The Effects of Lucid Dreaming on the Frequency of Nightmares

Six patients were offered treatment with the major focus on alleviating nightmares. Three patients were treated through lucid dream training paired with psychotherapy and three were treated through psychotherapy only. Of sixty-eight non-psychotic patients seen in a psychiatry emergency room these six individuals volunteered to participate in our study. The benefits of the skills developed through lucid dream training extended from the alleviation of nightmares into other dynamics of the individuals life. The lucid dreaming technique we chose to use beared successful results in reduction of the severity, frequency, intensity and degree of disturbance of the nightmares. We suggest that further research be done to use lucid dreaming as an adjunctive treatment for patients with nightmares and may also be a useful technique in psychotherapy as well.

The Effects of Lucid Dreaming on the Frequency of Nightmares

The purpose of this study will be to explore the potential effectiveness of applying lucid dreaming techniques as the treatment for recurring nightmares. We have gathered

Each individual was scheduled weekly for psychotherapy with a trained professional to record data. "Through Socratic questioning" (Brylowski 1990, p.80) each individual in the experimental group, was helped to deal with his/her dreams as "internal constructs that need not be feared but could be used as tools for cultivating lucidity and understanding" (Brylowski, 1990, p. 80) oneself. The recognition that "this is a dream" was used to reinforce the client that they were already in bed and safe from harm. The core of the therapy "was cultivating dream lucidity in an effort to prevent the reemergence of nightmares and to maintain access to intrapsychic matters." (Brylowski, 1990, p.80). "The rationale for this treatment is as follows: by repeatedly rehearsing the recurrent dream together with a task which is intentionally carried out at a preselected salient point in the dream, the subject will remember to carry out the task when the recurrent dream occurs." (Zadra & Pihl, 1997 p. 51).

Kellner, R. Neidhardt, J. Krakow, B. Pathak, D. Changes in chronic nightmares after one session of desensitization or rehearsal instructions. American Journal of Psychiatry 1992;149:659-663.

" The overall effect was to prepare the patient for a more dynamically -oriented psychotherapy where" (Brylowski, 1990, p.82) they could begin to work through other life stressors and understand their effect on current behavior, "with the goal of furthering continued personal growth" (Brylowski, 1990, p.82).

Some topics in this essay:
Zadra Pihl, Zandra Pihl, LaBerge MILD, Dreaming Halliday, Frequency Nightmares, Abstract Six, Participants Six, Design Procedures, lucid dreaming, brylowski 1990, References Abramovitch, Tholey PA, lucid dream, pihl 1997, effects lucid dreaming, effects lucid, recurrent nightmares, lucid dream training, dream training, brylowski 1990 p80, frequency nightmares, 1990 p80, zadra pihl, dreaming frequency nightmares, lucid dreaming techniques,