He was the love of my life: a tall, blonde god with electric blue eyes that pierced my soul. Yes, “Brandon” knew all too well that he was a storybook prince. One day, during a misunderstanding, I pushed all the wrong buttons. When I struck his last nerve, it was like the clock struck midnight at the ball, and Cinderella’s coach suddenly turned into a pumpkin. In a single moment, my world came crashing down.
“Brandon” abandoned me. Over the years, I’ve wished that I could still explain the emotions that went unexpressed, but without a socially acceptable way to contact him, I wondered whether I could discreetly reach him in a dream, where everything goes.
Eventually, I dreamed that I actually spoke to “Brandon” directly. Had I broken through to him, and was he dreaming of me too, like dream telepathy?
Dream Communities and Other Reports of Telepathic Dreams
Since that dream, I decided to investigate dream communication. Many anecdotal reports of telepathic and shared dreams are being exchanged in various online communities, like Dream Views, where people exchange reports of telepathic dreams.
For example, a woman on Dream Views posted this amazing shared dream:
She and her boyfriend were in an unfamiliar house in New York near the ocean. They both went outside, heard an explosion, saw power lines falling, and watched the water rising.
The woman’s boyfriend then awoke to tell her his own similar dream:
He, too, had been in a house in New York near water when he saw a button on his computer that would end the world. When he pushed it, he and his girlfriend heard an explosion, and then walked outside to see a tidal wave and buildings and power lines falling.
Why Two-Way Dream Communication Is a Game-Changer
A 2021 peer-reviewed dream communication study at Northwestern University found that a sleeping participant could answer simple math problems and provide “yes” or “no” answers while engaged in lucid dreaming. Lucid dreaming, which can be learned, is a state in which a person knows that they’re dreaming.
Using a high-density scalp EEG to verify that participants were in REM sleep, the researchers observed that participants’ rapid eye movements and facial muscle activity communicated their understanding of the concepts. Before the “sleep” portion of the study, researchers instructed participants to provide these signals. This principal “researcher-to-dreamer” study offers hope that people can use lucid dreaming for problem-solving and skills training in the future.
Can two dreamers really hook up?
A groundbreaking 2024 lucid dreaming study by REMspace claims that two sleeping participants actually experienced two-way communication with each other. As each participant slept in their separate residences, researchers used custom equipment to track their brain waves and physiological sleep measurements. Researchers used an artificial dream language called “Remmyo” to send a word to the first dreamer via earbuds. Then, that dreamer repeated the word aloud. The word was stored and sent to the second dreamer via earbuds. Upon waking, the second dreamer then spoke the same word.
Although the REMspace study awaits peer review and replication, it provides exciting implications for emerging dream science. Sending a dream message to someone may eventually become as easy as sending a text!
Boosting Creativity and Solving Problems in Our Dreams
Researchers believe that someday, people may even be able to creatively collaborate on projects together while lucid dreaming. In some studies, research subjects have reported practicing sports movements, musical performances, and public speaking in their dreams.
Will the science of lucid dreaming develop some sort of “dream postcard?” If so, I don’t want to send “Brandon” a message that interrupts his life or reopens what should remain closed. I’d just want to tell him that I’m grateful for what he contributed to my life.
Lucid Dreaming Resources to Get You Started
If you’re curious about lucid dreaming, you’re in luck — there are plenty of resources for you. The International Association for the Study of Dreams has a wealth of resources, including dream communities, workshops on lucid dreaming and creativity, and dream-sharing groups.
The Android app “Lucidity – Lucid Dream Journal” is another great place to begin. It trains you in lucid dreaming and teaches you how to influence your dream environment. Journaling about your dreams improves dream recall, a key step for creative problem-solving. You can find this app on the Google Play Store.
Dreams have so much creative potential for us to harness. Maybe you can turn your dreams into stories and literally make your dreams come true!
Featured Photo by Slaapwijsheid.nl on Unsplash.
Studies suggest that during REM sleep, lucid dreamers can actually respond to external cues in real time, not just recall dreams later, which is a big leap from just remembering vivid dream images. That said, it’s also important to remember the interplay between sleep, dreams, and mental health – especially conditions like anxiety. At places like Anxiety treatment overview at Arcara Psychiatry, anxiety is described as a state of persistent worry or uneasiness that can affect sleep quality, concentration, and overall wellbeing. Treatments often combine psychotherapy, coping skills, and lifestyle changes specifically because anxiety can make restful sleep harder to achieve https://arcarapsychiatry.com/conditions/anxiety/