Are you dreaming or are you awake? If you aren’t sure the answer to this question then it’s time to do a reality check. But what is a reality check and how exactly should you go about performing one?

A reality check (or reality test) is an action we perform, while awake or asleep, to gauge which state of consciousness we are currently in. The action should always have a distinct effect in the waking state and dream state. The goal for lucid dreamers is to use reality checks as means of becoming lucid whilst dreaming. Reality checks also help to keep grasp of reality (i.e. not attempting to do something in the waking state which you’d normally do in a dream without consequence).

Reality checks should be done in waking life at regular intervals, thus creating a habit which should carry over to the dream state.

Here are a few examples of reality checks:

• Look at a clock and observe the time. Now look away and look back. Did the time change?
• Count the number of fingers on your or somebody’s hands. Look away and count them again. Do you reach the same number each time?
• Hop in place. Note the feeling of gravity. Do you return to the ground each time?
• Close one eye and look downward. You should see your nose if you are indeed awake.
• Flip a light switch on and off. It should work each time in waking life (if the bulb hasn’t burnt out).
• While reading text, look away and look back at the same line of text. Has it changed or become distorted?

Once you get into the habit of making reality checks you should be able to notice when things are askew in dreams and come to the conclusion that you must be dreaming, thus bringing about lucidity.

Before I got into the habit of performing reality checks I’d often make false assumptions while dreaming to explain ridiculous situations. For example, I recall one dream where I was in a convenience store purchasing something. While at the cash register, I looked away and then looked back at the cashier (who now had a parrot on his shoulder). Instead of concluding that such a situation should only happen in a dream and questioning it further, I exclaimed, “wow, they must be having a sale at the pet shop next door!” Other times I’d make even more far-fetched explanations for the impossible.

I’ve had pretty good success becoming lucid since I began practicing reality checks. Most of the time I focus on one inanimate object, look away, then reexamine it to make sure nothing drastic has changed. I now do the same while dreaming and often spot when things are awry and then become lucid.

There are many reality checking techniques lucid dreamers use. Feel free to invent ones and see if they work for you. Just remember to use different ones as your brain can grow accustomed to predictable results and replicate the waking state result while dreaming, thus nullifying your reality check.

The Awakening by Michael Hale

A false awakening is the type of thing that can totally screw with your sense of reality. By definition, a false awakening is when you awake from a dream only to discover you are still dreaming. This can happen after a lucid dream or normal dream.

As a child, I had a recurring nightmare in which a flying head would chase me around and torment me. I recall one instance where I was having said nightmare and realized I was dreaming, thus gaining the ability to fly. I flew into the crimson sky, leaving the flying head trailing behind me. I heard him scream, “you cannot escape my wrath!” as I peeked through the clouds and saw a bright light.

I suddenly woke up to my bedroom; heart pounding rapidly. I felt an overwhelming sense of accomplishment, although at the time I didn’t know I had experienced one of my first lucid dreams, albeit a short one. I got up and walked to my living room to tell my mother what I had dreamed about. There I saw my entire family frozen in ice! Out of nowhere I heard the flying head’s sinister laugh. I panicked as I saw the head round the hallway corner and come dashing toward me. I woke up again, but this time I was truly awake. A quintessential false awakening.

There have been instances where I’ve had 4 or 5 false awakenings in a row and wondered if I could ever escape the vicious cycle or if I had ever truly been awake in the first place; maybe my whole entire life was a dream! I don’t believe false awakenings are threatening to your health though, everyone wakes up eventually (or maybe some don’t, we just never have had the opportunity to ask them…).

I sometimes wonder if false awakenings are good for lucid dreamers. I often find myself caught completely off guard when experiencing a false awakening. It would be a paradox to be lucid dreaming and experience a false awakening because if you knew you were dreaming, it wouldn’t be a false awakening. But it is possible to become lucid at the instant you discover you aren’t awake and then begin controlling the dream. The problem I have is that once I realize I just experienced a false awakening I’m too shocked to start controlling the dream and immediately wake up.

Using reality checks can definitely aid in preventing false awakenings, as you’d be accustomed to anything askew and wouldn’t fall into the trap of believing you are truly awake. It would take some effort every morning after waking up to make sure you are awake. I rarely have false awakenings so I don’t think it is anything worth the extra effort but if they happen often to you then this method might help prevent some.

The Dream by Henri Rousseau

Yes, I’ve met Adriana Lima before. Well, if you mean in waking life then my answer would be different. To be more exact, I have met her as a dream character in one of my many dreams. Although the experience of meeting her was probably different to what would occur in reality, dream characters can give the dreamer a very real experience.

A dream character (or DC) is any character you encounter in a dream, whether it be a lucid or non-lucid dream. Dream characters will usually be human but sometimes will take the form of animals, robots, or even the abstract.

Typical dream characters will be people you know (e.g. friends, family, peers) or celebrities. The occurrences 0f such dream characters often coincides with the level of contact in waking life. So, a friend you recently spent time with may likely be encountered in a dream or an actor from a movie you recently saw will make a guest appearance in one of your dreams.

However, this is not always the case. Some dream characters are exclusive to the dream world. Often times these unknown dream characters will only serve the roles of “extras” and will be based on stereotypes held by you. For example, imagine a dream where you find yourself lost in a foreign country you’ve never been to. You don’t necessarily know how the people look or even the language they speak but your mind has some preexisting stereotypes and will fill in the rest.

An unknown dream character may also take the role of a dream guide. The dream guide does exactly that, he or she guides you through the dream landscape. This is often a recurring dream character who may give you clues and assist you to achieve whatever your goal may be in the dream. Not everyone meets dream guides in their dreams, but you may be able to summon one at will once you are experienced with lucid dreaming.