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Scientists break through the wall of sleep to the untapped world of dreams

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Re: Scientists break through the wall of sleep to the untapped world of dreams

#21
post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Out of curiosity : how do you know it reliably detects it? I have a polar watch that also tracks my sleep and presents it in a nice plot. I have no way to check whether that plot is a good representation of my night, or whether they just randomly put in a few blocks and mark them as REM. I don't mean to imply that I don't trust the device or anything. I'm just saying I have no way to verify how reliable it really is.

> I don't mean to imply that I don't trust the device or anything. I'm just saying I have no way to verify how reliable it really is. Dreem 2, for example, has a few studies to back it up: > The aim of this study was to assess the signal acquisition and the performance of the automatic sleep staging algorithms of a reduced-montage dry-electroencephalographic (EEG) device (Dreem headband, DH) compared to the gold-stan…

I am less skeptical about an EEG-based device like the Dreem than I am about a wristband.

Most wristbands have a heart rate monitor and an accelerometer. Is there a pattern in the heart rate that shows REM sleep versus deep or light sleep? Or do they use the accelerometer to detect twitches you make during REM sleep? How do they discriminate that from my cat jumping onto the bed?

Compare that to EEG-based devices : I think it is well known that sleep phases can be read in an EEG. The Dreem has fewer channels than a medical EEG, and maybe a little less accuracy, but that is beside the point : it is measuring the relevant signals for sleep phase detection.

Re: Scientists break through the wall of sleep to the untapped world of dreams

#22
post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What do you do with the data? After knowing the quality, how do you improve it?

I can try to make lifestyle changes and see how it impacts my sleep, for example. Additionally, I can also quite reliably see when my CPAP needs adjusting by my doctor. The Dreem 2 has two functions I'm rather fond of: 1) It can wake you up in light sleep within a specific timeframe you've set. That made me less groggy and grumpy in the mornings. 2) It can generate pink noise which is said to enhance the quality of y…

I find pink noise relaxing when working.

Re: Scientists break through the wall of sleep to the untapped world of dreams

#23
People who train themselves to reliably induce lucid dreams call themselves oneironauts (Oneiros = Greek god of dreams).

I was actively interested in this topic when I was younger and had much time to sleep and practice, but after I got my job and life problems kicked in, suddenly I realized that the only thing I require from a dream is to get a good night sleep so I will have strength to face problems during the day. A little bit sad but true.

But, during my lucid dreaming endeavors I realized the technique itself is incredibly powerful. Especially for people who have tendencies for daydreaming. One easy technique used during learning is to create a habit of looking at the watch and asking oneself if this is a dream or not. Doing it for a few times during a day will eventually create a habit, and will eventually increase the chances of unintentionally doing it during the actual dream. Then, the question "is this a dream?" will have a chance of recalling that we have consciousness, while still being inside the dream. It will be a lucid dream.

Maintaining lucid state of a lucid dream is another topic. Sometimes a few seconds after starting to be in a lucid dream, we forget about the state and we go right back to a normal, non-lucid dream. There are techniques for prolonging the state, but require training (like everything I guess).

Re: Scientists break through the wall of sleep to the untapped world of dreams

#25
post #23

People who train themselves to reliably induce lucid dreams call themselves oneironauts (Oneiros = Greek god of dreams). I was actively interested in this topic when I was younger and had much time to sleep and practice, but after I got my job and life problems kicked in, suddenly I realized that the only thing I require from a dream is to get a good night sleep so I will have strength to face problems during the day…

Apparently while lucid dreaming the brain doesn't renegerate the same like during normal sleep, so it's like less sleep / interrupted sleep.

Re: Scientists break through the wall of sleep to the untapped world of dreams

#27
post #23

People who train themselves to reliably induce lucid dreams call themselves oneironauts (Oneiros = Greek god of dreams). I was actively interested in this topic when I was younger and had much time to sleep and practice, but after I got my job and life problems kicked in, suddenly I realized that the only thing I require from a dream is to get a good night sleep so I will have strength to face problems during the day…

Apparently while lucid dreaming the brain doesn't renegerate the same like during normal sleep, so it's like less sleep / interrupted sleep.

My daughter has narcolepsy and (according to her) always lucid dreams, so I hope this isn't completely true.

Re: Scientists break through the wall of sleep to the untapped world of dreams

#28
post #23

People who train themselves to reliably induce lucid dreams call themselves oneironauts (Oneiros = Greek god of dreams). I was actively interested in this topic when I was younger and had much time to sleep and practice, but after I got my job and life problems kicked in, suddenly I realized that the only thing I require from a dream is to get a good night sleep so I will have strength to face problems during the day…

But is a lucid dream merely a dream in which the dreamer is aware of being asleep and dreaming, or is it more than that? I thought it also included taking control and doing whatever you want e.g. jumping off a building and flying wherever you want, because the laws of physics are suspended in dreaming.

How to activate superuser mode in dreams?

Re: Scientists break through the wall of sleep to the untapped world of dreams

#30
post #2

Very difficult not to click on this headline.

I always read the comments here before the article. Usually the comments tell me everything I need to know and are more interesting. Most of the time I never end up clicking on the actual article because I've gotten enough info from the comments.
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