What does 'lucid dreaming' actually mean?

[chalkeypenny]

Ok, so I know this prob seems like a daft question but being relativly new to this whole dream analyzing thing, I think its valid.

What exactly are lucid dreams, and how are you supposed to enduce them?
Does it just mean that the dreams are really vivid and you remember them easily or something else.

I dream every night and almost every morning i remember them in great detail, some even stay with me for weeks, and a few for years at a time, especially the re-occuring ones.

Alot of the dreams are extremly weird, detailed and even terrifying but as a huge scary movie fan I'm seldom frightened by them. Am I lucky to have such bizzare clear dreams?

[idgy]

Hello Chalkeypenny,
Lucid dreams are where you are in a dream, but know that you are dreaming. For example you may find yourself falling, but realise it is a dream and therefore start flying instead.

You can induce this by telling yourself during the day that 'it's only a dream', and intend to know when you are dreaming. It takes a lot of practice, but if you have really vivid dreams already it may be easy for you. When you become lucid, look at your hand.