Your dreams can be a powerful tool for manifesting what you want and addressing any problems you’re currently facing. If you can harness the power of dreams, you can use them to your advantage.
We spoke to Sansan Fibri, the founder of Wakefully, a sleep analysis app, to get her insights on using your dreams to get what you want to improve your mental well-being.
The power of dreams
Your dreams can help hone in on the problems you’re facing in your life—and there’s actual science to back this. According to Fibri, research reveals that dreams serve a specific purpose in your brain.
”Dreams can help you search through the day’s events for whatever you didn’t have time to address or anything you’re going through,” she says. “Your dreams are a way to get everything out of your system.”
Dreams can also be great for your overall health and mental well-being. Several research studies have found that they may prevent sleep disruption, strengthen your memory, prepare you to face real-life threats, and boost your mood.
How to use your dreams to improve your life
Now that you know how your dreams can improve your life, you’re likely wondering what techniques you need to change them to what you desire. Here are a few methods you can adopt to create the dreams you want:
Improve your sleep environment
You’ll need to create a good sleep environment to better control your dreams. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) offers a few tips to get you started:
- Make your bedroom dark.
- Keep the temperature in your bedroom cool.
- Use a comfortable mattress and pillows.
- Block off noise using earplugs and putting your phone on “do not disturb.”
- Avoid watching TV, reading, or working in your bedroom.
Do rehearsal therapy
Fibri recommends rehearsal therapy (RT), or nightmare scripting, to turn your bad dreams into positive ones.
“You write your nightmare, and with guidance, you come up with a different ending and rehearse it,” she says. “If you have a disturbing or recurring dream about something traumatic or extremely unpleasant you’ve experienced, you can go back and rewrite the narrative, rehearse it, and then start dreaming.”
The new narrative shows you have autonomy and power over your mind, adds Fibri.
The Wakefully app offers a tool for logging dreams and rewriting them to create a new narrative. You could also use a dream diary or journal to write about your dream experiences.
“Whether it’s the Wakefully app or your own dream journal, just start writing something,” says Fibri.
Practice meditation
If you want more control over your dreams, practice meditation.
Fibri says developing a meditation practice about a year and a half ago has really elevated her own dreaming experience. She does her dream work first thing when she wakes up but also likes to meditate in the morning.
According to a 2019 study, long-term meditation can increase your chances of having lucid dreams.
Lucid dreaming involves being consciously aware of your dreams while asleep. You may have greater control over your narrative if you can be present in your dreams.
Try dream shifting
Also known as reality shifting, dream shifting is the ability to shift your subconscious into alternate realities or realms. It can give you the power to visualize your ideal reality and encourage personal growth and self-awareness.
Like lucid dreaming, you can meditate before dream shifting to have more control over how your dreams go.
While it can take some practice, learning how to control your dreams can significantly impact your life.
“We should learn how to befriend our dreams because, just like our thoughts, they’re important to pay attention to,” says Fibri. “Once we do that, we become more mindful of ourselves and how we carry ourselves through life.”
FAQs
How can I tap into my dreams?
You can build a better bedtime routine, try rehearsal therapy, practice meditation, and do dream shifting to better understand your dreams.
In what ways can dreams improve life?
Dreaming can help you analyze and resolve issues in your life, improve your sleep quality, strengthen your memory, prepare you for real-life threats, and boost your mood.
Next, learn about what causes vivid dreams.
