Have you ever had a really good dream?  One you wish you could dream all over again?  I always wished I could control my dreams, maybe bring me back to a really good one.  I wondered if it was possible, so I decided to do some research.

Deirdre Barrett is the author of “The Committee of Sleep: How Artists, Scientists and Athletes Use Dreams for Creative Problem-Solving-and How You Can, Too” and did an interview with the Scientific American on dreams.  She described the scientific definition of a dream as a “narrative experience that occurs during sleep” (Barrett).  She was then asked if it is possible to control our dreams, where she said that yes it is possible.  She said it depends on what type of dream: lucid, nightmare, etc.  To solve a problem in a dream, one must think of that particular problem before they go to sleep.  One could also place something next to their bed that would help remind them of the problem, such as a person he/she is in a fight with.  Also important, when one wakes up, they mustn’t get right out of bed.  They must lay for a second, and the dream will come back to them.  Another interesting thing Barrett spoke about was if someone wants to dream of a particular person or experience.  You have to get a picture of who you want to dream about, or a specific line they would say (anything relating to them) or the experience you had.

Controlling lucid dreams take a very different approach.  Lucid dreams in general are risky, and much harder to control.  Lucid dreams occur during your REM stage, when you are actually aware that you are dreaming.  Since you are aware that you are dreaming, you then might try to control your dream.  It is a lot harder to control this because you are
still sleeping, and these dreams can get a
little out of control sometimes.

The video below tells of how you can control your dreams:

http://https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l18FvtFl7ks

Here are some more ways to control your dreams from Yahoo Health:

1.Write down your dreams in the morning.  That way, you will eventually recognize patterns in them.  

2. Pay more attention to your daily activities.  You have to understand your life.

3. Get a habit.  Something to do everyday and get the hang of.

So now that we know how to control dreams in general, let’s get in a little more in depth.  Ever wanted to have a flying dream?  Well, since flying is not something humans normally do, your body is going to have to grow on it.  So jump around in your dream, higher and higher, and eventually you will fly.  What about changing the scenery?  Visualize where you want to go.  Whether it is Greece on the other side of the door, or look into a mirror and see a shopping mall.  As long as you believe that destination is truly there, you will be taken there.  Traveling through time can be made easy with a time travel machine you think up or fly into the clouds and end up in a different time period.  To find objects you want, just reach inside your pockets, bags, in front of you; it is guaranteed to be in one of those places considering your mind is controlling it.  Last but not least, if you want to talk to your unconscious self, it would be much easier to put yourself into a dog or cat form, and then talk to that animal as yourself.  It sounds crazy but hey, it works!

Although more research must be done on controlling dreams, we now know it is possible, no matter how crazy it seems.  Just put in a little effort next time you sleep, and you never know, you could be controlling your dreams in no time!  Sleep tight!

Works Cited:

1. http://www.dawn.com

2. www.lifehacker.com.au

3. http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-to-control-dreams/

4. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/van-winkles/what-is-lucid-dreaming-an_b_7663492.html

5. http://www.howsleepworks.com/types_rem.html

6. http://www.world-of-lucid-dreaming.com/how-to-control-your-dreams.html

7. http://dreamstudies.org/