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Lucid dreaming is an altered state of consciousness in which the dreamer is aware that they are dreaming, according to new research.Two techniques—Mnemonic Induction of Lucid Dreams (MILD) and Senses Initiated Lucid Dream (SSILD)—can help you achieve this kind of dream while you sleep. Entering a lucid dream can be like an interactive form of therapy and promote lasting results, experts say.
You’re hurtling down the highway, not a car in sight. Suddenly, a large semi-truck appears out of nowhere. You’re aware of the fact that you won’t have enough time to hit the brakes, so you take control of the steering wheel and swerve into a patch of grass to avoid a collision.
No, this wasn’t reality—it was a lucid dream.
Lucid dreaming is when you become aware of the fact that you’re in a dream while it’s still happening, according to Dylan Faulkner Selterman, Ph.D., associate teaching professor at the Johns Hopkins University Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences.
There’s been a surge of new research in this space. For instance, in a recent 2025 study in the Journal of Neuroscience, researchers found that lucid dreaming is a state of consciousness that has its own type of brain activity that’s distinct from being awake and from rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, which is the dream stage of sleep.
Lucid dreaming typically occurs during REM sleep. And it’s fairly common: A 2016 meta-analysis in the journal Consciousness and Cognition that examined over 50 years of research states that about 55 percent of people have had at least one lucid dream in their lifetime.
Additionally, lucid dreaming can “sometimes enable you to make decisions and influence the course of your dream,” adds Karen Konkoly, Ph.D., a postdoctoral fellow at Northwestern University who works on studies about lucid dreaming. (Konkoly’s research focuses on how to induce a lucid dream and how to communicate with lucid dreamers while they’re still dreaming.)
These dreams can range from something like flying around like Superman to helping people to work through stresses or challenges they’ve been having, “almost like a kind of interactive therapy,” Selterman says. In the semi-truck example, for instance, you may be able to tease out your anxiety about driving near tractor trailers or the trauma you have from a past car crash.
A big perk of lucid dreams is that they can “lead to less stress and a more positive mood the next day, and can also help individuals reduce nightmares,” Konkoly says. Lucid dreaming can also be a fun pastime, a way to investigate creative endeavors, an opportunity to practice skills, or a forum for spiritual and psychological growth.
While Konkoly notes the science world is just beginning to understand what all the benefits of lucid dreaming might be, there are plenty of things we know to be possible in this space—like training your mind to lucid dream.
Even advanced lucid dreamers might only have one lucid dream a week.
If you want to have a lucid dream, there are a few ways you can induce them. One is with the Mnemonic Induction of Lucid Dreams (MILD) technique. This is where you meditate on a previous dream you’ve had while you’re falling asleep and rehearse how it would have gone if you became lucid, Konkoly explains. Then, you set your intention to become lucid in your next dream.
Another way to promote lucid dreaming is through the Senses Initiated Lucid Dream (SSILD) technique, per Konkoly. This is where you alternate between focusing on your sense of vision, hearing, and touch as you fall asleep.
“Lucid dreams tend to happen toward the end of sleep, and waking up and then returning to sleep helps promote lucid dreaming as well,” Konkoly says. “So, it is nice to try these techniques in the morning if you’ve awoken but have time to return to sleep, or to wake up around 4 a.m. and stay awake for half an hour before returning to sleep.”
Most lucid dreams end naturally, according to Konkoly, and waking up prematurely is actually a common problem people face. There are techniques that can stabilize the dream so it can last longer, such as spinning around in a circle, she says.
“However, it does seem that many lucid dreamers can also wake themselves up intentionally,” Konkoly says. “A common use of lucidity, for instance, is individuals waking themselves up when encountering a scary nightmare. Closing one’s eyes and thinking to themselves that they will wake up is one way to end a lucid dream.”
It’s easier for some people to train themselves to have a lucid dream using the above techniques than it is for others, Selterman says, and it depends on factors such as personality traits and sleep hygiene.
“Some people are natural lucid dreamers, but for the rest of us it often takes a bit of commitment to start lucid dreaming regularly, so it would probably depend on how vivid of a dreamer you are to start with and how committed you are to doing the techniques,” Konkoly adds. “I would say to try the techniques consistently for at least a month, and remember that even advanced lucid dreamers might only have one lucid dream a week.”
More Altered States of Consciousness
For all the pros to lucid dreaming, it’s worth pointing out that some people experience negative effects from trying to lucid dream, especially if their attempts to lucid dream fail or if they experience lucid dreams but have little control over the content, according to Konkoly.
“Probably the most common risk [to lucid dreaming] is sleep disruption, which can promote lucid dreaming but leave one feeling less rested,” Konkoly says. “Attempts to lucid dream can also result in sleep paralysis, which can be unpleasant.”
Konkoly also cautions that learning to lucid dream might be ill-advised for individuals at risk for psychosis.
Danielle Zickl is a freelance writer who has 10 years of experience covering fitness, health, and nutrition. She’s a graduate of Ithaca College. You can find her work here on Women’s Health, and in many other publications including PS, SELF, Well+Good, Runner’s World, Outside RUN, Peloton, Men’s Fitness, and more.