Lucid Dream Apps and Induction Devices
Lucid Dream Induction Devices
OK, before going over digital induction devices let me say that the BEST tool for lucid dream induction is a properly kept dream journal!
Now for digital hardware (not including your smart-phone, see below for that stuff): There is nothing on the market that I endorse. Maybe an alarm clock, especially one that can stop beeping without having to press "stop" or "snooze" (again, you probably have a smart-phone for that). The best we had for hardware was the NovaDreamer mask from the Lucidity Institute, but good luck finding one of those. Besides, they are expensive and annoying to use. But the NovaDreamer helped me out a lot in the beginning. When a new generation NovaDreamer comes out, I will let you know. There are masks that are out now which look similar to the NovaDreamer, but do not operate the same way, probably because of patent protections. If you already have that smart-phone, you don't need the simple masks that are out there right now. I'm also waiting for wireless, light-weight, affordable, accurate EEG head-gear to enter the market, and I think we are getting close to that.
Now for digital hardware (not including your smart-phone, see below for that stuff): There is nothing on the market that I endorse. Maybe an alarm clock, especially one that can stop beeping without having to press "stop" or "snooze" (again, you probably have a smart-phone for that). The best we had for hardware was the NovaDreamer mask from the Lucidity Institute, but good luck finding one of those. Besides, they are expensive and annoying to use. But the NovaDreamer helped me out a lot in the beginning. When a new generation NovaDreamer comes out, I will let you know. There are masks that are out now which look similar to the NovaDreamer, but do not operate the same way, probably because of patent protections. If you already have that smart-phone, you don't need the simple masks that are out there right now. I'm also waiting for wireless, light-weight, affordable, accurate EEG head-gear to enter the market, and I think we are getting close to that.
Lucid Dream Apps
I'm not going to name specific phone/tablet Apps right now, but there are a few types of Apps you may find valuable:
- Apps that detect body movement while you are sleeping - some of these are free, others are still inexpensive. Me, not a fan. Some of these devices attempt to predict your sleep-stages based on body movement, and use those predictions to signal through sound or light to you when they think you are in REM, or dreaming sleep. I've tried them, and as expected, these are not reliable at accurate sleep-stage prediction. BUT, could be worth a look anyway. Placebo is powerful, so just be seeking out and trying different induction methods you can increase your chances of successful lucid dream induction.
- Apps that detect sound and record noises while you are sleeping - these are pretty cool, even if they are not directly related to lucid dream induction. With these apps, you can adjust the sensitivity of the mic in your phone/tablet so that there is a certain noise-tolerance level; you don't want 7-9 hours of audio recording to sift through, so when sounds exceed your pre-set threshold and only then, the mic records your sleeping sounds (snoring, sleep-talking, the dog at the foot of the bed, whatever). When the sounds stop for another pre-set length of time, the recording stops. Kind of cool to play around with these apps, even though going through many dozens of 10-second recordings of you breathing deeply can be cumbersome. Along this line of thought, it is also interesting to video-record yourself while sleeping. Save that for the last REM period of the night. IT is very weird to watch yourself sleep, but you may also get some insight into your sleep patterns/behaviors.
- Apps that play "binaural" beats specifically intended for lucid dream induction - no, no, and no. This is quackery. But don't take my word for it, go ahead and see for yourself :)