Today is the first day of winter in the northern hemisphere.  With the longest night of the year behind us, we can look forward to longer and warmer days ahead.

But hold on a minute.  Let’s not invite the light back just yet.  These dark days have something for us, something that has been forgotten in today’s fast-paced society where, in the words of Strong Bad from Homestar Runner, “I too am so on-the-go that I drink my yogurt from a tube.”

What’s been forgotten?  The gift of rest.  Winter is a time to withdrawal, to move inward, to ruminate and imagine.   These dark days are for sleeping, dreaming and tending the hearth, as our ancestors did.

So, to battle the social intensity of our consumerist winter holidays, as well as the global trend of weisure that threatens to destroy this traditional time of sanctity, here are some tips for getting the most out of your dream life during the frenetic holiday season.

1. Take Naps. Chances are you will miss out on some REM (dreaming) sleep this week, especially if you go to bed late and get up early the next morning.  So take a nap in the afternoon and keep your dream journal close at hand…. you will most likely jump straight to dreaming sleep that will be especially intense and vivid.  

2. Drink and Dream. Did you know that alcohol can dampen dreaming sleep?  However, it also causes a REM rebound towards the end of the night to make up for it. So if you do a lot of holiday embibing, keep your morning schedules free so you can at least sleep in.  These morning sleep cycles will have more REM than normal, and also more vivid dreams with bizarre elements too.

3. Share your crazy family dreams. If you’re visiting family,  you may spend half of your time avoiding the old landmines and pitfalls that can cause a dinner conversation to go south.  Be on a look out for this material to crop up intensely in your dreams as the mind compensates for your good manners.  The dream may have some creative solutions, or maybe just an image that everyone will appreciate in good humor.  Share your dream the next night, preferably after the wine has been poured.  This can spark a fun conversation, and will encourage dream recall for everyone involved.

4. Play videogames. No secret that playing video games is a great way to pass the time at gatherings that never end.  But did you know that there’s a correlation between playing video games and having more lucid dreams?   This seems to be due to factors such as day residue as well as the ability for gamers to become absorbed and stay self-aware in a “virtual reality.” If you play more than normal this week, set an intention as you settle into sleep to become self-aware the next time you are playing the game. Soon you’ll be farming some gold or wielding the Ocarina of Time, and then you’ll realize “Hey – I’m dreaming!”

5. Load up on holiday pot roast. In Dicken’s A Christmas Carol, Scrooge doubts Marley’s ghostly existence by claiming the vision may be caused by “a bit of undigested beef.”  Turns out, there’s some truth to this: beef, chicken, turkey and veal is chock full of amino acids like choline that are known to increase dream vividness and bizarreness.  Choline increases the levels of the neurotransmitter acetylcholine, which can also lead to more lucid dreams. Liver is especially rich in choline, in case you want to try this traditional European holiday dish that you have succeeded in avoiding until now.   This is a potent combo with all the tryptophan in the meat too… guaranteeing you’ll go down easy.

May you sleep well, dream ferverishly, and remember everything!

The latest trend in lucid dreaming is the prescribed use of supplements to increase dream recall and trigger more dreams where you become aware you are dreaming. These supplements, which include herbs, enzymes and Flintstone vitamins, can greatly increase your chance to go lucid.

But they will not do the trick alone.

In a nutshell, these supplements are worthless if not taken with the right mindset, as well as more traditional forms of lucid dreaming induction. 

At best, a supplement taken without mental preparation will increase the chances for a beginner lucid dreamer to be jolted into lucidity – but the lucid dream scene that emerges may be difficult to handle due to the beginner’s own inexperience with juggling the rawness of lucidity.

However, taken with intention, respect, and as part of an ongoing mind-training program, these supplements may enhance the opportunities to work with self-awareness in the dream.

OK, that said, lucid dreaming supplements can make your mind go pow.

Here is a break-down of the most common lucid dreaming supplements, also known as oneirogens.

Calea zacatechichi: Known as “the dream herb,” Calea Z. is from Oaxaca, Mexico and has been used for centuries by Chontal shaman/dreamers as a cure-all and a “voyaging” aid. The scientific studies on Calea Zacatechichi suggests that it heightens the vividness of imagery in hypnagogia and the non-REM periods. Ingestion of the plant also decreases deep slow-wave sleep and REM periods.

Lucid dreams may be experienced in these non-REM states, but because the herb also increases micro-awakenings and disturbs sleep, there are more chances to promote lucid dreaming from sleep onset. The psychoactive compounds are still largely unknown so the dream-enhancing mechanism is also unknown. Some people have an allergic reaction, and others have reported leg-cramping.

Mugwort: This gentle herb in the sage family (Artemisia vulgaris) is used to help remember dreams. It has a gentle aromatic effect. It has a long European history of use also as a midwife’s herb due to its ability to stimulate blood circulation; in ancient Greece it was associated with the power of the moon. Traditionally mugwort is enjoyed as a tea and an incense.

Silene Capsensis: This root from South Africa has considerable anthropological evidence as a lucid dream aid, but its active compounds have not been discovered yet. Historically, Silene Capensis has been used by the Xhosa people during initiation rites. Women initiates take the root, and then report their dreams to diviners. In the West, it has had a mixed reputation, with many reporting no effects whatsoever.

Choline: This is an amino acid that also promotes acetylcholine, therefore enhancing the expression of REM sleep. It’s cheaply found as a Lecithin supplement, but is also present in some common foods such as bananas, onions, soybeans, potatoes and plantains. Choline is believed to elongate dreams, as well as help with remembering them. Many people have found that choline and galanthamine taken together are a solid cocktail for promoting lucid dreaming.

Galantamine: This has become known as the “lucid dreaming pill.” Galantamine is an alkaloid synthesized from a couple plants, including the red spider lily and common daffodil bulbs. The natural compound has been used for centuries in Europe; its memory-enhancing properties are hinted at in Homer’s Odyssey.

It appears to increase lucidity by promoting an important neurotransmitter, acetylcholine. Galathamine is also being tested to treat symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease. Stephen LaBerge is also testing galanthamine on seasoned lucid dreamers, and his initial reports are very positive.

Read my in-depth review of galantamine for lucid dreaming here.

Other brain supplements: In general, many report increased lucid dreams by loading up on amino acids (like choline) and vitamins before bed. Some safe ones, as long as the dosage is controlled for, are arginine, ornithine, phenylalanine, and the B vitamins. All of these, as well as your average multi-vitamin, may also enhance dreams though the work of antioxidants and by providing the raw material for neurotransmitters associated with the waking/sleep cycle.

Supplements can help with going lucid, but honestly they are only a piece of the puzzle for awakening the embodied mind.

If you’re looking for truly effective catalysts for increasing your lucid dreams, you may be interested in my new digital kit the Lucid Immersion Blueprint.

The Lucid Immersion Blueprint is a powerful guide into advanced lucid dreaming, based on ancient dreaming technology and the latest lucid dreaming research.

Check out the short video and detailed specs about my lucid dreaming training.