Lucid Dream Length?

**VoltÆre** · 06-15-2006 02:23 AM

Just out of curiosity, what is a normal length for a lucid dream? I had one last night that lasted about 2 hours.

**adamhill87** · 06-15-2006 10:31 AM

The normal length is only a matter of seconds...i don't think its even possible to have a two hour long LD, as you can only LD when in REM cycle, and i wasn't aware that one lasts for two hours. I know many people have commented of having the feeling of having realy long LDs, some seeming years, but thats your minds perception of time being altered, like changing the clock...however, i could be wrong, i'd be interested to find out!

**VoltÆre** · 06-15-2006 04:27 PM

Yeah, I had a lot of false awakenings, but I went to sleep at around 3:00 AM and woke about 5:00 AM, and I was fully lucid the entire time. I think I was, at least.

**Jupilér** · 06-15-2006 04:35 PM

...??
only a matter of seconds?
no way.
you can only dream in your REM sleep, but this is getting longer when you get more sleep,
from like 4 minutes up to 12 or 15

so that's how long you can LD
if you can keep control that is..

Jup

**danbarber** · 06-15-2006 04:45 PM

There are things that can effect how long REM lasts, I don't know the details, but there probably is a way to stay in REM for very long periods of time.

**Oneironaut Zero** · 06-15-2006 05:10 PM

If you experience lucid dreaming for hours, you are most likely getting the feeling of LDing for hours, which can be very convincing. Going to sleep at 3:00 and then waking up 5:00 with a lucid dream between them doesn't mean you were lucid dreaming for 2 hours. It means the only thing you remember between going to sleep and waking up, was having a lucid dream, that could have lasted about 20 minutes, but given you the impression of lucid dreaming for two hours.
Most of my lucid dreams last from a few seconds to a few minutes. The longest one I've had felt like about 45 minutes straight, with no skipped sequences to throw time perception off. I've had others that spanned over a series of events that gave the illusion of LDing for hours, which were actually compressed within about half an hour of REM.
Supplements and herbs like melatonin and Calea can cause your REM cycles to lengthen, which can lengthen LD time slightly, as can REM rebound, (which is what happens when you deprive yourself of REM sleep one night, and then get a good night's rest the following) but pretty much anything that seems to span on for hours is simply an illusion created by having no true perception of waking world time.