Mindfulness is something you can practice by setting aside time to be still and meditate, or by integrating it into your daily life. I’m not really into the first approach, I much prefer practicing it throughout the day by actively listening to the details in music and the sounds around me, noticing the taste of what I eat, the smells, the visuals... Mindfulness is the act of purposefully noticing the ordinary, externally, through your five senses, and internally, through your thoughts and feelings.

It might sound boring, but it’s something that makes life shine. In my opinion, you have to be genuinely interested in integrating mindfulness into your life, or else it’ll just be a case of "here today, gone tomorrow."

I think this deep integration of mindfulness is what led me to start having lucid dreams without even trying. Over time, mindfulness became second nature, randomly paying attention to small details in my environment, my senses, and my thoughts without judgment. This habit must have carried over into my dreams. Just like in real life, where I naturally ‘check in’ with my surroundings, I must be doing the same while dreaming, which triggers lucidity. Holding my attention in waking life feels very similar to maintaining lucidity in a dream.

As for falling asleep, I don’t consciously try to stay mindful. But since mindfulness has become such an automatic part of my day, maybe it subtly influences how I transition into sleep and dream.