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Lucid Dreaming Videos

The Nightmare – a documentary about Sleep Paralysis

Just came across this trailer for The Nightmare – a documentary about Sleep Paralysis. A subject we know can be really creepy and scary.

From the trailer, it looks to be a visual treat.

Documentary Synopsis

The documentary focuses on eight people suffering from sleep paralysis, a phenomenon where people find themselves temporarily unable to move, speak, or react to anything while they are falling asleep or awakening. Occasionally this paralysis will be accompanied by physical experiences or hallucinations that have the potential to terrify the individual. In the film Ascher interviews each participant and then tries to re-create their experiences on film with professional actors. – Wikipedia

What is sleep paralysis?

Sleep paralysis is a phenomenon in which a person, either falling asleep or awakening, temporarily experiences an inability to move, speak, or react. It is a transitional state between wakefulness and sleep, characterized by complete muscle atonia (muscle weakness). It is often accompanied by terrifying hallucinations (such as an intruder in the room) to which one is unable to react due to paralysis, and physical experiences (such as strong current running through the upper body). One hypothesis is that it results from disrupted REM sleep, which normally induces complete muscle atonia to prevent sleepers from acting out their dreams. Sleep paralysis has been linked to disorders such as narcolepsy, migraines, anxiety disorders, and obstructive sleep apnea; however, it can also occur in isolation. – Wikipedia

It appears that The Nightmare will be in Theaters June 5th.

Here’s a review from the guardian.

Categories
Lucid Dreaming Questions Lucid Dreaming Tips

Dream Journal

The Dream Journal is one of most important tools for the lucid dreaming. It’s your personal log of the the dream world. Keep it close (within reach) of your bed and make an effort to write in it immediately after you wake up.

I saw a tweet that said a your dream journal should be the first and last thing you see every day. I completely agree with this. A dream journal reinforces the fact that you want to have a lucid dream. I go to sleep with the intention that I will record that night’s dream when I awake. The process of using a journal will help you to naturally remember your dreams.

Experts say that people typically forget more than 50 percent of their dreams within 5 minutes of waking up. Within ten minutes, 90 percent is lost. This is why it’s important not only for you to write down your dreams, but also to do so as soon as you wake up. “
–From the book A Field Guide to Lucid Dreaming. Buy it on Amazon.

Here are the things I typically note in my dream journal:

1. Date of the dream
2. Was the dream lucid?
3. Dream Signs
4. Emotion of the dream
5. Description of the dream
6. Dream Title – This is something new I’m trying to help me search through my journal and label my dreams.

Q: How descriptive should the dream journal be?
A: A good idea is to capture keywords…especially when you are first starting out. This isn’t about creative writing, it’s about capturing the essence of the dream. Over time your entries will become more descriptive.

Q: What are Dream Signs?
Dream signs are recurring dream elements that show up in your dreams. Soon you’ll recognize these signs that they will become triggers that alert you that you are dreaming.

Q: Should I use a regular journal or a computer or tablet?
Do what works for you, but my preference is to use pen and paper.

What tips do you have when using a dream journal?


 

References in this post:
Book: A Field Guide to Lucid Dreaming.