Once your body starts entering the REM sleep stage and your mind is still conscious, you will have the ability to control your dreams. If you have lucid dreams, or engage in astral projection, you need not worry about nightmares as you can turn a bad dream into a good one. You can also have fun using the power of your brain as lucid-dreaming can make you fly in your dream, go someplace magical, and so on, which you cannot really do when you are awake. Here are some of the basic lucid dreaming techniques that must be done by people who wish to experience astral travel or 'dreaming lucidly':

1. Positive thinking is important

If you think negatively e.g. you don't believe the above mentioned process is possible, it will really be impossible for you to control your dreams. You have to believe that you can really dream in a lucid manner if your goal is to have lucid dreams. In the event you don't believe or you only have a weak belief system, you must strengthen your belief or make the necessary changes.

2. Increase your 'power of recollection or recall'

A power of your brain that you should make use of and is part of lucid dreaming techniques is easy recall. You have to remember what took place in the dreams you had if you wish to eventually take control of dreaming. Some people find this easy, but, if you are one of those people who don't, and you really desire to control your dreams, do not worry. There are some tips and tricks you can try to increase your recalling ability or skill.

If you wish to have lucid dreams, for instance, you have to think about whether you dreamt or not as soon as you wake up. Do not immediately think about what you're going to do for work, or what you'll say to a friend, and so on, as soon as you've awaken. Instead, utilize the power of your brain for recalling dreams or for dream recollection by immediately asking yourself whether you were able to dream - if you did, think about the things that happened, who may be in the dream, what you were feeling, and so forth.

Included in the list of effective lucid dreaming techniques you can apply is to also try one sleeping position after another e.g. for instance, if you woke up sleeping sideways, remain in that position for a few seconds while trying to recall your dream, and then, if you still can't remember, switch positions e.g. lie in a supine position, and again, try remembering. Experts say that the actual positions you had while you were into REM sleep can help increase your memory of dream events.

3. Make a habit of keeping a journal of dreams

To have lucid dreams, another important technique is to keep a journal where you can jot down information about the dreams, what you remember, and the like. This can also help you see the pattern in dreams or make you more familiar with what you frequently dream about. Having a journal and writing pertinent information regularly in it will help improve your recall and of course help you find lucid-dreaming easier.

These are a few of the most important lucid dreaming techniques that should be employed by people who are interested in controlling dreams, having better dreams, etc.