Dream BIG and Remember Them

We all know that intense aggravation. You go to sleep, dream up this fantastic fantasy, and when the blaring of your alarm snaps you from your imaginative heaven⁠—BOOM⁠—you wake up and immediately that glorious storyline or character drifts from your mind. You may still hold onto a fuzzy inclination, but other than that, it's gone. You might as well have forgotten it entirely because that taste, that glint of inspiration still lingers. At this point, you're probably wondering how do you find a solution so you might satisfy your creative craving, let me guide you through a few different methods of retaining dreams that I have found useful.

1. Keeping a Dream Journal

So, this is one of the most effective ways to maintain memory and ideas from dreams. The best way I've found is to keep a journal next to your bed with a colorful or silky pen. When you choose your journal, you want to feel like you will have fun writing in it, so keep it fun and use a pen that feels good in your hands—I prefer a colorful set of gell pens. Next, you may want to consider purchasing a dream journal with blank paper instead of lined. This might just be me being slightly obsessive-compulsive, but with lined paper, I have difficulty expressing myself freely, like when drawing outside the lines. As for keeping the journal, remember that dreams are, indeed, quite abstract, so don't feel like you have to use your words all the time. When beginning the process, you could only remember brief images of fuzzy feelings. After you wake up, don't jump out of bed immediately; instead, come to a waking state smoothly and calmly. Meditate for a moment about the dream. Additionally, as you begin to drift asleep the night before, repeat to yourself, "I want to remember my dreams," and focus on that thought. We often don't remember our dreams because we don't focus on doing so. When you wake up, reach for your journal and try to write something that you remember, if you can't remember anything take note of any feelings you have and other states you woke up in and remember to date it. Write down your thoughts, feelings, emotions, images, storylines, sensations, colors, or anything you can remember about your dreams. Was there anyone you know there? What was the main point? Do you remember abstract feelings? Sometimes it takes a while to stimulate the mind, and it may be some time until you actually parse out an entire dream. The "entire dream" may be quite relative as well because we often dream in fragments, and only later does our mind stitch the pieces together when we wake up. Also, don't make the mistake of assigning meaning to dreams that may be negative or weird. Practice recognition and letting go. Another benefit of keeping a dream journal is actually lucid dreaming, which is a different goal, but very fun.

2. Practicing Memory Exercises

Not only will playing memory games increase your overall memory, aptitude, and vocabulary, but it will also help you remember your dreams. Also, they're quite fun and engaging. Anytime you have a few minutes to spare and are bored, instead of hopping on YouTube, try to stimulate your brain and memory. You can get several apps on your phone or resort to games like chess or crossword puzzles.

3. Maximize REM Sleep

Our dreams mostly occur during REM sleep, which I'm sure most of you know. However, not everyone has the same amount of REM sleep, and we actually can increase our REM sleep through several methods. First, getting a lot of exercise, though not directly before bed, can make us fall asleep more quickly and can increase REM sleep. Another trick is to schedule when we will go to bed and wake up so that we get that optimum 7-9 hours of sleep. Another trick for remembering dreams is waking up directly after REM sleep ends. A method for this is drinking three big glasses of water before bed, which will most likely cause you to get up at night to use the restroom. However, if this seems like an annoyance (which let's be honest it is), then try to increase exercise and sleep.

4. Changing Frequency and Intensity of Alarms

There is nothing more I hate than my alarm, and sometimes waking up with that animosity can distract my focus from my dreams. Try changing an intense alarm to soft, natural sounds that will wake you up more slowly. Decreasing the shock of a sudden change of consciousness can help your mind fade smoothly between dreams and reality. Also, you can set multiple alarms that are close in time to wale you up more slowly. The rational changes from, "Oh, I have to wake up now," to, "I have three more alarms after this."

5. Down Time Before Bed

In this increasingly technological age, we often lose track of all our time spent on electronics. And it is the habit of many to watch television or check Facebook before bed. However, looking at a bright screen can drastically alter your sleep schedule, making it longer to fall asleep. Instead, allow yourself at least twenty minutes to meditate about dreaming before you fall asleep. Ignore distractions and limit screen time. Not only should you eliminate looking at a screen before bed, but eating before bed can also affect your sleep and overall health.