So true. That's how we have come so far, but lost on where to go next.
In the martial arts world, meditation is used to raise awareness and focus and to help plan ahead fight scenarios in a meditative state. It took me a while to figure out that more experienced "masters" usually are able to dream lucid in their medidative state.
It helped me a _lot_ when I was younger. The perceived social influences still cannot be blocked out sometimes when I'm not well but at least I am not freaking out anymore when there's an untidy object in the room.