# Sleep and Dreams > General Dream Discussion >  >  How long do dreams last

## lucidreamsavy

Some places I've read that dreams last 7 seconds, others up to 15 min, another said a dream can last up to 90 min.  Anyone know?

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## yuriythebest

depends on the person, his skill, and also on how he perceives/counts time.  You can practice stabilization techniques to increase dream length and vividness

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## Falsn

It varys and it's different for each person. It's up to you.

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## MrFantasy

the common belief used to be that all dreams lasted for only one or two seconds before we woke up, but we now know that they can last anywhere from a few moments to almost an hour or more (but probably not that long unless you deliberately prolong them).

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## lucidreamsavy

> the common belief used to be that all dreams lasted for only one or two seconds before we woke up, but we now know that they can last anywhere from a few moments to almost an hour or more (but probably not that long unless you deliberately prolong them).



Thank you for that answer. It was satisfying.

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## inyourdreams

Scientifically, the longest it is possible to be in a dream is one hour, I think.

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## patrick45

_





 Originally Posted by MrFantasy


the common belief used to be that all dreams lasted for only one or two seconds before we woke up, but we now know that they can last anywhere from a few moments to almost an hour or more (but probably not that long unless you deliberately prolong them).



 With me, all my dreams happen at the same time, my dreams switch from one to the other, and it goes on like that for what seems like 2 hours, and it's still like that when im lucid, except the dreams arent switching between each other and I am in control, so I dont know if that is true or not..._

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## Icarus22

> With me, all my dreams happen at the same time, my dreams switch from one to the other, and it goes on like that for what seems like 2 hours, and it's still like that when im lucid, except the dreams arent switching between each other and I am in control, so I dont know if that is true or not...



I'm the exact same way.

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## acillis

as long as you remember them, you take them with you for all time :wink2:

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## The Cusp

Dreams last as long as you are asleep.  From the moment HI starts and to when normal dreaming begins, your mind is never blank.

You don't have multiple dreams either, unless you wake up in between.  If you remember multiple dreams, it's because you can't remember the parts that link them all together.  As long as your sleep is undisturbed, you experience one long dream, each new part influenced by the preceding part.

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## moonshine

Generally we experience a total of 2 hrs REM sleep a night.

The last, longest REM period can last up to an hour.

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## moonshine

> Dreams last as long as you are asleep.  From the moment HI starts and to when normal dreaming begins, your mind is never blank.
> 
> You don't have multiple dreams either, unless you wake up in between.  If you remember multiple dreams, it's because you can't remember the parts that link them all together.  As long as your sleep is undisturbed, you experience one long dream, each new part influenced by the preceding part.



Not sure about that. 

Yes we go through various stages of NREM Sleep, and there is evidence that we dream during - at least some periods - of NREM. 

But these aren't like REM Dreams (meaning dreams as commonly understood).

NREM dreams are more like deep thought or daydreaming whilst awake.  
We do not inhabit the dreams.

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## The Cusp

I'm quite sure there is no discernable difference between REM dreams and NREM dreams.  This is evident in the earliest stages of sleep.

REM doesn't generally occur until 90 minutes into sleep.  Sometimes at 15-20 minutes which is considered a sign of narcolepsy.

WILDing just wouldn't work if NREM dreams were different.  Of all the WILDing accounts on this site, not a single one has mentioned anything different about the dream.  These dreamers are all full fledged participants in the dream.

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## moonshine

> I'm quite sure there is no discernable difference between REM dreams and NREM dreams.  This is evident in the earliest stages of sleep.
> 
> REM doesn't generally occur until 90 minutes into sleep.  Sometimes at 15-20 minutes which is considered a sign of narcolepsy.
> 
> WILDing just wouldn't work if NREM dreams were different.  Of all the WILDing accounts on this site, not a single one has mentioned anything different about the dream.  These dreamers are all full fledged participants in the dream.



I'd have to say your wrong in this. NREM dreams have been investigated by Scientists, which is where I draw my understanding from.

In relation to WILDS, it is notoriously difficult to WILD at the start of the night. Most attempts succeed in the morning when you can fall asleep and almost instantly enter REM. 

Besides, do you think that the meditation, focus and progression through hypnogogic imagery might ultimately see you moving through NREM?

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## The Cusp

> I'd have to say your wrong in this. NREM dreams have been investigated by Scientists, which is where I draw my understanding from.



Could you be more precise on your premise as to what happens in NREM dreams?  I was basing my arguments on what you said here:





> NREM dreams are more like deep thought or daydreaming whilst awake. We do not inhabit the dreams.



I just looked up the characteristics of NREM sleep, and your precious science seems to differ a great deal from that statement.

NREM dreams are characterized by low emotional states, limited social interactions, and lack of aggression in both the dreamer and the DCs, among other things.  Nowhere does it say that these are lesser dreams that you aren't a part of.  But even those characteristics are not absolute, as the both REM and NREM dreams are influenced by the preceding parts of the dream.
http://www.carlos-m.net/2005/03/24/d...nd-nrem-sleep/

The scientific literature suggests NREM is indeed a full dream.

Perhaps you are confusing REM/NREM dreams with Left Brain/Right Brain dreams, which has more to do with sleeping position than REM phases.

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## moonshine

http://ajpregu.physiology.org/cgi/re...466.2001v1.pdf





> the present report systematically documents epochs of muscle atonia
> in NREM sleep (MAN). Although their most frequent occurrence is in proximity to REM sleep, they are present throughout a NREM sleep episode. This gives rise to a Ushaped pattern. The present observations are in accordance with previous reports that epochs with a low EMG level occur in the part of the NREM sleep that precedes and follows REM sleep (4, 5, 12). These findings indicate that a REM sleep episode is not sharply delimited but that it has antecedents during NREM sleep and that it vanishes gradually in the succeeding NREM sleep episode.



Would seem to suggest that there is a cross over period between NREM to REM.

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## Lady Grimbones

> Some places I've read that dreams last 7 seconds, others up to 15 min, another said a dream can last up to 90 min.  Anyone know?



It DOESN'T depend on the viewer. It is how long you have been asleep. IT IS A SCIENTIFIC FACT that REM periods get longer as the night progresses. The first REM might not last but a few minutes but as the night progresses the REM's get LONGER and the time in between them GETS SHORTER. So the last dream could be up to an hour. And the longer you sleep, the longer your REMs.

Read Stephen LaBerge's book Exploring The World Of Lucid Dreaming, it has the whole pattern in it and should answer all your questions. 

 ::roll::

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