This introductory workshop explores lucid dreaming as a way to support your client’s – and your own – spiritual or psychological growth. We’ll cover a brief overview of the history, science and practice of lucid dreaming. It will also touch on clinical applications and how some researchers and clinicians are using lucid dreaming therapy (LDT) to help individuals overcome PTSD and other mental health issues.
What is lucid dreaming?
Lucid dreaming is when you become conscious in your dreams – or a dream in which you know you are dreaming. When you have awareness within a dream, you can then interact with and direct your dream at will. What many don’t realise is that lucid dreaming has the potential to be used as a therapeutic approach.
Many have used lucid dreaming as a way to support their wellbeing. It can be used to develop a skill, find creative inspiration, or just for fun. Individuals use lucid dreaming to mine for creative ideas or as a way to heal their inner child, support grief or overcome a phobia.
We sleep for a third of our lives, and so, lucid dreaming is smart way to explore our inner world. It’s becoming an increasingly mainstream subject that many therapists are embracing. It’s an inspiring and empowering tool that can be taught to clients and used in between sessions or as an ongoing self-support tool.
What will I learn at the workshop?
- What is a lucid dream and how this differs to a vivid dream or an out of body experience.
- The psychological benefits of lucid dreaming.
- How lucid dreaming can support nightmares or anxiety dreams.
- The different sleep states that can be used to support psychological growth.
- The rise of lucid dreaming therapy (LDT) and how lucid dreaming can be applied clinically.
- Some tools and techniques to help you start exploring your own lucid dreaming practise.
Who is This Workshop Appropriate For?
- Everyone – counsellors, therapists and coaches (qualified and trainees)
How May This Workshop Impact Your Practice?
- This workshop may inspire new ways of working. It could lead to deeper explorations into dream work and perhaps ever further study into lucid dreaming and how this can be applied clinically.
Course Content
Presenter
Leah Larwood is a lucid dreamer and shadow worker by night, and a UKCP gestalt psychotherapist in advanced training by day. She’s a qualified mindfulness teacher and training to be a certified poetry therapist.
She’s also a freelance wellbeing writer and contributor to Breathe, Psychology Now, Red mag, Natural Health and Female First. She is currently working on her first poetry collection about dreams, sleep and the unconscious – out autumn 2024.
