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Galantamine

Lucid Dreaming’s Holy Grail?

imagehen it comes to specifically improving the experience of lucid dreams, galantamine is far and away the most effective supplement. This powerful compound is still fairly new to the medical community and unknown to many laypeople, so it merits its own chapter.

WHAT IS GALANTAMINE?

Galantamine can be produced from the extract of the common snowdrop (Galanthus nivalis), the red spider lily (Lycoris radiata), other snowdrop varieties, or synthetically. It relieves cognitive dysfunction by increasing levels of acetylcholine, the neurotransmitter involved in memory formation, not only in waking life but also in sleep. Since its discovery in 1947, galantamine has been used primarily to treat Alzheimer’s disease. In recent years it’s also been used as a supplement to enhance general memory and dream recall.

GALANTAMINE IN LUCID DREAMING

It’s hard to say exactly when or how galantamine first started to be used in lucid dreaming, but we can definitively say that it has rapidly gained in popularity among the oneironaut community. Thomas Yuschak wrote about galantamine and its powerful effects in his 2006 book Advanced Lucid Dreaming: The Power of Supplements. More recently, the professional research community has begun to rally around galantamine as the possible gold standard of lucid dreaming supplements.

In August 2018, Sparrow and his researchers published an article in the journal Consciousness and Cognition showing that galantamine is about 50 percent more likely to induce a lucid dreaming experience in an individual than any other statistically significant lucid dreaming system. A second article, by LaBerge and his research team and also published in 2018, supported these findings.

Because galantamine was effective not only in increasing users’ chances of having a lucid dream but also improved—by 50 percent—the likelihood of having a lucid dream regardless of the technique used, it would appear that the chemical effect of increased acetylcholine and glutamate levels in the brain may be a more reliable determinant of lucid dreams than the techniques we might use to encourage them.

GALANTAMINE DREAMS

The power of galantamine to induce lucid dreams is clear; however, what we don’t fully understand is how galantamine might affect dream content or quality. Those who use galantamine describe their dreams as more vivid, longer lasting, and more bizarre. Users also report that galantamine can induce the sensation of leaving the body and produce a more conscious transition from waking to dreaming while using the WBTB method. Additionally, so-called false wakings, or waking up in a dream over and over again, have been associated with galantamine use. For example, after a four-milligram dose of galantamine in combination with WBTB:

Feeling lucid and aware, I travel outside my window and find myself waking up but soon realize it’s another dream. After some time, I wake up again, only to realize it’s another dream. I become aware again that I’m dreaming, yell at the sky that I want to wake up now, and finally awake in reality.

It’s also common to feel galantamine’s effects for several days after using it. You may also experience a delayed response, seeing little impact the night that you take galantamine but experiencing vivid lucid dreams the next day. Considering that its effects vary from person to person, its overall fast-acting quality, and its powerful ability to elicit lucid dreams, galantamine should be used with care and respect.

SIDE EFFECTS OF USING GALANTAMINE

Though many people claim that galantamine is safe for everyone to use, this is not true.

As stated before, galantamine is a serious medication and should be taken only by those who understand the risks. Some common side effects include:

Symptoms of overdose include confusion, irregular breathing, severe nausea and cramping, sweating, tearing in the eyes, and muscle twitches. Seek medical attention immediately if you experience any of these. The FDA provides an excellent overview of the many potential adverse effects of galantamine. Take time to read it so that you can make an informed decision.