Dream incubation

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Dream incubation is a technique in which an answer or solution to a personal question or a problem is incubated through a dream before going to bed (lat. Incubare “lie on”, “hatch”). The method is a modern version of temple sleep (enkoimesis) and is used therapeutically , spiritually or hedonistically to solve problems in modern times .

history

The dream incubation has a long history in the rituals of the shamans of the North American Indians in the form of the search for a vision . For the Anishinabe (Ojibwa) from the region around the Great Lakes (USA, Canada), dream incubation was not only used for healing, but also as a male transition ritual from child to adulthood. The initiated boy built a ritual nest alone in the wilderness, where he stayed and fasted until, in a dream , he acquired gifts or skills through the spirit world .

Asklepios with Zeus-like facial features (copy drawing)

Elements of dream incubation can also be found in the religious cults of ancient Greece. Back then, sick people visited temples or sanctuaries in order to experience illness diagnoses or healing by Asclepius (Aesculapius), the god of healing , or other gods of Greek mythology .

The practice of incubation can also be found in Islamic shrines in the form of the istichāra ( istiḫāra ). Here, a Muslim says certain supplications (Du'ā ') before going to sleep in the relevant sanctuary. Then during sleep he should receive divine guidance (رُؤْيَا / ru'ya , a dream sent by Allah ). Many Muslims use this method when making important life decisions, such as choosing a spouse or choosing a career. The rite is also expected to have beneficial effects for the person concerned.

Practice in modern times

Today, dream incubation is used in sleep research as well as in psychotherapy . Various therapy techniques and induction methods are described.

In a 1993 study at Harvard Medical School, Deirdre Barrett investigated William C. Dement's method of thinking about a specific problem for 15 minutes before going to bed. She made her students think about an unresolved homework or other objective problem for a week before going to bed. Barrett found that it was possible to develop new solutions during dreaming that were satisfactory for the dreamer as well as objectively assessable by an outside observer. In their study, two-thirds of participants had dreams that included chosen problems, with one-third finding a solution through the dreams. Solutions for personal problems were found rather than for problems of an academic or generally objective nature.

Ninety-six participants in a 2003 dream incubation study often reported reduced distress, greater problem solvability, and improved focus on their problem. The study also describes the difficulties in qualitatively measuring dream incubation. Gayle Delaney writes in Dream Incubation (2015) that it is easy to incubate a dream, but that interpretation is tedious and time-consuming for the therapist.

Furthermore, the Trauminkubation is for the discharge of lucid dreaming used. Stephen LaBerge , pioneer of clinical lucid dream research, describes in his book Exploring the World of Lucid Dreaming (1990) two techniques in which a lucid dreamer imagines a place or a person he wants to visit in order to induce a lucid dream with his intention. With this intention the lucid dreamer immediately lies down in his bed and maintains the intention, without admitting other thoughts, until he falls asleep. These methods are reminiscent of the so-called dream induced lucid dreaming , or DILD for short, techniques . Intention techniques to initiate lucid dreams emerged in a review by Stumbrys et al. (2012) as successful.

literature

  • Gayle Delaney: Dream Incubation. In: Milton Kramer, Myron L. Glucksman (Eds.): Dream Research: Contributions to Clinical Practice. 2015, ISBN 978-1-317-64580-1 , limited preview in Google Book Search.
  • Carl Alfred Meier: The Dream as Medicine: Ancient Incubation and Modern Psychotherapy. Daimon, Zurich 1985, ISBN 978-3-85630-017-3 , limited preview in the Google book search.

Web links

Wikibooks: Lucid Dream Techniques: Dream Incubation  - Learning and Teaching Materials

Individual evidence

  1. ^ A b c Gregory L. White, Laurel Taytroe: Personal Problem-Solving Using Dream Incubation: Dreaming, Relaxation, or Waking Cognition ?. In: Dreaming. 13, 2003, p. 193, doi : 10.1023 / B: DREM.0000003143.00133.1c .
  2. ^ A b c Henry Reed: Dream Incubation: a Reconstruction of a Ritual in Contemporary Form. In: Journal of Humanistic Psychology. 16, 1976, p. 53, doi : 10.1177 / 002216787601600405 .
  3. ↑ Ludwig Edelstein with Emma J. Edelstein: Asclepius: Collection and Interpretation of the Testimonies (1945)
  4. ↑ Elizabeth Sirriyeh: Dreams and Visions in the World of Islam. A History of Muslim Dreaming and Foreknowing. IB Tauris, London 2015. p. 1.
  5. ↑ Elizabeth Sirriyeh: Dreams and Visions in the World of Islam. A History of Muslim Dreaming and Foreknowing. IB Tauris, London 2015. pp. 159, 176f.
  6. ↑ LK Flowers: The use of presleep instructions and dreams in psychosomatic disorders. In: Psychotherapy and psychosomatics. Volume 64, Number 3-4, 1995, pp. 173-177, PMID 8657849 .
  7. ↑ Mark Blagrove: Dreams as the reflection of our waking concerns and abilities: A critique of the problem-solving paradigm in dream research. In: Dreaming. 2, 1992, p. 205, doi : 10.1037 / h0094361 .
  8. ↑ a b Gayle Delaney: Dream Incubation in Milton Kramer, Myron L. Glucksman (Ed.): Dream Research: Contributions to Clinical Practice. 2015, ISBN 978-1-317-64580-1 limited preview in Google Book Search
  9. ^ Stanley Krippner: Access to Hidden Reserves of the Unconscious Through Dreams in Creative Problem Solving. In: The Journal of Creative Behavior. 15, 1981, p. 11, doi : 10.1002 / j.2162-6057.1981.tb00270.x .
  10. ↑ Roberto Saredi, George W. Baylor, Barbara Meier, Inge Strauch: Current concerns and REM-dreams: A laboratory study of dream incubation. In: Dreaming. 7, 1997, p. 195, doi : 10.1037 / h0094474 .
  11. ^ John C. Houtz, Alan D. Frankel: Effects of incubation and imagery training on creativity. In: Creativity Research Journal. 5, 1992, p. 183, doi : 10.1080 / 10400419209534432 .
  12. ^ William C. Dement, Christopher C. Vaughan: The Promise of Sleep: A Pioneer in Sleep Medicine Explores the Vital Connection Between Health, Happiness, and a Good Night's Sleep. Dell Trade Paperback, 2000, ISBN 9780440509011 . limited preview in Google Book search
  13. ^ Deirdre Barrett: The Committee of Sleep: A study of dream incubation for problem solving. In: Dreaming. 3, 1993, p. 115, doi : 10.1037 / h0094375 .
  14. ↑ a b Stephen LaBerge , Howard Rheingold : Dreams what you want to dream - the art of lucid dreaming. MVG Verlag, 2014, ISBN 978-3-864-15663-2 limited preview in the Google book search
  15. ↑ T. Stumbrys, D. Erlacher, M. Schädlich, M. Schredl: Induction of lucid dreams: A systematic review of evidence. ( Memento from June 23, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) In: Consciousness and cognition. Volume 21, Number 3, September 2012, pp. 1456-1475, doi : 10.1016 / j.concog.2012.07.003 , PMID 22841958 (review).