Thread: I am really doing something wrong, but what?

Originally Posted by Iriba

What if i am dreaming right now?
*rubs hands around 30 seconds*
Where am i?
*Answer in my mind*
What am i doing here?
*Answer in my mind*
What was i doing 15 minutes ago?
*Answer in my mind*
Why am i here?
*Answer in my mind*
how did i get here?
*Answer in my mind*
Does the stuff around me look normal?
*I look around my surroundings, and wonder if this is really a dream*
*After some minutes*
*Reality checks*


That's how i do ADA

Alright, I can see the outline of your practice is very good actually. Still, if you don't mind, I would like to offer some points that could make your practice a lot more efficient and effective. First things first, the questions you ask are great as they require you to think for the answer. When searching for ways to reality check, it's best if we choose questions that don't allow for yes or no answers. These questions: "What am I doing here?, What was I doing 15 minutes ago?, How did I get here?" are spot on. The problem I see with the overall design of your practice is that it appears to take a long time to do it. Think about it, you don't really need to think for long hours in order to effectively assess reality and get you lucid. Just one of these are enough to trigger lucidity. So, what you could do is throw out all the unnecessary stuff to make your practice much more concise and practical.

Say, choose one out of any of these three questions:

• What am I doing here?
• What was I doing 15 minutes ago?
• How did I get here?

After answering your question, you could add in a reality check (whichever you prefer) to confirm whether you're dreaming or not. With this, you can cut off minutes of unnecessary hassle in your practice. With this outline, you could probably finish the thing within 30 seconds or less.

Now, I have to agree with FryingMan here in that 20 reality checks a day isn't a lot. Still, increasing the number of times you do the checks just for the sake of doing more isn't recommended either. Remember, the purpose with this is to get you more aware, to cultivate a state of mind in awareness. So, you should use the technique whenever you find yourself distracted, whenever awareness is lost. This practice will be your center point, your support for bringing back awareness to you whenever it is lost. Yes, at the beginning you may feel as if the practice is too much for you to handle. If you persist, in time you will see yourself remaining more aware of what's happening around you. Remember, the objective is to remain aware without the need of the technique. The technique is only there for use if you ever lose awareness.

This is really a variation of your own practice, refined, that could provide a more effective way to get you lucid. Should you choose to follow it, I want you to remember this valuable piece of advise:

1. Patience is decisive for acquiring success with this method, or any other method you decide to follow.
2. Action is the bedrock for reaching success, not motivation. Motivation comes in second, action is first.