The Lone Critic

Several of us can remember our dreams in the morning, some can remember them more vividly than others and most haven”t recalled a dream in years. Why is this? Why do others remember and others don”t even think about it? Shouldn”t Dream Recall be an important skill to learn? I mean, dreams are a significant part of our life and if we take the time to analyze them, we can learn a lot about ourselves. Our unfulfilled desires, our hidden fears, our pure emotions about ourselves and others. It is our subconscious – unshielded from our waking day-to-day conscious monitoring our behavior, thoughts, and emotions.

Our conscious, more specifically our super ego, guide us through the mundane monstrosities of our now institutionalized society. We are all victims of this bounded rationality, much so, that we don”t take the time to get fully acquainted with our subconscious mind. This can lead to daily dissonance, anxiety, stress, and disallow us from living a full and meaningful life. Our brains are wired this way for a reason, so why not take the time to “listen” and interpret our dreams.

Some people recall their dreams far better than others, while some argue that they do not dream at all – but we all dream – it is just a matter of recalling them effectively. It is possible to exercise and develop our ability to recall our dreams, much like practicing any other skill or talent… However, it is not easy. With poor education and research surrounding the dream field, many dismiss the importance of dreams until later in life, so we must battle years of trained sleeping behaviors that we have grown accustom to. What are some of the common barriers to quickly recalling our dream from the second we wake up?

Well, first off, Be sure to get regularly, routine sleep. It helps to also be relaxed and calm, as well. Continued stress and short nights of sleep will often put your conscious mind into overtime – making it difficult to interpret your subconscious, since there is just so much going on in the background.

We may have several dreams throughout the night but we tend to remember the ones from the early hours of the morning. When you wake up from one of your last dreams of the night, it is important to stay relaxed and stay “connected” to the subconscious. It is this semi-wake and dream state that most of the recall will occur. In some instances, you may wake up from the dream, think about for a little bit, and then slip back into the dream.

Gradually “waking” up and not abruptly is essential to having successful and effective dream recall. As you remain in this dream/wake state of mind, try to remember as many things from the dream as possible. Let your mind guide you though and try not to force your memory to do all the recalling. Sometimes it helps to move into another position in bed or take deep breathes. You may find yourself slowing slipping away from the dream and have full recall at one point – then not remember anything the very next. Try to keep everything constant. Keep the transition from dream land to waking life very gradual – because once your conscious mind comes back in (what time is it? what do I have to do today? etc) – you may have a hard time re-entering a dream or even recalling it at all.

As your conscious and subconscious mind battle for control of your mind…every so often, you may find yourself in conscious control of your dream! which is called a Lucid Dream. This is a rare occurrence (happening naturally about 2% of the time), but you can trick your mind to do it more often with some exercises. Lucid Dreams are fascinating adventures that pour with emotions, music, colors, and love… It is everyone and everything you know, are, and will become because it is you exploring yourself in dream land! Some of the best dreams I have ever had were lucid, and so good to a point that I was depressed upon waking and discovering the prison my mind is trapped in. We must unlock this door blocking our complete understanding of dreams!

Knowledge is power. Learn more about dreams, psychology, and how our mind works can help everyone understand dreams a lot more. The scientific field of Oneirology of dream research is growing, but not fast enough. Practicing meditation and staying in contact with your subconscious mind throughout the day can also really help. Believe in that there has to be much more to learn from our dreams and the rest will fall into place. We spend about 30% of our life asleep and about a good portion of that time dreaming… Don”t you want to know what is going on? Don”t you want to know the truth to your emotions? Don”t you want to know what is “real”? Who”s to say our waking life is real? We should all take the time to explore our dreams and learn to effectively recall them. Good luck and maybe sometime I will meet you in dream land.