Thread: Just an observation about what triggers lucidity for me

I went through my lucid dreams recently (55 total) and reviewed what triggered me to do a reality check or triggered lucidity without a RC. I was attempting to categorize them so I could work on what to recognize while dreaming, thereby increasing my chance of attaining lucidity.

I ended up with 2 major categories:
1.Doing a RC or attaining lucidity based on things I’ve learned about lucid dreaming.
Doing a RC out of habit
Recognized I was dreaming based on the feeling of a dream
Recognizing a dream sign
Remembering I was awake moments before
2.Doing a RC or attaining lucidity based on an emotional response to an event (“WTF!” moments).
Event – something that is impossible or defies logic (My wife is flying)
Event – seeing something that I know isn’t correct (I look in the mirror and I have perfect abs)
Event – highly improbable (finding a bunch of money on the ground)

For the first category makes up 16% of my LDs. The second category makes up 84% of my LDs. So for a DILD (Dream Induced Lucid Dream) it appears to me that a reasonably strong emotional response stands a better chance of triggering a reality check/lucidity than just a habit. The trick is to actually have that emotional response to an event. I have many events that should be WTF moments in my normal dreams, and due to dream logic I have very little emotional response.

Currently I am working on making RCs into a strong habit and hoping it transfers to my dream life. I may also have to try to pay more attention to my emotional state, and do reality checks when have, even small, WTF moments.

That's the funny thing about RCs. They only work on an "instinctual" level, and you're not lucid until after you perform them. So you have to hope the habit transfers into the dream. But seeing as how the chances widely vary, I never rely on it.

Better to use intent, is what I say. I think it's more likely you'll have a dream related to your intentions, than a random dream which may give you the chance to do a RC. But you have to be convinced your intentions actually influence your dreams, otherwise your mind takes it as an empty suggestion.

Originally Posted by Tygar

The second category makes up 84% of my LDs. So for a DILD (Dream Induced Lucid Dream) it appears to me that a reasonably strong emotional response stands a better chance of triggering a reality check/lucidity than just a habit. The trick is to actually have that emotional response to an event. I have many events that should be WTF moments in my normal dreams, and due to dream logic I have very little emotional response.

Currently I am working on making RCs into a strong habit and hoping it transfers to my dream life. I may also have to try to pay more attention to my emotional state, and do reality checks when have, even small, WTF moments.

Yes. Absolutely. The emotions that we put into RCing, and most importantly, the "wow, this could be a dream" moment (you call it the 'wtf moment") is what gives us tiny bit of awareness in a regular dream and that triggers the RC.

RCs are important, but they are mostly just a vehicle, something to attach the wow moment to. And for many, RCs also confirm lucidity. Asking the awareness question, that startling moment, believing that we are indeed in a dream, RC and believing that RC will work, because we are in a dream, and mantra (setting intent) "next time I'm dreaming I look at my hands and realize I'm dreaming [or insert your own RC here] is one whole package. When done correctly, it works wonders.

Originally Posted by gab

Yes. Absolutely. The emotions that we put into RCing, and most importantly, the "wow, this could be a dream" moment (you call it the 'wtf moment") is what gives us tiny bit of awareness in a regular dream and that triggers the RC.

RCs are important, but they are mostly just a vehicle, something to attach the wow moment to. And for many, RCs also confirm lucidity. Asking the awareness question, that startling moment, believing that we are indeed in a dream, RC and believing that RC will work, because we are in a dream, and mantra (setting intent) "next time I'm dreaming I look at my hands and realize I'm dreaming [or insert your own RC here] is one whole package. When done correctly, it works wonders.

Very well said.