These 30 Pandas Share Their Stories About When They Seriously Questioned Whether They Were Dreaming Or Not

Bored Panda reached out to S.D. (the specialist wished to remain anonymous), a certified sleep doctor as well as a trained lucid dreaming expert. Given that the current topic revolves around dreams, we asked S.D. to explain to us how one can distinguish between a very vivid dream and reality.

"The truth is that you can never truly be completely sure if you are dreaming or not, especially if you frequently have really vivid or lucid dreams. For this reason, it is important to use reality checks. I believe there are certain reality checks you can apply to tell dreams from reality.

First, I suggest looking at your hands and trying to breathe with your mouth and nose closed, another great tip is pushing your hand through something solid (if it goes through, it means you are dreaming). You can also try reading some text (it will look weird in a dream), or even flipping a light switch. Usually, something weird will happen, like it makes a sound."

"Finally, if you're skilled enough, you could even get a tattoo to aid you because it would stay in one place permanently.

Remember that certain reality checks can and will fail, so it's best to perform two or three just to be safe. As a longtime lucid dreamer, this can become a little strange at times, but it's preferable to being confused, and the lucid dreaming experience is worthwhile!"

Since S.D. is a trained lucid dream expert, we were wondering if they had any tips for those of us who might want to start lucid dreaming as well.

“I suggest starting dream journaling, deep breathing exercises, and visualization of becoming lucid as you drift off to sleep. Sometimes, just that is sufficient. From my experience, for the majority of people, this at the very least enhances dream recall and vividness.”

S.D. revealed to Bored Panda that a lot of their clients who come for help hope to experience lucid dreaming regularly, however, to some people, the thought is rather scary. We asked the lucid dream expert to name us some of the most popular reasons as to why people want to get into a state of lucid dreaming.

“From my experience and from what my clients told me, some of them do it for fun, while others do it to meet their deceased relatives and experience catharsis. Others do it to hone their physical abilities or even to study for exams. Some people use it as a sort of meditation, while others use it as a safe exposure treatment or therapy to face their fears. The reasons are endless and only limited by the mind itself.”