I have know of lucid dreaming for quite some time as dreams have been an interest of mine for close to 25-years. I have kept a dream journal for about the same length of time; however, it was about five years ago that I started serious attempts at cultivating lucid dreaming as a skill of mine. During that time, I have read at least 10-books on the subject.
I have not had what I would call a resounding success with my efforts as achieving lucidity for me has been difficult. I have had maybe 20 dreams where I achieved lucidity, and most of those have been brief. Some of those lucidity instances have been unaided and some with the aid of supplements like Galantamine and Passion Flower tea. In most of those instances, I have simply known that I was dreaming with a few exceptions where I deduced that I was dreaming.
In my quest to achieve lucidity in my dreams more often, I found www.dreaminglucid.com and I read these two healing experiences that are recounted on the site. These experience provided inspiration for my own attempt at healing in a lucid dream. I must reccommend that if anyone attempts anything like this thhat it is imperative that their attempts and results monitored by their doctor or other competent medical personnell
During an eye exam in late 2013, I was told that my eye pressure was high. A few months later in 2014, I sought a second opinion from a glaucoma specialist. The specialist diagnosed an eye condition called Pigment Dispersion Syndrome. What happens in the syndrome is that the pigment in the eyes flakes off and interferes with the normal drainage channels of the eye thus raising eye pressure and increasing the risk of developing glaucoma. The specialist performed a eye scan called Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) which measures and maps the thickness of the eye’s retina to establish a baseline for future comparison. The specialist also that my eye pressures were close enough to normal that I would not need treatment at that time, however, the condition needed to be monitored on a regular basis.
I had wondered during the intervening years about follow-up scans, however, I did not pursue having one done. Then, during an eye exam in early 2020, I agreed to a follow-up OCT scan to determine if there was retinal thinning that had occurred. The results of this scan were compared with the results of the scan from 2014. When compared with the earlier scans, the doctor noted that there was retinal thinning in my left eye which might be more than normal age-related thinning, however, the progress of the retinal thinning was not so serious that it would cause major dysfunction in my eye sight; however, the doctor thought that treatment was warranted.
I was very concerned about these results, and I researched other glaucoma experts in my area. I found one that seemed to have excellent reviews. Fortunately, I was able to contact this doctor and schedule an appointment for a second opinion on these results.
At some point, I decided that I would attempt to heal my eyes in a lucid dream. I had a cup of Passion Flower tea before bed. After about four hours of sleep, I woke up, took 8mg of Galantamine, went back to bed, and then was successfully able to enter a state of lucidity. It was
another instance where I knew that I was dreaming without a reality check.
I remembered that I wanted to heal my eye. While I was lucid, I took my right hand and put it over my left eye. I then removed my hand from my eye, and I saw what looked like a discharge of white light from my left eye. My left eye seemed to feel different when I woke up.
About two weeks later, I followed approximately the same steps, although, I did not have Passion Flower tea before bed. After becoming lucid this time, I attempted to heal my right eye. I did not notice anything happening in the dream such as the white light I saw the first time.
Then, about two weeks later, I went to the appointment that I had scheduled for the second opinion. I had obtained the results of the OCT scan from the visit where I was told of the retinal thinning along with the results of the scan from 2014 and brought these with me for the doctors to review during the appointment for the second opinion. During the appointment, an OCT scan was performed.
I was in the room as the doctor reviewed the results, and the doctor said, “There appears to be a reversion” in a manner that seemed perplexed. I told the doctor that I had attempted to heal my eye during a lucid dream; I do not remember exactly what the doctor said, however, shortly after
Figure 1
that, the doctor said something along the lines of however it happened, it happened.
Figure 2
The Image in figure 1 is from thebaseline OCT scan of 2014 and shows a map of my retinal thickness in microns (millionths of a meter)of my left eye in a “clock hours” format. The image in figure2 is from the OCTscan of early 2020showing the same view of my left eye. The fact that the thickness numbers arelower represents the retinal thinning that concerned the doctors that
Figure 3
performed this scan
the image in figure 3 shows the same view of my left eye from the OCT scan taken in April 2020 during the visit for the second opinion which was after my healing attempt in the lucid dreamAugust 15, 2020. The retinal thicknesses are much more like those in figure 1
This article was released in issue from
September 2020
To keep the LDE as a free resource for lucid dreamers around the world, consider making a one time, monthly or quarterly donation via Patreon or Paypal.
Your support helps pay for the annual costs of this volunteer effort.
