This book was recently shared for free in the Discord group The Icarus Project by Lee Adams himself. It’s a server entirely dedicated to lucid dreaming... and it makes things fun with different tiers. So, of course, the book immediately went onto my reading list.
The book is divided into five parts:
- The Dreamer and the Dream
- Lucid Dreaming: Foundational Techniques
- Working with Your Dreams
- The Dreamer’s Journey
- Advanced Tools and Supplements for Lucid Dreaming
With a total of 30 chapters. Yes, 30! With so many chapters, you know this isn’t just a basic book on dreaming.
The Introduction
The first part covers what lucid dreaming is, what’s important to have lucid dreams, the difference between lucid dreams and OBEs (Out-of-Body Experiences), and why awareness is key to the lucid dreaming journey. Lee delves into the different states of consciousness, mindfulness, and daily habits.
This quote sums it up nicely:
"Developing the skill of lucid dreaming is developing the habit of being as aware as possible during our waking hours."
In other words, if you can improve your awareness during the day, your awareness at night will grow as well, making it easier to recognize that you're dreaming.
I have to admit, his optimism about getting immediate results is refreshing, but I think it's a bit idealistic:
"It’s usually fairly easy to have your first lucid dream. With a reasonably healthy lifestyle and good bedtime routines, most dreamers have success within a few nights."
Well, I’d have to disagree here. When I first started, it took me several months to have my first lucid dream. Someone I know even tried for years! When I decided to mentor them, I discovered several causes for their lack of success. Resistance was the main issue, though many people don’t even realize they’re resisting. This was one of the most common questions on dream forums back in the day—people asking for help after trying for weeks or even months without results. With some guidance, most of them eventually succeeded in having lucid dreams. Honestly, resistance alone could fill an article in itself—something to explore another time.
After the pleasant introduction, Lee dives deeper into the first techniques. One of the most accessible and popular methods is WBTB (Wake-Back-to-Bed). He provides tips for beginners, intermediates, and experts. A few techniques were new to me, like caffeine-withdrawal induced lucid dreaming (probably because I only started drinking coffee a few years ago) and histamine-induced dreaming.
Wait, histamine-induced? That one caught my attention. Histamine is a substance that can significantly affect sleep quality, and many people have a sensitivity or even an allergy to high doses of it. I, for instance, have histamine sensitivity (which can make me ill at times), and I also have a history of insomnia—possibly linked to the histamine issue. So, I’ll leave it at that for now, with a reminder to always consider your own health before experimenting with any of these techniques. I promise I’ll explore this topic further in another article (because I do still enjoy this book and want to continue the review).
OBEs vs. LDs
Next up: Dual awareness. YES!! One of my favorite subjects—and one that doesn’t get enough attention. Dual awareness, or split consciousness, is the ability to be aware from multiple bodies or locations at once. So far, only one author has mentioned it in his book: Robert Bruce (at least in my collection). So you can imagine how excited I am to see Lee bringing it up here. It's seriously one of the most fascinating experiences you can have in the realm of OBEs and lucid dreams, so make sure to pay attention to it.
Another thing I’m really enthusiastic about is how much time he dedicates to discussing OBEs. Yes, there is a difference between lucid dreams and OBEs, and he acknowledges it. He doesn’t try to claim definitive answers about whether OBEs are "real" or not—which is fair, given how difficult proof is to come by. Although research has been done, the sample sizes have often been too small to make any solid scientific claims.
"This would mean that we are dreaming, traveling out of our bodies in the astral realm, and awake all at the same time—in fact, what is changing is our shifting awareness, not our consciousness nor the realm in which we imagine ourselves."
Interesting theory, for sure. Until now, I hadn’t really focused on the "how" of it all, but this has definitely sparked some inspiration to explore these layers further and experiment with them.
Only the Dreamer Knows the Dream
This is why we don’t need dream dictionaries. So many people think they can post a dream on social media and ask for an interpretation, but the truth is, how can a stranger know the associations a person makes in their everyday life with the elements in that dream?
Instead, Lee offers alternative solutions. He refers to various resources where you can learn how to analyze your own dreams, and even shares techniques from others that can help you translate your dreams for yourself.
"The dream world is created by an awareness outside of your own conscious awareness, often described as the dream narrator. In a sense, you’re a video game character who knows you’re in a video game: you can control some aspects of the dream, but the narrator is always creating the world a step ahead of you."
In this "video game," we get to see things, meet people, and experience stories. According to Lee, there is a storyline to be found in our dream world. He uses the Hero’s Journey as the main framework, which then branches out into other themes, such as trial and error, death, encountering archetypes, and finding rewards. Discovering the story and understanding where we are in it can help us better understand what's happening in our lives and highlight what seems important to our subconscious mind.
Supplements & Tools
Next, he discusses supplements we can use to improve our dreams. A word of caution: as mentioned earlier, always take your health into consideration before using any supplements. If you’re on daily medication or under a doctor’s care, it’s important to consult your doctor before trying anything new.
Another point to keep in mind is that some supplements approved in the U.S. may not be available or approved in other countries (especially in parts of Europe). For example, melatonin can be easily bought in many Western European countries, while in others it can only be prescribed by a doctor. Galantamine is even harder to come by and, in theory, may be illegal in some countries without a prescription. The same goes for cannabis and salvia divinorum.
Luckily, there are plenty of herbs that are considered safe to use, even for people taking medication. Chamomile, valerian, passion flower, and lemon balm are a few examples. The list is much longer, but for those interested in supplements, these might not only help improve focus but also inspire personal research into what could be valuable for your own dreamwork.
So after reading dozens of dream books, did I still learn something new? Absolutely. It was a deep dive on dreamwork, made me ask myself new questions, and inspired me to study more on the Hero’s Journey.
Highly recommended and a well deserved 5 stars.
★★★★★
Great review and appreciate the depth!
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