Lucid Dreaming - False Awakenings

While dreaming may be considered something like a weird version of a false reality, the concepts and values of lucid dreaming are very palpable and verifiable. On such lucid dreaming category that revolves around the notions of falsities is labeled false awakenings. Learning the definition of false awakenings and some of the tips and tricks on how they intersect with lucid dreaming will allow us to deal with them better when they come about in our dreams and sleep states.

A false awakening while dreaming is when the mind and body becomes convinced it is fully alert and functioning in real time with real objects.  Despite still being completely asleep and out of tune with conscience action, the dreamer believes he or she is moving and working in the real world.  In a false awakening the need to question reality is forgotten.  The landscapes around us become untested and taken for what they appear to be on the surface.  False awakenings are often largely based on everyday actions or revolve around tasks and environments we are accustomed to.

One interesting phenomenon of false awakening is that it can occur in sequence and multiple times within one sleep cycle.  Activities like going to the bathroom, preparing for work, cleaning, and other common household chores all can be done constantly and repetitively as we sleep even though during each given event we truly feel as if we are awake.  False awakenings are an insightful revelation into the power of the mind as they display the brains uncanny ability to replicate reality.  Although false awakenings can be a nuisance to lucid dreaming, as we learn how to manage them, our sleeping can be much more controlled and manipulated.

The reason false awakenings can be so devastating to lucid dreaming is they essentially cause the sleep participant to relive awareness.  Once dream and self awareness is removed, lucid dreaming becomes almost impossible.  Lucid dreaming is partly founded on the persistent questioning of what is real, and false awakening removes and clouds this checking.

One of the first tips we can use to avoid the negatives of false awakenings is to always be checking our clocks or common devices that display words or time like a cell phone.  Number and letters, when we dream, do not often make sense for very long and is a great way to fight against a false awakening.  Another thing we can do is look at ourselves in the mirror.  How are the reflections?  What happens when we touch the mirror?  Mirrors are perfect tools to test reality and our dream state.

When trying to deal with a false awakening, one thing we should be doing is checking sensations like taste and temperature.  Not being able to experience these types of feelings is a sure sign that a false awakening is occurring.  Ultimately through notes or other self tests you want to constantly practicing knowing when you are dreaming and asleep and when you are actually awake.  The more comfortable you become with distinguishing the two apart from each other, the easier it will be to dream lucidly.

A false awakening is very near a dream within a dream or some twisted form of dream déjà vu.  Despite there difficulties, harnessing false awakenings can actually lead to lucid dreaming by demanding us to get a far better grasp on self awareness and reality checking.  A false awakening can actually make us consciously aware that we are dreaming and we can then turn that around in our favor by calmly and peacefully bending mindfulness into dreaming lucidly.

A false awakening wants us to slip from dream to dream and avoiding this allows us to regain our normal lives and attack the subject of lucid dreaming prepared and with fervor.