risks:

• Sleep paralysis. It is uncommon but becomes a possibility during lucid dreaming.
• Focused emotions. You’ll not be able to cry or shout, at that you are most likely to wake up.
• Just in case you’re bored, you have the chance to sleep off and wake up to reality.

Here are some ways to experience lucid dreams:

• Try waking up 90 minutes after you first fall asleep and then fall back asleep to the concentrating on the dream that you were dreaming before.
• Encourage yourself to have a deep and long sleep.
• Wake up in the middle of the night. Usually, 4-6 hours after the time you fell asleep.
• Stay awake for a while. Drink water or eat something. Write your dream down. Give your self 30-60 minutes before you go back to sleep.
• Try the concentration techniques. If you find it difficult to catch the previous dream, focus on the movements of your fingers and try to memorise the pattern.

The community that supports lucid dreaming is majorly on the internet but there are groups around the world who are aiming to share these dreams. Remember readers, learning to lucid dream take time, patience and determination. There are various blogs, videos, and tutorials available on the internet describing how to do and experience lucid dreaming. Anyone can become a lucid dream, it's a skill and art that anyone can learn. Even you. But firstly, you must make sure that you take enough sleep and get used to it before entering this new world.