5-HTP and Lucid Dreaming.
More frequent, vivid, and memorable dreams. The 5-HTP and lucid dreaming connection is clear!
More Vivid Dreams
5-HTP helps you have clearer, more vivid, more memorable dreams, all keys to seeing your signs and entering a lucid dream! Our favorite product for vivid dreams is Nutricost given its high potency and multiple choices for amounts that make it cost effective.
More Dreams Overall
5-HTP may help you have more frequent dreams, and more this increases your chances of lucidity! Our favorite brand of 5-HTP for more dreams is MULA brand, which has added herbals that promote solid sleep and thus more regulated REM cycles.
Other health benefits
5-HTP has been reported to have other health benefits beyond dreaming. Check with your provider about this. Our favorite 5-HTP formula for lucid dreams and overall health is Dr. Emil, with powerful and proven added ingredients such as SAM-e.
Excellent overall approach
5-HTP and Lucid Dreaming Overview
5-HTP for lucid dreaming can be a safe and natural approach. This supplement is a natural home remedy that is often taken by people who want to reduce depression or anxiety or lose weight. It is quite popular, therefore, and it’s not surprising that people have reported other effects as well. In this case we focus on an the 5-HTP and lucid dreaming connection, since it seems to promote more vivid dreams, a longer REM cycle, and a greater ability to remember each dream.
As with most lucid dreaming supplements, none of this necessarily directly leads to lucid dreams, but all of these do increase the likelihood of achieving dream control. Can this one be your best lucid dream supplement? It may be worth a try.
about 5-HTP
5-HTP and Lucid Dreaming
5-HTP’s longer name is 5-Hydroxytryptophan. It is derived from the seeds of a tree called Griffonia simplicifolia that most commonly grows in Africa. The active ingredient in 5-Hydroxytryptophan is a precursor to the brain chemical called serotonin which not surprisingly has been linked to mood, sleep and appetite – and thus the usual uses listed above. What people believe that the 5-HTP and lucid dreaming connection involves creating the right chemistry in your head to make more serotonin – though some would argue that all it does is make sure those with a deficit in serotonin have as much as they should.
The science
5-HTP and Lucid Dreams
5-HTP and Lucid Dreaming Effects
With regard to dreams, serotonin levels have long been linked with dream vividness and length. One theory holds that the reason for this is that serotonin inhibits dreams in the early sleep cycle, thus increasing dreaming later in the night. Of course, this also helps explain why those who take 5-HTP for lucid dreaming also seem to remember more dreams – not only are they more vivid but they are also taking place closer to the time the person is waking up. If you lack serotonin, you may be having fewer dreams during this prime time, and perhaps even if you have enough serotonin the 5 HTP and lucid dreaming connection can help you have even more and an even greater effect.
Of course the major question on the mind of anyone who is thinking of lucid dreaming supplements is whether 5-Hydroxytryptophan has any direct effect on the ability and chances to have dream control. Some have said that it actually does have an effect that makes a person much more directly prone to lucid dreams, somehow setting up the perfect dream environment to produce awareness. This potential is hard to quantify and the most we are willing to conclude is that 5-HTP and lucid dreams are connected because the supplement effectively sets the scene to give you the best chance for dream control if you follow good lucid dreaming techniques and are patient and diligent.
Using 5-HTP for Lucid Dreaming
To determine whether there might be a 5-HTP and lucid dreaming connection for you, we suggest you start with a low dose and work your way up by changing the dose every two weeks. This likely means starting with 200mg. Your 5-HTP bottle may suggest you divide the daily dose into two or three equal doses. That is a good idea if you tend to experience nausea. Ensure at least one of your doses each day is in the evening.
While you should always check with your doctor before taking any of the lucid dreaming supplements we cover here, we do want to mention a specific interaction effect with 5-Hydroxytryptophan – do not take this supplement if you are on a prescription medication that is designed to give you more serotonin.
5-HTP and Lucid Dreaming Cautions
One caution about 5-HTP for lucid dreaming is that some people have reported that the effects of this supplement fade after a while, and eventually, it stops changing your dreams. However, some do not have this problem, so whether this is universal is unclear. It is certainly possible that with almost any supplement, we eventually adapt and side effects – even positive ones – fade, so this could be the case. It is likely that if 5-HTP for lucid dreaming does stop working for you, you could merely take a break and come back to it. Perhaps this would open the door for other possibilities, such as Calea-Z and Galantamine.
What cannot be debated is that this herbal remedy seems to set the stage for many people’s best chance at dream control. It has been used long enough for other reasons to be considered safe for many people. Like many different supplements, you should check with your doctor if you have any medical conditions, are on prescription medication of any kind, are pregnant, or are nursing. In particular, you should not take 5-Hydroxytryptophan if you are on any other supplement or prescription medication that affects serotonin.
5-HTP and Dreams
Some people have reported 5-HTP nightmares along with all of the positive effects we’ve previously listed. Whether 5-HTP nightmares are produced because of the supplement or whether they are just a product of remembering more dreams and having them be more vivid is unclear. If you are prone to nightmares, you may want to be a little cautious. Of course, at The Lucid Dreaming Center, we talk a lot about “passive lucid dreams,” where you purposely choose to stay passive and watch what unfolds. This can be a great strategy even for scary dreams – you can learn about yourself from all kind of dream experiences.
You can find more information about 5-HTP at rxlist, and Dream Studies goes over 5-HTP’s effects on dreams. Also, don’t forget to look at our more general pages to find the best lucid dreaming supplement for you, including our lucid dreaming pills overview and our blog.
Our Favorite
5-HTP and Lucid Dreaming
The top choice
Thorne 5
Powerful and specifically formulated for sleep!