breathing...

Ugh. You guys ever read in LaBerge's EWLD about how in REM sleep we no longer get external sensory input and use only internal sensory (our brain)? Well before I read that I used to be able to WILD without thinking about the feelings on my body but after reading it I can't seem to get my mind off of even the most subtle feelings. Like when I'm attempting WILD, I keep thinking about the feeling of air passing through my neck or voluntarily breathing when I should really let my mind do it on its own. It's really hard to keep my mind off them and if I do, I suddenly remember them again and on goes the cycle, soon I get frustrated and give up or fall asleep.

Has anyone had this problem and gotten over it somehow? Please help.

Nope, not too bad, but of course, I didn't know how to WILD before.

It IS quite difficult to keep from being distracted by all the sensations and takes practice to get over them. You almost have to have the attitude of:
"Oh, that again, i'll just ignore it"

yeah I used to do that, I would always think about doing the WILD right and not let my mind go, then I found that theres only 2 very simple rules to follow and got over it

(also I like your sig :D im a big smallville fan)

Thats a problem I have. I always focus on my breathing. I am not sure how you ever did a WILD without thinking about a single thing though. Seems to me you would fall asleep very fast.

Quote:

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Originally posted by Seeker
You almost have to have the attitude of:
\"Oh, that again, i'll just ignore it\"

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So true! That attitude granted me quite a few WILDs.

And I do have a problem with me trying to keep calm and control my breathing... That makes WILD onset subside :(
So far I dont have an effective way of overcoming it, and it ruined at least 40% of all my WILDs :(

Thanks for the replies guys. Seeker, I will try practicing with that mindset and see if it helps. and yup, I'm a big smallville fan as well

Maybe all lucid dreamers have on thing in common: We like Smallville.. :-P

But now seriouslly: I also get worried if I will or not die by not breathing properly. If you see the akward positions you pose in the middle of the night, head under pillow, arm over nose, facing the bed...

I think we won't die that easily. The thing is... we think that because we are aware of our breathing, the brain will say: it's up to you to take care of this body right now..., I will not intervene, and we assume that we have to watch our breathing.

I would think like this: If things get real bad, I will feel it. If I didn't notice it, it is because I'm away and the brain will signalize me that I'm dieing out of breath and will wake me up.

The point is... DON'T GET WORRIED ABOUT IT, and if you die, so be it... hehe

Heh, yeah I get what you mean but dying isn't what I'm worried about. It just the sensation of breathing that gets in the way of WILD'ing. Thanks for your input though.

I was trying to WILD today in an afternoon nap and I had the same problem. I was bothered by my breathing and had that same feeling like I have to control my breathing, cuz I dont do it, nobody will. It's very distracting. Anyway, I suddenly thought: "Crap, it seems like I'll never fall asleep". So I stopped the counting and the "I'm dreaming" and suddenly I woke up from a dream and realized that I had fell asleep without counting :?

I also have trouble not getting involved with my HI. For example, in my WILD attempt today, I was like inside a huge bubble that was floating inside a theatre full of people and I was always like trying to be part of what was happening and I had to constantly remind myself that I should be a passive observer.

heh, i guess the whole reason i've been so good with WILD lately is that i'm a bum.. I just don't care about so many things, so anything i do feel, I just have the idle thought "screw it", and oddly enough, it doesn't bother me.

Ohemgee, this has made me set a avatar and siggy set that I'd made for a different forum as mine on this forum. >>

I don't really notice my breathing when I'm WILDing. o_o;

Meh.. >> :coughs: GO SMALLVILLE.